America Now Has 4 Political Parties and It’s A Mess
Election season in America. Star-spangled banners wave in blue skies and stand at attention behind podiums. Glittering smiles warn of peril and promise security. Eagles soar over LCD screens, and flashy cutaways reveal surprise guests around every virtual corner. It’s entertainment at its finest and it’s the fight of our lives.
In America, a presidential election has traditionally been a contest of ideas between a Democratic nominee and a Republican nominee but in recent years citizens of this country have been crying out for a political climate that expands beyond the narrow two party system of Democrats vs. Republicans¹. Well, now we have it and it isn’t pretty.
On it’s surface (on the screen that is) the election appears to be following the same old formula: powerful man in a suit vs. powerful man in a suit. However, the contest is no longer between opposing ideological parties that are rooted in the same ground (i.e. the political principles set forth by the founders of American Democracy). This year, the contest is between the authority of historical precedents and the authority of a rogue capitalist and his vested interests.
Since Donald Trump took office in 2016, he has relentlessly trampled upon principles that Americans have come to rely on. He’s violated the constitution², he’s violated the people’s trust by lying over 20,000 times while in office³, he’s sold protected American land to private interests⁴, he’s even betrayed the values of the Republicans that supported him in 2016, causing many traditional conservatives to side with his opponent, Joe Biden⁵.
Make no mistake, the upcoming election is not between the Democratic party and the Republican party. It is between the Establishment party and the Trump party. For the time being, Establishment Republicans have joined forces with Establishment Democrats to defeat Trump, but Republicans aren’t the only group swallowing their agenda in the interests of defeating “The World’s Most Dangerous Man”, as Trump’s niece, psychologist Mary Trump PH.D. describes her uncle in her new tell-all book⁶.
In addition to Democrats, Republicans, and Trump supporters, there is a 4th political group exerting influence in this election and that group has been called the Democratic Socialists.
With Senator Bernie Sanders’ (I-VT) entrance onto the national political stage 5 years ago, a new popular vision for America was born. A vision of a society that works for all Americans, not just the 1%⁷. This vision inspired millions of voters and shifted the mainstream political dialog to include discussions of raising the minimum wage and providing healthcare to all people as a human right⁸.
The newly mobilized, culturally-diverse voting block that “felt the Bern” and came together during the Sanders campaign has been criticized for their refusal to bow to political pressure. However, their political power is evidenced by the Democratic party’s efforts to absorb them, even giving Sanders, a once fringe Independent politician, a prominent voice during the Democratic convention⁹.
Sanders’ supporters, like many Republicans, are prepared to support the Joe Biden/Kamala Harris ticket in order to defeat Trump, but that doesn’t make them Democrats.
We are looking at a new political landscape. One where the playing field has been divided and possibly even the game has changed. For now there is unity around one goal: Defeat Donald Trump, a threat to American Democracy and more importantly, life as we know it¹⁰. After that? Who knows where this ship will sail.
¹ Montanaro, D. (2017). 2-Party System? Americans Might Be Ready For 8 [Article]. https://www.npr.org/2017/10/24/559774933/2-party-system-americans-might-be-ready-for-8
² Lemon, J. (2019). Fox News Legal Analyst Says Trump Violated Constitution’s ‘Separation of Powers’ Three Times in Past Week [Article]. https://www.newsweek.com/trump-violated-constitution-separation-powers-three-times-1427253
³ Kessler, G., Kelly M., Rizzo S. (2020). President Trump has made more than 20,000 false or misleading claims [Article]. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/07/13/president-trump-has-made-more-than-20000-false-or-misleading-claims/
⁴ Outside Online (2018). A Timeline of Donald Trump’s War on Public Lands. https://www.outsideonline.com/2277446/public-lands-war-timeline
⁵ Steinhauser, P. (2020). Former Bush, Trump administration officials form pro-Biden super PAC [Article]. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/former-bush-and-trump-administration-officials-form-pro-biden-super-pac
⁶ https://www.amazon.com/Too-Much-Never-Enough-Dangerous/dp/1982141468
⁷ Jacobson, L. (2020). The Stump Speech Analyzer: Bernie Sanders [Article]. https://www.politifact.com/article/2020/jan/23/stump-speech-analyzer-bernie-sanders/
⁸ Friess, S. (2020). How the Bernie Sanders Movement Reshaped the Democratic Party Forever [Article]. https://www.newsweek.com/how-bernie-sanders-movement-reshaped-democratic-party-forever-1497065
⁹ Billings, K. (2020). ‘We Need Joe Biden As Our Next President’: Bernie Sanders’ Message Of Unity To Democratic Party [Article]. https://www.ibtimes.com/we-need-joe-biden-our-next-president-bernie-sanders-message-unity-democratic-party-3030470
¹⁰ Granoff, J. (2106). Donald Trump Is an Existential Threat to America and the World [Article].https://time.com/4560742/donald-trump-existential-threat/
