'Merica!
Watching the GOP's three-ring nomination circus has been entertaining and terrifying at the same time. We have witnessed what were once considered fringe positions be embraced by many mainstream Republicans. Because of this, one has to assume that there are good many old school GOP members out there who feel that they no longer have a home in the Republican Party.
While the mission of Daily Kos is to elect more and better Democrats, a lot of folks on the right would never vote that way. So as a public service to those Republicans who find the GOP clown car a bit disconcerting, let's use this space to let them know that there are other political parties out there so they may be able to find a home with one of them. This is not an inclusive list and some political parties may be left out, as some of the third parties are more on the fringe than others.
First, for those who do not know, there are five major parties in the United States political system. We of course have the Democrats, the Republicans, the Greens, the Libertarians, and the Constitution Party (formerly known as the U.S. Taxpayers Party).
Most voting Americans are familiar with Democrats and Republicans, so let's skip their platforms and who they have running for president in 2016 (for those who are not, my carpal tunnel syndrome will not permit me to type out all of the positions of all the GOP candidates, and how they change every time "The Donald" opens his mouth).
Keep reading for more...
The Green Party—Jill Stein is currently the party's only declared candidate for president. While the Green Party likely leans a little too far to the left for the displaced Republicans, one plank in the Green platform may be just what they are looking for. We have long heard about the "evil liberal media." Well, the Green Party has a plank in their platform that takes on the big corporate liberal media:
Greens will strengthen citizens' influence over the broadcast media, break up the dominant media conglomerates and boost the number of community and non-profit news outlets, all to fortify the media's crucial watchdog function and to help create a more diverse and lively exchange of ideas in America.
Libertarian Party—The Libertarian Party has
six declared presidential candidates: Cecil Ince, Joy Waymire, Marc Feldman, Derrick Michael Reid, Steve Kerbel, and Darryl Perry. There is a lot for the displaced Republican to like and dislike in the Libertarian Party. One thing to dislike in their
platform: They feel abortion should be left up to the individual. What to like, in one word: FREEDOM (maybe too much freedom for your average displaced Republican though).
Constitution Party—The Constitution Party has three declared candidates: Chad Koppie, J.R. Myers, and Scott Copeland. The platform of the Constitution Party takes 14 pages to state that, well, they support the Constitution in its original form. As far as I can tell, nothing beyond the Bill of Rights is considered part of the Constitution. Strangely, the party bans abortion even though it is not mentioned in the Constitution (the platform writers have to dip into the Declaration of Independence for that gem).
Now onto the minor parties. To keep this simple, the list only includes parties that, at the time of this writing, have declared presidential candidates.
American Freedom Party—Declared candidate: Bob Whitaker. I don't like the odds as the party is only on the ballot in Mississippi. Surprisingly, in its platform, the group agrees with the Green Party on the state of the news media. The rest, though—well, I need to shower after reading it.
Prohibition Party—Declared candidate: James Hedges. Strangely, the party is not on the ballot in any state, so it's surprising the organization even has a declared presidential candidate. You know them, you love them, they are the folks who brought you prohibition. That is pretty much the platform—oh, and they don't like porn, abortion, tobacco, drugs, gambling, gay marriage, nuclear power, the environment, immigrants, and to repeat: they are really proud of the no drinking thing. We all know how well that turned out the first time. My guess is these folks are not a lot of fun at a party.
Party for Socialism and Liberation—Declared candidate Gloria La Riva. Not good odds here as the party's only on the ballot in Florida, and honestly, no self-respecting displaced Republican is going to vote Socialist. But stranger things have happened. There's no platform listed on the organization's website, but members clearly are way to the left on the political spectrum.
Veterans Party of America—Declared candidate Chris Keniston. Another party only on the ballot in Mississippi, so odds are very long. The platform is a mixed bag, sort of anti-union, but not clearly so, and to the left on some issues (like welfare, surprisingly), but to the right on immigration.
Christian Party of America—Declared candidate Darrell Trigg. The party doesn't appear to be on any ballots. This is truly the American Taliban, who went back in time to the '90s for web design. The platform claims to support the Constitution, but members would have to shred it in order to have some of their policies come to fruition. They seem to think the president can just sign an executive order suspending those pesky amendments that they don't like, including the First. I have to go take another shower after reading their platform.
Honorable Mention: Parties that don't have a presidential candidate at this time, but deserve to be mentioned.
The United States Pirate Party—Per the party's website:
We support and work toward reformation of intellectual property (IP) laws, true governmental transparency, and protection of privacy and civil liberties. We strive for evidence-based policies and egalitarianism, while working against corporate personhood and welfare. We believe that people, not corporations, come first.
Most self-respecting former Reaganites are unlikely to support a group of pirates.
United States Marijuana Party—You can guess what this party's platform is.
Objectivist Party—Because the Republicans and Libertarians are not true followers of Ayn Rand.
National Socialist Movement—Yeah, Nazis. I am not even going to link to them. I need to shower again.
Modern Whig Party—An American political movement whose stated intention is to be a "party for all of us." Founded by military veterans in 2009, the party describes itself as a mainstream, middle-of-the-road grassroots movement representing voters who do not strictly accept Republican and Democratic dogma. Members go left on some issues, go right on others. The displaced Republican could likely find a home here.
There are many other parties out there, some more serious than others. A few of these parties almost certainly have only one member, living in his mom's basement while angrily commenting on Yahoo! News comment sections. But, as this list shows, displaced Republicans need not fear being turned out into the woods. There are plenty of political parties out there for them. They are sure to find a home.