#11
View attachment 417516
The Midwest
There’s a special election happening; one of those occasional vacancies that pops up irregularly that gain an undue amount of attention from the political establishment because nothing else is going on. A state legislator named Quinn on the Conservative ticket is vying with a local prosecutor named Pierce on the Republican ticket for the victory, with an agricultural commissioner named Acker on the Democratic ticket not really in the race at all. All three camps are in this small college town tonight for the only debate of the campaign, and all three camps have set up shop at the only hotel bar in the only decent hotel in town. Amy and Lisa, two Democratic operatives, are sitting at the bar.
“Watch this.”
A slovenly-looking guy is loudly holding court in the middle of the room. From the direction of the lobby they can see a small group fronted by a classic prep school type making their way to the bar. They watch as the prep and the slob briefly make eye contact and then proceed to ignore each other. The prep and his group find a corner away from the slob and order some drinks.
“What am I watching?”
“Look at them. They’re not even going to acknowledge each other.”
Amy fails to see why this is noteworthy, but then taking another glance around the rooms she thinks she catches the mood. Everyone is sneaking glances at the prep and the slob, expecting something to happen or at least seeming to gain some social mana from the fact that nothing is happening.
“You’ll have to clue me in.”
“That-”
Pointing to the prep.
“-is Lee Atwater. And that-”
Pointing to the slob.
“-is Karl Rove. They used to be the dynamic duo in the GOP. But Rove stayed loyal to the party and Atwater bolted to the Conservatives. I hear the break up was Wagnerian.”
“Well they seem to have gotten over it now.”
Lisa almost snarfs her drink.
“Yeah. Just keep telling yourself that. Did you hear about the radio call-in show that got flooded with calls asking if it was true whether Quinn had an affair with his illegal immigrant nanny? Or those flyers that papered half the capital insinuating Pierce was gay? Where do you think they came from”
“Jesus. These guys play rough.”
“I’m half glad we don’t really have a shot at this one. You don’t want to tangle with either of those pricks. But it’s better when they have each other to shoot at. I can’t imagine what they’re gonna get up to in the general.”
Just then the two men try to sneak glances at each other at the same time. For a brief moment it’s like their eyes are locked, they can’t look away. Their hard stares act like a baffle dampening the noise in the room. But an instant later they break eye contact, and the world seems to move on. Only the two men are still stuck in the ghost of that gaze, or at least what it represents. A friendship turned to bitter rivalry that will last the rest of their lives.
“This is the worst old-fashioned I think I’ve ever had.”
“You should try this martini.”
“Yeah, that’s really bad, too.”
“Yeah.”
They down their drinks. Amy turns to the bartender and waves her fingers.
“Same again.”
----
January 1982
Lincoln Star Journal
Headline: How Does Nebraska Do It? Other States Want to Know
A group of 33 legislators from 11 states has arrived in Lincoln on a fact-finding mission to review Nebraska’s unique, non-partisan approach to state politics.
The group came together following a particularly bitter year for partisan politics around the country. The arrival of the Conservative Party has thrown traditional alliances and political methodology out the window.
While on the national level, the compromise consensus between the Republicans and Democrats seems to be holding, for some states this is not an option. In Kansas, for example, the Conservatives are the largest party, but far from a majority. They have enough votes to block any legislation, but have so far been unable to convince any Democrats or Republicans to support their bills. The result is a state government shutdown that is now entering its third month.
Kansas isn’t alone in suffering a shutdown this year due to partisan bickering. Virginia, Louisiana, Colorado, and Montana also experienced disruptions in state services, with Virginia’s lasting a “mere” nine days, and Louisiana’s stretching to almost seven weeks.
Nebraska, on the other hand, has weathered the storm fairly well. While the Unicameral features a heady partisan mixture of all three parties, the polite fiction of non-partisanship agreed to in the chamber seems to be doing the trick in greasing the gears of state. Bickering has been kept to a minimum.
The hope is that this might be a cheap and simple solution to a difficult problem.
The visiting legislators will spend five days in the capital, talking to state officials and administrators and learning how the non-partisan election process works. Nebraskan political leaders will also provide their guests with an introduction on the idea of merging their statehouses into a single chamber, but this reform is not expected to be a priority for the mission.