As Republicans struggle to select a Speaker for a second straight day, much is being made of Congressional dysfunction. I myself was ready to pile on in my own disappointed yet hopeful way. Then I came across a column by the co-chairs of the House’s Select Committee for the Modernization of Congress and found my spirits lifted.

For those who don’t know — and there’s no reason anyone would — the Select Committee for the Modernization of Congress was a bipartisan committee created to improve the House of Representatives. If that sounds like a broad remit, it is. If it sounds like a fool’s errand, you’d be surprised. The committee has gotten a number of its recommendations passed by bucking hurdles the rest of Congress takes for granted. For starters, the select committee is literally bipartisan, comprised of six Democrats, six Republicans, and one non-partisan staff. For recommendations to pass out of committee, they must receive eight votes rather than a simple majority, thus ensuring cross-party appeal. The list goes on and on, all the way down to the seating arrangements. One can roll his or her eyes at the kumbaya of it all, but the results speak for themselves. More than one hundred of their proposals have been passed with broad support by a Congress that otherwise agrees on very little. Not bad.

Now, will gun or abortion or tax legislation pass ever pass with such ease? No. But the knowledge Congress works in one area raises expectations it can work in others. That’s a good thing. When we expect Congress to do nothing, it feels no pressure to do anything. It’s time to hold our legislators to a higher standard because, as the Select Committee for the Modernization of Congress proved, they’re capable of it.

P.S. Those looking to learn more about the select committee should listen to its co-chairs discuss their work on the Political Theater podcast. It is, believe it or not, inspiring. Here’s the link.