The political situation in Washington right now is "really bad" and there's not much prospect for change. That's according to Cokie Roberts, long-time reporter and commentator NPR and ABC News, who's visiting the Quad Cities to help raise money for WVIK.
Roberts says the extreme partisanship is due to a variety of factors. "One thing's that important to keep in mind is that the American people are deeply divided on the fundamental question dividing the parties: What do you think should happen? Should the government spend more and do more or spend less and do less? The population is divided fifty-fifty."
Roberts thinks the partisanship will continue as more groups join the political process, including minorities and young people.
Ten years ago, she wrote a book called "Founding Mothers: The Women who Raised Our Nation" about the wives of the Founding Fathers. She was amazed at how deeply political they were."Everybody expected them to be political. Nobody expected them to sit at home and pour the tea. They were expected to be participatory even though they couldn't vote."
Four years later, Roberts wrote a comparable book for kids called "Ladies of Liberty: The Women who Shaped Our Nation."
She was interviewed by Jim Mertens, for WQAD and WQPT.
Roberts will speak tonight at a benefit for WVIK at the Hotel Blackhawk in Davenport.