The American people are fed up with modern-day politics, and rightly so. It’s constant fighting, screaming, arguing, and too little focus on the issues families are facing at our kitchen tables. Today, if you read Republican politicians’ op-eds and social media posts, and watch their cable news appearances, you’ll find a common theme: rooting for failure.

It’s time to ask, “What is the Republican Party’s platform, where are its policy proposals, and what are its solutions to address our shared challenges?” An obsession with waging manufactured culture wars and little to no attention on the economic, health, and education challenges facing families reveals a bankruptcy of ideas within the modern-day GOP.

As I write this, the Inflation Reduction Act has passed in the Senate and looks set to be enacted. This is a major win for all Americans, regardless of party, but the Senate vote tally doesn’t reflect that. Both Democrats and Republicans agree on the need for deficit reduction. This bill does it. Both parties advocate a fairer tax code. This bill does it. Both parties say we need to lower prescription drug prices. This bill does it. However, there is virtually no Republican support in Congress for this bill, all while many Republican voters support the contents.

The Safer Communities Act, which passed after the horrific mass shooting in Uvalde, was the first meaningful movement on gun laws in nearly 30 years. The act is packed with broadly popular, commonsense policies meant to keep kids safe.

Parents, no matter their politics, want to know when they hug their children on their way to school it won’t be the last time. But that didn’t stop most Republicans in Congress from voting no on this school safety law.

Infrastructure investment has been something both parties have pursued for decades. Today, we have a meaningful down payment on badly needed repairs and new projects thanks to the Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act that passed last year. Once again, most congressional Republicans opposed it. This is the clearest and simplest example of obstruction for obstruction’s sake.

There are many other examples of the modern-day Republican politician’s bias toward rooting for failure, but I’m out of space. I don’t raise this issue for political gain or to point a finger at particular elected officials. I raise it because I believe it is critical that we maintain a free marketplace of ideas with space for good-faith disagreement. If one side chooses to simply root for failure instead of engaging in healthy debate, then that marketplace, and our democracy, fails.

Going forward, let’s ask our elected leaders and candidates for their ideas and solutions. Let’s not simply accept what they are against. No more rooting for failure. Let’s root for our success, even when we disagree. 

Michael K. Garrett is a Democratic state senator from Guilford County.

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