“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

While some debate whether Albert Einstein is the original source of this quote, the power of the message in these time in which we live is beyond question.

Increasingly, people are asking how to get out of the mess we witness in Washington, D.C. While the balance of power in the Senate will not be fully known until next month with the special elections in Georgia, there will clearly be deep divides in the legislative branch giving the newly forming Biden administration significant challenges.

Can we rise above the course debate of the past several years?

I hope so, and I think so. The will of the people seems to show a strong preference for “getting something done,” as opposed to constant and frequently petty opposition for the sake of improving political positioning. However, if we are to find a more constructive path, the elected officials in Washington need more positive experiences around collaboration. Over time, the acts of compromise and negotiation have been eclipsed by less productive behavior. Simply put, relationships have ruptured and need to be repaired. All parties need to find a better, more productive path.

Just where might that be found? Well, tackling the nation’s infrastructure needs may be one area where agreement can be found. This is something about which there is agreement at the federal level as well as at other levels of government where infrastructure needs are appreciated. If focus on something with broad support can be done early in 2021, then perhaps the positive experience will bring potential agreements around more challenging policy debates.

While reasonable, this becomes possible only if behaviors really do change!

First, we the people as voters need to make clear that the same old approach is absolutely not deserving of our support. Nothing motivates elected officials more than the threat of losing voter appeal.

And, elected officials must be held to a higher standard.

It needs to be made clear that as an elected official, if you focus your time on delivering soundbites on cable news, then you are not serving people.

If you refuse to seek agreement through debate and compromise, then you are not serving the people.

If you think more about blocking action on important measures than finding a path forward, then you are not serving the people.

If you put partisanship ahead of policy making, then you are not serving the people.

And, on this last note, lest one thinks that partisanship is a safer place to be, the most recent Gallup survey asking about which party people identify with found that less than a third of voters identified with either Republican or Democrats. “Independent” is actually the place more people define themselves today than with either party.

There is a path forward, but it surely is not based on doing the same things that have been done year after year in Washington. We do need positive action on a host of issues confronting the federal government and as voters we really do need to demand results from both parties!

Craig Fuller served four years in the White House as assistant to President Reagan for Cabinet Affairs, followed by four years as chief of staff to Vice President George H.W. Bush. Having been engaged in five presidential campaigns and run public affairs firms and associations in Washington, D.C., he now resides on the Eastern Shore.

Again, the voters have spoken and one candidate won the necessary Electoral College votes sufficient to be elected President of the United States.

But, former Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Kamala Harris did more than that. They won millions more votes than an incumbent President. And, they did it campaigning as people who, if elected, would represent all of the people. Indeed, by they way they campaigned, they can now govern in a more unifying way.

So, after this hard fought election, I think we all may benefit from a pause to consider our hopes.

I do hope President Biden can govern in a way that brings the country together.

I hope that process starts now with a collaborative transition leading to a smooth flow of power to a new party and a new President.

I hope Republican leaders will realize that one reason millions more voted for the candidate in the other party is out of a desire to see an honest, fact-based approach to containing the coronavirus.

I hope Democrats and Republicans find common ground on initiatives related to the coronavirus, rebuilding our economy in safe and effective ways and rebuilding the reputation of the United States abroad.

I hope thoughtful conservative Republicans will work to rebuild a party that stands for things that are positive and constructive and lives up to our greatness as a nation.

And, I hope the Republican Party finds a few leaders among the ranks who can lead it back to compete around ideas and policies that impact all people.

I also hope that pundits, commentators and news personalities will leave the gotcha approach behind while holding accountable those in public office to really address facts and issues in ways that benefit us all.

It has been a long time since voters wanted to push reset on a presidency. While George H.W. Bush was not  reelected, he had served in the White House for twelve years when voters opted for a change. Thus, not in forty years has an individual serving in the White House for four years been turned away. May this be a message and the beginning of a process that involves our better selves in actions that address the real needs of all Americans.

Craig Fuller served four years in the White House as assistant to President Reagan for Cabinet Affairs, followed by four years as chief of staff to Vice President George H.W. Bush. Having been engaged in five presidential campaigns and run public affairs firms and associations in Washington, D.C., he now resides on the Eastern Shore.

The final debate of the Presidential campaign….and, the winner is? Kristen Welker, the moderator! She actually managed to moderate a discussion of sorts.

The key question to ask, after watching the debate or hearing the news reports, are you more inclined to vote for Donald Trump?

Going into the debate, I know of no poll suggesting the momentum had shifted. Polls tell us where voters are at the moment; and, at the moment a decisive majority of voters have trended to Joe Biden.

All the Trump campaign can do is wake up this morning and seek opportunities in key states.

However, to create an opportunity for Trump, voters in Michigan, Wisconsin, Arizona, Iowa, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Florida and even Texas would have to had seen something about President Donald Trump to encourage them to support his reelection. Only time will tell whether this final debate made a difference in these key states.

There is a good deal of talk about how 48 million people have already voted. Truth is, that really is not all that relevant. Those voters had already made up their mind and it is highly unlikely that anything in last night’s debate would have moved them in a new direction. For most people, the discussion probably reinforced their views going into the evening.

What is important, is how many people go out and vote this weekend. If the numbers are high, it would suggest that people waited for the last debate and then decided. I would not be surprised to see early voting growing.

One other challenge for President Trump. While millions of people watched the debate and the follow on press coverage, millions will also watch President Trump’s performance this Sunday evening on 60 Minutes. And, thanks to the decision by President Trump to release his video of the interview, we know how that will go. And, there is no chance the 60 Minutes version of the interview will be better than the Trump video. What is clear is that most of the interview was a verbal battle over whether the President has a health care plan and on just how damaging Hunter Biden might be to his father’s campaign.

Health care is an important issue, but after watching the 60 Minute interview, Lesley Stahl will repeatedly remind people that the President has no health care plan. And, to the extent the President spends time trying to advance a Hunter Biden story, he is, in my opinion, dwelling on a topic few care to understand and even fewer will be moved by when it comes to their vote. Even on the President’s video, on neither topic did he look particularly strong.

So, the two major media events in the final days of the campaign stand little chance of moving the needle much when it comes to the electorate. In the end, the outcome surely hinges on something as old as elections themselves, voter turnout. If you care about how this election turns out, go out and vote!

Craig Fuller served four years in the White House as assistant to President Reagan for Cabinet Affairs, followed by four years as chief of staff to Vice President George H.W. Bush. Having been engaged in five presidential campaigns and run public affairs firms and associations in Washington, D.C., he now resides on the Eastern Shore.