When was that? When Burr shot Hamilton? When Brooks beat Sumner senseless on the Senate floor? I think you're idealizing the past. If I heard major politicians referring to their opposition as "those inbred idiots without two grey cells to rub together", or accusing them of wanting to eradicate them, I'd be more inclined to worry. But claiming these to be uniquely divided times strikes me as a bit of an overstatement.