[CORed]

The polarization between the two parties has gotten very destructive. Prior to the 1990's, there was an acknowledgement that it was generally necessary to compromise with the opposition party, given that under our system, we often have a divieded government -- House of Representatives, Presidency and Senate are often not all controlled by the same party. In 1994, after the Republicans gained control of the House of Representatives, they tried to use the budget process to force their agenda on the President and the Senate. Then they tried to push through the impeachment of Clinton for lying about a [censored], after failing to make any of many more serious allegations stick. I think the process has been basicly broken since then. A take no prisoners attitude has become entrenched in both parties. The Democrats are certainly not blameless here, but I think the Republicans have largely bee responsible for this. Part of the problem is that Chriustian fundamentalists have become a major bloc in the Republican coalition, and these are basickly people who don't like to compromise, and tend to see anybody that disagrees with them as evil.