Episode 3 of the Forward Party Podcast includes veteran political journalist Chris Cillizza. Cillizza covered why there is such an appetite for independent political movements at this moment in US history, and what it might take for such a movement to succeed rather than fail.
The entire conversation was compelling, but perhaps the most important takeaway for me is that attempts to run third party and independent candidates will only succeed if this comes as a movement. In previous instances, individuals have run as independent or third party, but it was really all about that individual and their attempt to win an election. Lasting reform will only come through a movement that stretches beyond any one person or candidate.
I also really appreciate that Cillizza is so great at articulating the benefits of more political competition (13:30):
Look at the number of them, particularly in the House, where they face no competition. That’s bad for democracy. I don’t care if you’re a Democrat, Republican, one party rule very rarely ends well for the average person… it’s more corruption, more entitlement, less oversight, less connection with their actual voters. Competition is what I think keeps politicians paying attention… more competition is good for the average person.
And later in the conversation, Cillizza describe how the system is set up to rile up the voters rather than to solve actual problems (17:07):
The problem is our political system is set up where… And we get so caught up on the, I always say, 5 percent of stuff with which we disagree. But that’s how politicians get elected. That’s how they raise money. It’s how they motivate their bases. So the 5% makes it you feel like 85%, when in fact there is a huge area where you can say, look, I am going to address this.
I think this is an excellent diagnosis of the biggest problems in the US right now. And this analysis also helpfully points to the antidote: we need election reforms that generate more political competition, thereby making politicians more responsive to the will of the people and more focused on actually solving the problems facing the nation.