Would an Independent President Mend the Partisan Divide? Ryan John

I’m a true independent at heart.  I can remember being eleven years old holding up a Ross Perot sign on the avenue encouraging drivers to honk as they drove by.  I probably didn’t really know what he stood for but I loved him.  I saw a guy against two political titans who was discredited, shunned yet unwavering.  I always favor the odd man out.  Although I follow the issues relatively closely, I don’t even vote. I believe mostly in personal responsibility and devotion to a self defining set of morals which are conducive to personal enrichment with social concern.   I laugh at my friends who bang their chests in a pro war rally while sitting at a local bar drinking beer at 1:00am.  If you’re so pro-war, than why aren’t you there, I say to them, or any chicken hawk for that matter.  Than again, I’m just as frustrated by capable people who collect welfare checks, disability, or unemployment their whole lives made possible by Dems.  The party system creates great words and ideas sometimes without the implementation of real productive action and I’m frustrated by it. 

Is it possible for President Obama to leave the Democratic Party while holding the office of presidency thus becoming an independent?  Yes, it is. However, he’d have to run as an independent for his second term and therefore receive the nomination without either the republican or democratic parties.  The only way Obama could switch to an independent and succeed in his effort to create a more bipartisan Washington, is with the support of his followers switching in the House and Senate.  There are no independent governors, or any independents serving in the House and only two independents in the Senate.  If all politics are in fact local, than voters would have to drastically change their perspective on the two party political systems to embrace the openness of independence, encouraging a new wave of local independent politicians who could advance themselves into the Congress as independents.  I think the American people are fed up with a two party system that refuses to challenge conventional thought and hinders open mindedness.  Things aren’t always black and white, or should I say blue and red, and it’s a shame that we support someone only because they represent the party we are.  A strong independent would place more accountability on both sides to represent issues fairly and constructively in a non-partisan fashion.

If anyone can lead the revolution away from the rigidness of Washington I believe Obama can.  He’d have to abandon the Democratic Party and convince the American people that an independent view is the right one to ensure we’re not victimized anymore by the determinants of either big government or big business.  I don’t think he will though.  It’s too risky and I think he loves being president too much to jeopardize his second term.  Plus, he seems to really like the idea of expanding government.  He may pave the way for independent thought in the future though. But for now I believe that’s probably more change than most people are ready for.  Don’t get me wrong, it’d be good change that I’d welcome but, I think the older generations running the show would disagree.