“It also forces us to do something that maybe isn’t our first instinct; that is, rather than to insist on our way, it forces us to build consensus, which is actually a good thing when we are talking about the American people”, said Senator Cornyn.
On December 7, 2014 Senator Cornyn of Texas asked for and was granted permission to address the United States Senate for a few moments to discuss the subject of gridlock in government and how this isn’t necessarily a bad thing:
The truth is I suspect the American people like divided government because they realize it is another layer of checks and balances on what happens up here in Washington, DC, which are very important to making sure we get things done right and give it the kind of deliberation and thoughtful consideration they deserve, particularly if we are talking about legislating for a country of about 320 million people or so.
It also forces us to do something that maybe isn’t our first instinct; that is, rather than to insist on our way, it forces us to build consensus, which is actually a good thing when we are talking about the American people.
So what has it given us in the recent past? It has given us a Republican President and a Democratic House that worked together on Social Security reform in 1983 and tax reform in 1986. Several years ago it was another Republican President and a fully Democratic Congress that worked together on landmark disability and environmental laws. In the mid-1990s, it was a Democratic President and a Republican Congress that worked together on welfare reform and balanced the budget.
This is what can happen when we have divided government and the willingness of the President and the Congress to work together to try to solve problems. We can actually do hard things–things that we could never do with a purely one-party government or the other.
Then in 2001 a Republican President and Democratic Senate worked together on education reform–No Child Left Behind. I still remember when former Governor Bush–then-President Bush as the 43rd President–worked together with Teddy Kennedy, the liberal lion of the Senate, on No Child Left Behind. It raised more than a few eyebrows back home in Texas, but that demonstrated what can happen when one side of the aisle and the other side of the aisle try to work together in the best interests of the American people.
Here is the short of it: Divided government does not translate into gridlock. It doesn’t have to. It can, but it doesn’t have to. We actually have another choice. Each of the four Presidents who came directly before President Obama found it possible to sign major bipartisan legislation despite having serious philosophical differences with Members of the opposing party.”
Source: Congressional Record
Note: Sen. Cornyn currently sits on the Senate Finance and Judiciary Committees. He serves as the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee’s Immigration, Refugees and Border Security subcommittee. For more information about Sen. Cornyn’s committee assignments, and links to the committee websites, click here.