Legislative shenanigans and treachery have been around in all political bodies since the earliest days of the republic, in fact, they have been a part of legislative action since way before this country was founded. It's preferable to civil war, so we put up with it.

Is it worse now than it used to be? Probably. Once any system is established, it tends to become entrenched, exaggerated and inocculated against common decency. And each time one side uses the dark side, the next time the other side does it even worse. How many times have we seen one side then the other try to ban the filibuster, only to eagerly adopt it when its in their favor? The same goes for term limits. It's always OK when you want YOUR hero to run for another term. Legislative malfeasance is decidedly non-partisan, but we all have a tendency to make excuses for our side and nit pick against our enemies.

Try reading "Advise and Consent" by Alan Drury, a fictional look at American politics as it was practiced in the 50s and early 60s. It's also available as a film. Its a bit dated and wimpy by today's standards, but the patterns were already present. For that matter, look up some of Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton's political battles. Somehow, both of these guys wound up being modern day founding father denigods, but they hated each others' guts and definitely put rocks in their snowballs.

Not to worry, dirty politics is neither rep nor dem, it's a political thing. Politicians are like lawyers, or businessmen, or Mafiosi. "Nothing personal, it's strictly business." They make up a social class (you know, the kind of class Tom says doesn't exist). And like all social classes, no matter how much they fight, when their joint interests are threatened, they'll join forces in a heartbeat.