The Post-Bipartisan Era

The conceit of bipartisanship is one of the many sources of partisan hypocrisy in the two party system. How can anyone take seriously Republican demands for bipartisanship from the Obama administration when the likes of Karl Rove accuses an ideological opponent of being a "divisive figure"? On the other hand, how could anyone take seriously the administration's stated goal of inaugurating a "post-partisan" era when Democrats control the executive and legislative branches of government? While Democrats and Republicans argue amongst themselves over who's in the right on what issue and who's to blame for what crisis, many on the outside looking in realize the charade for what it is, and understand that neither side is wrong when they each blame the other.

One of the unintended consequences of bi-polar politics is thus a paradoxical unity of opposites among the disenfranchised on both the left and the right. Paul Steele, a conservative Christian, calls on his readers to challenge . . .

the concept of a two party system. Far too many people are living without representation because they have no representation, because neither Republicans or the Democrats (which could be a single party as far as I am concerned) truly represent what they believe. I am one of them . . . We need at least a third party, if not more, to break up the political monopoly the two corrupt parties have on the government.

On the other side of the political spectrum, Alan Maki, a socialist, opposes the two party state from the left, arguing that the Obama administration's labor and war policies . . .

demonstrate the need to initiate and organize a working class based labor party in the United States which will take on the thoroughly reactionary, warmongering and anti-labor policies of Barack Obama, the Democrats and the thoroughly corrupt and incompetent "leaders" of organized labor who are content holding up the tails of a bunch of dumb donkeys.

Despite what the Demoblicans and Republicrats would have us believe, neither of the duopoly parties has been close to garnering the support of a majority of Americans for quite some time, or at least that's what Americans tell Rasmussen. If only they would put their vote where their mouth is.