Maine Gov. Janet Mills and Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson Talk Disagreement at IOP

Maine Governor Janet T. Mills and former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson discussed effective disagreement and bipartisanship in federal and local government at a Harvard Institute of Politics forum on Thursday evening.

The governors were accompanied by their respective chiefs of staff and by moderator Jeffrey B. Liebman, the director of the Taubman Center for State and Local Government at the Harvard Kennedy School. During the forum, the panelists discussed the importance of civility and openness in fostering productive bipartisan discussions.

In his introduction to the forum, HKS Dean Jeremy M. Weinstein discussed polarization in politics, saying “the middle is disappearing,” and adding that “effective governors have to be the adults in the room.”

“There’s no time to put on a team red or a team blue jersey,” he said.

When asked by a forum attendee about how to handle combative political situations, Mills said that such tension “easily happens when you don’t talk to people.” Hutchinson — who briefly challenged former President Donald Trump in the Republican presidential primary — criticized political candidates who worsen political tension by emboldening “fire-breathers.”

Both governors also said they have made efforts to foster cultures of open discourse in their respective cabinets. Mills, recalling advice given to her by U.S. Senator Angus S. King, Jr. (I-Maine), stressed the importance of not picking cabinet members because of party, but simply choosing “the best people you can find.” She added that “all of us are more successful than one of us alone.”

Hutchinson added that politicians must “be very intentional” to choose a politically diverse cabinet.

In a post-forum interview with The Crimson, when asked about the upcoming presidential election, Mills, a Democrat, said that she is saddened by what she called a “primarily a Trump-created issue” of divisiveness in the country.

“Among the many reasons why I don’t support Donald Trump is the fact that he is so divisive and polarizing,” she said. “He tends to demonize more dramatically than any effort to bring people together, and I find that a sad thing.”

In the post-forum interview, Hutchinson said that Trump is not making “the same intentional effort” that Harris is by reaching out to voters across party lines, but still thinks the former president is addressing bipartisanship in his campaign using a different approach.

“I do think that Donald Trump, in his own way, is trying to bring disaffected Democrats over by going after the union vote, going after the Latino vote, going after the African American male vote,” he said. “And so you see it done in a different way.”

Hutchinson also said he believes that in order to facilitate productive bipartisan conversations, it is important for young people to engage politically and to not “give up on the political world.”

“I’m really counting on the college students of today to be the leaders of tomorrow, and to lead in a way that doesn’t further the divide in our country,” Hutchinson added. “Leadership is about reducing the divide.”

“You just have to disagree politely, civilly,” Mills said. “Use words wisely. Words can divide, words can unify, words can harm.”

Both Mills and Hutchinson identified the importance of civility and open mindedness in creating room for open dialogue.

“Listen, listen, listen, and be there,” Hutchinson said. “You have to realize the humanity of everyone.”