Is anyone tired of the media saying we need to get along, we need to reach across the aisle and

[kurtcagle]

53. Second chance, yes, third chance, not going to happen.

The thing about compromise is that it is a strategy. I will agree to this concession if you agree to that one. When one party honors the agreement while the other refuses to honor that agreement, this becomes a debit in trust. That is the foundation of all transactions, and the COST of that transaction to the betrayer is higher next time.

The strategy that Democrats typically take is to treat their counterparts across the aisle as if they are initially trustworthy, but to ratchet down that trust with every betrayed vote. That means that they will still concede something, but the value of that concession decreases over time. On the other hand, trust can be built up as well.

The Republicans, on the other hand, will only negotiate from a position of strength, and they regard compromise of any sort as losing face. You see that in their strategies over and over again. It's why they are so hideously bad at governing - they are so afraid of being seen as weak that they can only get legislation through by subverting members of the opposition. The problem with this is that the same trust dynamic that plays at the party level also plays at the representative level. You may get a better deal from the other side, but do that too often and you will be given less trust within the party itself.

I think Democrats will compromise as a matter of course, but the key is really whether the things they have compromised on have value. At this point, they are in the minority, but memories are long.