The Paradoxes of Political Parties in American Constitutional Development
Prepared by Richard J. Hardy for the German-American Conference Sponsored by the Center for Civic Education Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana—March 5, 2011 The Paradoxes of Political Parties in American Constitutional Development Richard J. (Rick) Hardy Professor of Political Science Western Illinois University “No America without democracy, no democracy without politics, no politics without parties, no parties without compromise and moderation.” –Clinton Rossiter1 It is impossible to comprehend the workings of the United States constitutional system without a firm grasp of American political parties. A political party is a group of people with shared interests or principles that are organized to nominate candidates for public office in order to win elections, control government and set public policy.2 Yet, American political parties often defy simple explanations. They are complex, multi-faceted organizations with varying functions and ever- changing personnel, perspectives and positions on public policies. And attempts to analyze political parties are reminiscent of John Godfrey Saxe’s 19th century parable of the “Blind Men of Hindustan” feeling an elephant.3 One blind man felt the behemoth’s side and called it a wall, another touched its trunk and declared it a snake, while another felt a tusk and proclaimed it a spear. Like the proverbial blind men of Hindustan, close scholars of the American constitutional system often “see” political parties from different vantages. Political parties have been analyzed in terms of elections, governmental organizations, and positions on issues. Many scholars concentrate on the respective parties’ leaders, while others study their identifiers or voters at the grassroots level. Some contend that parties have become too powerful, while others believe parties need to be strengthened and more responsible.4 American citizens, too, maintain conflicting views of political parties.
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