We often hear people say that they vote “for the person, not the party” as some kind of statement of wisdom, as if voting “for the party” is mindless. Today, I’m telling you – and everyone who is listening – that we all need to vote “for the party” – specifically, “for the Democratic Party” – because Parties Govern.
This is particularly true in the upcoming election cycles (I say “cycles” because Virginia is electing its state legislature this fall and the 2024 Presidential election is already in full swing across the country). President Biden and #P01135809 are the likely candidates for their respective parties. It doesn’t matter whether you “like” President Biden or not. You have to vote for Democrats up and down the ballot because #P01135809 and his party have forgotten that their job is to govern in the interests of the American people.
The current dysfunction in the Republican Congress is symptomatic of what the country would face if the GOP is in power anywhere in government. Team Crazy is totally in control, and Team Normal can’t defeat Crazy by acting Normal. The only solution is to make sure they don’t control any parts of government.
This is not the time to indulge in vapid both-sides-ism. The two parties are not equally at fault in our current situation. The GOP has been taken over by a cult dedicated to #P01135809 and his “ideas” (although I don’t imagine that any two members of the GOP can agree on exactly what these “ideas” might be). While the right-wing media is focused on the signs that President Biden has visibly aged in his job, they ignore that the GOP front-runner is not only old but also demented. It is not a valid argument to say that you prefer the policies of the GOP – their policy statements aren’t reliable, but rather depend on the whims of #P01135809, who doesn’t know how to get things done even if his “policies” are attractive.
In a real sense, the future of the democratic experiment in the US is at stake. If we continue to give power to the GOP, this won’t get better any time soon – if ever.
There was news this week that anti-vax conspiracy theorist Robert Kennedy, Jr., has dropped out of the Democratic Party primary race to run for President as either an Independent or third-party candidate. This is an admission that he is not a serious candidate; the American political system never (I repeat, never) elects a third-party or independent candidate to the Presidency. Third-party candidates can only act as spoilers (see 1992 and 2000 Presidential elections for evidence of this.)
A lot of people (including me) have written a lot about why this is the case. You can go read all of what they’ve written, or you could take my word for it. Ain’t gonna happen.
There are now two individuals who have announced candidacies like this: Kennedy and Cornel West. There is a third group (currently without a candidate), the “No-Labels Party” that is trying to establish some kind of policy-free neutral zone that they believe will attract voters who shun the extremes of either major party. This group will not be successful, either. All they will do is muddy the waters and make voters think that there is a way out of our current political crisis that does not require them to vote for President Biden. There’s not.
So.
Don’t campaign or vote for independents or third-party candidates. Don’t write in candidates’ names as a form of protest. For Goddess’s sake, don’t be a non-Voter as a form of protest. Vote for Democrats whenever you can. They will protect the institutions of democracy – including the right to vote, so you can vote for candidates you like better when the situation allows. The current situation doesn’t allow for this luxury.
There was a time when life was so much simpler. At least that’s how it seemed to me when I listened to my parents talk to my brother and me about the importance of voting. I only remember them telling me there were two parties. Republicans and Democrats. They were Republicans and that’s how they would vote. This sounded good to me. Actually, I carried that fact with me for years.
And look where we are now.
God help us.