By the time this column appears in print, long-term funding for the Department of Homeland Security may have been approved, but we doubt it. Our Washington political leaders once again showed their true colors by holding out on approval of funding unless the bill also established new immigration policies.

Attempts to separate the two were not going well when we wrote this column over the weekend. Most Americans were infuriated by this childish tactic: I won’t fund Homeland Security unless you agree to see it my way on immigration reform.

Obviously, the two entirely different issues should be addressed one at a time. While some House members saw it that way and were willing to split the two issues into separate bills, the remainder held out for the all-or-nothing vote. All we can say is shame on them.

This political ploy in recent years of tacking on another controversial issue to pending legislation in order to force votes in your favor is reprehensible, unethical, unfair and totally unacceptable, in our opinion. How many years are we going to stand by and watch our politicians play this game which is so frustrating to the American taxpayer?

Both political parties are guilty of using this tactic when the opportunity presents itself. We find no excuse whatsoever for combining bills in order to force a yes or no vote on a controversial proposal.

Some in Washington will argue that it’s time-saving to combine bills, but in instances such as homeland security and immigration, it’s merely an excuse and politically motivated.

We’re all keenly aware that hundreds of bills must be considered every session, and that it’s a challenge. We’ve never forgotten that a Maine congressman told us, 30 or 40 years ago, that it wasn’t a bit unusual to vote on bills when you knew nothing about them at all; you counted on fellow party leaders to fill you in and give you a quick summary to help you decide which way to vote.

Sometimes elected political leaders found out more about issues following their vote and wished they had voted the opposite way. Guess what? Those kinds of tales told out of school can and should make us more than a little uncomfortable, not to mention downright mad. It should prompt Washington to take a good, hard look at some of the bills coming before them, and recognize that some of these bills rightfully should be decided by the individual states themselves.

Washington has taken control of far too much and needs to admit that “One Size Fits All” isn’t working.

Washington should concentrate on the national issues. They should debate those issues individually with political leaders who are ready, willing and able to stand up for what they believe to be the best plan of action, and relay their position to their constituents back home. It’s time to stop playing games and tying two very important bills together when it’s not the right thing to do. The American people deserve better than that.