Voters should do more to demand that their elected representatives, regardless of which party they are in, demonstrate that they are willing to work with people on the other side of the political aisle to solve problems, former US Senator Russ Feingold told an audience at Eckstein Hall on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
In an \u201cOn the Issues with Mike Gousha\u201d session, Feingold certainly aired his own political views \u2013 he is co-chair of President Obama\u2019s re-election campaign in Wisconsin. But he also called for new efforts to stem the impact of big donations on the political process and for a return at all political levels to times when officials cooperated more with people of differing views.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s up to the people to change the dynamic,\u201d Feingold said, responding to a question from an audience member about the highly partisan climate.. Right now, he said, many elected officials are \u201clistening to anger\u201d more than voices seeking cooperation. He suggested voters tell elected officials that if they cannot provide examples of how they worked with people of differing views at the end of a term, the voters won\u2019t support them again.<\/p>\n
Feingold said Republican leaders in Washington never gave Obama a chance as president to work across the aisle. He said key Republicans had dinner together on the day of Obama\u2019s inauguration in 2009 and agreed, \u201cWe\u2019re not going to let his guy get anything.\u201d He said, \u201cTo me, this was off the charts. . . . It\u2019s not a very good thing to do to the United States of America.\u201d<\/p>\n
Feingold spoke strongly to his signature political issue: Trying to limit large political contributions. He said it is not true that things have always been the way they are now, singling out the impact of the 2008 US Supreme Court decision known as Citizens United that allows corporations to make political donations. The worst impact, Feingold said, is not on elections but on \u201cthe purchasing of the policy process, of the legislative process.\u201d He said, \u201cThere \u2018s no such thing as a free $10 million contribution.\u201d<\/p>\n
Asked by Gousha, the Law School\u2019s distinguished fellow in law and public policy, about Obama\u2019s widely criticized performance in Wednesday\u2019s debate with Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, Feingold acknowledged, \u201cI think the president has had better performances in his career.\u201d But he said a lot of what Romney said about the economy was \u201cflim-flam.\u201d<\/p>\n
Feingold said, \u201cI\u2019m glad It wasn\u2019t the best night ever (for Obama) because I don\u2019t want Democrats to think this thing is won.\u201d The race has always been close, he said, including in Wisconsin. \u201cThis can serve as a little wake-up call. . . . that this next month requires very hard work, and this basically is the gun shot that starts that key month.\u201d<\/p>\n
After losing the 2010 Senate race, Feingold was a visiting professor at Marquette Law School for two semesters. \u201cI love this law school and I had an incredible two semesters here,\u201d he said at the start of the session.<\/p>\n
The Republican who defeated Feingold, Ron Johnson, will take part in an \u201cOn the Issues with Mike Gousha\u201d session on Oct. 23. People may sign up for the free session by clicking here<\/a>. The video of Feingold\u2019s hour-long conversation may be viewed by clicking here.<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Voters should do more to demand that their elected representatives, regardless of which party they are in, demonstrate that they are willing to work with people on the other side of the political aisle to solve problems, former US Senator Russ Feingold told an audience at Eckstein Hall on Wednesday. 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