Divided Government: More Typical Than Atypical Since World War II!

The fact that the 112th Congress will not be of the party of the President in at least one house, and historically often in both houses, is actually typical more than atypical, when one looks at the history of Congressional-Presidential relations since World War II!

In 38 of the past 66 years, we have had a divided government, with the only years it was not being: 1945-1947 and 1949-1953 under President Harry Truman; 1953-1955 under President Dwight D. Eisenhower; 1961-1969 under Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson; 1977-1981 under President Jimmy Carter; 1993-1995 under President Bill Clinton; 2003-2007 under President George W. Bush; and 2009-2011 under President Barack Obama!

So divided government has been much more common, basically 60 percent of the time since 1945, and therefore, is not the tragedy some think it is!

However, having both parties controlling one chamber each has only, as stated in an earlier entry, occurred in the first six years of Ronald Reagan (1981-1987), in the years since 1945, and that IS the problem–a divided Congress, more than a divided government where both houses are in the hands of the party opposing the President!

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