President Obama will hold a “Slurpee Summit” on Nov. 18 to reach out to the leaders of a reconfigured Congress.
The top Congressional Republican leaders Speaker-elect John Boehner and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, along with top Democrats, current House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid,
were invited for a discussion on the issues facing both the new Congress and the upcoming lame-duck session.
White House Spokesman Robert Gibbs relayed that the predominant issue of the gathering will be the soon-to-expire Bush tax cuts.
Since the 112th Congress is not sworn in until January, the lame-duck Congress must deal with the tax cuts, which are set to expire in January themselves.
Slurpees, jokingly suggested by President Obama, may or may not be served.
Seven-Eleven seized upon the attention caused by Obama’s comment, creating a new Slurpee flavor: “Purple for the People.”
“We are not surprised by President Obama’s comments about Slurpee, which is non-partisan and has been bringing people together for more than 40 years,” said 7-Eleven President Joe DePinto in a statement.
However, John Boehner told Diane Sawyer that he’s not too keen on the Slurpee idea.
“I don’t know about a Slurpee,” Boehner said. “How about a glass of Merlot?”
Drink branding opportunities aside, the Slurpee Summit represents President Obama’s renewed focus on working together with the strengthened GOP.
Speaking the morning after his party’s massive mid-term losses, President Obama described the night as a “shellacking.”
The President appeared resigned as he said, “We were in such a hurry to get things done that we didn’t change how things got done. And I think that frustrated people.”
The President also made a plea for bipartisanship.
“I think John Boehner and I and Mitch McConnell and Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi are going to have to sit down and work together. [ . . . ] I don’t think people carry around a fixed ideology. I think the majority of people,
they’re going about their business, going about their lives. They just want to make sure that we’re making progress. And that’s going to be my top priority over the next couple of years.”
Speaker-elect John Boehner, adressed reporters on Wednesday morning, less concerned with bipartisanship.
“It’s pretty clear the Obama-Pelosi agenda is being rejected,” he said.
“They want the president to change course and I think change course we will.”
Boehner also had harsh words to say about last year’s health care reform bill, which was spearheaded by the President and the Democratic majority.
“I think it’s important for us to lay the groundwork before we begin to repeal this monstrosity and replace it with common sense reforms that will bring down the cost of health care insurance in America.”
Echoing President Obama’s call for increased conversation between Republicans and Democrats, Senate Majority leader Harry Reid said, “The time for politics is now over.”
Mr. Reid retained his Senate seat despite a strong challenge by Republican Sharron Angle.
Republican junior Falon Canham thought the political consequences of bipartisanship were complex.
“I think compromise is the only way to avoid a gridlock,”she said.
However, Canham acknowledged that some may benefit from such gridlock.
“It just depends on where you stand on the political spectrum. [President Obama]’s going to have to compromise with the GOP as well if he wants to get anything accomplished. If he doesn’t, then the American people may
blame him instead of the GOP.”
Independent junior government and world affairs major Katie Magruder feared that if Obama overtly compromises with the GOP, it may have negative consequences for him politically.
“But it’s for the good of the country,” Magruder said.
“To fix America we need to gravitate away from bipartisanship.”
The anti-incumbent fervor of recent election cycles suggests that Americans want civility out of Washington.
The Slurpee Summit appears to be a step towards remedying this concern, but as history has shown, potential political repercussions cannot be dismisswwwed.
Mikey Rumore can be reached at michealangelorumore@gmail.com.