The Dayton Daily News editorial board conducted an interview via e-mail with former U.S. Sen. Mike DeWine, R-Ohio, designed to deal withquestions that are not in the headlines during his current break fromelective politics. He served two terms in the U.S. Senate beforelosing last year to then-Rep. Sherrod Brown, and was lieutenantgovernor, a congressman and a Greene County prosecutor before that.He has admitted to a continuing interest in being governor.
Q From your experience, what do think people don't understandabout Congress that they would be interested in knowing? That is,what's the main misunderstanding?
A Many times all the public sees is the partisan bickering. Whilethere is way too much of that, what is missed is that on any givenday (while) the headlines may be of partisan squabbling on one issue,on that very day there are dozens of cases of Democrats andRepublicans working together. Virtually every bill and amendment Igot passed in the Senate was done by working very closely with aDemocrat partner.
Q Who are two people you particularly admire? One D and one R.
A I admire a number of senators of both parties. You don't need toagree with a person on everything to admire them. Here are just afew:
I admire Joe Lieberman (independent Democrat from Connecticut)because he is a man of principle with a lot of common sense and guts.I admire Chris Dodd, D-Conn., as an effective fighter for kids andbecause he cares deeply about an area we ignore: South America andCentral America.
Mitch McConnell (the Republican leader, from Kentucky) is a toughand effective legislator who knows how to get legislation through.Gordon Smith, ROre., also has a passion for kids' health and has abig heart.
Q I was wondering if Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., would show up on yourlist. You have worked with him a fair amount. He seems to like tohave Republican cosponsors. Does he offer real compromises to getthem?
A Ted Kennedy is a very tough adversary and a great guy to be in afight with, as long as you are on the same side! A few years ago,(the late) Paul Wellstone, D-Minn., and I wrote a major overhaul ofjob training. Once we got Kennedy on board, he brought with him theDemocrats and many key interest groups. He is tough, savvy, skillfuland has a great sense of humor, which always helps in the Senate.
Q As you take a break from political activity, or at least frombeing a candidate or officeholder, is there anything you'd like tosee change before you jump back in?
A We all know the political system is not perfect, but, frankly,it works pretty well. The best "reforms" are probably those that makethings more transparent and more information available to the public.
Q Do you sense any change in the political times that's going onnow? I mean, do you expect the politics of the next decade or so tobe different in some particular way than, say, the last decade?
A Thirty years ago, few of us would have predicted the rise of theradio talk-show hosts or the power of the single-issue groups. Norwould many 10 years ago (have been able to) understand how theInternet would be used in politics or ever hear of the term blogs! Soit is very difficult to predict the future.
We can predict that the methods of communicating with voters willcontinue to evolve.
Further -- and this may be wishful thinking -- I believe thevoters will demand less partisanship and more results. I heard timeand time again last year "stop the partisan bickering and get thingsdone."
Q From your perspective in Washington, how did the Miami Valley doin looking after its own interests? Was it organized enough? Or didit overdo it?
A The Miami Valley has done an excellent job in presenting itscase to both Congress and the administration. They have been wellorganized, aggressive, wellinformed and focused.
Q What did you teach (last semester at Miami University andCedarville College)?
A At Cedarville, I taught a seminar based on my years in politicsand government. I tried to talk about how elections really work andhow the Senate works. For example, we talked about the budget processand earmarks, what filibusters really are and how the impeachmentprocess works.
In regard to elections, I brought in a pollster, a fundraiser, alobbyist and a journalist. I wanted the students to understand howthings really work ... or don't work. I felt they then could decidewhat they liked, what they didn't like, and what they wanted tochange.
I had a much larger class at Miami, but the course was basicallythe same. At Miami, we read "All the King's Men," and at Cedarvilleeach student picked out a political novel.
Q Would you have been interested in teaching at Antioch College?
A I was never asked. My grandfather taught English there for closeto 40 years.
Q What if you were asked?
A Sure, teaching at Miami and Cedarville may be enough for now,but teaching at Antioch in the future would be fun. I think myGrandfather Liddle would be happy I am teaching, and it would bespecial to teach where he taught for so long.
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