It seems Facebook has finally found something that unifies the yin and yang of American politics.
What might that be, you ask?
Pop culture, of course.
The social media site released a study Monday examining what cultural tastes Democrats and Republicans have in common, and the results are as hilarious as you might think.
Inspired by the proximity to Election Day, the geniuses over at Facebook Data Science checked users who “liked” pages for any Democratic or Republican candidates running for governor, U.S. Senate or the U.S. House of Representatives.
Then, they looked at other pages these users liked, measuring which ones members of both parties liked equally and which ones were more skewed.
When visualizing the relationship between Republicans and Democrats, the popular 1998 animated series “CatDog” comes to mind.
The show follows the antics of conjoined brothers — one a cat, the other a dog — who, despite the fact they have completely different personalities, are forced to coexist. Even with all the fighting, one could never survive without the other.
Rather than being joined at the waist, representatives of both political parties are bound by the need to control the political environment.
The study concluded that, while donkeys and elephants may not see eye to eye when it comes to the majority of policy decisions, they have similar tastes in music and television.
Artists like Aerosmith, Metallica and Taylor Swift made the cut for musical tastes the political nemeses share. Michael Jackson, Katy Perry and Bob Marley stood firmly in the Democratic side, and most of the popular country artists like Miranda Lambert and Jason Aldean stood closer to the Republican side.
When addressing television, Americans of all political backgrounds were reported to be fans of prime time television shows like “The Walking Dead” and “Grey’s Anatomy,” while late-night news commentary shows (i.e. The Colbert Report) are mostly enjoyed by Democrats.
The study also looked at books, authors and landmarks.
While this may seem trivial in the wake of the 2014 midterm elections, the study’s findings could open up a previously-unknown negotiating method for American politics: appealing to common interests.
Now that political staffs across Washington D.C. and the rest of the country have this information at their disposal, they can use cultural references to appeal, not only to their political coworkers, but also to the public, particularly with young voters.
Louisiana political candidates like U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu and U.S. Rep. Bill Cassidy could show each another dancing to Swift’s “Shake It Off” rather than attacking each other’s policies in campaign                                                                                advertising.
U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann can release public statements condemning President Barack Obama for spoiling the latest episode of “Two and a Half Men,” and members of Congress can start the legislative session by sharing one fun fact about their trips to the Jersey Shore.  
This study also shows — in its own unique and not-at-all serious manner — that even though political parties’ beliefs and principles may differ, the members who comprise the parties are not as different as they may think.
Democrats may be liberal screech-apes who want to increase the minimum wage, favor government regulation and believe in the rights of the                community.
Republicans may be conservative howler monkeys who want less government regulation, believe in rights of the individual and want a free market.
But now — thanks to Facebook — we know we share Taylor Swift.
Jose Bastidas is a mass communication senior from Caracas, Venezuela. You can reach him on Twitter @jabastidas.