Is bipartisanship possible in this day of polarized communication? These are indeed challenging times for those in the world of professional political strategic communication.
It seems that being a Democrat means that you believe in strong government, a growing middle class, worker welfare, help for the disadvantaged, and some regulation of big business. It seems that being a Republican means you are pro-business, support a strong military, favor free enterprise, believe in little or no regulation, and think that less government is better.
In my way of thinking, bipartisanship does not begin with political ideology, but rather with the desire to solve social and economic problems. It accepts some compromise in order to move forward, and acknowledges that every step forward will require adjustments along the way. It also accepts that some decisions could very well be temporary and are likely to be significantly altered later on.
In my international travels I often encounter what I refer to as “the idea of America as seen from abroad.” It comes through to me this way: America stands for individual freedom, but not the right to infringe on someone else’s. It imagines a government that will defend the US, regulate corporate greed, take care of those who can’t make it on their own…but is not a huge wasteful bureaucracy.
The reality in the US today is that the professional political communication strategist specializes in advancing either the Democratic Party’s ideology, the Republican Party’s ideology, or a bipartisan problem- solving strategy. The latter exercise begins with brainstorming the major issues, putting them in priority order, developing a practical strategic and tactical plan for taking steps forward, and then evaluating and adjusting from there.
Some call this bipartisan approach to problem-solving “statesmanship.” I could not agree more, and it is missing all to often in our political discourse today. I hope and pray we will all come to our senses very soon.
Larry D. Lauer 
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