Another week, and another new low for President Bush.
Last week it wasn't the continued crippling of the Constitution, further blistering of the law or another spectacular display of incompetence - it's difficult to imagine much more damage on those fronts anyway.
Rather, the president's new low was registered in an Associated Press poll, which pegged his approval rating at an all-time low of 30 percent.
The President can take solace, however, in the fact that his approval rating is higher than that of our yielding Congress, whose approval in the same poll came in at an abysmal 22 percent.
These numbers demonstrate the seething antipathy and frustration that much of the nation has directed toward the elected officials in Washington. This discontent is understandable and well deserved, given the inability of our elected officials to accomplish anything outside of playing meaningless political games. Americans are tired of seeing their elected "leaders" do little besides engage in partisan bickering and demagoguery.
There is more to politics than just politics.
Politics is about people. It's about "we the people." Endless lose-lose political situations are not going to solve any problems.
Compromise, not contention, greases the machinery of government. Without it, there can be no progress, especially in a nation as politically divided as ours. The compromise of one's core principles is not required, but rather the willingness to work with those who disagree and to find common ground.
Compromise has been sorely lacking in our nation's capital the last seven years - a tumultuous time in our history when we have needed it most.
When Bush ran for president in 2000, he promised to be a "uniter, not a divider." It was one of the campaign's most memorable slogans. But instead of bridging the political divide in the U.S. as he promised, President Bush adopted a my-way-or-the-highway approach to just about everything. From the doctrine of preemptive war and cowboy diplomacy in foreign policy to the deliberate erosion of checks and balances on the domestic front, the rebirth of the imperial presidency has, unsurprisingly, failed to unite us.
The policies of the Bush administration bear much of the responsibility for the color-coded polarization - red and blue states - of America. And the end of Bush's tenure in office will go a long way toward restoring civility and compromise to Washington.
As you are probably well aware, we face some serious problems here in the early 21st century, such as national security, education, health care, climate change, immigration and the economy, to name a few. None of these problems will be easily solved. Nor will any be solved at all if our lawmakers fail to place the needs of the people above sending sound-byte salvos across the aisle.
While our politicians squabble, more than 40 million Americans lack basic heath care coverage, the world is getting warmer, and brave and noble U.S. troops continue to be returned in flag-draped coffins for God knows why.
If we are to overcome the great challenges that confront us, we must stand united. If the AP poll is to be believed, it seems a large majority of Americans are united on at least one thing: our current leaders aren't getting the job done. The experts are calling the 2008 election a "change election." I sure hope so.
Joshua Fredrickson is a political science senior. His column appears on Wednesdays.
