The Democratic Party
July 25th, 2010 Filed under: News — Contributing Writer
In the early 1770′s there were political factions that opposed Alexander Hamilton’s fiscal policies during his presidency. The Federal Party under Hamilton advocated a strong central government and a loose interpetation of the U.S. Constitution with the the belief that the government should be lead by the wealthy and elite class. The factions opposing these policies were known as the Anti-Administration Party and the Anti- Federalists. It wasn’t until the mid 1790′s that Thomas Jefferson together with James Madison organized these factions into the Democrat-Republican Party. Their philosophies and beliefs favored the common individual. Their focus was on a strict following of the constitution and a weaker federal government. This new party was also known as Jeffersonian Democracy.
It was in1796 that Thomas Jefferson ran for the presidency representing the Democrat-Republican Party with Aaron Burr as his vice presidential running mate. The election for president was won by the opposing Federalist party’s John Adams. Jefferson came in second with the electorial votes which gave him the vice president’s job. This was the beginning of the Democratic Party, the People’s Party as it was called.
The basic principals of the party were simple; democrats believed in individual freedom. They also strongly believed in a strict adherence of the Constitution and decentralizing of the government’s power or in other words less federal government. These principals were the basis by which the party was founded. The Democratic Party has changed and modified some of these basic principals over the last 210 years.
This Democratic party is the oldest political party of the United States. Through the 1800′s and 1900′s the influences of its leaders drifted from it’s basic principals such as decentralizing government. The movement within the party that undermined this organization was called progressivism. The progressive element within the party began in the late 1800′s due to the changes in the modernization of American society.
Today’s Progressive movement has entrenched itself in the culmination of the socialist movement within the U.S. and is known as the far left wing of the Democratic party. The modern progressives as they are known today are pro union, they also stand for gay rights, same sex marriage, reproductive rights, affordable housing and many other social issues that touch the lives of our citizens on a daily basis. The intrusion of government in certain aspects of our lives was not what the forefathers of our country had in mind. Their politics is rooted in the principles of socialism or what is known as social democracy. For example the government’s universal healthcare program and it’s bailout of different industries in our country has never been the responsibilty of the federal government. The original belief in smaller government with more social freedom for its citizens has morphed into bigger government, government takeovers of privately held companies and a more intrusive presence in everyday life.
American citizens, not the progressives or other parties, will in the end determine the path for the future of our country. By participating in your right to vote for those elected officials that represent the needs and desires of “We the people” and to exercise our right for freedom of speech, the will of the people will overcome the determinations political and special interest groups that wish to take over our government and the rule of law set down by our forefathers.
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