An article appeared on ksl.com on January 2, 2009 about the trouble the Democrats are having and are expecting to have this coming election year. The Democrats are in danger of losing Congressional seats to the Republicans. Reading this article causes me to reflect again on the important role political parties have played in our country’s history. In my article of July 18, 2009, I used George Washington’s farewell address to argue that political parties are inherently bad for the country, and that while we cannot get rid of the party system altogether, we should avoid the spirit of the political party.
As I read this article, I am led to think that it is a little more complicated. Through out our history as a nation, control of the government has changed hands between two major political parties. First, it was the Democrats and the Whigs. Then, when the Whig party was dissolved in the 1850’s, the Republican Party took its place. When Americans tire of the rule of one party, they elect members of the other party to Congress or the presidency of the United States. Through out the twentieth century, other countries have allowed themselves to be controlled by one party with disastrous consequences for the nation. Nazi Germany and Communist Russia were two examples of this. However, in the United States, our democratic system of government has allowed us to be governed by a two party system and not let one party maintain power permanently. Ultimately, it is the American people who control the party system instead of the party system controlling the people.
However, one weakness of the political party remains. Just as, in other countries, political parties had the tendency to unite the people, in our country; they have the potential to divide us as a nation. It has been shown that no one party will maintain permanent control over this nation as long as there is no radical change in its form of government. However, we need to make sure that our American citizenship takes priority over party loyalty. To me, this is one of the main problems that plague the Congress and the presidency. I have the impression that politicians are too busy trying to score points for their own parties and they lose site on the welfare of the nation.
We at politivote claim no party loyalty. We aim to encourage and facilitate greater political involvement on the part of our citizens. The single most important reason for the vitality of our nation’s political system has been the participation of citizens. As long as citizens vote and as long as citizens focus on the good of the nation as their number 1 priority, the political party will be a tool of the American people instead of the American people becoming a tool of the political party.
Posts Tagged ‘Political Parties’
The Political Party: a Tool or a Tyranny
Thursday, January 7th, 2010Thoughts on Political Parties — George Washington
Saturday, July 18th, 2009
George Washington's farewell address on political parties still echoes to us today
In his farewell address, George Washington warned against the negatives of political parties with these words:
“The common and continual mischiefs of the spirit of party are sufficient to make it the interest of a wise people to discourage and restrain it. It serves always to distract the public counsels and enfeeble the public administration. It agitates the community with ill founded jealousies and false alarms; kindles the animosity of one part against another, foments occasional riot and insurrection. It opens the door to foreign influence and corruption, which find a facilitated access to the government itself through the channels of party passions.”
In looking back through the over 200 years of our history, there is evidence that supports many of the observations in the quote above. We have seen examples of important issues before congress that have been delayed as the result of quarreling between republicans and democrats. Under these conditions, it is nearly impossible for issues to be resolved in a timely manner. In addition, under a party system, it is inevitable that one political party will seek advantage over another by spreading discontent and causing political agitation. In his address, Washington seems to suggest that the spirit of loyalty to one’s party will supersede loyalty to the nation and will be lost in the scrambling for political power. I have listened to speeches made by politicians and have heard them assert that when their party is in power, things will be better for the country. When I hear a party claim a monopoly on knowing what is best for the country, I immediately become suspicious.
In his remarks, Washington implies that the party spirit is inevitable. He does not say that we should ban or prohibit parties from forming, but rather that we should discourage and restrain it. Thus, if we cannot discourage the rise of political parties, we need to do what we can to restrain the spirit of the political party.
We at PolitiVote agree with the sentiments of George Washington. While we recognize that there is no way to completely eliminate partisanship in politics, we do not feel that it should be necessary to register as a democrat or republican before voting. The real issue should be the candidate and his or her qualifications. We at PolitiVote do not claim solidarity with any political party. The focus should be on the best idea on solving problems – not the party from whom this idea may emanate.
Source for the quote: http://www.earlyamerica.com/earlyamerica/milestones/farewell/