Dupage Policy Journal

Mike Sommers, a Naperville native and current CEO/President of the American Petroleum Institute, says that if there could be only one takeaway from 2020, it should be how essential the oil, gas and petrochemical industry is. 

Sommers has been vocal recently on how important the industry is to the energy sector and the country; in March he wrote a column in BIC Magazine that lauded the bipartisanship of the industry and its focus on "the essential work America depends on."

Sommers recently spoke on the University of Richmond's Sharp Series, where he reflected on the importance of bipartisanship in his experience with the legislature. 

"The subject of bipartisanship is so very important in our government today," Sommers said. "In a divided era we always need to find time to figure out a way to find common ground among the political parties."

Sommers has held leadership roles in U.S. Congress and at the Capitol, including Chief of Staff for former House Speaker John A. Boehner and special assistant at the National Economic Council under the George W. Bush administration. 

Sommers said that bipartisan common ground is different from compromise. 

"There are places where I think both parties can come together on big issues facing our country," Sommers said. 

The energy executive was working in the government during the 2008 economic collapse, a time that he recalls as crucial for bipartisanship. 

"The bipartisan leadership at that point was able to come together and figure out a way to inject needed capital into the economy," Sommers said, noting that the legislature came together at a time that was very partisanly charged, in October right before an election. "Somehow even in that very partisan environment we were able to come together and do what was right for the American people."

Sommers said he was proud of the bipartisanship exhibited in that time of crisis and believes it could serve as a template for working across the aisle going forward. All of Sommers' comments on bipartisanship can be viewed in the video.