Third Party

2016 Elections, Bernie Sanders, Democracy, Democratic Party, Green Party, Hillary Clinton, Kshama Sawant, Socialist Alternative, Third Party May 10, 2016

Safe States, Inside-Outside, and Other Liberal Illusions

counterpunch By Howie Hawkins May 10, 2016 Bernie Sanders is on his way to an endorsement of Hillary Clinton, the candidate of War, Wall Street, and Wal-Mart. Sanders ran as a New Deal Democrat, but he will soon be campaigning for a plain old corporate New Democrat. To keep his troops engaged through this transition, Sanders will stage a few rules and platform fights at the convention. But rule changes are irrelevant to the real party power structure of candidate organizations and their corporate investors. Any platform planks won will be irrelevant as well. No corporate Democrat will feel bound…

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2016 Elections, Democracy, Green Party, Jill Stein, Third Party May 4, 2016

Building the Greens Into a Mass Party: Interview with Bruce Dixon

counterpunch By Ann Garrison May 4, 2016 Bernie Sanders’ defeats in the East Coast primaries have triggered a flurry of conversation about what the 25 to 35% of Sanders supporters who’ve told pollsters they will not vote for Hillary Clinton will do instead. Socialist Alternative, led by Seattle City Council member Kshama Sawant, and others have called for Sanders to found an independent left party for the 99% and run as an independent, or to appeal to Jill Stein and the Green Party to join their ticket, despite his oft repeated promise to endorse the Democrats’ nominee. With little time…

campaign reform, Green Party, New York, State Politics, Third Party April 23, 2016

The Twilight of Liberalism: Decline of the Working Families Party

counterpunch By Peter LaVenia April 22, 2016 The Working Families Party – darling of The Nation-reading liberals in New York State – is in trouble. The NY Daily News reported this week that major unions (SEIU 1199, United Federation of Teachers, and the Hotel Trades Council) had quietly dropped financial support of the organization in late 2014. Those of us who have long fought for an independent, radical left will not mourn what is likely to be the slow decline of the WFP, though if we are lucky it may take the form of a quick implosion. The party’s stated…

2016 Elections, Green Party, Jill Stein, Libertarian Party, National Politics, Third Party March 21, 2016

False Debate Tonight on CNN

The Front Page On-line, Culver City, CA By Michael Feinstein March 21, 2016 If the presidential campaign has shown us anything, it is that traditional political lines are blurred if not irrelevant. That should tell us something about which voices we should be hearing in presidential debates and forums, and concurrently, how we should be rethinking the role of political parties and electoral systems in this country. The George Wallace-style, white nationalist populism of the Donald Trump campaign has little in common with the Wall Street/big business faction of the Republican party. The social democracy promoted by Bernie Sanders has…

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2016 Elections, Bernie Sanders, campaign reform, Democracy, Green Party, Jill Stein, National Politics, Public Campaign Finance Reform, Third Party March 9, 2016

Result of Third-Party Lawsuit Could Decide Outcome of 2016 Election

Breitbart By Jason Scheurer March 7, 2016 A lawsuit filed on September 26, 2015 in Washington D.C. (and its eventual outcome) may turn out to be the most important event of the 2016 presidential election. Virtually ignored by all but a handful of alternative media outlets, this suit has the power to destroy the existing political power structure ─ much like the ridesharing firms, Uber and Lyft, threaten the antiquated taxi industry. If successful, it will permanently expand the number of candidates on the debate stage during the general election by proving that the Commission on Presidential Debates is in…