Ribble: Can’t we all just get along?

Congressman Reid Ribble won a standing ovation from those attending the Door County Economic Development Corporation’s annual investors meeting and luncheon at the Stone Harbor Resort and Conference Center in Sturgeon Bay on April 30.

As he grabbed the microphone from the podium and stepped down from the small stage where every other speaker before him had stood during the 24th Annual Door County Economic Development Corporation’s luncheon at Stone Harbor in Sturgeon Bay on April 30, Congressman Reid Ribble said he wanted to be able to walk around because “My dad was a southern Baptist minister. I have five older brothers. Three of them are pastors. I have two sons. One of them is a pastor. So I stay away from the pulpit.”

Yet he delivered a fire and brimstone speech about the need for cooperation between Americans of all stripes, a speech that caused the entire room to jump up and applaud when he finished, and moved one man to call out, “Amen, Pastor!”

In short, it was a revelation.

Here is what I knew about Reid Ribble before seeing him in action for the very first time since he was elected to the United States Congress on Nov. 2, 2010, in a defeat of incumbent Democrat Steve Kagen:

• He is a conservative Republican.

• He ran a roofing business before being elected.

That didn’t paint the most appealing picture as the person to represent us in Washington. Frankly, it sounded kind of roughshod. Nothing against roofers, but the few I have known wouldn’t have fared well in D.C. Did I bother to learn more about the man? No. I went about my business and hoped he wouldn’t embarrass us too much.

Now in his second term after soundly defeating Askeaton Democrat Jamie Wall in last November’s election, Ribble seemed on fire in the packed Stone Harbor conference room.

He opened by saying he’d been asked the same question six or seven times since entering the room: Is there any hope?

“That is a very common question I get asked. In fact, it is the most common question I’m asked,” he said.

His answer: Yes, there is hope, but only if we got over bitter partisan divisions.

“When I came to Congress there was no venue whatsoever – zero, zip – for Republicans and Democrats to talk together. They keep us as segregated as you could imagine,” he said. “I was naïve enough to think we’d go into a committee room. We’d talk about X or Y. discuss and try to craft policy that made sense for everybody. That Republicans and Democrats alike would debate and talk and doesn’t happen.”

Last October Ribble expressed his frustration with the highly bipartisan nature of Congress to fellow Republican Congressman Scott Rigell of Virginia.

“We hit it off,” he said. “His dad was a Marine. My dad was a Marine. He had a business. I had a business. His kids were grown up. My kids were grown up. We’re about the same age. We were talking and decided to reach out to two Democrats. I said, ‘You go find one and I’ll go find one.’”

The two Republicans hooked up with Democrats Jim Cooper of Tennessee and Kurt Schrader of Oregon.

“We went out to dinner and we talked,” Ribble said. “You know what I found out? I found out that they loved their country. I found out that they were there for the same reason I was there. I found that there were places that we agreed and places we disagreed.”

One area they agreed on was that members of Congress should not be paid if they don’t do their work, resulting in the No Budget, No Pay bill.

“We never thought that would go anywhere,” Ribble said. “The Senate hadn’t passed a budget for four years. But we passed it through the House and the Senate passed it and the President signed it. For the first time in four years the American people had the chance to see the United States Senate’s finance priorities.”

That led the foursome to believe they were on to something, so each went out to find other members of their party to join them.

“We try to meet every other week,” Ribble said. “Last week there were 76 of us, Republicans and Democrats alike, sitting in a room and talking about the issues of the day. Nobody was being demonized. Nobody was being ridiculed. No idea was too dumb, too left or too right. Every idea was on the table and you can talk openly knowing that who[m]ever you were talking to next to you wasn’t going to run a television ad saying how stupid you are. We actually talked. We’ve now put together eight different pieces of legislation.

“For my Republican colleagues who are concerned that I’m working with Democrats and am going all squishy and moderate, for those of you who believe that, I want every Republican to hear this – what is it about what you believe that you lack confidence in, [why] should [we] not take that idea into the arena of ideas.”

He repeated that message to the Democrats in the room.

“Share, persuade, cajole, convince, talk about ideas,” he said. “What makes us American is not some label. What makes us American is not being a Republican, Democrat, liberal or conservative. We’re Americans by heritage. I’m more of an American than I am a Republican and that’s how I want to be.”

Amen, Congressman!