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The Honorable Leon Panetta and Andrew Card Presentation

Former White House Chiefs of Staff Andrew Card and Leon Panetta gave an insiders’ view of what it takes to get things done in Washington, from the perspective of the executive branch inside the White House Oval Office. Both addressed the growth of partisanship in politics, and the effect it has had on the policymaking process. Card referenced, in particular, the impact of the 24-hour news cycle on partisanship, in which harsh sound bites, rather than the actual policies and processes, take up the air time. He also discussed the difficulties of not just managing inter-party relations, but also intra-party relations, in which party leaders must focus not just on finding middle ground across the aisle, but within their own party. Panetta, saying that he has never seen Washington more partisan than it is today, gave four ingredients for overcoming policy gridlock. First, he said that there must be trust between the parties involved in order to reach compromise. Second, he said that the players involved must take the view that governing is more important that winning. Next, he said that politicians must be able to focus on the long-term, and take the view that tomorrow is more important than today. Lastly, he said that politicians must be willing to take risks, and put their loyalty to their country above loyalty to their party. Both Card and Panetta gave personal examples in the Clinton and Bush White House of successes and frustrations.