Louisiana 4th district representative Mike Johnson and Florida’s 13th district representative Charlie Crist have crossed party lines to create the Honor and Civility Caucus in hopes of making politics a little less ugly.
The new caucus hopes to “promote the ideals of civility and statesmanship and to restore trust and confidence in America’s political institutions,” the congressman’s office said in a press release. The members of the caucus will focus on creating more positive and effective dialogue across party lines. The caucus will also try to change the tone of national politics.
Johnson and Crist earlier this year during their “summer of civility” campaign.
While an official list of caucus members has not been released, leaders from both parties have already expressed interest in joining. Congressman Johnson has already brought this issue up to his colleagues earlier this year in January when he authored the ““Commitment to Civility” which was signed by 120 members of congress.
The congressman said the following about the new caucus:
As the nation’s leaders, members of Congress should aspire to the highest standards and set an example of personal integrity, decency and mutual respect for the generations of Americans that will follow. We can be stalwarts of our respective policy positions without tearing one another down. Although the members of this caucus will represent both political parties and a wide range of individual views across the political spectrum, our belief is that we can disagree in an agreeable manner and maintain collegiality and the honor of our office. Our aim is to help reverse the increasing divisions in and coarsening of our culture.
The congressman also proposed a “National Day of Civility” which would have been celebrated on July 12th. According to the congressman’s press release, the idea for the National Day of Civility comes from Matthew 7:12, which begins: “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you.”
