(LFC Comments: Thanks to our Knox County contributor for this article on political parties.   We will evaluate the parties on their actions, not their words.)

Why a third party makes sense

How does the system work?

To put things in a sports analogy, if you want to win the game you have to have a team on the field. If you aren’t a player, you are a fan. The fans can yell, scream and jump up and down but at the end of the day, it’s the team that decides the outcome, not the fans.

The field is the House and Senate, the teams are the Republicans and Democrats.
The people don’t chose the party candidates, the party does. You vote for who the party backs in the primary. You have no other choice. Then you are told that you have to vote for the party candidate, or the other party’s candidate will win and the world will come to an end.

Should we abandon political parties and focus on Issues instead?

Fighting for issues only is like fighting skirmishes in a war. You can win all the engagements but lose the war and you are constantly on the offensive. Your group may win a battle, but army’s win wars.

Political parties are where all the political power resides. It is where issues, political
power and the people come together to govern. Those that control Congress set the agenda for this country. To focus on issues only has been what the Tea Party has been about for the last 10 years. So no I don’t think we should abandon party politics in favor of issues only.

That said the party is the perfect place to get issues enacted into law. Advocates for issues and parties are not mutually exclusive. They can work along with parties when it is mutually beneficial to both groups. Many issue only organizations work with the party to get their agendas enacted. Democrats and their many special interest groups are a prime example.

Should we leave the Republican Party?

Although we have spent the last 10 years in an effort to reform the Republican Party, we have been largely unsuccessful. The efforts to take over the county and state central committees has met with some success only to have rules changed, and in some instances have central committee meetings canceled altogether.

Most conservatives will agree with most of the GOP platform and stated goals. What they
don’t agree with is a GOP which refuses to enact those goals. Bottom line, they don’t want to be taken over and would rather split the party than let that happen.

So yes,  I believe we should leave the GOP.

Should we join another existing Political Party?

No, we should not join another existing third Party. They are not well organized, and the conservative parties that we would normally be drawn to all have the same platform as the Republican Party.  The GOP has a good platform, but they ignore it.  Once the candidate gets elected they are at the beck and call of the 33,000 lobbyists in Washington D.C.  No party has checks and balances in place to prevent this corrupting influence from taking over the party.

Also, merging with another existing party means accepting their ideas and candidates. If we believe we have a better idea for the American people, we should have the honesty of our convictions and strike out on our own. If we are right we will succeed, if wrong we will fail, but it will be on our own terms.

Do we start a new party?

We need a new party that will ensure that the party’s platform and the campaign promises of its candidates for office are carried out when the individual attains office without the corrupting influence of lobbyists and party leadership. If the GOP had carried out its platform to the letter, with all its members of congress voting that way without deviation through the years, would we all be here today?

Our goal is to end the corrupting influence of wealthy lobbies and elites.  We need to form a committee to explore where we want to go and how we can organize a new party.

Reasons to oppose a new third party.

1. If there is a new third party, you will split the vote and the evil Democrats will win.

We do not elect our candidates, the party does. Both parties are more alike than they
are different. They are both corrupt and swampy. The party is more important than the
people they should be serving or the country. They are both obsessed with lining their
own pockets rather than solving problems. Anymore, Republicans are just slow
Democrats.  We can still vote for a Republican, if we choose.

2. A new third party can’t win

The Republican Party was started as a third party and controlled the country in just 6
years with no help from social media, television, telephones, the internet or radio.
When an idea’s time has come it will go viral very quickly.

All other third parties were started by a person at the top. The Bull Moose Party had
Teddy Roosevelt; Ross Perot started his own party. Anderson ran as an independent in
the 70’s.

The constitution party, the libertarian party and all other challenging parties had a
celebrity as its presidential candidate, and failed. Like the Republican Party a new party needs to be built from the ground up.

                                          Conclusion

How the real world wins

In the end, reality always rules. Generals win battles, armies win wars. The Tea Party
occasionally wins issues, but they are just skirmishes in the war. Political parties win
elections.

The parties control the resources needed to win elections. They have fund raisers,
media people, mailers, campaign managers, advance teams, legislative aids and
opposition researchers.

We need to field a team, or an army if you will, that is organized and trained to win.
Go to http://freedompartyamerica.com/ to view a template that can be used as a
starting point for discussion.

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