A New Era of Bi-Partisanship?

Last week, Congressman Brett Guthrie spent considerable time in Owensboro. I was at a handful of his events, including a small business roundtable on Monday, the 10th, and at the GRADD board meeting on Wednesday when he spoke in the early afternoon. While he was wrapping up that meeting, I overheard him ask one of Governor Beshear's staffers who usually attends the meeting if it would OK for him to attend the governor's ceremonial signing of HB3 to be held about an hour later at RiverPark Center. Without thinking, I said something to the effect of, "Sure, you're welcome down there." It wasn't my place to give him "permission" but I was happy that Guthrie—a Republican—would want to attend a bill signing by Beshear—a Democrat.

Perhaps Congressman Guthrie has been listening to his constituents. They're the same people I hear all the time say they don't care about parties; they want the country's problems to get solved and most of them don't care if it's a Republican idea or a Democrat idea. Work together, whatever is required to lead progress. In my position, I work with both Democrats and Republicans and know neither party has a trademark on good ideas.

A week earlier, we saw another example of bi-partisanship. Governor Beshear and Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels—a Republican—shared the spotlight in Henderson for a ceremonial signing of the infrastructure authority portion of HB3, which should help Kentucky fund its share of the I-69 and Louisville bridges. The governors seemed very much at ease with one another and, for many I-69 advocates like myself, it was a rewarding sight.

Perhaps smart politicians are realizing that extending a hand across the political aisle is a smart move. The public wants to see it.