Traditionally, America’s political parties had engaged in political dialogue until or unless consensus was achieved.  Consensus in a free society was always necessarily short-lived.  However, since the Civil War, there has been no period of consensus and no realignments resulting in disappearance of either major party.  The Third party system survives, and periods of stalemate or gridlock have replaced the old intervals of consensus.  One party or the other finally resolves stalemate by becoming the clear majority party.  Republicans dominated national politics after the Civil War and were then faced with a national Democratic resurgence and Gilded Age stalemate.  They resolved it when Democrat Grover Cleveland got saddled with the blame for depression and Republicans started to champion progressive reform.  From 1896 then, Republicans were the clear majority party -- that is, until 1929, after which it was Herbert Hoover and the Republicans’ turn to suffer blame for the worst depression in history.  FDR came to power in 1932 and cemented his New Deal coalition in 1936.  Until the Reagan Revolution and associated “revolution” of 1994, the Democrats were the country’s clear majority party.

            Today it is unclear whether we have ushered in a new era of Republican dominance or whether we are slipping back into a decade or more of close elections and divided government without clear majority.  The appearance of third parties typically signifies coalition shifts and party realignments, at least if the major parties fail to take heed and co-opt third party positions or at least address the issues that give life to third party challenges. 

            Five key elements make up the conceptual framework of American political tradition: (1) Religion heavily influences American political tradition.  Not only is the society peculiarly religious, based on Protestant Christian origins and subsequent evangelical revivals, but the political ends of the nation are often touted in religious terms--as if the nation itself pursued a religious ideal and providential mission.  (2)  The written Constitutionconsists of the nation’s founding document and subsequent amendments to the document.  It is uniquely American as a departure from the unwritten constitutional tradition in Great Britain.  The written form serves as a constant stricture on the government, in terms of what it can and cannot do and also puts great importance on determinations of the Supreme Court, since its interpretation potentially changes the meaning of the written document.  (3)  Federalism -- a system of dual sovereignty set up by the Constitution, which represents James Madison’s original contribution to political science.  Much of the political history of the United States has revolved around the maintenance of dual federal-state prerogative; whereas, our most serious constitutional crises have involved questions relating to it.  It serves to provide a vertical balance of power to our political system.      (4)  TheRepublican ideological dialectic refers to America’s relatively narrow political spectrum based on the fact that we were a nation imbued with the Whig or Country party tradition.  Ideological limits are generally along original and developmental Federalist and Anti-Federalist philosophical positions, which both value private property and limited government.  (5)  Political parties compose our uniquely American two-party system in which both represent broad coalitions generally corresponding to two sides and alternating aspects of the ideological dialectic.  As in other democratic countries, the parties also serve as vehicles for political participation.  It is ironic, moreover, since the Founders would have preferred consensus to having long-term, two-party competition.

            There may very well be other elements in our political tradition, but these are the main ones.  A sixth one I should at least mention has to do with American foreign policy.  But while American political tradition may be affected by foreign issues, its primary focus has always been response to domestic concerns.  However, the element could be characterized as an “America first” foreign policy that refrains from entangling alliances and which is neutral and noninterventionist in foreign relations, unless security interests are at stake.  That should not imply disengagement from the world, nor any number of voluntary economic and cultural exchanges.  The military may also play important roles abroad in self-interest or as a tool in the exercise of a just national foreign policy.  On the other hand, American political tradition is not altruistic when it comes to the blood of her sons and daughters. 

As with Scripture, one finds new insights and fresh aspects the longer one contemplates American political tradition.  Certainly it is one of the greatest pleasures one can get.  Freedom is, quite simply, exciting.  Understanding it fully, however, is a long-term (probably life-long) enterprise.  Hence those who study the Founders’ handiwork are apt to be struck with a measure of awe at their achievement and to conclude, as they themselves concluded, that divine inspiration played a most beneficent part.

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Wesley Allen Riddle is a retired military officer with degrees and honors from West Point and Oxford.  Widely published in the academic and opinion press, he serves as State Director of the Republican Freedom Coalition (RFC).  This article is from his forthcoming book, Horse Sense for the New Millennium scheduled for release in September (iUniverse, Inc., 2011).  Email: Wes@WesRiddle.com.