Alex Berezow asks Real Clear Politics readers to ponder the prospects of a major change in the two-party American political system.
The surging popularity of Ted Cruz and the persistent support for Bernie Sanders illustrate that both the Republican and Democratic parties are facing an existential crisis. Indeed, both parties may be headed for a divorce, ushering in a new era of multi-party politics.
The Republican Party consists of two major factions: businesspeople and social conservatives. Yet, other than a shared dislike of President Obama and lefties in general, there is very little to unite these two major groups. …
… Cruz is a staunch social conservative. He rails against Big Business and crony capitalism. He was opposed to the bipartisan bank bailouts, even though they prevented the Great Recession from becoming the Second Great Depression. He is opposed to the “philosopher-kings” at the Federal Reserve who control monetary policy and bizarrely advocates a return to the gold standard. This latter belief betrays a revisionist view of American history and an underlying economic illiteracy that is at substantial odds with the business community.
If, as many still expect, Donald Trump’s campaign collapses, Cruz would be in an excellent position to capture the billionaire’s supporters. And if that happens, it very well could hasten the end of the Republican Party.
Democrats’ prospects are just as bleak. Like Republicans, what unites them more than anything is a shared hatred of their political opponents.
The Democrats constitute an uncomfortable coalition of aggrieved groups. The party’s support stems largely from those members of our society who hold grudges against other members of our society. Democratic leaders, from President Obama to Vice President Biden, have energized their base by stoking anger over racial and economic injustice, both real and imagined. Biden’s warning in 2012 that Republicans want to put black people back in chains is just one example of the party’s divisive and toxic rhetoric toward fellow Americans.
