Write an essay comparing and contrasting the Democratic and Republican parties and the functions political parties play in democracy. What are the platforms of each party and what is their stance on healthcare reform? (The homework was done and completed by http://courseworkwritingservice.net )
Democratic Vs Republic Party
The first party formed in America was the Democratic Party during the fight for independence from Great Britain. The Democratic National Committees (DNC) adopted the donkey symbol during President Andrew Jackson’s presidential bid in 1828. However, later in 1848, the party split into two parties based on those who supported slavery (Democrats) and those against slavery (Republicans) (Grossmann, & Hopkins, 2016). The two parties have contributed a total of 34/45 presidents with the Republican Party (also known as the Grand Old Party (GOP)) contributing nineteen and the Democrats contributing fifteen.
Comparisons and Contrasts
In the current political system, the Republicans are seen to be the conservatives (right-wing) while the Democrats are seen as the liberals (left-wing). The main difference is their political ideologies. The Republicans are seen to constantly push for the government’s aggressiveness in foreign policy issues and its limitation on domestic issues. This means that the Republicans promote military action against foreign countries. The Republican Party also promotes religion within the country and promotes people’s rights to hold arms without restrictions and oversight from the government. The Republicans are also against issues like social programs, immigration, gun control, Medicare for all, and any other programs that stifle the growth of the free market. The party advocates for a lean government in the spirit of Darwinian capitalism (Grossmann, & Hopkins, 2016). The party also favors less taxation for all classes (from high to low-income earners). The party also promotes stronger borders and limited immigration.
On the other hand, the Democrats concentrate on domestic services advocating for more social programs, oversight in the free market, immigration, and moderation when engaging with foreign regimes. The Democrats are not in favor of military action unless it is necessary. They also advocate for healthcare reform to cover all citizens, family planning options such as abortion, gun control laws to curb gun violence, religious freedoms, and accountability of companies operating within the country. The party is also seen to support the rights of the LGBTQ and increased taxation based on wealth. In the Democrats’ ideology, the more you earn, the more you are supposed to be taxed to help in reducing the taxation burden for the low-income earners (Grossmann, & Hopkins, 2016). On the issue of immigration, the Democrats promote moderate borders with facilities for citizenship and asylum-seekers.
Despite these overwhelming differences, there are a few similarities between both parties. First, both parties want to promote the country’s economy through things like low unemployment levels, fair trade and increased investments. Both parties are also seen to want America to have a significant say in world affairs albeit through different strategies.
Healthcare Reform
The Republicans are seen to promote a healthcare system where there is a free market and the care is centered on the patients’ needs. The party argues that through the creation of a free market competition will increase and with it, the standards of care will improve while reducing the costs (Jacobs & Skocpol, 2015). On the other hand, the Democratic Party pushed for a universal coverage system for all citizens controlled by the government. They argue that through this system, they will ensure improved quality of care at a subsidized and affordable rate for all. In the Republic system, things like abortion, euthanasia, and assisted suicide are rejected arguing that research should be funded to ensure improved quality of life for all terminally ill people. Conversely, the Democrats argue that people have the freedom of choice and they should be given options as long as they are of sound mind (Pagel, Bates, Goldmann, & Koller, 2017).
References
Grossmann, M., & Hopkins, D. A. (2016). Asymmetric politics: Ideological Republicans and group interest Democrats. Oxford University Press.
Jacobs, L., & Skocpol, T. (2015). Health care reform and American politics: What everyone needs to know. Oxford University Press.
Pagel, C., Bates, D. W., Goldmann, D., & Koller, C. F. (2017). A way forward for bipartisan health reform? Democrat and republican state legislator priorities for the goals of health policy.
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