Bipartisan Reagan-O'Neill Social Security Deal in 1983 Showed It Can Be Done

President Reagan with House Speaker Tip O'Neill at the White House.

So what does this deal say about Obama's plans to heal the rifts that divide Americans and achieve the promise of bipartisan compromise and reform? The 1983 compromise reminds that the political environment can swiftly change in ways that are almost impossible to anticipate; it's a reminder of the contingency of history, and the malleability of America's political process. 

Thus, while Obama and his critics are at partisan loggerheads on how to reform healthcare, reduce dependence on fossil fuels, and lower the federal budget deficits, such rifts aren't unchangeable and immovable. Moreover, that Reagan-era compromise shows that mid-term elections (the GOP lost big in 1982) can alter the partisan calculus on critical topics. Reagan's agreement with Democrats further demonstrates that commissions—they often provide politicians with vehicles for kicking the can down the road—can also help to fuel bipartisan solutions and foster political support for getting some hard things done in Washington. Ultimately, whether the issue is immigration reform, providing universal access to healthcare, or strengthening Medicare and Social Security over the long term, Reagan's compromise highlights how politics can drive policies in some pretty unanticipated directions. For those who are critical of Obama and Congress for their failures to date to deliver on bipartisanship, Reagan's example suggests that they might just be surprised by what the future can hold in store for the country.