FINAL STATESMANSHIP FORUM FILLED WITH STAR POWER
By Chris Ross

Last week, The King’s College’s Statesmanship Forum hosted two nationally famed journalists who believe that American politics can move beyond partisanship and find common ground among the different parties.

Provost Marvin Olasky interviewed conservative syndicated columnist Cal Thomas and liberal political analyst Bob Beckel for the final Statesmanship Forum of the 2007-2008 academic year. Thomas and Beckel, both Christians and good friends, co-wrote a book entitled Common Ground: How to Stop the Partisan War that is Destroying America.

The basic premise of their book is that the political climate in America is such that, “If you’re see going over to the other side,” said Thomas, “then you’re seen as Judas Iscariot.”

At the forum, Beckel insisted that the reason that finding common ground will work is because polarization is bad politics in the polling both. Common ground, he said, is good politics.

Olasky posed many questions pertaining to the current campaign cycle for the Presidential race, and Thomas and Beckel responded as if on a political talk show. Each defended their preferred party and made plenty of playful jabs at the other side.

Thomas said, in answer to a question about Barack Obama, that Obama could still be a common ground candidate, because he spoke against political polarization in his book The Audacity of Hope. “Now that Barack Obama is talking the talk,” Thomas said, “can he walk the walk to find common ground?”

Beckel, soon after this, said “John McCain is the first modern political candidate to be a common ground candidate.”

Each also gave predictions on issues where the different political ideologies can find common ground. Their examples included abortion and immigration.

The Statesmanship Forum, instituted by the Office of Student Development in Fall 2007, sought to bring real-world leaders into The King’s College to help student leaders in their development. Becoming more statesmanlike is the intent of the initiative, so Olasky asked the pair to explain their definition of statesmanship.

Thomas said statesmanship is “standing for principles” and “recognizing a good idea wherever it comes from.” Finding common ground aids the latter point especially, because partisanship has made it so that “if you agree [with the other side],” he said, “then you’re seen as a whippy surrender monkey.”

Beckel also told several stories in which his principles were tried in potentially compromising ethical situations. He ended the interview portion by sharing his story about coming to faith, in which Thomas played a crucial role.

Following the interview, Senior Anthony Randazzo asked about how the men ensured that their ethics were never compromised, especially as Christians in the business of politics. While Beckel and Thomas admitted that the lines were sometimes grey, they insisted that everyone must make his relationship with Jesus Christ the priority in every aspect of his life.

Chris Ross is a junior at The King’s College pursuing a PP&E degree. This article originally appeared in The King’s College student newspaper, “The Student Voice.”