Skin Deep: On the Difference Between the Democratic and Republican Parties

Perhaps one of the most common critiques of the two-party system, articulated by principled conservatives and progressives alike, is that there's no difference between the Republican and Democratic Parties. Though it contains a kernel of truth, this proposition is too broad and too easily countered by partisans of the Democratic and Republican Parties to be of much value for any thoroughgoing critique of the two-party state and the duopoly charade. More often than not, the duopolist ideologue does nothing more than cite a list of issues on which Republicans and Democrats disagree and considers the point refuted, as if there were only two possible positions that could be taken up on any given matter of contention. This rhetorical tactic is effective only to the extent that it avoids confrontation with the kernel of truth at the heart of the criticism, which is that the Democratic and Republican Parties function as an ideological and political unit. Brian Moore, a reader of Hernando Today out of Tampa Bay, writes in response to a recent article arguing against third party activism (which I referenced earlier this month in a post on the necessity of political independence from the duopolist order):

The only threat to [the] Republican Party, and to the Democratic Party for that matter, is the ineffectual and destructive policies they advocate and legislate. Furthermore, they are also responsible for the dollars they allocate in such a wasteful fashion, which have caused our economic crisis, high unemployment, a broken health care system and the downward spiral of poverty that continues unabated now amongst the middle class, as well as the lower economic classes, unabated in America.

We go to war every other year, which is always supported by the bipartisan U.S. Congress as well. And the two major political parties have no one else to blame for the 9/11 attack. It was due to the failures of our intelligence agencies, but most importantly to the lack of oversight by the Congress. One could take it another step further to say that the economic and foreign policies, as set by the two-party congress, have caused anti-Americanism, hatred and revenge amongst many populations of the world, which led to 9/11and ongoing terrorism worldwide.

The next civil rights issue of the 21st century will be to enable better and easier ballot access for third parties, so that more Americans will have a choice in the political party and ideology they wish to choose and support, and to represent their interest and calls for real change . . .

the two parties are corrupted, dependent on corporate and special interest monies and should be held accountable for the state of affairs our nation is now finding itself in. Our only way out is through change, significant, bold change, not a slight tinkering or soft reform that . . . the Republicans and Mr. Obama of the Democrats purport to offer as solutions.