Thomas Mann and Norman Orenstein, a centrist and a conservative, have written a book, and WaPo op ed, clearly stating that Washington gridlock is almost entirely the fault of the GOP. Neither has been invited on the Sunday talk shows to discus this thesis, even though they are widely regarded for their anaylsis on many issues. It seems pretty clear that the reason for this is that the professional centrists who are the establishment media can't bear the thought of actually discussing any issue without constructing false equivalences. They are invested in decrying policy differences as extremism. Artificially manufactured consensus is their vision of the future.
Their influence is unmistakable, as Democrats now enthusiastically speak of "Grand Bargains", which are really just way stations on the road to right wing evisceration of the social safety net and economic mobility. No matter what happens in the November election, the lame duck session of Congress will be a nightmare for progressives and for peopleof no particular political ideology who rely on the social contract they have honored for their whole lives.
The participation of certain Dems, including Bill Clinton, in Pete Peterson's annual "kill social security" event is a grim harbinger of things to come.
