A news article on TV this morning reminded me that I had never finished “How to choose a political party.” It was about how the Republican Party wanted to reduce Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid benefits. If you remember, the Republican Party membership “does not like change of any sort.” They have always been against any form of tax. In every new Congress, they introduce a law or laws reducing government spending. This shows how their beliefs about government have not changed. This is also true of the Democratic Party. They feel the government should help those who need help. That is the reason they have supported everything from unemployment insurance to Medicare.
Both parties have been consistent in their beliefs for at least the last 15 presidents. Neither party is what you could call good or bad. They have a set of beliefs. They pass laws representing those beliefs. Both parties also have members with extreme points of view. For example, the Republicans introduced a bill to cut the benefits for Social Security in this session. The Democrats would like to increase the tax credit for having children. Yes, I know this Democratic position is like 99% of Western Europe, but it’s an extreme position for the US.
We are in a period when one party, the Republicans, has a group with an extreme viewpoint. Unfortunately, that distorts the historic back-and-forth of our two political parties. You have to consider them when choosing the party you will support. However, I have faith those extremist points of view will quickly fade into the past, making a party you support easier to choose.
