With all this talk of the Republicans taking the House, there's also been talk of the dubious virtues of divided government. It's undeniable that at least some people will support the GOP because they feel it's better to have two parties splitting control of Congress than just one in charge. Unfortunately, if their goal is to temper the Democrats' agenda with bipartisan feel-goodery, it won't work. It'll just ensure that nothing gets done.
Jackie Calmes points out that deficit reduction, supposedly the next item on President Obama's post-election agenda, won't move forward thanks to the political incentives of all involved. Matt Yglesias notes that this is because the Republicans that the fired-up conservative base will elect have no interest in deficit reduction at all.
That's why Utah Rep. Rob Bishop has it right: "The most you can expect is two years of good old-fashioned gridlock." I wonder if those voters who support divided government also support doing nothing? If they do, that's fine, but I have the sinking feeling that they expect a two-party Congress to produce bipartisan legislation. Republicans, who will come into office after two years of steady obstruction, will have no reason to change their tune and start working with the Democrats.
-- Tim Fernholz
