WASHINGTON – In case you missed it, U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) published a joint op-ed in The Hill today highlighting the need to work in a bipartisan fashion to create commonsense solutions for the American people, as the pair has repeatedly done on college affordability, Israel policy, and other issues. The op-ed comes one month after Senators Coons and Rubio participated in the Bipartisan Policy Center’s The Senate Projectdebate series at George Washington University in Washington, where the pair debated issues such as China, America’s role in the world, and climate change.

The Hill: Searching for productive disagreement in a time of division 

Differing parties and governing philosophies do not have to stop elected officials from working together — the two of us are proof of that. In fact, we introduced our very first piece of legislation together: the American Growth, Recovery, Empowerment, and Entrepreneurship Act, or AGREE Act, a pragmatic approach to putting politics aside and creating jobs through commonsense, bipartisan solutions. 

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We are proud of our record of working together in the U.S. Senate, where over the past 13 years, we have passed legislation to boost our economy, increase college affordability, support Israel, and draw attention to the dangers of the Wagner Group. However, we recognize that too often in this body, gridlock and speechifying carry the day, not regular order, cooperation, or debate.

These are symptoms of deeper, systemic problems. After all, our politics is a mirror that reflects our broader society. Congress is polarized because America is polarized. Our disagreements are not imaginary; they derive from real problems inflicting real pain on real people. Those problems are not easy to solve. 

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This is not a call for despair, however. To the contrary, our ability to engage in substantial, but civil debate before a live audience reminded us that hope remains for our system. It also reminded us that our system is worth fighting for.

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If we, as a nation, can turn that shared identity into unified action, we will show our adversaries that “e pluribus unum” is more than a slogan. We will show that disagreement can be productive, and that government of the people, by the people, for the people — messy as it is — is a real alternative to tyranny.

Read more of the op-ed here.