The Texas Democratic Party and Texas Republican Party platforms have various similarities and even more differences. Both platforms are representing the main party principles. The major differences in both will be further discussed. The Republican Texas party stands and defends the traditional values of the Bible, limited government with the free enterprises. The Democratic Party platform views the government more positively with promoting the government as a possible way to achieve and it lacks the religiosity characteristics which are more obvious in the platform of the Republican party. The democrats support the public education through the independent school districts and under the supervision of the State Board of Education and Republicans on the other hand, are for strengthening of local control of the independent school districts and elimination of the federal Department for Education. The Republicans support homeschooling and the private and parochial schools. The political party’s platforms differ also in the culture. Democrats support and promote government programs where Republicans are for privatization of the social welfare services. The Republicans are based on their traditional values against same-sex marriages, homosexual behavior and abortion. The Democrats are more open to the freedom of choice along with the choice of the abortion and marriage. The Democrats are in support of the government policies of the social security system and Obamacare where republicans want it to replace it with the market based solutions. The same support for government involvement is seen in the regulation of employment from the democratic platform and contradictions in the Republican platform (Crain et al., 137-138).
Based on the Texas Democratic platform the party supports the rise of the minimum wage. They also support the workers’ compensation system with the affordable coverages and compensations in case of injuries (Texas Democratic Party, 14). To show the differences the Republican’s platform states that the minimum wage law should be repealed (Republican Party of Texas, 32). The Texas Democratic party platform is against the death penalty and believes that the Texas death penalty system cannot ensure that the innocent will not be sentenced to death and that the sentence is applied to the persons of color and the poor (Texas Democratic Party, 45). On the other side Republican Texas party platform from the 2014 does not explicitly mention the death penalty, but their broad view is in support based on the Crain et al. (138). Further on the party platforms differ in the area of the gun control. The Republicans are promoting and stand for the right to keep and bear arms as it is guaranteed in the 2nd Amendment. The Texas Republican party platform is against gun owner controlling, taxations and regulation of guns, ammunition and gun magazines (Republican Party of Texas, 23). The Texas Democratic party platform is more for the control of guns, which is also seen from the weapon free school campus and school institutions support (Texas Democratic Party, 9). The Democrats in Texas believe the sensible gun control law is important to curtail the availability of automatic weapons and extended magazines (Texas Democratic Party, 41). The opposite believe is also seen in the environment area. The Texas Republican party platform states that they are against all efforts of the extreme environmental groups and believe that the Environmental Protection Agency should be abolished (Republican Party of Texas, 8). On the other side is in the Democrat’s platform, which supports the actions that tackle the global climate change, which are based on their belief seen due to the human activity (Texas Democratic Party, 33).
The political party’s platforms differ in all major areas of education, health care, job and economy, social security, insurance, death penalty, abortion, gun control, environmental issues and climate change, minimum wage and governmental policies on the most important areas. From both platforms, it is seen that they have different perceptions, beliefs and values where Republicans have more religious and traditional values and democratic platforms shows more liberal approach.
Work cited
Crain, Ernest, Flores, N. Elizabeth, Ignagni, Joseph, Maxwell, William Earl, Opheim,
Cynthia, Santos, Adolfo, Wlezien, Christopher. Texas Politics Today. United States: Qadsworth Cengage Learning, 2013. Print.
Texas Democratic Party. 2014 Texas Democratic Party Platform. 2014. Web. 2 Jun. 2016.
<http://www.txdemocrats.org/pdf/2014-Platform.pdf>
Republican Party of Texas. Republican Party of Texas: Report of Permanent Committee on
Platform and Resolutions as Amended and Adopted by the 2014 Convention of the Republican Party of Texas. 2014. Web. 2 Jun. 2016. <https://www.texasgop.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/2014-Platform-Final.pdf>
