Esme’s Blog: What Congress Can Learn From Jr. High

January 21, 2011 12:29 PM

(credit: KAREN BLEIER/AFP/Getty Images)

Reporting Esme Murphy

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By Esme Murphy, WCCO-TV

It so Jr. High — debating over who sits next to whom. Making sure that cliques are broken up so that no one group can become too unruly. Sitting next to someone you have never sat next to before because you might make a friend and everyone will get to know each other better. And as a result, everyone will be nicer to each other.

But it’s a debate not taking place in Jr. High. It’s a debate taking place in Congress. Sen. Amy Klobuchar is one of those championing the integrated seating plan for the State of the Union speech.

Some Republicans and Democrats plan to sit together instead of sitting separately in two massive partisan blocks. Maybe the new seating arrangement will reduce Rep. Joe Wilson’s impulse to once again shout “You lie!” to the President. It was a catcall that made Wilson famous and a hero to some. I’m told that since Wilson’s outburst in 2009, people in the visitors gallery are regularly yelling slurs down to members of Congress.

Sitting next to someone you have never sat with before, being nice to your neighbor. Jr. High can be as nice a place as the kids want it to be. And so can the U.S. Congress.

Esmes Blog: What Congress Can Learn From Jr. High

Margaret

I have worked as a Legislative Assistant for 6 years, and as a 7th and 8th grade English teacher for 4. I am positive that the way that the members of Comgress act towards our President and each other is FAR worse than the kids I taught! When my students were called out for being inappropriate or mean they would recognize their behavior as such and feel remorse. Not so much with the adults – our elected officials – if people could see what I did “behind the scenes” they would NOT re-elect some of these folks- NO question.
richard

It is of course mostly synbolic. I guess (but I’m not sure) it can’t do any harm. The republicans never give the president any credit for anything; and will be critical of any successful program they can’t take credit for. This tactic comes from the party leaders. Rank and file repubs. need to stand up to these hypocrites and make them do what’s best for the rank and file Americans. NOT the wealthy and large corporations. They need to tell limbaugh, beck, hannity, palin and coulter to sit down and shut up and make sure everyone knows they only represent the far right ultra conservative kooks. There is so much that could be accomplished if the newly elected repubs. would just make a little effort to comprimise instead of wasting everyone time and money on trying to repeal the health care initiative/legislation. What happened to their first and foremost priority JOBS? I believe that people are already begining to wonder if they “did the right thing” in November. Sometimes you just need to be careful what you ask for. They still resort to the same old tactic of repeatthe lie (e.g. Death Panels”)often enough and the “sheep” will believe and follow.
Victim Du Jour

Yeah, I remember so much childish behavior towards President Bush for 8 years.

David Letterman has young interns in his office on a pull-out couch while writing perverted jokes about Sarah Palins .

Corporate run media fascism incites civil unrest more than anyone, because it’s good for ratings.