Throughout the course of American History, the U.S. government has mostly shown to be a reliable and stable pillar during major events happening domestically and internationally. It has displayed leadership, tenacity, and perseverance when making important legislation that would change the lives of all citizens in the United States. However, during the latter half of the 20th century, the government has shown to be susceptible to partisanship. This has been displayed when it is presented with a dilemma regarding decision making; when a political group refuses to negotiate on an issue, the whole U.S. government shuts down. Based on the recent developments in politics, the legislative design of the federal government has been shown to be seriously flawed; only by changing its structure can we guard against the partisanship which prevents our representatives and senators from serving the will of the citizens of the United States through compromise. We must guard against partisanship and promote comprise in our government by changing its structure; one of the ways this can be done is by preventing factions that influence the judgment of our representatives from forming. This is a very important issue to solve because the power that factions have on our politicians personally and politically makes them less likely to vote on important legislation. The two ways to do this are as follows: (1) remove its causes to keep them from forming and (2) Control its effects (Kernell, 2013, p. 77). In order to prevent future factions, such as the tea party movement, from forming, politicians from the party which it originated have to start working on developing their own position that will help curtail factions from forming and hurting its own pa... ... middle of paper ... ...tering certain areas of the legislative process, we can make the government productive and can make it start working for the people’s interests once again. This is an important issue to fix because in this turbulent time both domestically and internationally, we need strong, effective leadership. Only by perseverance and diligence can we change our government for a brighter future. Works Cited Frakes, Vincent L. “ PARTISANSHIP AND (UN) COMPROMISE: A STUDY OF THE PATIENT PROTECTION AND AFFORDABLE CARE ACT.” Harvard Journal of Legislation 49 (2012): 135-149. EBSCO HOST Kernell, S., Jacobson, G. C., Kousser, T., & Vavreck, L. (2013). The Logic of American Politics. Washington, DC: CQ Press. Klarner, Carl E., Phillips, Justin H., and Muckler, Matt. “Overcoming Fiscal Gridlock: Institutions and Budget Bargaining.” Journal of Politics 74 (2012): 992-1009. EBSCO HOST
Since the late 1700’s, an era where the formation of political parties began, people have come together based upon similar views or opinions, otherwise known in the political world as factions. Factions have created political parties, factions have also created freedom. Madison claimed that there were two methods of relieving the mischiefs of factions; removing its causes or controlling its effects. “There are again two methods of removing the causes of faction: the one, by destroying the liberty which is essential to its existence; the other, by giving to every citizen the same opinions, the same passions, and the s...
The Federalist, No.10 explains the nature of factions within the government and how they can harm the implementation of proper policies and
The Constitution gives powers to Congress in order to execute its many responsibilities. These responsibilities are necessary and proper for carrying out its policies such as, imposing taxes and regulating interstate commerce. The constitution has 435 members in the House and 100 more in Senate. Congress faces issues with action problems and the solution to correcting these collective problems are at the expense of the incentive members. The Cabinet, President, state and federal courts, political groups, media, etc. all have input when determining a political decision in the United States. Open arrangement is an objective arranged strategy that the legislature follows in managing an issue or issue in the nation. Open approaches are focused around law; however numerous individuals other than officials set them. People, gatherings, and even government organizations that don 't follow strategies can be punished. This confounded procedure has been concluded with an anticipated arrangement of steps.
Partisanship is a natural phenomenon for Human beings; we seek out, long for, and align ourselves with others who share our views. Through these people, we polish our ideas and gain courage from the knowledge that we are not alone in our viewpoint. Factions give breadth, depth, and volume to our individual voice. James Madison, the author of the Federalist #10 underlined the causes of factions, the dangers factions can pose, and solutions to the problem.
In the United States of America, there are a number of national issues that go unresolved and become more of a major issue subsequently. The lack of resolution in some of our nation’s most critical issues is due to the lack of a common ground between opposing political parties. Issues such as healthcare, climate change, abortion, same-sex marriage, taxes and welfare are reoccurring problems in the United States due to congressional gridlock. The cause of congressional gridlock can be attributed to the difference in liberal and conservative views, which can be further examined through some of the nation’s most prominent reoccurring issues such as immigration and gun control.
The United States of America has engaged in the battle known as political polarization since before its foundation in 1776. From the uprising against the powerful British nation to the political issues of today, Americans continue to debate about proper ideology and attempt to choose a side that closely aligns with their personal beliefs. From decade to decade, Americans struggle to determine a proper course of action regarding the country as a whole and will often become divided on important issues. Conflicts between supporters of slavery and abolitionists, between agriculturalists and industrialists, and between industrial workers and capitalists have fueled the divide. At the Congressional level there tends to be a more prevalent display of polarization and is often the blame of Congress’ inefficiency. James Madison intentionally designed Congress to be inefficient by instating a bicameral legislation. Ambition would counter ambition and prevent majority tyranny. George Washington advised against political parties that would contribute to polarization and misrepresentation in his Farewell Address of 1796. Washington warns, “One of the expedients of party to acquire influence within particular districts is to misrepresent the opinions and aims of other districts.” Today, the struggle to increase power between political parties results in techniques to gain even the smallest marginal gains. To truly understand political polarization, we must examine data collected through a variety of means, the effects of rapidly changing technology, and observe what techniques are used to create such a polarized political system.
During the study of various reforms that were proposed and denied, both the GOP and Democrats attempted to find a balance that would guarantee the success of their proposals. Years of research, growing ideologies, political views and disregard for the country's constitution sparked an array of alternatives to solve the country's healthcare spending. The expenditure of US healthcare dollars was mostly due to hospital reimbursements, which constitute to 30% (Longest & Darr, 2008). During the research for alternatives, the gr...
The goal of the American government has always been the same through out the years. Although the government attempts to pursue common goals to improve the United States, citizens are not content due to them having to sacrifice individual values. US senate member, Chairman Michael McCaul, values order and equality by focusing on the security and the economy’s problems in the United States. When order and equality are implemented, individual freedom is given up. These values play important role in the way the government makes its laws in America. They have to take all these values into consideration due to the ever-enduring debate known as the, “Two Dilemmas of Government.”
In discussing the problems surrounding the issue of factionalism in American society, James Madison concluded in Federalist #10, "The inference to which we are brought is that the causes of cannot be removed and that relief is only to be sought in the means of controlling its effects." (Federalist Papers 1999, 75) In many ways, the nature of American politics has revolved around this question since our country's birth. What is the relationship between parties and government? Should the party serve as an intermediary between the populace and government, and how should a government respond to disparate ideas espoused by the factions inherent to a free society. This paper will discuss the political evolution that has revolved around this question, examining different "regimes" and how they attempted to reconcile the relationship between power and the corresponding role of the people. Beginning with the Federalists themselves, we will trace this evolution until we reach the contemporary period, where we find a political climate described as "interest-group liberalism." Eventually this paper will seek to determine which has been the most beneficial, and which is ultimately preferable.
...one, D. Policy Paradox: The Art of Political Decision Making. New York: Norton, 2012. Book.
One of the key branches of the American government is the Congress of the United States which was established with the purpose of enacting legislation across the United States of America. In recent years Congress has not been a subject that the general population is well educated on, and many do not believe that Congress is strong enough as a major governmental branch. Many individuals do not believe that Congress is solving problems like it should be, or has in the past. Although Congress does not seem to be working as well as in the past, it still plays an important role in the American government today. Recent cases and legislative processes have proven that Congress can have a one-sided view on issues
There is much debate in the United States whether or not there is polarization between our two dominate political parties. Presidential election results have shown that there is a division between the states; a battle between the Democratic blue states and the Republican red states. And what is striking is that the “colors” of these states do not change. Red stays red, and blue stays blue. Chapter 11 of Fault Lines gives differing views of polarization. James Wilson, a political science professor at Pepperdine University in California, suggests that polarization is indeed relevant in modern society and that it will eventually cause the downfall of America. On the contrast, Morris Fiorina, a political science professor at Stanford University, argues that polarization is nothing but a myth, something that Americans should not be concerned with. John Judis, a senior editor at The New Republic, gives insight on a driving force of polarization; the Tea Party Movement. Through this paper I will highlight the chief factors given by Wilson and Judis which contribute to polarization in the United States, and will consider what factors Fiorina may agree with.
There are two ways to get rid of the causes of factions, or political parties. The first way of removing these causes is to destroy the liberty essential to their existence. The second way to get rid of the causes is to give everyone the exact same o...
Polarization has had measurable consequences on the American political system. First and foremost, congress has become an increasingly dysfunctional institution, becoming less capable of passing legislation on salient issues in the modern era (Binder 2015). These issues are exacerbated by the presence of new splits within parties themselves, such as the tea party caucus and later the freedom caucus within the Republican party. This has proved particularly interesting, because from a larger perspective it is not necessarily congruent with the insecure majorities hypothesis – these caucuses will not increase the odds of a majority in the congress. However, they do increase the voice and influence of the caucus in terms of intraparty
As seen quite often in the Obama administration, legislation gets stuck and lost in Congress due to the polarization of the parties in recent years. In Obama’s case, he has frequently threatened to go around the House and Senate if they could not reach an agreement or would shoot down his plans. Cato’s Pilon points out, however, that the hurdles of Congress are no mistake. Pilot states that the framer’s of the Constitution knew what they were doing, and this was intended to keep the checks and balances as well as accountability to the public (Lyons,