Medicare Was Built on Compromise. Now What?

If the Presidential race is any guide, many Americans do not like “politicians.” Weak-kneed and compromised by campaign contributions, “politicians” imperil our virtuous Republic. Or so we are told by ideologues on the Right and Left and by a distressing number of citizens whose interest in politics is but a quadrennial event.

“Compromised.” A troubling word. Yet our system of government, with its divided powers, cannot function without “compromise” among competing interests and philosophies. Can we “compromise” without being “compromised”? Yes, and the resulting hybrid may even be superior to ideologically pure alternatives.