What we need is an Obama-Ryan coalition. Robama? O’Ryan?

Imagine a world far removed from the nastiness and gritty reality of this campaign season – somewhere between Camelot and Galt’s Gulch (Ayn Rand’s fictional entrepreneur oasis from Atlas Shrugged), where disparate views could be expressed without the campaign-addled media butting in.

If such a neutral zone existed, perhaps it would bring to...gether the ultimate fantasy duo capable of solving our most pressing problems: Obama-Ryan (or Ryan-Obama). Because the truth is, these two youngish family men – who seemed to find a great deal in common before they realized they were in opposing corners of the ring -- would make a Presidential dream team.

If we could just eliminate Romney and Biden from the equation, what progress we could make. Obama has Obamacare, which wants to reduce Medicare costs by lowering reimbursements to doctors and hospitals; Ryan has his Medicare voucher plan, which could shift us from the current inefficient fee-for-service delivery model. Ryan has a sterling reputation as a deficit hawk but his budget plan actually raises the deficit – by trillions; Obama has a terrible reputation as a deficit hawk; his budget plan cuts spending in crucial areas like defense while raising revenues.

Couldn’t we throw the Medicare voluntary voucher plan in along with the individual mandate and see if we get greater cost-savings incentives? And what about blending that deficit hawk reputation with a realistic expiration of the Bush tax cuts and defense spending reductions? Did I say fantasy duo? Yes, I was forgetting that we’re nowhere near Camelot or any other fictional oasis where true compromise is possible. Just forget what I said.