I attended a viewing party for the classic Army-Navy football game yesterday.  That rivalry is far more than just another college game.  For the cadets of West Point and the midshipmen of Annapolis, it is the only match-up that really matters.  Either team would gladly lose every other game IF they could just win this one game.  The rivalry is intense!

During the game, Army fans cheered whenever the Navy quarterback got sacked, and Navy fans screamed “kill him” whenever an Army fullback broke through the line of scrimmage.  Whenever one side scored, the other side pulled out the rule book and tried to weaponize it.  The air was thick with insults of all varieties, including a few four-letter words.  Yet, when it was all over, everybody shook hands, slapped each other on their backs, and said “great game!”

So, why can’t Republicans and Democrats just get along?

Is it because elections are more important than games?  That should only make it more important that they do get along?  Professional campaign managers certainly see it as just another game.  Is it because election campaigns are so long, more than a year?  Possibly, but some teams will prepare all season for just one game.  Is it because of the corrupting influence of money in politics?  College sports is also awash with cash.  Or, is it because of the media, which needs to fan the flames of controversy in order to sell advertising?  I think so . . .

I am hopeful that Trump’s election may have scrambled the traditional continuum of Republicans versus  Democrats . . . of Right versus Left . . . of Red versus Blue . . . of active government versus passive government?  Trump’s coalition of working-class “victims” and businesses weary of regulation and hard-core Republicans may prove more permanent than expected.  The substitution of the religious-right with the working-class may prove durable.  But, where does the religious-right go?  
Maybe the “new” Republicans can get along with the “new” Democrats.  As every homeowner with pets can tell you, dogs and cats can actually get along quite nicely.  So can Republicans and Democrats!

Even if they cannot behave as well as dogs and cats or cadets and midshipmen, scrambling the  political alignments may be healthy for America.