by Steve Lussing

Created on: March 10, 2008   Last Updated: March 19, 2008

George Washington goes down in history as the only independent president of the United States. Most of America's founding fathers were opposed to political parties. In fact, after signing the Declaration of Independence, its principal author Thomas Jefferson remarked that the one thing he feared most was the tyranny of a two-party system. Jefferson in particular was reluctant to create a political party but founded the Democratic-Republican Party with James Madison in 1792 to oppose the policies of the Federalist Party, founded in 1792 by Alexander Hamilton, which was the only party in existence at the time and which favored a strong centralist government ruled by a wealthy, educated elite. In such a political system power would eventually consolidate within the government away from the states and the people. The federalists retained ties with Britain through a treaty, instituted a national bank and advocated for a strong military. The Democratic-Republican Party defended the Constitution and sought to restore the rights of the states and of the people. They denounced the national bank and opposed the treaty with Britain. The Democratic-Republican Party was the dominant political force in the U.S. until 1820 when conflicting ideologies created a division leading to a split between two factions which became the Democratic Party and what remained of the Democratic-Republican Party.

The Republican Party was created in 1854 by abolitionists to promote more contemporary views and ethics, primarily with regard to slavery. The party rose to prominence with the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860, the first Republican President. Lincoln led the Unionist victory over the Confederated States in the Civil War and this was germane to the events leading to the abolition of slavery after it was followed by his Emancipation Proclamation in 1863. Lincoln advocated for passage of the thirteenth amendment to the constitution which effectively cast abolition into law.

The GOP (Grand Old Party) is so named to remind its members of the principals of individual freedom upon which the party was founded. The current ideology of the Republican Party is still based very much on individual freedom and on a limited government allowing for more economic freedom. Its basic philosophy includes two brands of Libertarianism, that of the socially conservative right which sees limited government as endorsing individual economic freedom and promoting personal economic independence with their inherent

• 1
• 2
• 3
• Next Page >>