One of the tragedies of American politics is the deep-seated hatred between certain Democrats and Republicans.
Some people enjoy watching it. It is like seeing hockey players fight or listening to mean girls gossip in the stairwells in junior high school.
But it really doesn’t accomplish very much for the public good. It doesn’t even help TV ratings anymore ― the demise of CNN and MSNBC is proof that only tiny audiences tune in for such bloodsport.
A learned friend asked what can be done to help restore civil discourse, comity and compromise in our political process.
My immediate answer, which surprised even me, was this: “Get rid of all gift bans for elected officials!”
Ban The Gift Bans!
Why would this help address our current state of political turmoil? At first glance, this may seem counterproductive. There certainly have been a few politicians who have been excessively influenced by expensive trips, dinners and gifts paid for by influential lobbyists.
The first remedy is to elect people with integrity, character and intestinal fortitude to do the right thing, period. My former boss, Congressman Alex McMillan of Charlotte, used to say dryly: “If my vote can be bought for a medium-rare steak, I probably shouldn’t be in Congress in the first place!”
Absent a new army of such principled leaders, allowing adults to act like adults instead of kindergartners is a positive second step.
In the aftermath of the House post office scandal in 1995, incoming GOP Speaker Newt Gingrich jumped on the opportunity to get a complete gift ban passed in the new GOP Congress, the first since 1952.
“Clean up Congress! Stop three-martini lunches with Gucci-loafered lobbyists! Make Congress Pure Again!” was the sentiment behind Gingrich’s motives.
It made for good visual politics. In reality, however, it contributed to a mental, philosophical and physical rupture between Democrats and Republicans, a rift which has yawned ever wider.
Staffers close to Gingrich later admitted he had no hobbies or interests outside of politics and therefore didn’t see any merit to playing golf or tennis with lobbyists or going to Redskins games with a gaggle of other members and staff, Republican or Democrat.
Members and staff could no longer go to lunch, play golf or root for the Redskins together unless they paid full price ― which hardly any member and certainly very few staff could afford to do on congressional salaries.
Not every lobbyist-sponsored event was bipartisan ― but enough included both Republicans and Democrats so they got to know each other as people first and not solely as adversaries.
Gone were the days when Gene Conti, chief of staff to Democrat David Price, would show up to play in the Bob Michel Republican Minority Leader Golf Tournament, which raised money for the NRCC. When asked why, Conti would always smile and say: “Why not? I like to play golf!”
And play golf together we did. We got to know each other as friends on the golf course first, and then when either of us needed help or advice back in the office, things just seemed to go a lot easier.
It is very hard to demonize anyone once you get to know them, their family, their history, where they go to church and where they attended college.
Those are the relationships that were formed away from Capitol Hill but established the connective tissue so necessary to do the crucial work of compromise and negotiation in good faith and, most importantly, full trust later.
To those who want elective representatives to live like Puritans and abstain from anything fun while in office, the simple solution is full disclosure.
McMillan would list every gift that came into his office on his annual ethics disclosure: the green bagel from the Irish Association and the Mrs. Fields chocolate chip cookies that came in from some group in Utah. The Wall Street Journal published it every year.
No one cared. It highlighted the ridiculous nature and triviality of making grown people act like kindergartners when we really want them to do the nation’s business in a serious manner.
Make every congressman and staff list all of the lunches, dinners, golf tournaments, trips, junkets and Washington Wizards games they attend each month, and make it public on the U.S. House website.
Voters can then make their own decision about whether the member is using these events to form relationships and advance the public good or just joy-riding on the taxpayer dollar.
If we want adults to solve our nation’s problems for us, let them be adults again and get things done. Ban the gift bans.
