by Benjamin James

Created on: March 20, 2010   Last Updated: March 23, 2010

Although a "two party system" has been prevalent in American politics for much of our history, I will argue that it has also been one of our greatest weaknesses as a republic. Why limit ourselves to just two candidates when we want the “best man” to win?  

If you were a hiring manager for a company, would you only want to have two serious candidates for a particular job? Of course not, you would want a handful of candidates to increase your chance of filling the position with the best person possible for the job.

There is no law requiring that there be two dominate parties in American politics, rather it was an idea that the major political parties embraced and the public has accepted.

In reality, there really is not a significant difference between the manner in which Democrats and Republicans have run our nation. While there are the usual talking points that each party spews, when you look at their records, it is evident that both parties have been more concerned about retaining power than they have been concerned for our republic.

Though we do have other choices, too many Americans have jumped on the Republican vs. Democrat bandwagon as if it is some kind of sporting event and “our team must win”.

We do have the power to vote into office a president and congress who are genuinely interested in solving America's problems without infringing on our constitutional rights.

Not surprisingly, Republicans and Democrats alike have not been fond of the idea of having a candidate outside of the two major parties running for office. I can recall when Ralph Nader ran for president as a third-party candidate and the democrats cried foul, calling him a spoiler.

They were upset that he was potentially taking away voters from Al Gore. Shouldn't they have been debating his politics rather than criticizing that his name was on the ballot? It was almost as if they were saying that he didn't have the right to run for office.

Republicans had the same sentiment towards Ross Perot when he ran for president as a third-party candidate. The reaction from the Democrat and Republican parties in these situations demonstrate very clearly that their interests do not lie in freedom or the American political process.

Their biggest fear is not that the other side will win an election, but that a candidate outside the mainstream Republican/Democrat paradigm will win. It is evident that the Democrat and Republican parties are the big corporate power machines that some of us feared.

If only we embrace the power that we have corporately, we can rise above a two party system. Consider and discuss other candidates with your family and friends. Resist the urge to think that you should just pick the lesser of the two evils between the two parties.

Frankly, in general it does not matter whether you vote Republican or Democrat. Both parties have demonstrated that they are for more government control, more national debt, sending jobs overseas, handing out political favors, and the list goes on.

Considering a candidate outside of the two parties will send Republicans and Democrats a message that we are finally holding them accountable and it will increase our pool of candidates so that the right person for the job may win.

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