May 5, 2006
Is it time for a third party? This is certainly not the first time that question has arisen since the rise of the two-party system. George Wallace got 13 percent of the vote in 1968. Ross Perot garnered 19 percent in 1992. At one point in the polling, Perot led with 39 percent over Bush's 31 percent and 25 percent for Clinton . In both cases, voter discontent drove the campaigns. In Wallace's case it was the more sinister issue of segregation but with Perot it was a “throw the bums out” mentality. I'm starting to feel that sentiment again.
Perhaps it's the raw issue of illegal immigration that so frustrates me, however, I suspect that's merely the straw that broke the camel's back. It should be noted that many Republicans and few Democrats are on the right side of that issue but high profile politicians like Bill Frist have blown it on immigration and President Bush has been outright defiant when it comes to the wishes of the American people. Certainly there are very vocal Republicans against illegal immigration but the power brokers in Washington , be they Republican or Democrat, seem to be in lock step on this issue.
Immigration is one of those issues where the corruption is transparent. As I've long said, Republicans tend to favor illegal immigration because of the cheap labor while Democrats want the votes. Together, those forces have culminated to form an unyielding buttress against the onslaught of voter disgust and discontent. Follow the money, as the old saying goes. I would add ‘Follow the power, too.' Sometimes money isn't enough. Power and control are the only aphrodisiac left.
But illegal immigration isn't the only bone of contention I have with the Republicans. Although they managed to pass tax cuts and we've seen the coffers swell, like their Democrat predecessors during the Reagan administration, they have outstripped the prosperity. According to the non-partisan Citizens Against Government Waste, some of the biggest “porkers” in Congress are Republican. Republican Senators Thad Cochran of Mississippi and Ted Stevens of Alaska are considered two of the biggest spenders when it comes to pork-barrel projects. And who can forget disgraced Republican Congressman Duke Cunningham and his audacious menu of bribes?
That's not to say that Democrats don't love the pork. As a group, they're still the largest spenders. It may take the Republicans decades just to outspend Robert Byrd but it seems that neither party practices fiscal discipline and the bickering in Congress centers more around what they're going to spend rather than what they're going to cut.
The American people are fed up.
The problem with most third parties is there's no charismatic figure people can rally around. Ross Perot started out as a no-nonsense businessman who was going to clean up – or clean out – Washington . He soon degenerated into a caricature of himself, claiming the Republicans were trying to sabotage his daughter's wedding and foreign hit men were dispatched to take him out. In the end, the American people were just too scared to take a chance on a loose canon like Perot. In the process, he probably did more harm than good to third party prospects for the next few election cycles.
Now Perot is all but forgotten. Politicians continue to ignore – or flat out defy – the wishes of those who elected them. It's a long time until 2008. There's still a chance a knight in shining armor will arrive on the dark horse of a third party. The question is, who? America 's eyes are trained on the darkness, waiting for such a candidate to emerge.