1/ THREAD (updated): Why we don't need political parties.
Or, why 2 is the wrong number of #PoliticalParties.

A #Two-PartySystem is only one party away from being a dictatorship; only one party more than what’s found effectively in Russia and China. I have yet to see an

2/ argument for a 2-party system actually benefiting America. Plain and simple, duopolies and false choices suck.

Caveat #1: Yes, we need a #BlueWwave to help correct the current fiasco. But, afterward remember that the infiltration of parties into government got us here.

3/ Caveat #2: Very good people work within parties-I'm not crapping on what they are trying to and actually accomplishing w/in the current system.

First we can start with a premise that most can agree on:

a] Special interest groups have no place in the function of #government.

4/ It certainly would be absurd to organize #Congress along the divisions of #SpecialInterests or to organize elections around them. Right?

But that is exactly what we do.

b] Political parties are special interest groups

5/ For some reason, we have been fooled into thinking political parties are integral to #Democracy and that a #TwoPartySystem is a bed rock of our particular American Democracy.

This is pure bullshit.

6/ And, it’s bullshit that we only seem to hear coming from people invested in the current system. Political parties are special interest groups that have wormed their way into our government structure and elections.

7/ c] Party structure or party function in government is not addressed in the U.S. #Constitution. The Constitution does not call for a two-party system.

Some founding fathers toyed with the idea outlawing political parties (yes, that would not comport w/ 1A, but this talk

8/ occurred a few years prior). Other founding fathers thought the constitution itself would obviate any need for them and so they would never really gain influence (they really guessed wrong).

9/ In any event, our founding fathers as a group thought that political parties were not needed. Some highlighted a feature that actually made them hostile to political parties.

d] Political Parties only gain power at the expense of voters.

10/ There can be an entire debate on whether this point is actually good or bad for voters. I'll take the debate itself as given, unresolved and note that I am not saying that political parties are inherently bad. What I am saying is that it is a really bad idea to

11/ institutionalize political parties in the structure of our government and elections. I can spout myriad reasons why, but any reason as bad as this is sufficient for me.

e] We would not be in this current presidential mess without political parties

12/ @GOP allowed itself to be hijacked by DT and was at least turning a blind eye toward DT's collusion with Russia. W/o party loyalties driving the behavior of @GOP legislators, DT would not have cover to have lasted this long. And about that two-party system being so grand?

13/ In what universe are duopolies ever a good thing? It's certainly not a good thing when Parties act like gate keepers with respect to holding and keeping public office.

e] A two party system is a false choice.

False choices are bad choices.

14/ When I train animals, often what I am doing is fooling the animal into thinking it only has two choices and one of them is just a little more annoying than the other. That's really all it takes.

But doesn't that sound familiar?

It should.

15/ It was one of Rove's favorite tricks, "You're either with us or with the terrorists." But remember, that is a false choice.

Perhaps the most insidious, negative consequence of a two-party system of false choices is that it entrains voters into a mode of binary thinking –

16/ to think that everything fits neatly in in either box A or box B--and it’s important know which one because, one must be inherently (a) good and so the other must be (b) bad. This framework inherently makes compromise something “less than” and reinforces tribalism.

17/ Think of how many times we hear stories of Coke and Pepsi making deals with distributors to split share and keep out other makers. That’s called a duopoly and it inherently creates a false choice for the consumer. It's also the same scam that @DNC and @RNC have been pulling

18/ for a long time in politics. Each side demonizes the other. You have to vote for our party b/c the other party is in league with satan or whatever. Meanwhile, the only thing they do agree on is competing only with other each by working together to lock out independents

19/ and third party candidates. So we start thinking the two party thing is the way to go b/c, the two parties that benefit are the ones telling us that as they work the system to look that way. Eventually, we think they are doing us a favor by protecting us.

20/ What they are doing is trapping us in a system they control. And then, you start believing maybe it's OK that un-elected party officials decide who your candidates ( #Superdelgates) or that it's OK that millions of Wall St $ are pouring into party coffers diluting your voice.

21/ Or maybe you start thinking it makes sense to party seats on what should be an independent FEC; or that the legislature organizes itself around parties so much so that you don't realize it's not voters who have power, but party officials.

22/ And they already figured out how to silence you.

So, here we are now. We have a truly evil @GOP who have hitched their wagon to traitor that is in bed with Putin. That's pretty bad.

23/ The problem is, @DNC could pretty much go around kicking puppies & still claim moral high ground. This is the problem with false choices. The @DNC only needs to be a little better than the @GOP to look like heroes. That's not good enough,

24/ but with other voices silenced, how do even know what is possible?

f] Political parties have no business being in government business.

What if we forbade any party organization in the make-up of government, full stop.

25/ FEC and district boundaries are done completely independent of elected officials. Don't just forbid election activity on government grounds/time but all political party activities. Party business has no place entangled with our government's business.

26/ Political parties would exist with only the power they garner via membership and they are treated like any other special interest group. Like any special interest group, they can have a seat at the table along with everyone else—but they have no control in saying who

27/ else can join them at the table. This all depends

on getting money out of politics. Anyone who thinks having more money gives you a bigger say does not believe in Democracy (that's called plutocracy).

28/ So, yes @SCOTUS who voted for #CitizensUnited, Fck you. Resign and save your place in history. And any @DNC who defend superdelegates or wall street $ poisoning policy decision, you are saying you don't trust voters --You don't believe in Democracy.

</rant>