Third party?....I don’t think so

Gallup reported recently that 58% of Americans think “a third major [political] party is needed” because the GOP and the Dems are just screwing everything up.

I guess that’s a tempting thought, but it’s an idea that flashes, then crashes and burns every so often—pursuing it is a waste of time. I guess a third party could pick up some local government or state government seats, but that’s about it.

Let’s just pick it apart a little bit:

I suggest it’s more or less unimaginable that a third party candidate could win the presidency in our current political environment. Winning 270 electoral college votes? A bridge too far….the Republicans and the Democrats would divide and conquer, state by state, at every turn.

Ditto for picking up more than one seat in the U.S. Senate, same argument….the entrenched two-party apparatus and their gigantic funding resources (post-Citizens United ruling) argue massively against the success of a third party.

Let’s stipulate that a third party might be able to pick up a couple seats in the House of Representatives, but that’s as far as it goes, I think. More than 90% of House seats are more or less safe for the incumbent Democrat/Republican due to gerrymandering and voter apathy and power/wealth connections.

What I’m saying is that it’s a grotesquely challenging uphill battle everywhere for a third party, and any lonely third party candidate who might happen to get elected is going to have a voice but no power in Washington. He/she will be shunned by both the major parties unless he/she agrees to caucus with one of them….in such a case, then, really, what does “third party” or “independent” mean, you know what I mean?

In any event, one of Gallup’s underlying cherished conclusions is that the self-reported “independents” among the electorate are strongly in favor of a third party effort. Indeed, in this recent report, 71% of so-called “independents” saluted the third party notion.

The trouble is, most self-reported “independents” aren’t really independent. Rather, they are disaffected Republicans and Democrats who decline to admit an affiliation with a major party, but who nevertheless have easily identifiable political convictions, ethical/religious beliefs and voting patterns that undeniably mark them as Democrats or Republicans….or hard-core non-voters.

The third party idea is DOA.

If you’re not happy with the president or your current representatives in Congress, stop voting for the incumbents.

Simple as that.

  

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