Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., can deliver a sharp party line with the best of them. But it says something about Alexander and the current toxicity of Washington, D.C., that he feels he needs to give up his No. 3 spot in the Senate GOP leadership to have the freedom to work across the aisle and actually pass meaningful legislation. “Stepping down from the Republican leadership will liberate me to spend more time trying to work for results on issues that I care the most about,” he said this week. “I want to do more to make the Senate a more effective place to address serious issues.” He’s working on a badly needed bipartisan solution for where to store nuclear waste. As a member of the “Gang of Six,” he also has stated that he’s open to revenue increases to help reduce the deficit, as long as they are accompanied by entitlement reform. Sad that a senator has to exit his party’s leadership to get things done.
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