Leon Panetta believes dysfunction in Washington is the most serious threat to the United States.
“Our inability to come together, to work together and present a unified front […] seriously damages not only our national defense, but damages our economy as well,” the former secretary of Defense said on PBS Thursday night.
Panetta has been on a tour, discussing the release of his memoir Worthy Fights, which looks at both Washington in general and President Obama’s effectiveness against legislative gridlock and world crises.
Specifically, Panetta noted federal leadership — both the Republican and Democratic parties and the White House — has “given up” on addressing issues like “the budget, immigration reform, healthcare, energy, trade.”
If President Obama finishes out his presidency in what Panetta called “stalemate,” the country “could be seriously weakened as we try and move forward in the 21st Century,” he said.
Americans aren’t as divided on partisan lines as pundits say, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia found this week.
