President Obama ran his campaign with the promise that he would be a “post-partisan” president able to unite the left and right to bring the sweeping change he thought America needed. The press echoed these remarks, selling Americans in their coverage that Obama and his Democratic colleagues were the tonic to cure America’s harsh partisan bickering that had sickened the nation and brought about all it’s ills. Last fall, speaking at a gathering of Google employees, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi reiterated this claim saying, “If Democrats win, and they hold substantial majorities, the Congress of the United States, will be more bipartisan.”

Despite these promises, it seems this was not in fact the change we could believe in. In just the few short months since his inauguration, Obama and the Democrats have made Washington a more partisan town, not less. In fact, a new Pew survey has found that Obama’s job approval ratings between the parties are the widest in modern American history.

For all of his hopes about bipartisanship, Barack Obama has the most polarized early job approval ratings of any president in the past four decades. The 61-point partisan gap in opinions about Obama’s job performance is the result of a combination of high Democratic ratings for the president — 88% job approval among Democrats — and relatively low approval ratings among Republicans (27%).

The growing partisan divide in presidential approval ratings is part of a long-term trend. Going back in time, partisanship was far less evident in the early job approval ratings for both Jimmy Carter and Richard Nixon. In fact, a majority of Republicans (56%) approved of Carter’s job performance in late March 1977, and a majority of Democrats (55%) approved of Nixon’s performance at a comparable point in his first term.

But who can really blame Republicans and moderates for having a less than approving view of Obama when you look at the actions of his young administration. It began just a few short days after his inauguration at a meeting in the White House with Democrat and Republican leaders from the hill, in to discuss the “stimulus” plan.

Challenged by one Republican senator over the contents of the package, the new president, according to participants, replied: “I won.”

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With those two words — “I won” — the Democratic president let the Republicans know that debate has been put to rest Nov. 4.

Well, that doesn’t sound very bipartisan or post-partisan now does it.

Of course, Obama is not the only Democrat stoking the fires of partisanship in DC. Nancy Pelosi has nearly shut the minority Republicans completely out of the process in the House, and Harry Reid is seeking to echo Pelosi’s style of rule in the Senate, even going so far as to muscle sweeping changes to the energy and healthcare industries without debate by using a tool called “reconciliation” normally reserved for budgeting.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is holding the option of using a legislative maneuver to create not only a sweeping overhaul of the nation’s health care system but also a controversial cap and trade energy program, a move that could torpedo bipartisanship.

The maneuver, known as “reconciliation,” protects legislation to which it’s attached from a Senate filibuster. Republicans, in their deep minority status, are in an uproar over the possibility that they will be all but eliminated from the legislative process.

I asked a Republican staffer on Capitol Hill if President Obama and members of his party have truly tried to reach out and be “post partisan”. “While President Obama and some Democrats emphasize bipartisanship, they only do so in word — not action. President Obama has demonstrated he simply wants Republicans to agree with his agenda. He is not willing to compromise for them.”

Of course, the administration has also made an effort to smear Republicans and others who have disagreed with them in the last few months, with Robert Gibbs, the President’s Press Secretary even mocking and taunting the likes of Rush Limbaugh, Jim Cramer and Rick Santelli from the podium during press conferences. Other administration officials have also shown a utter lack of respect for the those across the aisle.

Once upon a time, the Obama administration tried hard to show it listened to Republican ideas.

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Now the administration has all but given up even the pretense of bipartisanship. At a recent lunch with reporters, Budget Director Peter Orszag was asked if he could name a useful idea submitted by Republicans. He couldn’t—and didn’t even pretend he’d considered many. When House Republicans put out a budget last week, press secretary Robert Gibbs said, “The party of no has become the party of no ideas.”

In recent days Obama has ousted the CEO of GM, and turned down a large bank’s repayment of TARP funds seeking to assert direct control over private companies. His fellow Democrats at the other end of Pennsylvania avenue, have even proposed controlling the salary of every employee at a company that has been loaded money by the federal government. Treasury Secretary Tim Giethner may soon be empowered to run your office, making key staffing and business decisions in the name of protecting the economy.

All this will only seek to drive Obama’s poll numbers lower among everyone except for the most left of the political spectrum in America.