Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Has the Two-Party System Failed?
the-classic-liberal.com ^ | 2009-10-29 | theCL

Posted on 04/30/2012 9:01:32 AM PDT by Mozilla

The truth in American politics today, is that we have a one-party system, with Democrats representing one-side of the Big Government Party and Republicans representing another side of the Big Government Party.

Are "we the people" truly represented anymore?

We've grown so accustomed to the 2-party system, that we take it for granted that in America, the land of unlimited possibilities, choosing either a Democrat or Republican amounts to our only available option. And in a sense this is true, because over the years, our Overlords have written laws that game the system in their favor.

So, does our current 2-party system of Democrats and Republicans provide an accurate representation for "we the people"? Or in reality, does it act more to divide us, thus causing our country harm?

Our Founders were not necessarily advocates of political parties. Ben Franklin believed that "confusion engendered" with political parties. Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay warned that a political party system would only create a "spirit of faction."

George Washington, our first president, refused allegiance to any political party during his 8 years in office, and thought that alternating between 2 parties would be a "frightful despotism."

At the beginning of the 20th century, the Republican Party came to represent farmers, the gold standard, fiscal responsibility, and a non-interventionist foreign policy. The Democratic Party represented the Southern landowners, Northern laborers, a fiat money system, a more powerful federal government, and an interventionist foreign policy.

Fast-forward to the modern parties ... The end of the Ronald Reagan administration and Cold War brought significant changes to the parties. The first being the ascendancy of "neoconservatism" with the Bush Sr. administration, and the second being Bill Clinton's "New Democrats."

The "New Democrats" began championing unrestricted globalization, social engineering and more government authority, while paying lip-service to free markets. The "neoconservatives" championed unrestricted globalization as well (while paying lip-service to the free markets), but also demanded an aggressive and interventionist foreign policy.

It's obvious our 2-party system hasn't solved the "issues" of the day. Instead, the system has become increasingly corrupt. Both parties continuously make promises they never intend to keep, and neither represents the people they claim to represent.

Why? Because both parties are committed to only one purpose - expanding the size and scope of government, and thus, their power. They both want control of our multi-trillion dollar federal budget, and nothing more.

As Ben Franklin warned too, the 2-party system has engendered confusion. The partisan name-calling of "wingnut" and "moonbat" offer nothing of substance to the debate, but merely divides. If you're anti-war, you're automatically a "radical leftist," while supporting the right to life makes you a "right-wing religionist." Even the words "conservative" and "liberal" don't have clear meaning anymore.

I believe the 2-party system has greatly divided our nation, pitting "we the people" against each other, whereas we once were united against the State.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Philosophy; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: 2partysystem; dnc; gop; rino
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041-6061-8081-84 next last
Republicans and democrats both support big government.
1 posted on 04/30/2012 9:01:43 AM PDT by Mozilla
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: Mozilla

Yes,

The Republic is badly damaged
Perhaps a Meritocracy would be better
— It worked for the Chinese for >1000 yrs.


2 posted on 04/30/2012 9:08:11 AM PDT by HangnJudge
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mozilla
A country like Italy with a dozen political parties can afford to have one of them go rogue. We can't. Having one of our two parties go rogue forces the other into unnatural positions in order to compete effectively.

What is needed mainly is runoff or instant runoff elections for all public offices i.e. nobody should fear to vote his first choice on a first ballot and nobody should ever hold any public office with less than 50% of the vote. THAT would allow some third party to rise up and supplant the demoKKKrats but, until we have that, there are no options and we have to support the GOP, anything else is basically insanity. I voted for Ross Perot twice partly because I never had any real idea of how badly SlicKKK was messed up prior to around 97, lesson learned.

And if Bork Obunga is re-elected, it's basically over; there will not be any pieces lying around for anybody to try to pick up or put back together four years later.

3 posted on 04/30/2012 9:11:21 AM PDT by varmintman
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mozilla

The entire concept of government has failed.

No person should entrust another person with power over them ever.


4 posted on 04/30/2012 9:12:12 AM PDT by chris37 (Heartless.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mozilla

The present “System” selects for the
worst personality type of leaders, Narcissists


5 posted on 04/30/2012 9:12:58 AM PDT by HangnJudge
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mozilla

The Democrats along with their cousins in the GOP(with a few exceptions ) play the good cop/bad cop routine in advancing state run collectivism.


6 posted on 04/30/2012 9:13:44 AM PDT by Le Chien Rouge
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mozilla

There will be no reform until some form of runoff occurs. The system was doomed after Ross Perot screwed up and got Clinton elected with 47%.


7 posted on 04/30/2012 9:15:16 AM PDT by ImJustAnotherOkie (zerogottago)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mozilla

Political parties should have been banned in the constitution. Parties are always about power, not governing, thus they immediately fail at what government is supposed to be doing.


8 posted on 04/30/2012 9:15:34 AM PDT by discostu (I did it 35 minutes ago)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mozilla

No, the “two-party” system has NOT failed - it is working perfectly as intended.

Any self-labeled “conservative” who votes for Romney ought to be ashamed of themselves. You who do this are part of the problem. You may as well just vote for Obama.


9 posted on 04/30/2012 9:18:29 AM PDT by Zeddicus
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mozilla
Yes... and the dims know it... and the republicons deny it... but America is broken... she has fallen and the jack booted thugs have their boots on her neck.

LLS

10 posted on 04/30/2012 9:18:56 AM PDT by LibLieSlayer (Pray hard and often!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mozilla

I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again. It’s to late to do anything about our two party system before the election. But.....we can take the next four years and revamp the system. Get Obama out of office, change the Congress to be what we want and then pick someone for President that truly represents the interests of this country.

Along with that, get rid of communism as best we can. It was set back over 60 years by McCarthy, it can be done again. If that’s what we want. If not, we’ll get what we ask for.....or demand.


11 posted on 04/30/2012 9:18:56 AM PDT by RC2 (Buy American and support the Wounded Warrior Project whenever possible.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mozilla

IMO, Gerald Celente describes what we have most accurately as as a two-headed, one-party political beast.


12 posted on 04/30/2012 9:19:11 AM PDT by OB1kNOb (The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and pay the penalty. - Prov 22:3)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mozilla

NPR did an interview this morning with two authors who just released the book: “It’s Even Worse Than It Looks: How the American Constitutional System Collided With the New Politics of Extremism”

One author is a Democrat. One author is a Republican.

They both agreed — The country is about as divided as it was in 1860. We’re falling apart. We’re in big trouble.

And they both agreed: The problem is that the Republicans are crazy extremists who are pushing the country toward destruction. If the Republicans would just go along with the status quo (Progressivism), we’d all be OK.


13 posted on 04/30/2012 9:19:38 AM PDT by ClearCase_guy (Like Emmett Till, Trayvon Martin has become simply a stick with which to beat Whites.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mozilla

Yes.

Government by and for...the Government.

(Obama vs. McCain, Obama vs. Romney....enough said.)


14 posted on 04/30/2012 9:20:29 AM PDT by PBRSTREETGANG
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mozilla
Yes... and the dims know it and the republicons deny it... but America is broken... she has fallen and the jack booted thugs have their boots on her neck.

LLS

15 posted on 04/30/2012 9:22:21 AM PDT by LibLieSlayer (Pray hard and often!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mozilla

The two party system hasn’t failed. The people have failed the two party system. As long as the voters continue to support the politicians who’ll give them things, it won’t get better. Greedy politicians hell, it’s the greedy people who insist on their government stealing from one citizen to give to them.


16 posted on 04/30/2012 9:23:32 AM PDT by upsdriver
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mozilla

Pick a party, whichever one is the least distasteful to you, and work to turn it into what you want it to be. Look at how long the socialists maneuvered to control the Democratic Party, since the twenties. Look at how they took over the universities, federal agencies, the news media..., and the time it took to so completely dominate the Party. Look how they have radicalized so many groups that have little to do with each other’s causes. Everything is a step. Conservatives have been sleeping for decades, failing to compete with the socialists as they conducted their revolution, and we wonder why Republican politicians are progressives. Look at where they’ve gone to school, the people they associate with, the media they listen to. If we want things to change, we better be prepared to work for it. We better be as smart and thick skinned as the Socialists were when they had their vision. Pick the party you can work with, or give up and go third party. The political reality of this two party system isn’t gong to change for you.


17 posted on 04/30/2012 9:31:09 AM PDT by pallis
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mozilla

What two parties? There’s only ONE party: the Borrowandspendicans.


18 posted on 04/30/2012 9:32:37 AM PDT by Nervous Tick (Trust in God, but row away from the rocks!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: varmintman
The fundamental cause of the two party system in this country is the SINGLE MEMBER DISTRICT.

The math is simple ~ it takes 50%+1 vote to win. The only way you get there is to coalesce behind a single candidate. The only way the "Other sides" can compete is to coalesce behind a different candidate and seek to get 50% + 1 vote themselves.

This sort of thing can go on indefinitely.

The way to defeat it is to eliminate the single member districts and go to party list voting ~ and variations on that theme ~ including fixed districts with proportional voting by the elected representative in the legislature or Congress.

Again, the cause of two parties is the math behind the way you must win in a single member district ~ the problem is not the two party system ~ that's merely a symptom!

19 posted on 04/30/2012 9:33:11 AM PDT by muawiyah
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: pallis
The Republicans were pretty much mind numbed robot like knee jerk leftwingtards at the start of the 20th century. They sponsored the federal income tax amendment. They called themselves Progressives. They sold Korea into colonial slavery at the hands of the Japanese (the way you make your bones on the left is to kill a bunch of innocent people doncha' know).

They've only recently become more Conservative.

The Democrats were taken over by two new factions ~ the former Commies and the African Americans. Both segments were smart to recast themselves as political factions rather than as full political parties and/or races.

20 posted on 04/30/2012 9:37:47 AM PDT by muawiyah
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 17 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041-6061-8081-84 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson