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Home / Washington Business - September/October 2004 / Chair's Column: It’s Time to Change the Political Debate and Solve Problems with Common Sense |
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Chair's Column: It’s Time to Change the Political Debate and Solve Problems with Common Sense |
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Written On: September/October 2004 |
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Written By: Mike Bernard |
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Mike Bernard is a partner in the tax consulting firm of Madison Cooke, Bellevue
It is time to change the nature of our political debate! As a pivotal election looms, there has been much discussion about AWB’s role in the election. One thing is clear: With our expanded endorsement process, we will play a much larger and more active part in races for the Legislature, Supreme Court, and statewide offices.
But by stepping up our involvement, the question remains: Will we be informing voters and educating candidates or will we simply be another angry voice in an increasingly polarized and partisan process?
The goal needs to be the former. We need to be constructive and measure candidates on where they stand on issues important to employers and what they have done to support those of us trying to earn a living and create more jobs.
AWB is officially non-partisan, but that often means little to many outside our headquarters. Some view us as the lapdog of the Republican Party, while others say we are too independent to be true Republicans. Some say we “kowtow” to the Democrats, while others say we don’t work hard enough to elect “business-friendly Democrats.”
What a great position! It means AWB can inject some common sense into the debate. “AWB: The Common Sense Party” has a nice ring, but what do we stand for?
AWB Needs to Bring Common Sense to the Debate
First and foremost, government must provide only the critical services that it can best provide and do it efficiently and at a price taxpayers can afford to pay. A tall order to be sure. The good news is that AWB has a common sense approach to creating good government — it’s called POG — Price of Government, Priorities of Government. POG needs to be a key part of management in every part of state and local government from state agencies to cities, counties and school districts.
Second, we could really use a good dose of common sense in health care. Few things are a bigger threat to the long-term economic health of this state and to our families than the costs and availability of health care.
The emotionally-charged and lengthy California grocery worker strike is just the tip of the iceberg of what’s to come if we don’t solve the health care crisis. Irrespective of the enormity of the challenge, we need a common sense, non-partisan process that brings the affected parties to the table. We need to dig into the root causes of the problem and quit arguing about the symptoms. Let’s just do it!
Finally, no issue is more divisive than reforming our legal system to stem lawsuit abuse. Bogeymen can be found under every rock — personal injury lawyers, faceless corporate titans, heartless doctors, HMOs — you name them. They make great sound bites, but are nothing more than empty rhetoric. To deal with the crisis, as with health care, we need to bring people together and get serious about solutions.
Political Tone Needs to Change to Solve Complex Problems
The bottom line is we have a choice. We can go with the status quo — lobbing political bombshells at one another as if we are all mortal enemies — or do something different. Departing from the current approach may be dull, but with hard work and understanding it can be effective. We all have to choose to solve the problem.
Frankly, I don’t think we have a choice. AWB and the employer community must engage in a common sense process and offer our resources to solve problems. If we don’t engage, someone else will determine the battlefield and solve the problem for us. Guess what? We may not like the solution.
So, is this approach wishful thinking or pie in the sky? Maybe, but wouldn’t it be great if we actually accomplish something together? Then we can truly look back and tell our grandchildren we made Washington a better place for them to live, have careers, and raise their children.
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