American Political System: Difference between revisions
The 'Southern Strategy' is a myth. Only one Republican (an assistant speechwriter) ever even mentioned it, and Nixon fired that guy immediately after he did.
(The 'Southern Strategy' is a myth. Only one Republican (an assistant speechwriter) ever even mentioned it, and Nixon fired that guy immediately after he did.) |
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* The '''[[wikipedia:Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]]''', or the GOP (Grand Old Party, despite being younger than the Democrats), is the center-right party in American politics. Unified by fiscal conservatism, and a lot (but not all) of them are social conservatives. Strong in rural areas and the South, and among evangelical Protestants and middle class-to-affluent voters. They currently hold the House of Representatives.
These definitions apply to the current time; the Democrats used to be the party of white landowners and former slaveholders in the South, but lost their support -- and several legislators -- due to the Civil Rights Acts, and Nixon and Reagan both campaigned to disillusioned Southern voters. Conversely, the Democrats picked up African-Americans because
Both parties tend to have their own core of rich and elite constituencies and support from industries that provide much of the financial backing for each, though the degree to which each party is the "party of (insert your favorite evil industry here)" is typically hyped-up by the other party. The Republicans tend to garner support from small- to medium-business owners, oil and gas corporations, manufacturing corporations, construction and contracting businesses, and most of the financial sector. The Democrats, meanwhile, are supported by lawyers and law firms, entertainment and technology companies (i.e. [[Hollywood]] and Silicon Valley), [[American Educational System|higher education]], labor unions, and a smaller share of the financial industry. Most major industries and corporations, though, tend to spread their campaign contributions around, typically to incumbents, on the basis of not wanting to anger one side or another and to curry favor with whoever might be in office at the time. The influence of campaign money in politics is a ''very'' controversial issue in the United States, and promises to become even more so after the 2010 ''Citizens United v. FEC'' Supreme Court decision.
The distinction on geography is ''very'' important. The South tends to be more conservative than the North and West, and the Rocky Mountain states and the Midwest somewhere in the middle, which is a phenomenon that has existed most likely since the nation's inception. So a Maine Republican might be more liberal than a Mississippi Democrat. The historical shift of the parties can be seen very vividly in this context: the Republicans (then based in the north) under Lincoln ended slavery, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was nearly unanimously opposed by Southern legislators and supported by the rest, and these days, most minorities often disfavor Republicans (especially southern ones, and they're now based in the south). [[Hufflepuff House|The West]] tends to be more socially libertarian but economically conservative. Once again, these are all generalizations.
It's important to note that the American definitions of "liberal" and "conservative" are rather different from how the terms are used in most of the rest of the world. In most societies, a liberal favors letting events take their course unimpeded by government control, while a conservative wants government to maintain the status quo through laws and regulations. In the US, however, these meanings are reversed, particularly on economic matters -- it is conservatives (Republicans) who favor small government and the free market, while liberals (Democrats) call for fair markets and consumer protection through regulation. These are ''huge'' generalizations, of course.
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