We don’t need no stinkin’ political parties!  I write such a statement because it is true. If we did not have political parties, reasonable and effective public policy would coalesce around good ideas and not pork-barrel programs. Unfortunately, political parties become ends in themselves, and the individuals who constitute political parties become extremely protective of their power, perks, and positions. Their connection to We the People has all but vanished. Put simply, the world of governance has become party and pork over principles.

The History of Political Parties In A Nutshell

Under the stewardship of Alexander Hamilton, the Federalist Party focused on the centralization of power at the federal level as opposed to the sovereign states. This party was founded in 1789 and disappeared in 1801. Opposed to the Federalists was the opposition party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. This party was named the Democratic-Republican Party. In 1824, this party splintered into two factions. The majority faction became the Democratic Party we see today. The minority faction morphed into the Whig Party, which eventually evolved over time into today’s Republican Party.

Re-Imagining Our Political System

Under the current structure, politics often attracts people with a purely political mindset and not that of a public servant. As a result, the concept of public service has been completely corrupted, and the primary reason for this, in my opinion, is the dominance of political parties.

We do not use term limits to control men and women elected to public office at the highest level of government (the Senate and the House), as we do at the local and state level.  Consequently, senators and representatives remain in office far beyond their level of competence.  Moreover, if these individuals remain in public office for more than one or two terms, they cannot resist the lure of corruption because re-election becomes the driving force in their political lives.

The way forward is to eliminate political parties at the local level as a first step.  Without the corrupting influence of political parties and special interests, individuals would step forward for the opportunity to serve as true public servants.

The Way Forward

We must begin at the grassroots level (the township, the county, or small towns) and separate the process entirely from a linkage to political party to that of true public service.  To partially quote Samuel Adams, we must begin “…setting brushfires of freedom in the minds of men.”

Links

External:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Treasure_of_the_Sierra_Madre_(film)

Internal:  https://whitebeardwisdom.com/thoughts-from-the-peanut-gallery/

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Note: *This is a rephrasing of the famous quote in the movie “The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.”