Jim Hart: Time for GOP to govern

I can’t decide if it is irony or poetic justice that the biggest obstacle to the GOP getting everything it wants in Congress today is ... other Republicans.

The 33 members of the Freedom Caucus seem to be the tail wagging the dog of the GOP’s 237-member House majority. Despite holding only 14 percent of the GOP seats (and 8 percent of the overall Congress), they seem able to control the agenda, at least to the point of being able to kill any bill that doesn’t align with their ultra-conservative, tea party platform.

So what is a party to do? Well, in the 1980s, conservative icon Ronald Reagan worked with Democratic House speaker Tip O’Neill to create center-right policies that passed with bipartisan support. Reagan didn’t get everything he wanted and neither did O’Neill and the Democrats. That’s called compromise – a word that has become synonymous with treason in the GOP playbook.

But any Republican who seriously wants to claim the mantle of Reagan should consider doing as Reagan did – reaching across the aisle and working with Democrats to enact bills to strengthen our country. It’s called governing. And I think it’s about time the GOP gave it a try.

This story was originally published April 7, 2017 at 5:08 PM with the headline "Jim Hart: Time for GOP to govern."