<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/9/1599830591566.jpeg" alt="Dan Glickman" />
 <figcaption>Dan Glickman</figcaption>
 </figure>By DAN GLICKMAN Former U.S. Secretary of AgricultureI have always been proud of the bipartisan heritage of Kansas politicians.We have had plenty of 
disagreements over the years, just ask any of us. But there have always 
been moments of bipartisanship on behalf of the state and the nation. 
Political disagreement is part of our system of government, and 
constructive partisanship has been a hallmark of our great state.Think of the examples of 
such leadership: Dwight Eisenhower, Bob Dole, Nancy Kassebaum, the 
Dockings, Kathleen Sebelius, John Carlin, Mike Hayden, Jim Slattery, 
Dennis Moore and many other state and federal leaders. These folks had 
strong beliefs and deeply held principles, but they generally put good 
government first and foremost, well above blind adherence to any 
political party or narrow agenda.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2019/12/1575913663048.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>They understood the basic 
truth of our government, that so many have now forgotten. The only way 
to achieve real progress for the citizens of Kansas, and the country, is
 to work collaboratively across party lines, achieve results and not 
engage in any form of blind partisanship for its own sake.No one wins when politics 
becomes continuous personal attacks on rivals. The point of politics is 
to govern, not to slander one’s opponents and debase oneself.I am not a Trump supporter
 and I hope, not unsurprisingly, that Biden wins. If you’re reading this
 and thinking, “he’s a hypocrite,” let me remind you that I have 
publicly supported some Republicans nationally for Congress over the 
past many years. I also worked with Sens. Kassebaum and Dole and other 
Republicans on defense issues impacting Kansas, and specifically general
 aviation product liability and related tort reform issues helping the 
Kansas aviation industry.And I would be the first to admit that Democrats do not have a perfect record.But what we see from 
President Trump is not merely civil, or even heated, disagreement over 
public policy. Another four years of Trump is another four years of 
chaos, dishonor and corruption from the president and much of his team. 
In recent days, where legitimate reports have indicated he has <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/09/trump-americans-who-died-at-war-are-losers-and-suckers/615997/">called our fallen soldiers “suckers” and “losers,”</a> I think enough is enough.I am curious if Trump 
thinks that Bob Dole is a loser or sucker because he was so seriously 
injured defending America against the Nazis? After all, he said John 
McCain was not a war hero because he was captured in Vietnam. Partisans 
can disagree over America’s role in the world, but no one wants to be a 
laughingstock. President Trump ought to make us ashamed. We are 
ridiculed by the world and the butt of jokes from our own allies. His 
indefensible behavior has weakened America.What is most troubling to 
me is the failure of so many Republicans, especially in Kansas, to speak
 truth to power and to call out this outrageous and un-American 
behavior.Regardless of party 
affiliation, our state has always been known for calling it like it is, 
even if it meant taking on one’s own party leaders. William Allen White,
 the publisher of the Emporia Gazette, <a href="https://www.kshs.org/p/william-allen-white-s-1924-gubernatorial-campaign/13257">fought the Klu Klux Klan</a> in the 1920s at his own personal peril. He led by example.Where are today’s independent thinkers in Kansas?I know because I am a 
Democrat, you might not listen to me if you’re a Republican. But there 
were times when I called out my own party: on Vietnam, on excessive 
spending and racking up debt, and on many agricultural issues where the 
Republican side was on the right side of Kansas farmers.It’s time for all of us, 
and especially our Kansas Republican leaders, to remember our proud 
history, do and say what is right, and stand up for the best principles 
of America.Dan Glickman is the Executive Director of the Aspen Institute Congressional Program, a nongovernmental, nonpartisan educational program for members of the United States Congress. He was U.S. Secretary of Agriculture from 1995 until January 2001.&nbsp;Republished courtesy Kansas Reflector.

OPINION: Kansas, and the country, must return to ‘constructive partisanship’