For the new year, Congress and President Barack Obama should resolve to tone down the rhetoric and start taking steps to whittle long-term debt. Stop the posturing — but even if they can’t stop it during a presidential year, at least make some real decisions even as they posture for votes.

We need consensus on the core problems behind those finances — how much government spends on programs and how much it collects in taxes. There is middle ground — such as curbs on the growth of entitlements coupled with broad tax reforms that increase revenue.

Finding middle ground will be very difficult in such a polarized atmosphere.

Every issue is couched not in terms of what’s the best policy for the nation, but in what maneuvers will benefit one party and embarrass the other. Little wonder that Congress has had a record low public approval rate this year — as low as 9 percent — and that Obama now loses to a “generic” Republican opponent in most opinion polls.

Those reactions show that the public sees little commitment in Washington to solving problems.

For 2012, those we elect to office must act more responsibly. And Americans, with the power of the voting booth behind them, should enforce that responsibility.

— The Cincinnati Enquirer