AQA Government and Politics Chapter 19 : US Political Parties (Revision Notes)
Updated 2023/2024
This Resource includes my extensive revision notes for the ‘US Political Parties' topic - also including a list of key definitions alongside a specification checklist (+ topics that have already...
US Political Parties
Ideology = the core beliefs & ideas of political parties. US parties traditionally seen as less
ideological than UK equivalents
Given US’ size & diversity, US parties had to be broad & ‘big tent’ so less ideological than UK.
Eg New Deal Coalition put together by Democrat president Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1930s
which dominated US politics 1930s-60s represented blue-collar workers, unionised labour,
minorities, conservative white segregationists from the Deep South etc
Today the 2 parties’ policies are largely opposed to each other
The Democratic Party key value & policies
- Large gov programmes needed to lift poorest Americans out of poverty. Bigger gov
can enable not restrict indiv enterprise & freedom
- Higher taxes on the wealthiest are acceptable to fund social welfare programmes eg
2020 tax policy pledged ‘Democrats will take action to reverse the Trump’s
administration’s tax cuts benefitting the wealthiest Americans’
- Expansion of affordable healthcare to all Americans. Eg Obama’s Affordable Care Act
2010 extended healthcare coverage to millions of previously uninsured Americans
- Civil rights for minorities should be extended
- Pro-choice
- Separation between church & state is desirable & constitutional
- Gun control measures need to be tightened (see exec chapter on Biden’s gun law)
- SC justices who favour ‘living’ Const & judicial activist position should be appted to
the bench – Const provides source for discovering new rights & protections beyond
those specifically stated by framers
- Diverse multicultural & multi-religion USA should be celebrated
- Humane & sensible reforms to immigration system should be introduced inc support
for measures such as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) & DREAM Act
that would regularise status of many currently illegal immigrants resident & working
in USA
- Should be reforms with regard to racial issues esp after murder George Floyd (eg
Breonna’s Law passed by Democrat Kentucky governor Andy Beshear
- USA should work with international organisations & cooperate with other nations in
areas like climate change eg first day in office Biden signed USA back into Paris
Agreement after Trump left
- Climate change v real & immigrant danger, USA needs ‘Green New Deal’ urgently
Republican Party policies
- Major gov programmes are wasteful & inefficient & poverty best solved by
incentivising Americans to get jobs & help themselves. Strong suspicion of too much
gov interference
- Limited gov involvement in economic decisions
- Lower taxes inc for richest – reflects belief in ‘trickle down’ economics
- Healthcare provision should reflect personal choice & ability to pay, however even w
united gov Trump couldn’t get support in Congress to repeal Affordable Care Act
- Civil rights gone far enough & don’t need further expansion – measures like
affirmative action are patronising to minority groups & unfair
, - Strong antipathy for much of LGBTQ+ agenda – most accept result of Obergefell but
oppose liberals wanting to push it further eg transgender rights. Some states eg
North Carolina passed in 2016 by Rep governor have ‘bathroom bills’ banning trans
people using bathroom of gender identity
- Pro-life eg split 6-3 cons-liberal on Dobbs v Jackson
- Believe religion should have place in public life & support issues like prayers in public
schools
- 2nd Amendment should be upheld in practice, gun ownership indiv right. Party has
strong ties to NRA. However some did support Biden’s gun reform but none up for
reelection (see exec chapter)
- SC justices who favour ‘originalist’ and judicial restraint position should be appted
- Fear USA has become too diverse culturally & racially and traditional national
identity has been sacrificed
- Immigration needs to be tightly regulated, eg supported Trump’s border wall w
Mexico
- Less well disposed to international organisations – believe USA overly subsidises
them & they don’t serve US interest well, eg Trump left Paris Agreement on climate
change. Growing emphasis under Trump of ‘America First’
- Many sceptical of science behind climate change & need to use less fossil fuels esp
when many of these resources can be sourced in USA
Organisation of the main parties
Leadership
- Unlike UK, US parties don’t have clear leader. This reflects separation of powers &
federal framework of USA and the broader political culture
- Sep of powers means pres is not formal party leader – they usually have authority &
set tone of much political agenda but cant control party in Congress (eg Trump &
Obamacare)
- Both parties have a leader in each chamber eg HoR speaker 2021 Nancy Pelosi Dem
leader & Rep Kevin McCarthy – pres has no direct power over them
- Whilst theres logic to coordinated approach & most MoC have similar views to
pres/pres candidate, much persuasion & negotiation takes place
- Lack of party discipline means pres can be defeated by congressional opposition
from own party eg Trump Obamacare in first 2 years office
- Leadership informal & based around personalities – eg Trump’s influence arguably bc
strong following among grassroots & Rep MoC remaining loyal to not be primaried
State-based parties & weak central leadership
- State parties have some autonomy & independence eg in Minnesota local Dems run
as Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party
- State parties play important role in organising primaries & have own structures, but
minimal role in candidate selection
- Democratic National Committee (DNC)) & Rep National Committee (RNC) are
national party organisations (formal structures of a party) – main roles are to
organise national convention that formally nominates candidate & draw up party’s
national platform, role is limited beyond that as no role in candidate selection
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