Where's the Party?

In the United States, there is no such thing as a unitary political party. As we shall discuss, "party" can mean the party in the electorate, party organizations, and party in government. Federalism, bicameralism, and the separation of powers further complicate the picture.

There are different approaches to party strategy and tactics. Governor Schwarzenegger recently made a case for the pragmatic "big tent" approach. (You can skip the first four minutes, a litany of thanks to other politicians.) On the Democratic side, Markos Moulitsas (founder of the Daily Kos) has argued for a more ideological approach. Note that each qualified his remarks, with Schwarzenegger nodding toward "values" and Kos mentioning the need to accommodate regional differences. For written alternatives to each view, see the text of the speech by Tom McClintock (Schwarzenegger's nominal running mate in 2006) and an article by Al From and Bruce Reed, the mavens of Democratic moderation.