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2 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Mercy Flights regains Josephine County main-provider status Klamath Basin farmers and wildlife facing water shortages 6 shorts worth seeing at this year's Ashland Independent Film Festival A missile in his backyard: Vietnam veteran in Medford builds replica of MIM-23 Hawk Talk will delve into history of Highway 99 Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Burglar praised in Jackson County courtroom for turning life around Grand jury meets today on officer-involved fatal shooting in Medford Hosler Dam is not, repeat NOT, about to collapse Emergency services Eagle Point school district violated union members' constitutional rights, federal judge says Politics and Elections Former state Senate President Brady Adams dies Arthur I. Cyr: Afghanistan progress is uneven but undeniable Jackson County Commissioners plan no tax on marijuana for one year Arthur I. Cyr: Iran – a crisis without end Arthur I. Cyr: South Korea represents long-term triumph – for them and for US Education Shumate says initiatives will require reserve spending Eagle Point school district violated union members' constitutional rights, federal judge says SOU celebrates Arbor Day early with awards and talks SOU student's play heads to the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. 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Onorato: Bringing spring to the dinner table Food Season Stepp: Try farmer’s market sunchoke in a creamy potato soup Page H. Onorato: Bringing spring to the dinner table Tammy Kelly: Asparagus is in season Power of 5 Community blog: Give Easter ham the egg treatment in sandwiches Home and Garden Garden Cameos: Good soil foundation of fabulous garden Ceramic tile: How it’s made and what’s new Dear Monty: How real estate relocation companies work Paul Rogers: Yard damage may not be as bad as it looks Home Help: 3 things to avoid when renovating your kitchen Health Your Mental Health: My husband denies he has PTSD Health Watch: Work out like a pro athlete Brent St. Germain: Feeling the burn again HealthStyle: Normal anxiety or anxiety disorder? Community blog: How to Get Rid of a Tension Headache Hiking Biking Faith Religion briefs: Friday, April 3 Religion briefs: Friday, March 27 Religion briefs Religion News: Presbyterian Church gives approval on same-sex marriage Religion briefs: Friday, March 13 Milestones and Achievements Haga-Parks Columnist for a Day Rogue Healthy Aging Tempo Latest stories 2015 Pear Blossom Festival kicks off in Medford OCT stages 'The Musical of Musicals (The Musical!)' Ashland Independent Film Festival announces 2015 lineup Gene Burnett tonight at Liquid Assets in Ashland Hip-Hop Poetry Open Mic at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival Theater OCT stages 'The Musical of Musicals (The Musical!)' Auditions for youth musical set at Camelot Review: From past into present in OSF's 'Long Day's Journey' ‘A Dream of Red Pavilions’ at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival Review: Education and its discontents Music Gene Burnett tonight at Liquid Assets in Ashland The Farr Side: No Zayn Malik? One Direction stays the course Elias String Quartet plays at Southern Oregon University Bluegrass band Siskiyou Summit plays Bell Fiore Winery Oregon Old-Time Fiddlers at the Ashland Community Center Community Events 2015 Pear Blossom Festival kicks off in Medford Ashland Independent Film Festival announces 2015 lineup Hip-Hop Poetry Open Mic at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival MailTribune.com rolls out new calendar Easter egg hunts are a long-standing tradition in the Rogue Valley Dining RESTAURANT INSPECTIONS: Sunday, April 5 The Laughing Clam in Grants Pass offers seafood-heavy menu Standing Stone owners to open Medford brewpub and restaurant Restaurant Inspections: March 29 Basque-inspired cuisine at Eleven in Ashland Tempo Videos Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obits Blogs TV Listings Movie Listings Oregon Outdoors Oregon Healthy Living Special Sections Business Services NEWS NOW Mercy Flights regains Josephine County main-provider status ... Klamath Basin farmers and wildlife facing water shortages ... 6 shorts worth seeing at this year's Ashland Independent Film Festival ... Mercy Flights regains Josephine County main-provider status ... Klamath Basin farmers and wildlife facing water shortages ... 6 shorts worth seeing at this year's Ashland Independent Film Festival ... ANOTHER VIEW Michael Gerson: The virtues of the smoke-filled room Comment MailTribune.com Writer Posted Apr. 5, 2015 at 12:01 AM Posted Apr. 5, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Social News The John Boehner/Nancy Pelosi agreement on Medicare doctors' payments — permanently easing up on scheduled cuts, funded (partially) by means testing — has been praised as an incremental gain and criticized as a small backward step. In either case, it is a rare bird: the result of a March 4 meeting between leaders in a metaphorical smoke-filled room (and, given Boehner's smoking habit, perhaps an actual one). The broad acceptance of the compromise by House Republicans and Democrats is rooted in a shared interest. Both sides hate being nagged by doctors. This is not a motivation easily transferable to other issues. But the Medicare deal is a reminder of the way strong party leaders once regularly made law. The model is now rare. It is also viewed by some partisans as a vice. Leaders who make deals are regarded (particularly on the right) as politically and even morally compromised. This suspicion about compromise should be surprising in a nation that resulted from the Great Compromise. But it reflects a broader trend that has reshaped the attitudes of both parties: polarization. Political scientists disagree over the question of whether the ideological views of Americans have become more extreme over time. But they generally agree that America's two main political parties have become more sorted, both ideologically and geographically. And they tend to agree that the views of party adherents across a range of issues have become more ideologically predictable. Ideological sorting has been growing since the 1970s, and involves the collapse both of southern Democratic conservatism and of northeastern Republican liberalism. For the first time (at least in the modern political constellation) America has a liberal party and a conservative party. (The Democratic coalition remains more ideologically diverse, but it has recently been sorting at a faster rate.) This large historical shift does not lend itself to a single structural explanation such as gerrymandering (since the phenomenon can also be seen in Senate and county elections, not just House races). Liberals tend to argue that the trend is an outworking of Civil Rights-era racial politics or of growing economic inequality. Conservatives contend there has been a long-term backlash against the policy failures of modern liberalism, resulting in the emergence of such figures as Ronald Reagan and Newt Gingrich. Whatever the cause, ideological sorting has naturally encouraged division. Conservatives and liberals no longer see people who think the way they do in the other political party. And the disagreements are exaggerated by geographic clustering. There is evidence that some Americans are choosing where they live to maximize their ideological comfort — which increases their sense of belonging, as well as their partisan contempt. Congress both reflects and encourages these divisions. Voting patterns have become polarized over time. More issues (from abortion to climate disruption) have become high-stakes, zero-sum ideological battles. The normal processes of budgeting and handling appointments have been disrupted. A long period of relative political parity between the parties has encouraged the belief that the next election might bring a victory so complete that compromise will no longer be necessary. But this is only part of the story. At the same time we have experienced ideological sorting, we have also seen a technological and communications revolution that has encouraged political fragmentation. Backbenchers such as Sen. Ted Cruz (or, potentially, Sen. Elizabeth Warren) have avenues of influence and fundraising entirely outside the parties — and ideological PACs, talk radio hosts and bloggers have agendas very different from party leaders. This is part of a larger, accelerating social trend in which big, consolidated institutions — big business, big labor, big media — are giving way to smaller, decentralized networks. In politics, this decentralization has debilitated the legislative branch, which works through consensus. (The executive branch, being more unitary, has been relatively strengthened.) We are left with highly ideological parties, headed by weakened legislative leaders — a recipe for bitterness and gridlock. And so the solution to the deep division between parties must (in a seeming paradox) involve stronger parties. It is parties that eventually have an interest in creating a broadly accepted public image (in the current Republican case, of reform conservatism) particularly after they lose the presidency a few times. Want to fight gridlock? Make it easier to donate large sums to parties — instead of having a campaign finance system that grants inordinate power to ideological PACs funded by eccentric billionaires. And appreciate the forgotten virtues of the smoke-filled room. Michael Gerson's email address is [email protected]. 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