In an age when political and policy discussions are often crammed into soundbites, President Obama and the House Republicans advanced transparency and honest debate with their unprecedented live, televised question-and-answer session on January 29. Since then, people of all political persuasions have been talking about the value of what’s being called “Question Time.” It’s time to start a new American political tradition. We, the undersigned, call on President Obama and the leaders of the Republican Party in Congress to hold regular, frequent, and public Question Time sessions between the President and the opposition party.
Sign the petition at DemandQuestionTime.com
If you haven’t yet watched Barack Obama’s question and answer session with the House GOP caucus, you definitely should. I’m embedding the video below, so make sure to check it out.
So far, the White House has been resistant to turning this into a regular event, and I’m not really sure why. It would do a lot for Obama’s image as a more open politician. What’s more, last week’s session went great for him; if anything, you would think he’d be calling for more of these “question times.”
The White House’s main objection seems to be that the sessions would devolve into political theater. But let’s not kid ourselves: last week’s session was already political theater. The session was contentious, it probably raised more questions than it answered, and I’m sure that both Democrats and Republicans will accuse each other of not debating in good faith. The Democrats will (rightfully) say that the Republicans’ questions were mostly talking points disguised as questions, while the Republicans will (again, rightfully) say that Obama frequently shifted the discussion away from the specific question he had been asked.
Nevertheless, it was one of the most effective political dialogs this country has had in a very long time. Though there were pointed disagreements, it was civil and constructive, and it actually focused on policy issues. It’s about time a dialog like this became a national tradition.
It’s an excellent idea. Walter Mondale argued for a regular question time on the English model when he was in the Senate.
It’s only theater if it’s an orchestrated partisan affair. If individual representatives are allowed to set the questions, real good could come of it.