As an Independent, I believe our nation would be better served by a three, or even a four-party system. The more viable choices for the voting public, the better our government would become. Elected officials would be forced to actually accomplish something in Washington, and represent all of our nation’s people, not just special interests. But that’s just a dream. The ridiculous cost of campaigning today eliminates any possibility of a strong third or fourth party. Hopefully 2017 will see the return of a strong and principled second party, but that hope is slim.
The Republican Party has been in turmoil for years. The 2016 campaign season exposed this fact to all voters. Two unfulfilled goals in the last four years are proof that GOP leadership has failed miserably to restore the Grand Old Party.
After a consecutive loss in 2012, Reince Priebus, the Chairman of the Republican National Committee, promised that his party would change and work hard to attract a more disparate base; one which included demographics such as blacks and Hispanics. As the campaign season began in earnest in mid-2015, Priebus and others in the Republican Party, including Mitch McConnell, and Paul Ryan, promised voters that Donald Trump would not be their party’s nominee. Today the GOP has less support from minorities, and Trump is two-months away from the general election.
The division within the Republican Party is not entirely between “never Trump” Republicans and Trump supporters; the TEA Party, or Freedom Caucus adds a third faction to the situation. Chris Christie, Newt Gingrich, and Rudy Giuliani will never again be accepted by the Republican establishment. Sarah Palin will be denounced by both Republicans and the TEA Party.
There is a distinct possibility, after Priebus is fired, that a new Republican Party will emerge, led by Mitt Romney, the Bush family, and others who remember when the GOP stood for something; when it had values and ideas for the betterment of the American people. Trump supporters and the extremists of the TEA Party will not be invited.
America needs at least two strong parties who offer ideas and will deliberate and compromise. The return of our democratic republic is a must if America has a future. The oligarchy which now exists has rendered our government dysfunctional.
One of the greatest obstacles to effective government is Mitch McConnell. The Senate Majority Leader has fulfilled his promise to Republicans that he would do nothing while Barrack Obama was our nation’s president. If the people of Kentucky continue to give us their worst, Democrats must retake control of the Senate and remove him from power.
Whether or not Trump wins in November, the party will remain divided. He is not the cause; he is the effect of years of failed leadership. It took eight years to create “Trumpenstein,” and it will take twice that long to undo the harm he caused.
If the media continues to support Trump, the American people must reject it, as I have. I no longer watch television news; I want the truth. I won’t find in from the mainstream media.
Op-Ed
By James Turnage
Follow me on Twitter: @jamesturnagenov
The Truth With No Restrictions 