Political Parties the Major Political

Political Parties

The major political parties in the United States today are the Republican Party and the Democratic Party. Presently the Democrats occupy the executive branch and have the majority in the U.S. Senate; the Republicans have the majority in the U.S. House of Representatives. The U.S. Supreme Court, which is not an elected body, is nonetheless ruled by a majority of Republicans -- there are 5 Republicans and 4 Democrats -- and decisions that the High Court comes down with are often along party lines. There are many "third parties" in the U.S., and they include the Green Party, the Tea Party, the Libertarian Party, and the National Socialist Party, among many others. This paper will review the two major parties, examine their development and their present positions on major issues.

Thesis: Over the past several years the tone of political rhetoric in the United States has turned from simply partisan to decidedly negative to virulent, shrill and mean-spirited. Both parties are guilty of incivility and intolerance of viewpoints other than their own. As a result, if I join a political party, it will be the Green Party. My main values and beliefs are directed towards stewardship of the natural world, preventing the ongoing destruction of habitat for wildlife, and addressing global climate change. Our national political leaders are ineffective and the gridlock in Washington is repugnant to those of us who truly care about our children's future and the future of all living things on this planet.

Republican Party - Origins

The Republican Party was the liberal party, the progressive party back in the 19th Century when it was first organized. According to a book by Marc Egnal (Clash of Extremes: The Economics of the Civil War) in 1856 there were three parties that were antislavery. They were the "Know Nothings," the "Whigs," and the Republicans. In the 1856 presidential election, they "developed a strong following in the North, New England," and in Wisconsin and Michigan (Egnal, 2010, III). Typical mainstream parties in the Northern states at that time were not as "radical" as the Republicans, Egnal writes. The only states where the Republicans' vigorous opposition to slavery had gained a "firm footing" were Wisconsin and Michigan. In fact the Republican platform in Michigan referred to slavery as "a relic of barbarism" and the platform denounced the "…slaveholding Oligarchs of the south" and asserting that plans to keep slavery legal were "…the most revolting and oppressive with which the earth was ever cursed" (Egnal, III).

After the Republican Party launched a "more moderate" platform in 1855, their popularity grew and in fact Republicans -- with Abraham Lincoln as their candidate -- secured their national political legitimacy by winning the 1860 presidential election. Eventually many members of the Whigs, the Free Soilers, and the Know Nothings joined the Republican Party in the middle of the 19th Century because they to opposed slavery. Horace Greeley, editor of the New York Tribune and a well-known leader, was one of the leaders of the original Republican Party, and provided input as to their goals at that time.

Republicans want people to remember the successes that President Teddy Roosevelt had in the White House: the establishment of the National Park System; he set aside over 125 million acres into national forests; he was known as a "trust buster" for standing up to corporate monopolies; he worked with Panama to help build the Panama Canal; he successfully introduced and had passed legislation to conduct testing of meats and foods at the federal level.

What does the Republican Party stand for in 2011?

If you were joining the Republican Party today, would you join because you agree with Sarah Palin? Rush Limbaugh? Sean Hannity? These three represent the far right conservative wing of the party. Would you join because you side with the new majority in the House of Representatives? Their positions include repealing the recent Affordable Care (healthcare reform) legislation, eliminating National Public Radio, and slashing federal budgets without regard to programs that have implications for the poor, the aged, those who need help with healthcare and food, and for education. The moderate wing of the Republican Party is rarely heard from in the national media, with the possible exception of U.S. Senator Susan Collins of Maine, who tends to side with Democrats when healthcare issues are on the brink of defeat and need that one last vote to pass.

In the Republican National Committee (www.GOP.com) Website under "Issues" the GOP does not state a policy or a goal, but rather: on "Economy" they attack Obama on the budget, on promoting renewable energy, among other attacks; on "Foreign Policy" the GOP attacks Obama's treaty with the Russians on reducing nuclear stockpiles.

Democratic Party -- Origins

Meanwhile, the Democratic Party originated under the national leadership of Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren, according to the "Citizen's Compendium"; the Jacksonians and the Jeffersonians at that time resembled each other especially in terms of being opposes to "aristocracy" and being distrustful of banks. The term "Democratic Party" didn't begin being used until 1832. The party was strong with farmers, Irish Catholics, "frontiersmen," unskilled workers, and the Democrats promoted voting rights, opposition to "elites and aristocrats" and the party was "divided over the issue of slavery" (Citizens Compendium). In 1854 the Democrats were the minority of the major parties and the Republican Party was the majority party.

The Democrats lost presidential elections from 1860 through 1880, but won the presidency in 1884 when Grover Cleveland was elected. Cleveland was elected again in 1892. What Democrats want people to remember is Franklin Delano Roosevelt's "New Deal" which ushered in: Social Security, electrification for rural homes and communities, the G.I. Bill, and stabilization for farm prices. They also want to be remembered that they introduced and had passed the Civil Rights Act (1964), the Voting Rights Act (1965), and the establishment of Medicare -- all 3 laws were due to the persistence and use of the bully pulpit by Lyndon Johnson.