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WASHINGTON – When President Joe Biden seeks to respond to his urgent call for unity, he will be faced with a dissonance between the definitions of the word of the two parties and will likely be forced to choose between fighting for a bold agenda and forging deals bipartite.
Republican leaders have presented a vision of unity in which Biden refrains from actions that upset their voter base, which polls wrongly doubt the legitimacy of his election, gives former President Donald Trump have high approval ratings and want their leaders to resist Biden’s agenda.
The tension was apparent on Wednesday as Minority House Leader Kevin McCarthy of R-California welcomed Biden to Capitol Hill, saying, “Our job as leaders is to heal the wounds of this nation.” Two weeks ago, McCarthy voted with most House Republicans to block the state-certified electoral vote count for Biden after a violent Trump-incited mob ransacked the Capitol seeking to overturn the result.
Biden has launched a progressive agenda that includes billions of dollars in new investments and an overhaul of the country’s health and immigration systems. And with Republicans resisting most of his platform, he has narrow Democratic majorities to work with and hurdles to overcome, such as Senate obstruction power by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.
Dan Pfeiffer, who has faced a similar dilemma as senior adviser to President Barack Obama, said Biden’s obligation will be to “reach out to Republicans in Washington in good faith,” but not sacrifice progress on behalf of the unit.
“At the end of the day, if Mitch McConnell decides to be an obstructionist, it’s on him, not Joe Biden,” Pfeiffer said. “There will be a tendency among many newspapers and experts to condense Biden’s promise to heal the soul of the nation into nothing more than appeasing Republicans in Congress. The Biden team will need to push back on this dynamic and define the expectations accordingly. “
Biden takes office with high approval ratings for his post-election conduct and significant political capital to lead his party. The leadership he chooses will bear great stakes for the lives of millions of Americans and for the prospects of Democrats in his first midterm election, when the ruling party is historically defeated.
Some Democrats believe the wisest course is moderation.
“The key is to make sure we are governing from a more reasonable and moderate place and to show that we can work with Democrats and Republicans to get things done,” Rep. Josh Gottheimer, DN said. .J., In a recent interview. “If we demonstrate this, we will be rewarded. If we spend the next two years fighting with each other and letting the far left of our party dictate our platform, it will be two very difficult years to come.”
Biden’s inauguration on a cold day came at a time of daunting challenge – a raging pandemic that has killed more than 400,000 people in the United States and crippled the economy. He was sworn in on the western front of a Capitol that was overrun two weeks ago by a pro-Trump mob.
“For without unity there is no peace, only bitterness and fury, no progress, only exhausting outrage, no nation, only a state of chaos. This is our historic moment of crisis and challenge. And unity is the way forward, “Biden said. “Listen to me clearly: disagreement must not lead to disunity.”
It is far from clear that Biden’s calls for unity will soften an opposition party accountable to a base of voters who polls want their leaders to fight him.
A poll conducted this month by the Pew Research Center captures the asymmetry. Democrats said with a 25-point margin that Biden should work with Republicans to get things done, even if that means disappointing some of his constituents. But Republicans said the opposite: with a 21-point margin, they said GOP leaders should “stand up to Biden” on big issues, even if it makes it harder to tackle critical issues.
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“Republicans say, ‘We can’t do anything with you if you’re radioactive to our base, so don’t say anything that makes you radioactive for our base,” “said Republican consultant Michael Steel, former House leader. help.
Some Republicans are calling on Biden and Democrats, for unity, to reject the House-approved impeachment article accusing Trump of inciting an insurgency.
Senator Lindsey Graham, RS.C., said in a letter this week to new Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, DN.Y., that holding an impeachment trial would be “an act of political revenge. “, and he warned him.” will incite more division. “
But Schumer made it clear on Tuesday that the trial would take place.
“We all want to leave behind this horrible chapter in our nation’s history,” he said. “But healing and unity will only come if there is truth and accountability, without sweeping such a grave charge and horrible deeds under the rug.”
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