Washington Post:
House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) said Friday that he's in favor of a plan that would have Republicans and Democrats sit side-by-side during this month's State of the Union address, becoming the highest-ranking Republican to back the proposal.
McCarthy, the third-ranking House Republican, told reporters at a press briefing this morning at the House GOP's annual retreat in Baltimore that he planned to sit next to House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) during President Obama's Jan. 25 address. Hoyer came out in favor of the bipartisan seating plan Thursday.
The plan, which would see lawmakers of both parties sit side-by-side rather than on separate sides of the chamber during the president's address, was originally proposed by the centrist Democratic group Third Way in a letter to congressional leaders this week. Sen. Mark Udall (D-Colo.) penned a letter to members of both chambers Wednesday urging them to back the idea.
No doubt, the beltway press is going to love it -- nothing warms their hearts like a round of feel-good navel gazing. And to be completely fair, it's probably not a bad idea to have somebody keep a watchful eye on Joe Wilson. But if you believe that the problem in Washington, DC is that members of Congress don't sit in bipartisan fashion, then you are out of your gourd. And if a bipartisan seat map is the most significant accomplishment of the 112th Congress, don't expect the institution's approval ratings to rise from the cellar anytime soon.