Zusammenfassung der Ressource
(3) Party Ideologies changes,
Organization similarities
- Similarities Between UK and USA
- 2 major parties - have ward organisation, county committees,
congressional district committee, state committees
- National Committees
- Democratic National Committee (DNC) -
440 members from state and territories
- Members include: 2 Senators, 2 Representatives, 2 members of the College
Democrats, 3 Governors, 3 mayors, 3 state legislators and 3 county officials
- Republican Nation Committee has 165
members from state and territories
- Differences Between UK and USA
- USA no formal membership system or structure
- There are only party supporters - registered
as on their voter registration form
- They can voter in party primaries
- Parties are state-based
- National committees have had a significantly
higher public profile in recent years - still weak
- Loose in ideological terms -
disagreements within them
- No sense of discipline, members of Congress and state
legislature in same party often vote in different ways
- Probably share some basic values
- Democrats
- Share Commitment to basic welfare
provision and activist government
- Look back on New Deal
- Associated with identity politics
- Influenced by liberal think 60's
- support measures which will help disadvantaged, particularly
women, gay people, and ethnic and racial minorities
- Affirmative action, multiculturalism
and abortion provisions
- Move left in 1972 with George McGovern's presidential candidate
- Loss of white male industrial workers
- Regan year took tole on Democratic Liberalism
- 90's saw Clinton and his "New Democrats" image
- opposed tax rises
- Free trade
- Welfare reform
- Tough anti-crime measures
- Three other groups in Democrats
- "Tax and spend" - big government
- Protectionism (restrictions on imports) preserve American Jobs - Associated with trade unions
- Support interests of racial/ethnic groups and women
- Republican
- The Republican (GOP) were also
traditionally a "broad church"
- Associated with Wall Street, big business interests and the cities
- Conservative values - emphasised by countryside and rural towns
- Interventions role on globe
/ others Isolationist view
- Latter half of 19 century - supported laissez-faire economics
and cultural traditionalism, lost it liberal wing, pro life
- Nixon and Reagan Brought White industrial
works and white southerners to Republicans
- Exploited "wedge issues" between
conservatism of industrial workers and
liberalism of democratic party activists
- Promised
- Tax reductions
- small govt
- family values
- opposition to race and gender-based policies
- Improved US status on world stage
- Reaganism
- Reaganism strategy appeared
successful in presidential elections
- 1980
- 1984
- 1988
- And Congress elections
- 1994
- The tide turned in 1995 even though the Republican
had forfilled there "Contract with America"
- Due to Clinton win the
battle of wills - Gingrich
and other conservatives
seen as extremists
- Public opinion accepted government
role in economy and social affairs
- Cultural conservatives (family
values) seen out of touch - young
- Some Republicans in northeast
endorsed abortion and gay rights
- North east modified the harsh conservative image
- Senator John McCain in 2000 pres elections
distanced him self from the Religious Right
- George W. Bush spoke of "compassionate conservatism"