Word: bipartisanism
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...goes. "If the President is willing to reduce the growth of defense spending," said O'Neill, "then he will find that we will be helpful in nondefense areas of the budget." That was a far cry from promising to join with Reagan in a genuinely bipartisan search for spending cuts. But it was an indication that he found the President's opening bid, radical as it was in some respects, sufficiently credible to stay in the game. -By William R. Doerner...
...Manichean set of policies, or pronouncements, that in nearly every instance gave way to compromise and at least outward accommodation. This was true of attitudes toward the Soviet Union, arms control, Central America and the European allies, among others. The need to compromise was symbolized by the resort to bipartisan commissions (the Scowcroft panel on the MX missile, the Kissinger group on Central America) that did extremely useful work and produced sound, generally centrist recommendations, which by no reasonable standard could be described as weak. Despite recent, markedly pacific gestures from the Administration, it remains to be seen whether...
Ultimately, the most important foreign policy goal for Reagan II lies in domestic politics: to achieve at least some measure of consensus on foreign and defense issues, especially regarding the Soviet Union. Unfortunately, the more or less bipartisan approach to foreign policy that prevailed from World War II till Korea-some would say till Viet Nam-was neither typical nor natural. Yet there are special moments-this may be one-when the normal partisan quarrel over foreign affairs can be muted if not suspended...
...distancing himself from the far right. There is a lot of room for him to do that without in any real sense "going soft." He can argue with reason that he is now able to negotiate from strength. A tough but realistic position on arms control may well win bipartisan approval...
...might be harder on issues like Central America and the military budget. But among the things Reagan could safely concede would be some further reductions in the defense budget combined with overall reform of the armed forces. Defense expenditures growing at a somewhat slower but sustainable rate backed by bipartisan consensus would be far more impressive to the Soviets than higher defense expenditures, which are probably not sustainable and at the mercy of congressional or partisan politics. One of the greatest boons to the Soviets over the years has been American inconsistency and the chance of playing Democrats off against...