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Vicious partisanship in politics is nothing new. One of my favorite political cartoons of all time is one whose exact source I cannot recall, having seen it several years ago. It appeared in a prominent newspaper during the administration of Thomas Jefferson. Drawing from memory, it was as follows:

President Jefferson pulls on a rope tied to a statue representing the republic. The Devil has hold of Jefferson's waist, helping him pull. Next to Jefferson's feet is a half-empty bottle labeled "Brandy".

The Devil: "Heave away, Heave away my son! I'll help you!"

Jefferson: "With the help of my Old Friend and a little more Brandy, I'll bring it down!"

Yes, the rhetoric spewing forth from the self-styled Opposition Party (because they have no credible ideas of their own to promote) is vile, hateful and frequently obscene. However, it is neither a new or original development, and it most certainly is never going to go away.

On the other hand, some other things never seem to change, either. From the Biography of Thomas Jefferson on Whitehouse.Gov:

When Jefferson assumed the Presidency, the crisis in France had passed. He slashed Army and Navy expenditures, cut the budget, eliminated the tax on whiskey so unpopular in the West, yet reduced the national debt by a third. He also sent a naval squadron to fight the Barbary pirates, who were harassing American commerce in the Mediterranean.

Sound at all familiar?

He slashed Army and Navy expenditures, cut the budget, eliminated the tax on whiskey so unpopular in the West, yet reduced the national debt by a third. He also sent a naval squadron to fight the Barbary pirates, who were harassing American commerce in the Mediterranean.

Well, the tax cut and fighting the pirates is familiar. Cutting military spending, cutting the budget, and reducing the national debt not so much so.