WOULD THE AMERICAN GOVERNMENTAL SYSTEM BE AS STRONG IN THE ABSENCE OF
POLITICAL PARTIES?
















Submitted by:

Peter McKay



June 3, 1996
Period 4




OUTLINE

I.  Introduction
 A.  Statement of Interest
 B.  Hypothesis
II.  Review Of The Literature
 A.  History and function of political parties
  1.  History
   a.  Many different parties
  2.  Emergence of Parties
 B.  Arguments against the usage of political parties
  1.  The 1992 Presidential election
   a.  Ross Perot
  2.  "Brave New World?"
  3.  Parties more separated from voters
  4.  Voters being forced to choose the lesser of two evils
  5.  The constitution does not mention political parties
III.  Conclusion
 A.  Statement of conclusion




Section I
Introduction
 Since the last of the Whig party left office in 1852, the American
political system has been primarily a two party system.  The Democrats and
the Republicans have been the two parties fighting for the Presidency since
that time.  There have been many other parties since that time, but mainly,
these two have gone unopposed against each other.  However, how much good
do these parties actually do?  Would our country be run as effectively if
the presence of political parties was no longer a factor?  It is the
opinion of the authors that the U.S. Government would exist without
political parties and may, in fact be stronger.
 The concept of political parties seems to go against what it means to be a
politician: to represent his or her constituents.  More time, money and
effort, it seems is put into getting elected to an office than actually
doing work for the people in that office.  One fairly recent example is
seen in the case of the proposed federal Balanced Budget Amendment.  Mark
Hatfield, Republican Oregon Senator, went against his parties wishes and
voted against the amendment.  His party nearly abandoned him for choosing
the people over his party.  Many senators are faced with the same decision
every day, but instead stick with party beliefs and not what they feel
would be the best for the people.  In order for true democracy to be
achieved in our government, we feel drastic changes need to occur.

Section II
Review Of The Literature
 Since the mid 1850's, the Democrats and Republicans have had control of
the nation government.  The only place where opposition was felt was at the
state and local levels.  However, in the early days of our country, third
and fourth party candidates played important roles in politics.  A few of
these parties from our history are the:  Democrat-Republicans, Jefferson
Republicans, Whigs and Federalists.  Many other lesser known or hardly
known at all parties were the:  Socialists, Unionists, Farmer-Laborists,
Progressives, Communists, States' Rights, American Independents,
Libertarians, New Alliance, Populists, Consumers, National Economic
Recovery, Right to Life, Workers league, Socialist Workers, Peace and
Freedom, Prohibitionists, Workers World, American, Grassroots, Independent
and Third World Assembly.  This immense list goes to show that not all
American history has been two party.  What we know today as Democrats and
Republicans derived from some of these parties to be what they are today.
 The emergence of the parties has come mainly as a reaction to history
where most of the rulers have been dictators or kings.  The people do not
favor dictatorship and therefore created political parties to better
represent the feelings of the voters (Madron, 1974).  This is not a time of
a dictatorship and we have achieved representative democracy.  We have
evolved as a nation and have grown out of the need for political parties.

 The 1992 Presidential election was a definite sign that the usefulness of
political parties is crumbling.  The Democrats came out on top, followed by
the Republicans, however, a third party candidate, Ross Perot, emerged and
ended the race with nearly 10,000,000 popular votes.  Perot made himself
out to be the only one who could clean up the mess in Washington, and came
through with an impressive finish (Wolfson, 1994).  From this example, it
is obvious that the way we know political parties, or perhaps political
parties as a whole, are being phased out by the people.
 The world in which we live is constantly changing and getting faster and
more efficient at making news readily available to the people.  Back in the
times before radio, tv, the internet and e-mail, people had to find out
somehow about politics.  The main source of their information came from
political parties to educate them as to who was running and what they stood
for and believed in (Carlin, 1992).  Now, if someone needs information on
some kind of politics, they can simply turn on C-Span, surf the
ever-expanding net, or write an e-mail to the President himself.  Another
strike against political parties is evident.
 Lately, politicians have had their way in separating themselves from the
voters whom they are supposed to represent.  A greater gap is growing
between the two.  Voters do not like being just a number (Wolfson, 1994).
The basis of democracy, in case some have forgotten, is equal
representation for all people.  By separating themselves from the voters,
politicians are only creating a stronger case against political parties.
    Another such argument against parties can be seen in the fact that
lately, voters have been straying from voting for one candidate.  Instead
of  voting for a candidate, they may be voting simply against another
candidate.  They are choosing the lesser of the two evils by choosing the
one that offends then the least, not judging on the qualifications of the
two (Ladd, 1978).
 Finally, the argument that may have the most stature lies in the fact that
nowhere in the Constitution of the United States, the document our
forefathers penned more than 200 years ago, are political parties
mentioned.  In a time without radio or tv, where political parties may have
been needed, the authors the document in which governs our lives made no
mention to them or what they stand for.  This argument in itself should
take a major role in the determination to rid government of political
parties.
 Since political parties did start and take hold as they did, Americans
have stuck to them and seem to remain grasped to them.  If we want our
government to run more smoothly and work for the people and not against,
better than our current conditions, we must break the pattern and ban
political parties.  There is much disapproval of the two party political
system today already, as illustrated.  For a better government for future
generations, one without the constant battles for political offices and
without separation from the people, we must look very closely at what can
be done.  Ideally, the solution would be to ban political parties.
Section III
Conclusion
 From the research into the matter of political parties, we have come to
some conclusions regarding them.  As it may have seemed apparent throughout
the report, we believe that the American Political system would perform
dually well without the bothersome nuisance of political parties.  It is
true that political parties served America well in their time, however a
time of change is unavoidable.  With faster technology and better means of
communication, some parts of parties become obsolete.
 As people become more aware of the country in which they live and the
political system dominating their country, more pieces of parties become
useless.  As stated, political parties did at one time serve a valuable
purpose, and they have help shape our system into what it is today.
Surely, without political parties in our nation's history, our system would
be much different.  For that reason, political parties did do some good.
It has been a long time, though, since much good came from them.  Now, the
only good that comes from parties is watching the ad campaigns of
politicians bashing each other to pieces for some office or another.  Even
that can get a little old.
 So, in conclusion, political parties have served their purpose.  They were
used for what they were intended and now, for what they intended has already
been achieved, therefore making parties themselves obsolete.

Bibliography
1.  Carlin, David R.  Commonwealth.  "Lessons From November: Fraying The
Bonds".  December 18, 1992.
2.  Ladd, Everett Carl.  Where Have All The Voters Gone?:  The Fracturing
Of America's Political Parties.  New York:  W.W.  Norton & Company, Inc.,
1978.
3.  Madron, Thomas W. and Chelf, Carl P.  Political Parties In The United
States.  Boston:  Holbrook Press, Inc.,  1974.
4.  Wolfson, Lewis.  USA Today.  "The Revolution In U.S. Politics Is Nearly
Here".  January, 1994.

