Doubtless, when the midterm elections are over and the next Congress convenes in January, fierce partisanship and angry polarization will continue unabated in the United States. This is the age of contention in American politics. It’s also likely that the Illinois congressional delegation will be sorely tempted to be full participants in this endless brawling.
There are 14 Illinois Democrats in the U.S. House and only three Republicans. The two U.S. senators are also Democrats, as are all the constitutional officers and the governor.
Grievances abound. Illinois Republicans are angry that the congressional map is deliberately drawn to their serious disadvantage, with some districts almost comically gerrymandered. Illinois Democrats believe their GOP counterparts have failed to stand up to President Donald Trump’s administration and lobby effectively for Illinois.
If Democrats win control of the U.S. House and Senate in November, Illinois Democrats may feel triumphant and emboldened with Republicans dispirited and beleaguered. This is not a recipe for conciliation, compromise and cooperation.
But regardless of the overall outcome, there will be a new dynamic in the Illinois delegation. Even if the ultimate partisan breakdown does not change, there will be five new House members and a new U.S. senator from Illinois.
This presents an opportunity for a fresh start.
Illinois lawmakers in Washington need to find ways to work together for the good of the Prairie State, moving to higher ground and setting smallness aside.
The Illinois delegation has few practices and structures to bring lawmakers together. Individual members cooperate on occasional projects and informally discuss issues, particularly when they serve on the same committees.
However, this is a far cry from earlier times when lawmakers met regularly, participated in spirited and substantive policy discussions, enjoyed informal dinners and even carpooled back home during congressional breaks.
“The Illinois delegation had a long tradition of bipartisanship,” Ray LaHood, a former Illinois Republican congressman and U.S. secretary of transportation, told me. “Unfortunately, that’s gone. We are in a completely different era.”
What can be done to encourage cross-party collaboration? I propose this road map.
First, the Illinois congressional delegation should hold a retreat for lawmakers and their families at an Illinois university early in the next Congress. I propose it be co-hosted by outgoing Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin and LaHood.
The retreat would include policy sessions, informal receptions and presentations about Illinois history. The working sessions should include panel discussions with mayors, labor and business leaders, college and university presidents, and constitutional officers. The goal is to develop an Illinois agenda in Washington and improve personal relationships among the delegation members.
This retreat would become an ongoing event, held at a different Illinois university every two years, at the start of each new Congress.
Second, each party should select a delegation co-chair. The two would then organize monthly lunches in D.C. for a statewide update and informal discussions.
Third, the delegation should establish several working groups to focus on policy areas such as agriculture, higher education and economic development. These groups would identify specific tasks for the delegation.
Fourth, each year, every Illinois House member should visit the district of a member of the other party for a day of meetings and a joint public event. The two senators should visit each congressional district annually for meetings organized by its representative.
Finally, the delegation co-chairs should host a weekly coffee for Illinoisans visiting Washington with brief opening remarks and opportunities for a Q&A and photos. All members would be strongly encouraged to attend. In 1985, U.S. Sen. Paul Simon established this tradition, which he called the Illinois Hospitality Breakfast. The ritual has faded and has been downgraded to a monthly reception. It should be revived and reinvigorated.
Taken together, these initiatives would begin to bridge the partisan divide and create habits of collaboration among the delegation.
“We need Illinois working as one team,” said Jen Daulby, CEO of the Congressional Management Foundation, a nonprofit organization that seeks to improve the operations of Congress. She is a native Illinoisan and served as chief of staff to Illinois U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis. “I think this is a great time to start acting like the other delegations and have a formal gathering structure,” she told me.
The next Illinois congressional delegation has the opportunity to forge a new beginning. Members must strive to create a model of practical cooperation in an age of contention.
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“Members of both parties should recognize that they are joined in a partnership — a partnership to govern in the interests of all of us,” LaHood argued in his memoir “Seeking Bipartisanship.”
He also quoted Abraham Lincoln’s first Inaugural Address: “We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies.”
Even if the Prairie State lawmakers in Washington don’t become lifelong friends, they can be productive partners, a clear benefit for the nearly 13 million people of Illinois they represent.
John T. Shaw is a professor at Marquette University’s Les Aspin Center for Government in Washington, D.C. His most recent book is “The Education of a Statesman: How Global Leaders Can Repair a Fractured World.”
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