Politicians are scrambling for cross-aisle civility dates for SOTU

I hear Barney Frank is still available...

(Politico) — Lawmakers on the Hill haven’t quite broken out the corsages — yet — but the high school level drama is on as senators and representatives scramble to find suitable across-the-aisle seating partners for Tuesday’s State of the Union address.

The very public rollout of odd-couple pairings this week, from lofty press releases to tweets to public displays of bipartisan affection on national TV — where Sens. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) kicked off a Capitol craze on “Meet the Press” last Sunday by announcing their intentions to sit together — has turned conventional State of the Union wisdom on its head.

A night typically marked by highly symbolic partisan coordination, from seating charts to dramatic, orchestrated applause for the president, now has become about the buildup: Which Democrat will sit with which Republican on which side of the aisle?...