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The stakes involved in Washington policy debates are often so high– whether we send our young men and women to war; whether we allow stem cell research to go forward– that even small differences in perspective are magnified. The demands of party loyalty, the imperative of campaigns, and the amplification of conflict by the media all contribute to an atmosphere of suspicion. Moreover, most people who serve in Washington have been trained either as lawyers or as political operatives– professions that tend to place a premium on winning arguments rather than solving problems. I can see how, after a certain amount of time in the capital, it becomes tempting to assume that those who disagree with you have fundamentally different values– indeed, that they are motivated by bad faith, and perhaps are bad people.
