Political Polarization Effects on the Country
Political polarization as defined by The Pew Research Center as “the vast and growing gap between liberals and conservatives, Republicans and Democrats.” With the upcoming 2024 election our country seems to be more divided than ever before. The issue with this political polarization being very active in our congress is how will they be able to accomplish anything if they are constantly arguing. How is political polarization affecting the United States?
According to the Congressional Research Service Profile published on January 22, 2024 the congressional members are very split when it comes to political affiliation. The house of representatives contain 220 republicans and 213 Democrats, the senate consists of 49 republicans, 48 democrats and 3 independents. This is making it very difficult for any legislation to be passed as they are constantly arguing with each other over which side is right. An example of this is the threat of a federal government shutdown due to both sides not being able to find a compromise. However this crisis was averted as congress compromised a deal on November 15, 2023, Although a compromise was achieved, due to consistent arguing between congress laws that affect the daily lives of Americans are taking longer and longer to pass. The American public is aware of these issues and aren’t content about it.
Americans have a highly negative view on congress due to all this arguing between political parties. A Pew Research Center survey was conducted on September 23, 2023 and found that 26% of U.S adults have an approving view on congress while 72% are not approving. They also evaluated that positive views have declined on both republicans and democrats. Americans have stated that congress is doing a poor job at listening to their concerns, keeping their personal financial interests separate from work, working with members of the opposing party and taking responsibility for actions. It seems that political polarization in congress is affecting their ability to do their job in a timely and appropriate manner. But blaming congress solely for the issue of political polarization would be ignorant and congress is still chosen by the American people. The American population is also a major factor in political polarization.
Currently our country is a bipartisan democracy consisting of republicans and democrats. After a 2021 survey Gallup, (a newsource organization) identified 43% of American adults are republicans and 46% are democrats. This divide between Americans has caused numerous consequences and hatred between our nation. Republicans and Democrats are very different when it comes to social issues and economic issues causing heated arguments. The republican party is seen advocating for smaller government, larger budgets for the military department, and tend to have more traditional views. The democratic party advocates for larger government, backing regulations and social welfare programs and has a more progressive view. Due to these massie differences political parties tend to disagree on issues causing tension between these two parties. This tension has caused many outburst and even violent occurrences.
Due to political polarization the country has faced numerous issues that have sometimes turned violent. A social movement that is currently under much debate is whether abortions should be legal. This issue has been widely supported by democrats while republicans are not.Due to this abortion is an issue that has been affected by political polarization. When the supreme court responded to the Roe vs Wade case in 2022 which protected the right to abortions many public outbursts occurred. According to a report from the National Abortion Federation abortion clinics were victims of arson which increased by 100% ,burglary and bomb threats increased by 231% and 133%. With democrats and republicans constantly arguing because of social issues it sends a danger that arguing is the way to solve these issues.While it is everyone’s right to advocate for their beliefs, turning to violence is never the answer and can cause enormous consequences.
Political polarization is turning out to become a very dangerous idea in today’s age. Instead of solving issues it seems to be causing more. In order to limit the consequences of political polarization political figures should reassure the public that arguing will never solve any issue. No matter what political party one identifies with, remembering that everyone’s ideas and beliefs are equally important.
Sources:
- “6. Evaluations of Members of Congress and the Biggest Problem with Elected Officials Today.” Pew Research Center – U.S. Politics & Policy, Pew Research Center, 19 Sept. 2023, www.pewresearch.org/politics/2023/09/19/evaluations-of-members-of-congress-and-the-biggest-problem-with-elected-officials-today/.
- Barros, Aline. “US Government Shutdown Threats Center around Senate Border Bill.” Voice of America, Voice of America (VOA News), 18 Jan. 2024, www.voanews.com/a/us-government-shutdown-threats-center-around-senate-border-bill/7445927.html.
- Jones, Jeffrey M. “U.S. Political Party Preferences Shifted Greatly during 2021.” Gallup.Com, Gallup, 31 May 2023, news.gallup.com/poll/388781/political-party-preferences-shifted-greatly-during-2021.aspx.
- Minges, Madison. “Shutdowns and Bipartisanship in a Divided Congress.” American University, 20 Nov. 2023, www.american.edu/sis/news/20231120-shutdowns-and-bipartisanship-in-a-divided-congress.cfm.
- “Political Polarization in the American Public.” Pew Research Center – U.S. Politics & Policy, Pew Research Center, 12 June 2014, www.pewresearch.org/politics/2014/06/12/political-polarization-in-the-american-public/.
