President elect Obama wants to set aside the politics of division. Can Congress follow through? Wisconsin Democrat, Rep. Ron Kind , insists his party's gains in the House of Representatives don't mean anything goes. "One party acting alone can't solve all the problems," says Kind. "We've got to find some common ground, work in a bipartisan fashion, and as Barack Obama was stated, come together as a nation."
One problem Kind sees: the last few years have seen moderate Republicans become a rarer breed in Congress. "I think one of the unfortunate consequences of the last couple elections, quite frankly, is that a lot of the moderate Republicans are no longer around. They were either taken out by their own party, or chose not to run. I'm sure there will be a subtext of the Republican party in the House that will make it their mission to try to blow up the institution, to prevent any accomplishments, or any progress from being made. But, I hope that doesn't represent the bulk of my Republican colleagues."
Kind easily defeated his Republican challenger, businessman Paul Stark, on Tuesday, receiving 63 percent of the votes in western Wisconsin's Third Congressional District. "We'll see what happens as we move forward," Kind says. "There's going to be an important tone to be set on both sides of the aisle. The challenges are so great, that we can't afford another four years of polarization and bitter, partisan politics."
