Posted on 02/20/2010 5:06:16 PM PST by Steelfish
OP-ED CONTRIBUTOR Why I’m Leaving the Senate
By EVAN BAYH February 20, 2010 BASEBALL may be our national pastime, but the age-old tradition of taking a swing at Congress is a sport with even deeper historical roots in the American experience. Since the founding of our country, citizens from Ben Franklin to David Letterman have made fun of their elected officials. Milton Berle famously joked: “You can lead a man to Congress, but you can’t make him think.” These days, though, the institutional inertia gripping Congress is no laughing matter. Challenges of historic import threaten America’s future. Action on the deficit, economy, energy, health care and much more is imperative, yet our legislative institutions fail to act. Congress must be reformed.
There are many causes for the dysfunction: strident partisanship, unyielding ideology, a corrosive system of campaign financing, gerrymandering of House districts, endless filibusters, holds on executive appointees in the Senate, dwindling social interaction between senators of opposing parties and a caucus system that promotes party unity at the expense of bipartisan consensus.
Many good people serve in Congress. They are patriotic, hard-working and devoted to the public good as they see it, but the institutional and cultural impediments to change frustrate the intentions of these well-meaning people as rarely before. It was not always thus.
While romanticizing the Senate of yore would be a mistake, it was certainly better in my father’s time. My father, Birch Bayh, represented Indiana in the Senate from 1963 to 1981. A progressive, he nonetheless enjoyed many friendships with moderate Republicans and Southern Democrats.
One incident from his career vividly demonstrates how times have changed. In 1968, when my father was running for re-election, Everett Dirksen, the Republican leader, approached him on the Senate floor, put his arm around my dad’s shoulder, and...........
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Bimbo eruption rumor.
Im takin my ball and goin’ home ....you guys arent nice
Just leave already...
When one party is trying to destroy the country, there is not much room for bipartisanship.
The Real Good Old Days
Yeah, those were the days, when socialism could move along unfettered.
Reminds me of the old quote:
“The communists do not want war. They would rather take the land unopposed.”
He’s a John Mellencamp fan and wants John to become a senator. /sarcasm
He should have kept quiet.
He’s an idiot.
The sons will have to move back to Indiana, if they’ve ever actually lived there.
I find it touching that the Dems are lining up to bemoan the death of bipartisanship when they are the ones who killed it. All they had to do is elect a moderate Congressional leadership. Instead, they chose, Pelosi, Hoyer, Reid, Durbin, and Schumer. Somehow it is now the fault of the Republicans that they aren’t permitted to read the bills or be in the room when the Democrats are discussing them.
His father’s time was 1963-1980, and it was a time of continuous expansion of government power and continuous erosion of US security (Nixon did nothing to stem the intrusive growth of government in domestic affairs and his scandalous exit from office allowed leftists free reign to gut national security). It must have been a simply wonderful time to be a ‘moderate’ democrat. Fortunately, Dan Quayle had the courage to run against and beat Birch Bayh in 1980, at the same time that Ronald Reagan beat Jimmy Carter.
Fortunately, the leftist dance party may only last 2 years during this run, as voters quickly are figuring out “Hope and Change” at lot faster than they dead “The Great Society”.
One incident from his career vividly demonstrates how times have changed. In 1968, when my father was running for re-election, Everett Dirksen, the Republican leader, approached him on the Senate floor, put his arm around my dad’s shoulder, and asked what he could do to help. This is unimaginable today.
The Republicans aren't primarily responsible for this change in tone, Evan. Besides, Dirksen was probably just pasting a "Kick Me" sign on Birch's back.
If anything, now should be the time when Bayh is having the time of his life in the U.S. Senate; that is, with his party in control of bothe houses of Congress and the White House, what wouldn't be to like and enjoy. I'd think Bayh would be in his heyday.
The pukey MSM is making him into a martyr (awww, the poor lamb). Makes me sick.
Since his timing is suspect, his reason is also suspect.
By waiting until the deadline to file in the dem primary he denied the people of his state an opportunity to choose their candidate.
No patriot you, Bayh.
No, he left because he was going to lose.
Oh ya pal? Well, that's funny you and your party have been baying about the ills of America's past and working to 'fundamentally transform' the United States of America...so here's a taste of your own medicine, I guess the Senate is just a "living, breathing" institution subject to change and interpretation like everything else.
Funny isn’t it? They don’t mind twisting the Consitution into a socialist pretzel, but change the atmosphere around the ole cloakroom and it’s intolerable! RESIGNATION BABY!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.