Where I Stand — Brian Greenspun: Proud night of politics

Friday, June 16, 2000 | 9:36 a.m.

Brian Greenspun is the editor of the Las Vegas Sun.

IT WAS a very rare occasion in Washington, D.C.

And it wasn't the money-raising aspect of the evening that made it so, because that's pretty commonplace in the nation's capital, where fund-raising has become an art form. No, what was rare about the evening, which celebrated 25 years of public service by one of this nation's most dedicated and decent public servants, was the civility that reigned throughout the night. People of all political persuasions actually talked to each other and enjoyed the experience and that, my friends, is rare in Washington these days.

The stated purpose was to acknowledge a quarter century of giving back in a very big way by Connecticut's senior U.S. senator, Chris Dodd. Together with the first 25 years of service to America by his late father, Sen. Thomas Dodd, the Dodd contribution of half a century to the betterment of people is almost unmatchable. At the very least, it is most enviable because it represents the best of what we should teach our children about getting involved and staying involved in those public pursuits that impact the lives of so many millions of fellow citizens.

Monday night's affair represented not only an acknowledgment of his many years of service and the hopes for many more years of the same, but also the reality that money is a key ingredient in realizing that goal. It takes many dollars to get the message out so that the voters can be informed about why they should continue to support a man who, by unanimous accounts, has earned the privilege of representing his state in the U.S. Congress. That's why the dinner was so unusual.

Ever since the election of the Gingrich Congress in 1994 -- and some might say for a few years before that time -- the level of partisanship, especially in the House of Representatives, has been at best rancorous and downright unpleasant. It is bad enough that good people from either major party have to make decisions about the degree of privacy they are willing to forfeit should they run for election, but it is worse when, if elected, they must serve in a House divided not by an aisle but by an ideological chasm that prohibits normal human relationships. There is some sign that a letup is occurring but it is a weak one, especially in light of the zealousness with which the bad losers continue to pursue our president -- a sign that does not bode well for future Congresses that live by the rule of "payback."

That said, however, there was not one sign of such childish behavior Monday night unless, of course, good humor counts. In a room full of supporters from Connecticut and across the country, with every major Democratic senator in attendance, including Chris' good and close friend, Harry Reid, and with President Clinton spending the entire evening as the guest of honor, the full measure of Chris Dodd was taken. For there were two people, unlikely at first glance, who were there by his side and who gave the signal that what we have been taught in recent years to think is not the way things should be.

First and foremost in attendance was Jackie Clegg. Jackie is a power in her own right and a product of our neighbor to the east, Utah. She is a Mormon. What was she doing at a dinner honoring Chris Dodd from Connecticut, a liberal and a Democrat? What would her friends and family think?

Her friends and family think that Jackie married one of the nicest, brightest and most decent people they have ever met. So does Jackie, by the way. So she was there to help honor her husband and the qualities that have drawn him to her -- his charm, his dedication to principle and his overarching commitment to the service of others. The fact that those qualities come in a Democratic package are of little or no consequence to Jackie or her Utah-grown Mormon family members. And if he's good enough for them, he and others like him should be good enough for others who claim decency as a standard of behavior.

The other person who came to praise Chris Dodd tried on occasion to bury him. At least in a figurative sense. When former Senate majority leader and GOP presidential candidate Bob Dole was introduced as a surprise guest, everyone rose to their feet to applaud a man who has given so much of his life to public service. No one thought about Dole's political affiliation as they rose to show their affection and gratitude. Nor did they consider what kind of "form" it was to show their respect in a room full of Democrats. Bob Dole is the kind of American we should all be proud to be and the crowd shouted its approval. It was different in that room, I suspect, than the way Washington has been working for the past few years. It was nice.

What was better, though, was the incredible humor Dole brought to the evening. If he had been allowed to show the public that funny side of him during the presidential race in 1996, while the outcome probably wouldn't have changed, at least it would have been far more pleasant for the American public. The way Dole praised his old and good friend Chris Dodd was reminiscent of the way politics and politicians worked in years past. There was collegiality, respect and caring. There was a genuine belief that good friends can disagree and still be good friends. This is one time when I yearn for the good old days.

He even made fun of the president who sat at a table in front of his former political opponent and laughed with the rest of us at his own expense. It was a very human night. It was a very good night. It was the kind of night that made our guest, Academy Award-winning actor Anthony Hopkins, himself a brand-new citizen and no stranger to presidential politics, proud to be an American.

It was a night that made everyone in the room proud. Proud of Chris Dodd, proud of Bob Dole, proud of President Clinton and, more than anything else, proud of a country that could host a dinner in which people of all political stripes could get along as friends. Let's do it some more.