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Two Party Paper
- 1. Phillip Clark Clark 1 Professor Jamie Watts English 102 05 May 2011 Transcending the Two-Party System: A Hearkening Call to a Necessary Alternative The United States of America has always served as a unique and luminary example for the community of nations across the globe. The extraordinary history, culture, and values of the country proclaiming unconditional liberty and freedom to all can understandably resonate with any citizen of the world stage. Its influence in the modern era is unparalleled. Surprisingly, the internal political makeup of America has changed very little. The balance of power is maintained between three co-equal branches of government the executive branch (the President), the legislative branch (the Congress), and the judicial branch (the Supreme Court). Yet, for a large portion of its history, all of these governing institutions have been solely dominated by two major parties: the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. What was always viewed as an effective and exemplary model of civic life has recently proven problematic, and in many recent cases, stagnant, and downright ineffectual. It has become clear that adopting a system that goes beyond the two-party model would not only offer more viable political options for Americans to choose from, but would also allow more meaningful and comprehensive solutions to be found when confronting the plethora of issues that the United States faces today.
- 2. Clark 2 The very imminent threat of last months averted shutdown of the federal government underscores this point profoundly. All agencies of the government may have come to a screeching halt simply because partisan bickering had prevented both the Democratic and the Republican entities in Congress from coming to an agreement on how to keep these respective programs funded (Associated Press). Having a real-life situation where such a scenario very well could have played out makes it all the more clear why, now more than ever, 31% of Americans feel that the two-party system which has governed the political operations of the United States for the greater part of its three-hundred year history is inadequate (Wall Street Journal). This fact emphasizes that instead of compromise and reasonable solutions carrying the day, ideological extremes and perpetual political confrontations have become the norm. Such an environment transforms politics from a science that seeks to guarantee the best possible remedies that will benefit as many individuals as possible to a petty, juvenile boxing match that seems to reward winners with temporary victories. After being presented with these statistics, the question begs to be asked: how did America find itself in this dreary political predicament? Ironically, in its earliest days multiple parties flourished with vitality throughout the country. It was only in the middle of the nineteenth century that what we know today as the Republican and Democratic parties emerged onto the public square. The Democratic Party had its roots with one of the nations earliest presidents, Andrew Jackson who is traditionally considered its first leader. The Republican Party came to fruition by the efforts of anti-slavery activists most prominently, Abraham Lincoln who would lead the nation as president during the catastrophic strife of the Civil War. As the
- 3. Clark 3 infrastructure of the country developed and grew in prominence many parties which had thrived, slowly slipped into irrelevance. As the role of the United States changed from being a political experiment, to that of an emerging power on the world stage, the dynamics of issues which were of national importance to the whole country came to the forefront. The Democratic and Republican parties capitalized on this trend, and it would be the other minor parties which were much more concerned with regional and local issues that would lose ground as this paradigm shift continued to take hold across the United States (Berger). Essentially, by the 1930s, no major third parties were successful in winning elections for positions in Congress. Subsequently, the drift of the Republican and Democratic parties towards having sole dominance in the American political system had begun (Sorauf 29-30). Apparently, this civic concoction has proven effective for the greater part of the last century. Its tenets have ensured that America has remained a unique model of efficiency and strength the world over. Keeping in mind these external benefits of the present system, proponents argue that it is the only one that will genuinely ensure stability and fair representation for all. While it is often alleged that more political options would allow for a better selection of viable and alternative choices, the common wisdom for supporters of the status quo is that this is not in fact the case. More choices may lead to greater ambiguity about where certain parties stand on various issues (Huffington). Consequently, this confusion will serve to divide rather than unite prospective voters who may be considering supporting the respective parties. In short, too vast a spectrum of options can serve to weaken rather than strengthen a political system in virtue of the many matters that could be left unresolved or forgotten by such a wide collection
- 4. Clark 4 of parties. Given the large pool of civic expression, it may be hard to find points of harmony and unity for prospective voters to coalesce around when so many diverse and contrary options exist to choose from (Duke). Supporters will further argue that another benefit of the current system is legislative expedience. The party who has a majority in the legislature does not have to rely on support from the minority party to pass various laws and statutes (Berger). This is seen as pragmatism at its most effective exercise. Generally speaking, the majority party usually has control over what issues will come up for a vote and which ones will pass, thus eliminating the task of forging coalitions and watering down legislation in order to make it buoyant. Considering this reality leads to another observation. The system of checks and balances that is inherent in the American form of government some would argue is inseparable from the two party system. If so many parties are involved in the governing of the internal affairs of a countrys wellbeing, there is ultimately bound to be overreach, negligence, or even tyranny found in negotiating on certain matters where no common ground can be forged. With so many different veins of interpretation it is easy for one or more voices to gain the upper hand, simply because all voices must be heard in order to come to a workable solution. Having only two parties in government ensures that all persons will have a say and that no unreasonable ideas will be given consideration or weight simply because they have won a representative position in government. These all seem like very rational and laudable considerations for explaining the enduring relevance of Americas two-party system compared to those of other countries. In fact, all one
- 5. Clark 5 need do is to examine the apparent dysfunctionality rampant throughout many European parliamentary structures to see this point made convincingly. Yet, is this the satisfactory answer to the many questions that the political future of the United States of America is facing today? Are the issues the country is facing so simplistic that they can easily be dismissed with these assertions? Todays circumstances seem to present a different and most necessary proposition. In November of 2010 the Democratic Partys majority which they had held in the House of Representative since 2006 was revoked and the Republican Party assumed control of the chamber. This was done in response to the Democrats perceived inability to address Americas overwhelming economic woes, particularly its spiraling national debt, the federal budget deficit, and the fact that in a short number of years many federal entitlement programs which contributed the most to these amassed fiscal pitfalls would be bankrupt. Instead of focusing on these many pressing issues for the first two years of President Barack Obamas presidency, the Democratic Party had largely concentrated on passing through Congress what had been a signature initiative of their party for years, universal healthcare coverage for all Americans. Despite the passage of the historic legislation, Democrats took a drubbing in the polls as Americans expected Republicans to focus on what was supposed to be their political strong suit, limiting the size of unnecessary government intervention and enacting fiscal responsibility on all fronts.
- 6. Clark 6 Instead of such hopes ensuing, the GOP has drawn lines in the sand on a variety of issues when it comes to negotiating on the numerous urgent issues that the United States faces particularly its economic quandaries. Most recently, it seems that the Republican Party has focused peculiarly on social issues something the American people as a whole have not voiced a large degree of sympathy for instead of enacting legislation and solutions that would help solve the economic problems for which they were elected to Congress in the first place. This just goes to show that instead of creating efficiency and harmony, Americas two party system has now only led to intensified gridlock and polarity. Because there are merely two viable choices available in todays current political scheme, the ideas that emanate from both of these parties are the only ones that see the light of day. Such a stale and limited environment of consideration and innovation has only led to political inertia and discouragement by the American public at large (Duke). In such a situation, more available choices not less would only help to strengthen the opportunity of effective and comprehensive solutions being forged in Washington. Such a pervasive sense of polarization has also contributed to the fact that when compromises and partial agreements are made, these can never ultimately be effectual in achieving the long-term objectives for which they were meant to reach. Because both parties simply double down and become entrenched in their own ideological philosophies when trying to confront a problem, the answers that are found to the question at hand are only temporary, or sub-optimal, as Thomas Friedman of the New York Times noted (Huffington). Allowing more independent choices in the public square would not only increase political options, but would
- 7. Clark 7 also enable prospective pieces of legislation or policy matters to become more nuanced, reasoned, and moderated when being considered. Having more voices at the table would only serve to edify the American political debate, not undermine it (Duke). The most frightening and sobering reality about Americas ineffective political climate is that voters have long realized how broken the present system is. The longer this dilemma is ignored the more voters will refuse to take part in the political process, due to the notion that no choices are truly novel and that no meaningful solutions can ever be reached in Washington Duke). More and more young individuals simply state that they do not pay attention or have no interest in politics for this very reason. Taking all of this in stride, how harmful to the United States would it be if as many throngs of youths who turned out for then-candidate Barack Obama in 2008 decided to stay at home in November of 2012 simply because not enough had been noticeably accomplished in his first term as president? The United States of America is currently enduring its most grim and daunting internal trial it has had to grapple with since the Great Depression. Reason and fact show that if its fiscal plight is not dealt with imminently and comprehensively it could potentially follow the path of nations such as Greece and Portugal in Europe who have simply buckled under the economic pressure and have had to be rescued with expensive bailout programs by other wealthy nations. However, things must not necessarily remain so. In the past presidential election, America showed that it had truly grown up in a profound way when it consented to having its first-ever African-American occupant take the helm of the country in the Oval Office. Seen in this context, change can only further help to strengthen and lead the nation into ever brighter days of hope
- 8. Clark 8 and prosperity. Transcending the two-party system, which now no longer elicits sufficient affectivity, must be seen as a potential path towards a successful future. Doing so will only courageously fulfill the motto which has served for so long as one of Americas most seminal and fundamental values, E pluribus unum (Out of many, one).