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There comes a point in time when politics as usual simply doesn't work in this country. When those of us on the left find that continued support for the Democratic party is not just not getting us anywhere, but where it is actually hurting us. Let us examine a couple of those times in the past, and see why a third party threat can be a good thing, both for the people and for the Democratic party.
Many of you around here have heard my first example, FDR, but let me go through it again.
After FDR was elected many on the left in this country didn't believe that FDR was moving far enough or fast enough. Thus they started exploring other parties and the one that grew to be the biggest threat to FDR's first re-election campaign was the Socialist party. FDR became acutely aware of this threat from the left and he quickly went about defusing it. He took two large planks from the Socialist party platform and made them his own, pushing them through Congress as part of the second New Deal package. Good thing too, otherwise we wouldn't have Social Security or Unemployment insurance.
This political move did indeed endear him to the left in this country and the Socialist party threat was defused.
The other example is from the largest depression before the Great Depression, the one in the 1890's. During this crisis there arose a vast, left leaning movement called the Populists. Not only was it a political party, but is was a movement to help those who had been left out in the cold by both parties, especially the Democrats in the South. This party was particularly successful in the election of 1892, electing dozens of office holders throughout the South and Midwest. But since it was a loose knit affair, it quickly fell apart after the election. Yet the threat posed by this party forced to the Democrats to address many of the issues near and dear to the Populists, like crop prices, minting more silver, etc. In essence, out of self preservation, the Democrats moved to the left.
That is the value of third parties. They may not win much at the ballot box, but they scare the shit out of the established parties, to the point where one of those established parties actually moves in the direction of the third party. This is simple political evolution, the people are pissed, they express it via a third party, and a mainline party moves in to woo those voters. Essentially third parties act as a check on both parties becoming too cozy with each other, a situation that we're faced with today.
In response, don't be terribly surprised when a third party pops up to make a serious run at the Democrats, just consider it as political evolution and a chance for the Democratic party to move back to its liberal roots and base.
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