Transpartisan alliances are one of the most powerful organizing tools available to activists today, and perhaps the only one that can force elected officials to become responsive to the will of the people on broadly popular issues. Which is why elite interests manipulate identity politics to castigate those willing to make them as apostates to their respective tribal values (“working with racists…dihmmi”) in order to discredit them and undermine their efforts.

Status Quo — Pictures of Matchstick Men, from a 1968 UK television appearance.

It is time for people in politics to realize that super majority requirements don’t promote compromise or moderation, they mainly just produce gridlock that prevents any action from taking place, therefore protecting the status quo.

On Wednesday, the newly elected Republican majority took power in the House of Representatives. As part of the changeover, the House Republicans adopted a new set of rules based on the principle of majority rule by a majority vote. This is effectively the same thing each new House has done for decades. Amazingly, there was no media outrage about the Republicans again choosing to govern this legislative chamber on the basis of majority rule.