Former Arizona Senator Jeff Flake speaks at USU
Jeff Flake, former Republican senator from Arizona, gave a speech at Utah State University on Monday.
The event was organized by The Foxley Forum, a program by the Institute for Government and Politics to bring public figures to USU to discuss national issues.
Flake, who retired from his Senate seat in December after choosing not to run for reelection, is well-known for his public opposition to the presidency of Donald Trump.
The forum was titled “Is Polarizing Partisanship the New Normal?”
Neil Abercrombie, the vice president for Federal and State Relations under the IOGP, said Flake was chosen as a speaker for the series because students exhibited an interest in him.
“For us, the goal is to have students engaged in the political arena, and he’s someone that’s certainly been right in the middle of things in the last couple of years,” he said.
Flake discussed the political atmosphere that he says has resulted in increased division and government dysfunction.
“We’ve shattered our politics when polarizing partisanship has taken over,” Flake said.
In addition, Flake discussed his tendency as a politician to reach across the aisle, and how such bipartisanship has caused him to receive backlash online.
He recounted President Barack Obama’s 2012 State of the Union speech, during which he assisted Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-Arizona) to stand for applause. Giffords was at the time recovering from a traumatic brain injury as a result of an assassination attempt.
“People hadn’t seen a kind gesture, they saw somebody consorting with the enemy,” Flake said. “I was immediately deluged with phone calls and texts and emails asking, ‘Why would I agree with President Obama?’”
Flake was present at the 2017 congressional baseball match in Alexandria, VA., when a shooter fired more than 50 rounds, injuring six and nearly killing Republican Congressman Steve Scalise. Flake said he used his batting glove to stem another’s gunshot wound.
Flake more recently drew controversy when a video of a confrontation between him and a sexual assault victim went viral during Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination hearing.
“She had very legitimate concerns, and she was exercising her right to be there,” he said. “But it wasn’t a comfortable position to be in. And that’s why so many members just rush to their corner, pick their tribe and stay there. That’s where the political incentives are today.”
Moderate stances and frequent opposition to hard-line Republicans have also brought Flake’s name to the spotlight.
In current politics, Flake said “you don’t want to be the man in the middle.”
He discussed his decision not to seek reelection for his Senate seat.
“I would have to agree with positions that I didn’t agree with, or condone behavior that I simply couldn’t condone,” he said. “It shouldn’t have to be this way…to feel the weight and the burden of this partisan atmosphere around us.”
He decried the recent partisan shift in U.S. politics.
“Our responsibilities as elected officials are to put country above party, to look for opportunities to reach across the aisle, to recognize that your political opponents are not your enemies,” Flake said. “They may disagree with you, but they are not your enemies.”
Regarding the government shutdown, he remarked, “We have to come to a point where we can actually govern again, and the fact that we just got through a 32-day shutdown – and may be facing another – shows that we aren’t governing very well.”
“If we can’t keep the government open, then we certainly can’t tackle the other big challenges that are out there for us,” he said. “Have the angels of our better nature been permanently furloughed?”
When asked what he felt students can do to combat political polarization, he said to not get involved with groups that exacerbate division.
“You hear the phrase, from some on my side of the aisle, to ‘Own the libs,’” he said. “To do things that intentionally try to inflame division. I don’t think that’s useful.”
Sen. Flake said he does not plan to run for president in 2020, and has joined CBS News as a contributor.
However, when prompted, he clarified that a future career in politics was still a possibility.
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