Bipartisanship: a false solution
To resist and heal bifurcation, we need to step outside the dualistic, zero-sum framework of bipartisanship, and reach for transformation.
Dear friends: Another lovely summer weekend here. The university I teach for is hosting its virtual commencement ceremonies; I wonder about the world into which these graduates are bringing their hard-won knowledge, skills, and abilities.
We are witnessing a bifurcation of society that is both dangerous and preventable. It is tempting to see something like “bipartisanship” as the solution.
It’s not, however, and here’s why.
We see a rapidly expanding gulf between most folk who work hard to get by, and the very wealthy; between most folk who want to participate in voting, and their access to the ballot box; between most folk and their access to basic health care, good jobs, a safe natural environment. Solidifying this gulf, in order to preserve the wealth and power of a few, creates ripe conditions for oligarchy and autocracy. The powerful few throw accusations of “sowing division” at those who describe the growing gulf, who provide data to show how fast the gulf is expanding.
Division does not spring from truth. It comes from the belief that there are worthy people and unworthy people, and consequent actions taken to preserve the privilege of the worthy and exclude the unworthy.
Bipartisanship is a transactional exchange in a zero-sum framework: you get some of what you want, I get some of what I want, no one gets it all. Worse, it presumes there are two, and only two, positions on issues, because there are only two major parties. Compromise dominates; when compromise fails, we are left with competition, accommodation, or avoidance. There is no bigger framework in which to foster the collaboration or transformation we desperately need.
To resist and heal bifurcation, we need to step outside the dualistic, zero-sum framework of bipartisanship. We need to stop rearranging the deck chairs and raise our gaze to the iceberg ahead.
Expanding access to the vote, eliminating gerrymandering, bringing dark money to light, and fighting corruption are practices with the potential to bring people together. This is how we protect the core value of any democracy: the belief that the voice of the people shall not be obliterated by wealth or power, and, most importantly, that every person is worthy of inclusion in the decisions of its governments.
Every student graduating across our country is worthy of inclusion, and brings something to offer our communities. So do the folk on learning paths that don’t involve formal commencements. So do the elders who look back on their school and work years. So do the newly arrived on our shores, and those who find themselves afraid of the changes around them, and those who disagree with everything I’ve written. We all have something to offer, and true democracy values all of us, regardless of party or wealth.
Happy commencement season, and be well.