We need a new, third political party

America is a nation adrift. We have to look no further than the nightly news to see that there is overwhelming anger and distrust concerning our government.

In 2008, Americans turned out the party in power and focused their hope on a candidate who offered change. It is clear to this writer that while change was on the minds of Americans, support for any other agenda was not. The Republican Party had clearly lost its bearing and many Americans felt they had no alternative but to vote for a Democratic candidate. I am gravely concerned in the direction our country has taken, not only under the present administration, but in the past ones as well.

America is hungry for a new path, but a viable alternative has yet to present itself on a national scale. If ever there was a time for a new national party, it is now. This may strike many as naive or impractical, but it is not without historical precedence. In 1854, the Republican Party was born and by 1861, it held the White House.

Many Americans define themselves as independents and many others are wholly disaffected with both parties and the political process as a whole. My inspiration for this writing is none other than perhaps our greatest president, George Washington. In his brilliant farewell address, he wrote to warn our infant nation of the potential problems he envisioned. His ideas may be more than 200 years old, but they remain as prescient and as true today as they did so many years ago.

He wrote, “let me warn you in the most solemn manner against the baneful effects of the spirit of party generally.” He saw governance not as a partisan enterprise, but as a patriotic duty. Today’s spirit of partisanship is so divisive that the business of governance is a sham. I believe most Americans feel that neither party represents their best interests. The benefit of a major third party would be immediately felt as Americans who are disgusted with the other parties would finally have a viable alternative. Not blinded by ideology, but as an outlet for their frustration to see our republic returned to its greatness. Any new party must reflect the desires of most Americans and not the extremes of either faction.

The current administration was able to capitalize on the mantra of change, but clearly failed to articulate a particular vision that resonated with Americans. A third party must champion an agenda that can be supported by the majority of Americans. This agenda must address many of the glaring problems our nation currently is facing.

A new domestic agenda must feature a substantial reduction of the size of the federal government, including ending the annual increase in government spending. It should feature the elimination of a host of federal entities and a revamped smaller cabinet. At the same time it should see rigorous enforcement of existing regulatory laws. The Republican dogma used to claim government was the problem — and to a degree, that is true — but the government must be a muscular watchdog of the nation’s interests as envisioned by Theodore Roosevelt. This party should seek to eliminate the influence of lobbyists, corporate welfare and pork-barrel spending. What ever happened to the demand for the line-item veto? While a version of it was killed in 1998 by the Supreme Court, a revised form should be brought back so the executive can check the out-of-control spending of the Congress. A major overhaul of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid is an absolute necessity. The notion of adding to these entitlements while they are going bankrupt is absurd.

Washington wrote, “Cherish public credit. One method of preserving it is to use it as sparingly as possible.” The national debt is a looming catastrophe and neither party has any credibility in addressing it. We in Virginia understand sacrifice because of our balanced budget laws, but we are also one of the best-governed states in the nation because of this austerity. We also must see the development of a fair and simpler tax code while rigorously pursuing banking, corporate and other tax and legal abusers.

Any new party should focus on the issues that most threaten our nation and avoid the peripheral red meat that fires up partisan ideologues, but ultimately fails to address the gravest problems we face. I have no illusions that this is perhaps a quixotic dream, but the present course is a prescription for the collapse of our nation from within. I hope to present more on the issues of foreign policy in the future.

So in the words of Washington, “I dare not hope (these counsels) will make the strong and lasting impression I could wish,” but perhaps others share in these concerns and will create the groundswell necessary to truly change our nation.

* Touart teaches AP American and world history at Tunstall High School.