Political Science in My Opinion

Political Science

In my opinion the realties of what is required to run for either the House of Representatives or the Senate are not strict enough considering that none of them are very successful at what they do. Those that end up on capital hill are so out of touch with what is going on in the real world that they don't know enough to even realize that there is a problem in American let along have any idea on how to fix it. The majority of elected representatives get elected because they had the money in order to do so. These are not working class Americans that are struggling everyday to put food on the table for their children or gas in their tank so that they can get to work that day. My views have changed in the fact that they have gotten more cynical that there is any fix for America that this group can bring about. How are those that are so out of touch with what it really takes to survive in this country really supposed to know how to help those who are truly in need.

The system of checks and balances that is in place is a vital part of the Constitution. With checks and balances, each of the three branches of government can limit the powers of the others. This way, no one branch becomes too powerful. Each branch is in charge of checking the power of the other branches to make sure that the power is balanced between them (Checks and Balances, 2012). The framers of the Constitution conceived of Congress as the center of policymaking in America. Over time the prominence of Congress has varied, and even though it was once the true center of power in Washington, its role has seen change over time (Government in America, 2010).

Based upon this one could say that the system of checks and balances that is in place is outdated. It appears that no one follows the rules that have been set down since they are doing what they want, when they want to, with no real regard to the rules that were put into place so many years ago. Due to the fact that the system was developed so many years ago it seems plausible that it no longer works in today's world. What is in place should not be done away with, but updated in order to be more relevant to the world today. The underlying principles that are in place should be kept as three branches do need to have power over each other in order to prevent one from completely taking over. What needs to be added are prevention measures in order to alleviate covert actions from happening. And if they do then stiff penalties needs to be imparted. How is the Congress supposed to be taken seriously as a law making body when they can't even follow the rules that are in place for them?

3. The era of polarization has definitely not helped President Obama as he works towards healthcare reform and economic relief in this country. The state of American politics has more and more been surpassed by partisan polarization. The two major political parties have grown ideologically more joined within and farther apart from each other. As the two parties' policy likings deviate further from each other at the privileged level, it obviously becomes more complicated for the two to work together. With the lessening rank of ideological moderates, the potential of bipartisan cooperation and compromise lessen. Today the two parties disagree with each other more frequently and more vigorously and forcefully than before. Party-based disagreements, policy stagnation, and paralysis stimulated by party rivalry seem to have become the norm instead of the exception (Ono, 2005).

It appears that no one in Washington can get anything accomplished because of the political game playing that goes on. Everyone is so busy making everything a political issue that they can't seen how their lack of co-operation is truly hurting America. It seems that no one really wants to step up and lead. Everyone just wants to follow what others around them are doing. The farther apart that the two political parties get in their thinking the less that will ever be accomplished. Their main concerns should be the economy and the people of this country and not what the ideologies of Republican or Democratic party either one. This is a classic case of because we have always done things this way so we are going to continue to do them this way, even if they are not right and we know it. Congress and the President need to stop acting like second graders on the playground and begin acting like the adults that they are. They were elected by the people of this country to lead the country into prosperity, not into the ground. In order to do this they are going to have to stop adhering to old practices and ways and begin developing new ways of doing things. What they are doing now is not working and will never work no matter how long they keep trying to make it. It is time for a change. America was not built on preserving the status quo, if it had been we would still be under the control of England and not the independent nation that we are today.