1. Ideological Differences between Republicans and Democrats
“In addition to the decline in competition, American politics today is characterized by a growing ideological polarization between the two major political parties.” – Thomas E. Mann
Political party affiliation is a viable way to find out the philosophy of a certain competing candidate, may he be Republican or Democratic. This in turn reflects upon his core beliefs. Republicans believe that each citizen is responsible for his/her position in the community. The government should enable them the ability to secure the benefits and securities of the society for themselves and their beloved, those who are unable to fend for themselves. The Republican philosophy stresses upon the capping of government intervention and further encourages individual prosperity. It further implies that the government should interfere only when the society cannot act efficiently at the individual level. The name of the game for the Republicans is that an individual’s destiny must be left in the individual’s hands solely. Also, government powers should not be centralized in federal government agencies. On the other hand, the Democrats feel that it is the government that needs to care for all of its citizens even if it means giving up certain distinct rights. For the Democrats, the centralization of power in the capital of the United States has a higher value than the rights given to various individual citizens and communities so formed. Thus, solving a problem at the local level does not fare well in the eyes of a Democrat.
Next comes the basis of distinction which defines the major monetary happenings in various other nations as well: the economy. While the Republicans feel that the theory of free enterprise has brought about a revolutionary change in the American economy for the good, the Democrats argue, stating that the government knows what is right for the people and that business decisions should be made by government officials which work in tandem with the ideologies of labor unions. The Republicans oft times question this theory by asking why the government should not create a business environment wherein citizens can use their talents to an optimum level freely, to which the Democrats respond by standing their ground and stating that the economic system is far too complex for an individual to navigate alone.
When it comes to the matter of government spending and taxation, the Republicans often face reproach from the people since they work vigorously to cut public spending in order to oust government waste. They believe that the people stand responsible for the pocketbooks of both themselves as well as the public authorities. In these terms, the Democrats feel that the tax burden in order to meet the government’s obligations is too complicated for the individuals to understand and thus, their solution encircles the idea of the federal government taking care of this as well (svgop, n.d.).
Lastly, the approach towards national defense shows us the varying ideologies of the two parties. The Republicans believe that defending the nation against its enemies must always remain a fundamental priority for the federal government. For that to be possible, the country needs to have the most effective military forces in the world. True security, which is derived from strength of character, would see the United States encounter acts of terrorism, such as the 9/11 incident, with great success. On the contrary, over the past ten years, the Democrats have worked towards scaling down on the United States military. The party believes that true security comes from peace talks and negotiations as the time for war has long passed. This remains their policy even if the foreign nation in question has financial ties to terrorist organizations. They further believe in the diplomatic act of asking foreign countries for permission before acting to protect their own security (Edward Baiamonte, 1992, p. 93).
2. Failure at the Presidential Level
One of the major hindrances faced by a third-party presidential candidate is a catch-22 where for example a person from the general public considers voting for them but at the same time feels that the chances of the party winning majority of the votes is highly unlikely and thus, the person settles on a Republican or a Democrat. In this way, the supporting of a different ideology goes for a complete toss and the chances of the emergence of a new dogma are well obliterated.
Agreed that the ‘winner-take-all’ electoral system doesn’t help the cause of third parties, but candidates who do not come from a major party start way behind those from a major party in terms of free media coverage. That is equivalent to adding salt to the candidate’s wounds. Thus, in the words of Schattschneider, the Republicans and Democrats “monopolize power” via three different routes. Firstly, in the form of constitutional, legal and administrative barriers and secondly, on the basis of comparative fewer resources provided to the third parties. Lastly, due to their immense influence and status, the major parties are generally successful in winning over third party voters and also tend to delegitimize the third parties in the eyes of many (Rosenstone & Behr, 1984, p. 79).
3. Maintaining the Dual-Party System
“Saying we should keep the two-party system simply because it is working is like saying the Titanic voyage was a success because a few people survived on life rafts.”- Eugene J. McCarthy
As is commonly known, the United States of America functions on a two-party system. This, with regards to the domestic political system, refers to a situation where two major political parties, in this case the Democrats with their liberal views and the Republicans with their conservative views, dominate the voting in most elections. That being said, it should be noted that third parties, every now and then, do influence the elections and occasionally, candidates from these parties do obtain elected positions. Technically speaking, a ‘third party’ is one which is the third largest party in a dual-party system but in the United States, this refers to any faction in contention other than the major two.
There are multiple reasons behind third parties not being successful in the United States. These include the nation’s election structure as well as the ballot and debate regulations. Regardless of the margin of victory, the candidate with majority of the votes attains office while the runner up sees no representation whatsoever. This sums up the standard procedure in the American ‘winner-take-all’ election structure. In contrast to the proportional representation system wherein the parties are allocated representation based on the number of votes they attain, this structure is the primary cause behind the lacking success of the third parties.
Coming to ballot access laws, such regulations imply that the interested candidate must pay a large fee or collect a large number of signatures in order to be listed. This is with regards to candidates for major elections, for example: the presidential elections. The existence of such laws is another factor which influences the third parties from being successful in the campaign process.
Lastly, since the arrival of televised presidential debates, third parties have been precluded from participation in such debates. This restricts third parties from expressing their views publicly and gaining a following among the constituency. Thus, through the means of various strategies, obstacles and handicaps, the Republicans and Democrats have an upper hand in American politics despite the American Constitution not mentioning anything about political parties (Wilson & Dilulio, 1980, p. 355).
References:
Santa Clara County Republican Party of Silicon Valley (n.d.). Differences Between Republicans and Democrats. Retrieved December 6, 2014, from http://www.svgop.com/files/Differences%20Between%20Republicans%20and%20Democrats.pdf
Baiamonte, E. (1992). Understanding the Difference Between Democrats And Republicans (A Republican Perspective). New York, NY: Amer Political Press.
Rosenstone, S., & Behr, R. (1984). Third Parties in America. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Wilson, J., & Dilulio, J. (1980). American Government. Washington, DC: Cengage Learning.
