The two-party system has us pitted against each other
Assistant Opinion Editor Marin Klein writes that America’s two-party system is excessively dividing the country, inhibiting productivity and inciting chaos.
February 24, 2021
As the transfer of power between former President Trump and President Biden happened, a far-right radical group, known as The Proud Boys, that has fiercely supported Trump began to turn on him. After Trump disapproved of the Capitol storming, the Proud Boys began to call him weak and felt betrayed. How could a group so quickly turn on someone they were so committed to a few days earlier?
This is proof of a broken system.
The Proud Boys organization on the right, and Antifa, a far-left anti-fascist group, are overpowering the political parties in our government. They stand fiercely and violently next to whom they support, but when they take it too far and are condemned, they turn. This is showing a pattern of mob mentality and rioting on falsehoods. These groups, while small, are causing a lot of commotion in our government and country today. The parties aren’t going to be parties soon, just people falling victim to mob mentality and supporting whoever without having facts.
America’s two-party system has been in ruin for quite some time. While most people in the country are fairly moderate (in 2020 41% of voters were Independent, while 25% were Republican and 31 % Democrat), the smallest percentage of radicals on each side are the ones yelling the loudest, on behalf of their party and getting the most attention because of it. Leaders in these parties have begun to make the demands of radicals louder. The groups have become so far right or left on the spectrum that they view each other as enemies. There seems to be a common belief that Democrats and Republicans can’t agree and each party is associated with radical views that don’t align. These labels and misconceptions lead to division and should not be the norm.
One of our country’s main principles is unity. The political parties that make up our government don’t seem to be following that principle, as we could not be more separated. Both sides are clashing and making the parties more and more separated. Of course, this has been seen throughout history, dating back to our first president, George Washington, who warned us in his farewell address in 1796, to stay away from political factions. We should have listened.
America is so politically divided right now due to the radical groups that are controlling parties. Not every Republican is a Radical Republican and not every Democrat is a Super Progressive. Most people across the country are moderates and can agree with both sides. However, the two-party system is not representative of that, and this leads to the American people being labeled by the ideologies of the extremes of either side. 
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Almost everyone at least once has made a snap judgment of someone after hearing their political affiliation. That shouldn’t be the way it is. Just because someone identifies as Republican doesn’t mean they support everything that radical, far-right Republicans do, likewise with Democrats and their far-left groups.
There can only be hope President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, who are both fairly moderate Democrats, can bring some unity to the House and the Senate over their term. The House and Senate need to put personal disagreements to the side and focus on the good of the country as a whole. President Biden has already begun working hard to restore the country and hopefully restore our split government. After these last four years of chaos, America needs balance, and mending the divide between the parties must take place. We are one nation, not two, so we must come together.
