Bipartisanship needs its own grassroots movement

Kudos to the 11 Senate Republicans who voted in favor of the jobs bill ("Jobs Bill Passes With Bipartisan Support," March 18). This letter is not about the pros and cons of the jobs bill. It is about politicians finally having the nerve to cross the aisle to vote against the majority of their party.

The word bipartisan should not be a dirty word, but in today's politics, it is. We no longer elect strong, independent-minded politicians. We elect proxies. Is there research available that provides how many times each of our congressmen and -women have crossed the aisle to vote against the majority of their party? Then, we could start a grassroots campaign of Republicans supporting Democrats and Democrats supporting Republicans who have shown the courage to vote against party lines.

Maybe then we could again have a democracy that works. Who's in?

 

KEN EISNER
McCandless