Failure of the Two-Party System in America

Neither the Republicans nor the Democrats are in a position to satisfy the will of a majority of the American people. According to an NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll (December 2007), 47% of those surveyed felt that the two-party system “has real problems,” while another 29% felt that the system was “seriously broken.” For many disillusioned voters, the 2008 elections will be a choice between the lesser of two evils, rather than an affirmation of support for the platform of either candidate.

The Liberal vs. Conservative Debate Has Lost its Meaning

The terms “liberal” and “conservative,” which have traditionally defined the two major parties in the United States, have lost much of their meaning. Instead, the parties are now largely defined by the industries who compete for their favor through lobbyists. As a result, most of the differences between the parties have become superficial.

Traditionally, liberals have supported a large government that was actively involved in society on every level. They placed the benefit of the people as a whole over the interests of the individual, by promoting social welfare programs for the poor and higher taxes on the rich to cover the cost.

The conservatives were exactly the opposite. They supported a smaller, centralized government that strictly enforced the law, but otherwise tended to refrain from intervening in affairs of the individual or in the economy. They strongly supported Adam Smith’s concept of capitalism, which suggested that the economy should be primarily regulated by the laws of supply and demand.

Each side has its merits, but in recent years these concepts have less and less to do with the agendas of either party. For example, the Clinton administration expanded the scope of the death penalty, and also generating the first Federal budget surplus since the 1960’s.

The Bush administration, on the other hand, has spent the taxpayers’ money so freely that it has run up the largest deficit in the nation’s history. Moreover, Bush radically expanded the bureaucratic structure of the government with the creation of the Homeland Security Administration, while at the same time invading foreign countries in name of spreading democracy around the world.

It is Time For Third Parties to Step Forward

Third parties have long had a role in our nation’s political life, and their candidates do appear on the ballots at least some of the time. However, with the single exception of Ross Perot’s first presidential bid in 1992 (he won over 18% of the vote), the Republicans and Democrats have usually succeeded in preventing them from playing a serious role in Presidential campaigns, and kept them out of Presidential debates. Now, for the first time since 1992, both parties are weak enough that a strongly made, third-party bid could stand a reasonable chance of success.

America’s society, culture, and role in the world, are complex. It is time that our political system represented that fact, and made way for a more diversified grouping of parties at the highest levels of government. Some will argue that this would make it harder for any one party to win a majority of the vote. This is true, but it is only a reflection of reality. If our citizens feel compelled to cast their votes for the least offensive candidate when they go to the polls, then our system does not represent the will of the people. More parties will offer more checks and balances, and help to prevent the abuse of power.

Seal of the President of the United States

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