Case in point, actually, is the Tea Party. Or, as we'll call them for this example, the ultra-loyal GOP base. These, historically, are the people that show up at the polls every year. They'd come dressed in Red face paint and carrying memorabilia if the polling places allowed it. They're True Believers.
Yes, the sports-fan parallel is intentional.
The GOP is trying as hard as they can to keep the Tea Party in The Tent. Why? Because the GOP knows that if they lose these voters that they will lose elections. These voters vote for different reasons that your middle-of-the-road voter that the Textbooks tell you win elections (The Reagan Democrats, or the Obama Republicans).
A generation ago, the Democratic party was straining to keep their Progressives in a similar tent, and for the same reasons.
What I think America really needs is a more honest four party system. No party really wants that because then no one wins. They have to do these messy compromises and form coalitions.
Never mind that it'd be what's really best for the country, because instead of Coke vs Pepsi, you'd get Dr Pepper vs RC vs Mt Dew vs Sprite. And quite possibly many areas in-between.
Or put another way, American elections should be like school board elections where I live. At least nominally non-party (as in no candidate declares a party affiliation) with the parties endorsing candidates as an interested third party.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Case in point, actually, is the Tea Party. Or, as we'll call them for this example, the ultra-loyal GOP base. These, historically, are the people that show up at the polls every year. They'd come dressed in Red face paint and carrying memorabilia if the polling places allowed it. They're True Believers.
Yes, the sports-fan parallel is intentional.
The GOP is trying as hard as they can to keep the Tea Party in The Tent. Why? Because the GOP knows that if they lose these voters that they will lose elections. These voters vote for different reasons that your middle-of-the-road voter that the Textbooks tell you win elections (The Reagan Democrats, or the Obama Republicans).
A generation ago, the Democratic party was straining to keep their Progressives in a similar tent, and for the same reasons.
What I think America really needs is a more honest four party system. No party really wants that because then no one wins. They have to do these messy compromises and form coalitions.
Never mind that it'd be what's really best for the country, because instead of Coke vs Pepsi, you'd get Dr Pepper vs RC vs Mt Dew vs Sprite. And quite possibly many areas in-between.
Or put another way, American elections should be like school board elections where I live. At least nominally non-party (as in no candidate declares a party affiliation) with the parties endorsing candidates as an interested third party.