America — not Utah — embroiled in partisanship

The United States is suffering through a highly contentious phase of politics, with Republicans and Democrats in Congress so angry and polarized they will not work together to solve the country's biggest problems. This raises important questions for Americans and Utahns:

Which political party deserves the most blame for congressional dysfunction and acrimony?

Webb: The Democrats have been in charge of Congress for nearly four years. They've controlled both the presidency and Congress, enjoying large majorities, for nearly two years. If they stay unified, they can ram through whatever they want. So they're running things; they have the power, and they get the blame.

Certainly, Republicans have not been cooperative. But when the Democrats are taking the country far to the left, often against the will of the people, and won't even seriously consider most Republican proposals, Republicans have no incentive to play nice.

Pignanelli: "In war, you can only be killed once, but in politics, many times." — Winston Churchill

I truly appreciate LaVarr's response to the question above, BECAUSE IT DEMONSTRATES EVERYTHING THAT IS WRONG WITH POLITICAL DISCOURSE TODAY. Republicans and Democrats have traded the governance of this country for 150 years, and both share the blame for the current acrimony. Moreover, LaVarr's allegation about Democrats ignoring "Republican proposals" is disingenuous. The courageous Republican Congressman Paul Ryan has developed thoughtful detailed proposals to reduce our country's deficit that require sacrifice and self-reliance from Americans. Yet only a handful of his GOP colleagues have dared to cosponsor this endeavor. Without a credible alternative, polls demonstrate Americans view GOP attacks against Democrats as the typical shallow partisan sniping.

Does Utah politics suffer from the same turmoil that is plaguing Congress?

Pignanelli: Most conventional budgetary and administrative issues are decided by the Legislature and the governor, with occasional consultation with Democrats. However, on major policy deliberations, Utah lawmakers have set the gold standard of consensus-building and outreach between the parties. Politicos still speak in amazement of the tireless efforts by Republican state Sen. Dan Liljenquist to develop bipartisan support for dramatic overhaul of the state pension system. Republican House Speaker David Clark constructed health care reform through a very inclusionary process. House Minority Leader David Litvack garnered Republican support for his hate crimes legislation. (These examples are just in the last five years — our state history is rich with even more.)