by Debbie Robus

Created on: June 05, 2009   Last Updated: June 18, 2009

In Washington, grid-lock has become a way of life, particularly in the last eight years. With so many interest groups, lobbyists, stand-offs between the major political parties, and general distrust and disdain among a number of political leaders, it is no wonder that the public perception, at least, is that nothing gets done! Dictionary.com defines grid-lock as "any situation in which nothing can move or proceed in any direction..."

A case in point is the fiasco known as Medicare Part D Prescription Drug coverage. I can't begin to explain how many hours I have spent on the telephone, writing letters and sending e-mail messages to everyone - from Medicare representatives to my Congressmen and Senators, the Governor of Arkansas, and the Medicare Part D insurance providers and their agents - in an effort to enroll my 96-year-old grandmother in a plan and actually secure adequate coverage for her. "Go to www.medicare.gov," I am told. I do this, only to be told one thing, while representatives tell me another... and my Congressmen and Senators' offices remain silent. I did hear from the Representative for my District - and the Governor's office. And I even got an automated reply from a Representative for another District in Arkansas. My senator? It's been three years (and three insurance providers), and she still has not responded... and OVER ONE YEAR after I sent my letters and explained my plight in this TIME-SENSITIVE issue, I heard from our other senator... a canned "if I can be of assistance, let me know" e-mail reply.

Now, I fully realize this is ONE isolated issue. But if this is how things are handled in Washington on a regular basis, it's no wonder we've been mired in grid-lock! However, I do believe that changes are on the horizon. And it all starts with our President, who hit the ground running. In his first days in office, President Obama put a freeze on the salaries of senior White House staff who make more than $100,000 per year. He imposed new ethics rules, making his administration more transparent, directing federal agencies and departments to err on the side of disclosing too much information to the public instead of hedging on Freedom of Information Act requests and claiming "executive privilege."

Grid-lock formed, in essence, because political "movers and shakers" each fought for their own agenda at the expense of what was best for the American people as a whole. Change begins with reaching across the aisle and working together, and blurring

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