In show of civility, Nevada politicos will sit together at Obama speech

In a symbolic show that lawmakers can get along despite sometimes deep political differences, more than five dozen members of Congress have endorsed the idea of bipartisan seating during President Barack Obama's State of the Union speech.

That number includes members of Nevada's congressional delegation.

Democratic Rep. Shelley Berkley will cross over to the Republican side of the House chamber and will sit with Republicans Joe Heck and Dean Heller for the Tuesday night address.

Meanwhile, Republican Sen. John Ensign said he is pairing with a Democrat, although his office has declined so far to identify the partner.

Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., has supported the idea but as the Senate majority leader his staff was not certain yet what flexibility he will have on his seating arrangement.

The musical chairs is an outgrowth of the Jan. 8 shooting in Tucson, Ariz., that targeted Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. The tragedy caused self-reflection among pundits and lawmakers as to whether go-for-the-throat rhetoric in Capitol Hill battles and on the campaign trail had gotten out of hand to the point it might have motivated the alleged attacker Jared Loughner.

Picking up on a proposal by a moderate think tank, Sen. Mark Udall. D-Colo., suggested that Democrats and Republicans scrap their normal seating plan as a way to demonstrate everyone can get along.

Normally the parties sit on opposite sides of the House chamber, which creates a decidedly partisan vibe as Democrats and Republicans variously cheer and sneer at the president's remarks.

While there will be no formal seating plan for Tuesday's event, some lawmakers are taking it on themselves to mingle.

"I have every intention of moving over to the (Republican) side," Berkley said, while Heller said sitting alongside his Democratic counterpart "shows that despite political disagreements we can find common ground and work together.”

It will be Heck's job as the new guy in the delegation to get to the House chamber early and save three seats together, aides said.

It remains to be seen whether the feel-good floor plan will create a new spirit of civility. In a radio interview today, Ensign said he tended to doubt it.

"Those kind of things happen usually for a few weeks and then people go back to how they were before," he said.

Even after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks that deeply affected elected leaders, there was a spirit of cooperation that lasted "for some time, and slowly people got back to doing their own things," Ensign said.