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Why Do Political Parties Have Too Much Power

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Political parties hold far too much power in today’s election process and need to be abolished. Parties were originally only intended to serve as temporary coalitions for specifically controversial elections, and yet every election since the late 1700’s has been won by a specific party. The existence of political parties has had quite a few negative effects on America including the division of people, a lack of communication, and violence between opposing sides (U.S. History.org). The idea that political parties are dangerous is not a new concept. George Washington discussed his view on the issue in his farewell address in 1796. Washington said, “However political parties may now and then answer popular ends, they are likely in the course of time and things, to become potent engines, by which cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people and to usurp for themselves the reins of government destroying afterwards the very engines which have lifted to unjust domination” (Rademacher, …show more content…

Partisans on both sides of politics are often so angry with each other that they barely communicate, making it difficult to work together to find solutions for America’s issues. Extreme partisans sometimes refuse to work with members of an opposing party. Each party believes the other is treasonous, and is purposely harming the nation. The same Pew Research Center study found that opposite sides do not just believe they have better ideas, but honestly think the other party is more interested in partisan gains than the well-being of the nation. The study also found that over that last thirty years the nation has become more partisan, and Congress has become less effective. Parties have also become more extreme, basing political agendas on demonizing the opponent and skewing discussions of issues facing the nation (Coblenz,

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The differentiators that account for the variation are the parties and Congress. Meinke then deduces from the information that the majority party in Congress exhibits a significant substantial number of members that advertise their partisan activity — “…majority party status—and possibly the strength of the party brand name—is associated with the choice.” (Meinke 860) Meinke also discovers that the stronger the partisan base (measured by same-party presidential vote), there is a more

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I believe that political parties were developed in the United States because they allow people to make decisions based on their beliefs. Both Hamilton and Jefferson were very great men but they wanted something different with the government. There are many reasons why political parties developed in our country. Hamilton and Jefferson have many differences between themselves.

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But, the Election of 1796 was the first election in American history where political candidates began to run for office as members of organized political parties that held strongly opposing political principles. Why are there only two political parties only? There are a few different beliefs in why there are only two political parties that dominate. One of the reasoning is that a two-party system arose in the U.S. from early political battling between the Federalist and the Anti-Federalist. The Development of the Two Party Systems After the new United States congress completed its task of creating a Bill of Rights, it turned its attention to the issue of financing the new government.

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Party polarization is the division between the two major parties on most policy issues, with members of each party is unified around their party’s position with little crossover. The competing explanations for polarization are how congressional representatives are elected, lawmakers selecting a candidate for office and as congressional districts and states have become more homogeneous. Every 10 years, congressional district geographic boundaries are redrawn so that each district has roughly the same population. These districts are increasingly drawn to be safe for one political party or another so that the district has a clear majority of either republicans or Democrats. This process is known as gerrymandering.

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In the twenty-first century, the United States is predominately a two-party political system. In George Washington’s Farwell Address (1796) he said, “The alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge, natural to party dissension, which in different ages and countries has perpetrated the most horrid enormities, is itself a frightful despotism” (para. 22). In this speech, Washington cautioned his fellow Americans about the risks of political parties; he claimed the partisanship would lead to inter-political discord, divide the nation, and give rise to instances of tyranny. Although a two-party system has the potential to not be detrimental to the country, with people following the examples of Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson Americans have a tendency to put their personal political associations ahead of what may be best for the country.

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George Washington had a vision for the United States of America that seems to be unattainable. In his Farewell Address, he gave a strong warning to the nation: don’t create political parties, and don’t create alliances with other nations. While Washington had good intentions, there was little possibility of his warnings being heeded. Political parties were established before Washington even left office, and permanent alliances with foreign militaries show no signs of disappearing. Washington acknowledged that political parties are a part of human nature in his Farewell Address, and that still holds true today.

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With two parties you are polarizing the electorate. In terms of the party system, America is currently in the sixth party system which is focused on the candidate. During the 2016 primary elections, voters seemed to focus more on the candidate than the party. For example, republican voters hated Hillary Clintons email scandal and hence many voters turned towards Donald Trump. Primary elections have influenced voters to focus on the candidate’s personality rather than policy base.

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All in all, between the years of 1789 and 1860, the existence of political parties has deeply affected the development of the American economy, government, and social framework. The American political system has seen the rise and fall of numerous political parties who had a multitude of stances on different issues. Just as George Washington said, a one-party political system is not a true democracy. That is why the American political system has been one of the most successful, as their are often two primary political parties that will not allow the country to lean too far in one direction on the political spectrum, thus balancing and counteracting one

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The intensity of political party rivalries has only increased and divided the country more. Today, the Democrats vs Republicans rivalry closely resembles fans fighting over

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Although political parties may cause contention between Americans, parties are critical to the success of our constitutional system because parties provide party labels and mobilizes the voters by increased the participation of the common people. Political parties create conflict by making it difficult for a common man’s voice to be heard. Because there are only two political parties, it makes it difficult for individuals with different points of view to be recognized. However, for the same reason, only having two political parties is beneficial because it allows politicians to mobilize the voters. Politicians go about this by promoting Americans to be involved in the political process.

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Rui Li Professor Pinar Tremblay American Government 201 08 June 2015 The Evolution of the US Political Parties The Founding Fathers did not like the idea of political parties because they thought that these factions would affect the representative government. This is because of the notion that politics ought to be rational and collaborative in representing the people’s interest instead of being competitive. As a result, the competitive nature of the political parties contributed to despotism and corrupt systems in which the politicians are separated into camps of losers and winners.

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The party is responsible for perpetuating a society of constant fear and manipulation. They rewrite history and control language to ensure that citizens are kept in a perpetual state of confusion and doubt. The result is a society that has lost all sense of truth and reality, with citizens blindly following the party's every command. To help resolve this issue, we must fight against the power-hungry

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How is Polarized Politics Strangling Political Trust in our Nation? The increase of legislative polarization tracks the decline in political trust. Aggregate measures of polarization show lower trust in government from 1958 (the first year the trust question was included in the survey conducted by American National Election Study) to 2012 (the most recent survey). There is also a powerful relationship between polarization and economic inequality.

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Finally, it will be argued that the modern political party system in the United States is a two-party system dominated by the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. These two parties have won every United States presidential election since 1852 and have controlled the United States Congress since 1856. The Democratic Party generally positions itself as centre-left in American politics and supports a modern American liberal platform, while the Republican Party generally positions itself as centre-right and supports a modern American conservative platform. (Nichols, 1967)

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Political parties are politically recognized organizations of citizens who form to defend their interests. Having a political system that allows the freedom to form a new political parties or to declare membership in already existing ones, promotes democracy. As such, political parties are an indispensable part of the democratic process. However, there are also negative consequences to having political parties. Political parties saw their origins in the 17th and 18th centuries in the UK, evolving from previous political organizations called factions.

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