Compromise - A Dirty Word

The recent confrontations in Minneapolis between agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the progressive anti-ICE protestors are good examples of what happens when neither side is willing to compromise. The ICE agents supposedly have a quota of illegal aliens that they are ordered to arrest and deport and they intend to follow through on that command as if their jobs depended on it (which they do). The protestors want to end the arrests and deportations, end the presence of ICE in Minneapolis, end ICE altogether and open the borders ofM America to any and all newcomers. These diametrically opposed positions inevitably result in confrontations and violence, resulting in the tragic deaths of two protestors. Neither side appears to be willing to alter these positions. There is no room for compromise. the rhetoric is inflammatory. However, the Trump administration appears to be the first to have flinched as it has replaced the ICE commander and has stated that it is withdrawing 700 ICE agents from Minneapolis to other areas of the country but not because of a willingness to compromise but in reaction to polling numbers that show this hardened position is unpopular with the general public. Will these moves generate a moderation amongst the protestors. Unlikely. Most will see it as a victory over fascism even though most of the country does not support their radical positions either.inn

To ordinary folks the confrontations in Minneapolis are senseless. Most people agree that shutting off the flow of illegal immigrants by closing the border is a good thing. The problem is what to do with the millions that flowed in during the Biden administration. Most did not come seeking asylum. What they were really seeking was work. But among the many millions there were some criminals, terrorists and other undesirables that should never be allowed in our country. To relieve the situation in Minneapolis ICE needs to eliminate their quotas and focus on getting the criminals out. Local authorities should assist ICE by handing over illegal immigrants already in their jails. Temporary visas could be arranged for workers but temporary should really mean temporary (an El Salvadoran immigrant working in our neighborhood has been here for 30 years with his Temporary Protected Status (TPS) visa – Hurricane Mitch was over and repairs made a long time ago). Is that a perfect solution? Probably not. But is it an acceptable solution? I think it could be.

Of course, immigration is only one of many contentious issues facing us these days. And the radical right MAGA Movement and the radical left progressive movement are unwilling to make any concessions on any of these issues. Not only do they believe that the other side is wrong, they believe that the people holding these opposing positions are either stupid or evil. Such opinions justify violence as exhibited in Minneapolis.

Such feelings do not belong in a democracy. They don’t work in a democracy. Compromise is the essence of democracy. The United States would not exist without compromise. For example, large colonies like Virginia wanted the legislature to be based on the population while smaller colonies like Rhode Island wanted each colony to have equal representation in the legislature. The compromise? A bicameral legislature combining the two concepts.

The Declaration of Independence is a statement of our principles and the preamble to the Constitution a statement of our goals (the commanders’ intent as I call it). But the Constitution is our operators’ manual and it is full of compromises in order to make things work. If you are not willing to try and reach a compromise with people who disagree with you then you do not believe in democracy and if you don’t believe in democracy how can you call yourself an American.?

I don’t think President Trump truly believes in democracy. He certainly doesn’t believe in compromise. I think he believes that democracy is a very inefficient way to get things done. He envies the way that Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping can issue orders and get their minions to execute those order right away. Very efficient.

And it is true that democracy is a very sloppy and inefficient way to get anything done. Everybody’s opinions must be considered. Somebody will need to be convinced of a policy’s appropriateness. Sometimes the policy needs to be changed to incorporate someone else’s opinion. That’s not very efficient. As Winston Churchill said, “ You can trust the Americans to do the right things, after they have tried everything else.” That’s not a very efficient way to do things.

But that is the way the Framers designed our country to work. Efficiency requires a concentration of power. The Constitution of the United States of America is a mess of compromises, most of which limit or curtail the concentration of power. That makes our government inefficient by design. It takes a long time to get things done. Compromises must be made to get the vote of some legislators. Legislators must be cajoled into changing their votes if not their opinions. To get them to accept something less than perfect. Less fair than they would like. It would be so much easier for the president to issue and order and simply have everyone jump to it. But efficient government comes at a cost. It comes at the cost of our liberty.

President Trump is not willing to compromise on any of his ideas and his MAGA Movement followers are eager to implement any and all of his ideas no matter how loopy or ill-conceived they might be. And the progressive left also requires absolute obedience, not only to their Marxist notions of equity and fairness, but also to the inane tenets of post-modernist thinking. Neither side is willing to compromise so the rest of us Americans are saddled with a gridlocked Congress and policies issued by executive order that change after each election.

The only alternative to democratic compromise is authoritarianism. But is it possible to reach a consensus on any policy based on the widespread demographic and ideological differences of the American people? Maybe not. But if there is no consensus then there must be compromise.