A new poll came out today that showed that 58% of Americans now believe that our political system needs a 3rd party. That is up from 40% just a few years ago. Today, CNN did a poll asking if America needs a 3rd party and Jack Cafferty reported that no one, and I mean no one, wrote in and said "everything is just fine."
I think it is safe to say that a majority of Americans would prefer it if the 2 major parties did not have such a stranglehold on our national politics, and in many areas of the country, our state and local ones as well. And where some independents, Libertarians and a few Green party members have had some limited successes at the local level, at the national level, politics outside any of the 2 major party affiliations is non-existant.
Even the handful of independent Congressional members have always had to caucus with one party or another once they arrive in Washington. Meaning they must sacrifice at least a portion of their independence and freedom from the 2 party duopoly from their 1st day on the job.
And even the most successful of the current "3rd parties" have never had any real success on the national level, sans the Reform Party's brief moment in the sun in the 1992 election. And this is for many reasons. But in the end, none of them generally offer enough of a plural message to appeal to a very wide audience.
So, if a 3rd party is to emerge, what kind would it be? Would it come from the left or right? Would it be more "centrist," which seems to be the en vogue political term of the season. Will it depend on what kind of candidates the big 2 parties offer the American people come next spring?
But more importantly, what kind of party would make you consider signing on, or at least give them a look? Are there prominent national figures or politicians you would like to see endorse such a party before you would look at it? Or do you think that the politicians will more likely follow the people in a lemming like, poll chasing fashion that has become all too typical.
If a 3rd party is to seriously compete on a national level, it will have to be well financed. As much as I dislike money in politics, the reality is, that without proper financial backing, a 3rd party would be a waste of time in the current landscape.
And I also believe that if a 3rd party is to have a prayer, it must exist beyond a Presidential campaign. It must have candidates promoting the party via smaller races. And that is where I believe people with some name recognition will help to save some money. Candidates with name recognition will allow them to spend less on their own campaign as well as spend time promoting a national ticket. And even if the Presidential campaign is unsuccessful in 2008, perhaps some Congressmen / women and other offices will be filled by the new party. Whatever platform and ideals the party is founded on, they must be ones that are built to last and not built on a purely political reactionary agenda.
Simply put, the party must be designed beyond just running show of a Presidential campaign.
To answer another of the questions I submitted above...I believe the party must be "centrist" in nature. And not because the 2 major parties have created an atmosphere where some claim only candidates who can appeal to the fringes can win. But because that's where most Americans simply are. Of course that won't appeal to the fringes, but the new party shouldn't fret over that at all. The lefties can stay with the democrats and the righties with the republicans.
Will anything happen? Who knows. There is the Unity 08 movemment, which seems to be gaining some momentum. But that won't be taken seriously as long as it's just an internet show of activists trying to push a fringe candidate on a larger audience depite the fringe message. Guys like Ralph Nader, Al Sharpton and the other usual band of loudmouth fringies won't cut it. And I expect by the time they hold their all too late "virtual convention" next summer, guys who might be able to make a substantial impact like Mike Bloomberg will have already made their choice and have their own machine up and running or no run at all.
And if Bloomberg runs as an independent, while it may have some impact on the 2 party duopoly in the short run, the 2 machines will still be entrenched with no opposition in a relatively short time. That's why, after much thought, it is my belief that it is people like him that need to be at the forefront of any serious 3rd party movement. And if he, or someone like him, with political and actual capital to invest need to take the lead in any serious 3rd party campaign. Not running a simple independent campaign, but beginning a real and legitimate 3rd party movement would be a call of Patriotism. And if someone like Bloomberg wants to be our President, answering such a call would be a great 1st step in showing he is worthy of holding the office of President.