Party polarization is even worse than most people think, according to a new Michigan State University study.
And neither party can shoulder the blame, as it doesn’t matter which party is in charge, said Zachary Neal, associate professor of psychology and global urban studies.
“What I’ve found is that polarization has been steadily getting worse since the early 1970s,” he said.
At these levels, it will be difficult to make any progress on social or economic policies.”.
Published in the journal Social Networks, the study found although thousands of bills are introduced each year, the average representative or senator co-sponsors only about 200.
And when they decide with whom to co-sponsor bills, they view nearly half of their colleagues as “the opposition.”.
“In truth, the only thing that is bi-partisan in Congress is the trend toward greater polarization.”. »
