Story highlights John Kasich: If the recent town halls are any indication, the American people will no longer stand for Washington gridlock

Congress must instead try to work together to reach bipartisan solutions, writes Kasich

John Kasich is the current governor of Ohio. Previously, he was a member of the House of Representatives. He is the author of the just-released "Two Paths: America Divided or United." The views expressed in this commentary are his own.

(CNN) Americans are relying on leaders in Washington to fix our health care problems, but if recent history is any indication, the search for solutions in the current environment will inevitably lead to an unproductive partisan standoff. Hopefully, members of Congress will learn from their turbulent town hall meetings that the American people are finally having their fill of that gridlock.

Sadly, the health care debate is but one battle in what seems to be an endless partisan war, and the battlefields are every issue of importance facing our nation -- from the economy to foreign policy. How did things get so off track?

John Kasich

It wasn't always this way. When I was chairman of the House Budget Committee in the 1990s, we were able to reform Pentagon spending , pass welfare reform and balance the federal budget for the first time in decades and largely because Democrats and Republicans made a commitment to work together. We disagreed and debated, but at the end of the day we agreed to meaningful reforms that strengthened our country. That change was possible only with bipartisan support.

In more recent times, as governor of Ohio, I've seen the same kind of across-the-aisle approach lead to positive progress in addressing some of our state's most perplexing problems: police-community relations human trafficking , infant mortality, underperforming schools, highway infrastructure , skyrocketing college tuition and so many others.

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