On August 15, President Donald Trump shocked many Americans by essentially saying that people who march with signs emblazoned with swastikas—or at least those who march with them—are just like any other Americans.

The next day, Congressman John Faso spoke at an event for the Dutchess County Regional Chamber of Commerce and called for unity. According to the Poughkeepsie Journal, Faso said, “It’s vitally important to call it what it is, when there are people that are these so-called alt-right, nationalists, and neo-Nazis. The notion that certain people would try to inflame divisions and sow divisions, and racial hatred and controversy among ourselves, it’s inimical. It’s not the American way, and it goes against our very core values.

“It’s incumbent upon all of us who are in leadership, and all of us as citizens in our communities, to resist the tendency of polarization, and resist the tendency of people to go into their camps—where the left watches their media, MSNBC, and reads the periodicals they agree with, and the right goes to FOX and they read and watch the periodicals of media they agree with. It’s vitally important we try to find common ground.”

While we have disagreed with Faso starkly on some of his positions, we certainly agree with him on this one. Further, we may agree with another position he laid out during those remarks to the chamber.

As the president’s poll numbers gradually dwindle into clearly damaging territory, Faso’s position on healthcare seems to be shifting. After voting twice for healthcare bills that would kick anywhere from 15 to 25 million Americans off their health insurance policies, he is now calling for a bipartisan approach to fix this county’s healthcare problem.

He told the chamber audience that he had joined the Problem Solvers Caucus, which is a group of 22 Republicans and 22 Democrats in the House, who working on a temporary, compromise plan to shore-up the individual markets created under the Affordable Care Act or Obamacare by continuing to provide federal support to help low-income employees be able to afford health insurance. The Problem Solver’s plan requires that employers with 500 or more employees provide the workers with insurance, up from the current threshold of 50.

The impact of the plan is not yet entirely clear because more details need to be worked out, but any plan that doesn’t start by kicking millions of people off their health insurance is a step in the right direction. It’s impossible to know if the Republican leadership in the Senate or the House will go along with this idea. The mantra of “repeal and replace” has been chanted for so long by Republicans that convincing them to take a different path is like asking them to give up a chunk of their DNA.

But some see hope in this direction. Long Island Congressman Tom Suozzi, a Democrat, is vice-chair of the caucus. He told WSHU Public Radio, “I believe this is an oasis in the desert of dysfunction. It’s like a major bright light after so many people just focusing on attacking each other instead of working together.

“The public is sick of politicians. They’re sick of the politics, they’re sick of the finger pointing. They’re sick of everybody blaming each other. They just want us to get something done.”

We hope this change in Faso’s outlook represents new hope for all of the residents in New York’s Congressional District 19, who have a right to affordable healthcare.

On a third topic, Faso has shifted his former position slightly by agreeing to a town-hall-style meeting, set for August 31 in Esopus Town Hall. To date, Faso has resisted participating in large, open meetings, and this one will be tightly controlled. It is limited to 200 people, and in a press release Faso said the arrangements were negotiated with the progressive group Move Forward New York over a three-month period.

The press release said, “Seventy tickets will be distributed by Move Forward New York; contact: mfny19@gmail.com. Seventy tickets will be distributed by Congressman Faso’s office; contact: 202/225-5614. Sixty tickets will be distributed at the door on a first-come, first-served basis. Limit one ticket per request.”

Coming at about eight months into his first term, it is certainly time that Faso make himself available to his constituents in this way. We hope he listens to the concerns of his constituents, and puts them ahead of the concerns of his wealthy donors. And given some of Faso’s recent shifts, this may be an opportunity to open a constructive dialogue.