Government shutdown: Is it making red and blue states more purple?
| Los Angeles
Red and blue may dominate Washington politics as the federal government shutdown grinds on,聽but across the country, where local politicians are facing reelection in the next few years, the color of聽practical politics is turning downright purple.
From New Jersey to California, Republicans and Democrats are taking pages from each other鈥檚 playbook.
Indiana鈥檚 Republican governor, Mike Pence, said Tuesday the state will fund food stamps and聽welfare checks through the shutdown. And in Wisconsin, Gov. Scott Walker, a Republican who received national attention for his battles with public sector labor unions,聽removed barriers to a federally supported boat launch on the Mississippi and said the state will fund state parks that were ordered shut down because they receive聽some federal money.
In California, meanwhile, Gov. Jerry Brown, a Democrat, who has appeared openly reluctant聽to聽announce any plans to help out聽Californians hit by the partial shutdown, is being hailed for his fiscal conservatism.
As the shutdown drags on, 鈥渢here will be more and more聽purple ground at the local level,鈥� says David McCuan, political science professor at Sonoma State University in Rohnert Park, Calif.
鈥淚t鈥檚 no longer the suburbs versus the cities, it鈥檚 delivery of services to the people,鈥� he says, adding, 鈥渢here is an old adage that when it comes to the streets, there are no Democratic or Republican streets, there are only American streets.鈥�
Over the long term, if the shutdown is not resolved, Professor McCuan says, this tone will rise to the national level as well. 鈥淭here will be increasing calls from the moderates in the party to find common ground,鈥� he says.
Of course, politics play into all these decisions, points out government policy attorney Leonard Wolfe, from the law firm Dykema in Lansing, Mich.
鈥淧oliticians who are up for reelection want to show that they are in control of their state,鈥� he says, adding that the average voter does not make distinctions about where the money comes from for their government services.
鈥淧eople want to know why they can鈥檛 get into their parks or get their benefits check,鈥� he says, adding that聽they are not interested in partisanship.聽鈥淭hey聽expect their local聽politicians to be able to help,鈥� says Mr. Wolfe.聽Consequently, he notes, politicians are making gestures that聽say, 鈥淚 am in control here.鈥�
鈥淭hey are separating themselves from what is going聽on in Washington,鈥� he adds.
Attuned to this grassroots mood, Republican Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey just released a campaign ad with the slogan, 鈥渃ompromise is not a dirty word.鈥�
There are limits, however, to how much local politicians can 鈥渂ail out鈥� the federal government, even when they are so inclined, points out Christine Kelleher-Palus, associate professor and chair of Villanova University鈥檚 Department of Public Administration in Philadelphia.
The recent economic downturn has left states in a very difficult position, she says via e-mail, and they are struggling in many areas because of the shutdown.
鈥淪tates are doing a lot of analyses and contingency planning 鈥� trying to figure out how individual programs are affected, and for how long they can be sustained,鈥澛爏he says.
New Jersey鈥檚 Governor Christie has been unpredictable for a while, points out political analyst Barbara O鈥機onnor, director emeritus of the Institute for the Study of Politics and Media at California State University, Sacramento.
鈥淗e聽terrifies Republicans because they can鈥檛 count on him to toe the party line,鈥� she notes. But, she says, with the safety net being threatened for an ever-widening group of constituents, 鈥渨e are facing an interesting聽dynamic with politicians. There are more and more willing to do the聽helpful thing.鈥�
She points out that in California, Governor Brown has also been a source of unexpected聽moves, a course she expects to continue.
鈥淩emember that he is a Jesuit who lived with Mother Teresa鈥� and might be聽expected to take a progressive party line, yet he has held the line on expenses and been touted for his frugality.
The bigger question, she says, is how more extreme politicians will respond as the shared pain spreads among constituents. 鈥淚t鈥檚 an interesting drama and we don鈥檛 know how it will play out.鈥�
