Is our form of government working?

Many of us are angry at the rancor, tension, and disruption we see in our governments - state and federal. Some, who don't quite grasp how this is supposed to work, wish "we could all just get along" and get something done.

The reality is that We the People, by the hands of our Founding Fathers, gave us a system of government purposefully besieged by checks and balances. Congress checks the President and the Federal Courts. The President checks Congress and the federal Courts. The Federal Courts check the President and the Congress. And We the People check them all.

Then there are 50 state governments that check the federal government - the federal government checks the state governments. And in each state, the same system of checks and balances exists.

We the People are the ultimate check on all of these government offices.

It is not supposed to be easy, and if it were easy, we would be in trouble.

What we don't like is the foolish, costly, dangerous game of gotcha politics that predominates our government offices - most especially. Frankly, when Democrats oppose things just because Republicans propose them, or vice versa, it does us no good, and instead, does great harm.

The Senate's upcoming deliberations and vote to confirm Judge Neil Gorsuch as a Justice of the Supreme Court is a perfect example of destructive, partisan politics - and has nothing to do with checks and balances. Nearly unanimously, SCOTUS-watchers rate Judge Gorsuch as a superior choice, highly and wholly qualified to be a Supreme Court Justice. Yet, Democrats feel obligated to create a false narrative to justify their opposition to him - threatening a filibuster to stop the nomination.  

Senator Chuck Schumer, D-New York, the Democrat Minority Ruler, needs to grow up, step up, and vote - down if he wishes. My two senators, Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken, plan to vote against Judge Gorsuch for reasons that defy reality - but Minnesota voters will express their level of agreement with their vote soon enough.

For our republican system of government to work, we need aggressive and persistent checks and balances by all branches of government. But we also need grown-ups in office who view policy and personalities through the eyes of justice and equity, and I don't see much of that going around just now.