Post-Civil War America

The United States of America is an extremely powerful, wealthy, and influential nation. Its origin is one birthed through the debates, opinions, and compromises of people who had a strong sense of nationalism and desire for justice. However, even though the views of the founding fathers aligned enough to declare independence and start an entire new country, the way said country would be run caused splits in opinions. Political parties have been around since the beginning, with there being two counterpart parties that stood out, encompassing the ideals of majority of the population. Today those two major parties are the Democratic Party and Republican Party.

The Democratic Party has seen drastic changes in its ideals since its origins in the 1800’s. Some might say they did a full turn around in their philosophy, going from a more conservative view to the now left leaning ideology we are familiar with today. For example, in their beginning they had conservative views on social topics such as civil rights reform in Post-Civil War America. (Cite). Now their ideologies have shifted to a more liberal view, especially with social justice. They find a lot of their support in people who heavily rely on welfare programs since they push for the government to put more time and effort into the improvement and accessibility of said programs. Those who have experienced social injustices also support the party since they have such a high presence in the push for civil rights. (cite). When it comes to government action, the Democratic party believes there should be more government involvement in businesses and the economy, so that there can be more regulations put in place to ensure equity in business practices. Without these there will be unfair business practices resulting in the exploitation of the average or impoverished American, leaving them at a disadvantage. This also goes along with varying taxes depending on income, so that those who aren’t wealthy won’t be held to the same tax standards as those who have higher incomes. Basically, the Democratic Party wants to see that everyone in America is held to standards that are equitable for everyone and that society allows all to have access to the tools they need to succeed. They believe giving more power to the federal government can achieve this objective.

The Republican Party’s origin dates back to the 1850’s, formed by antislavery leaders who were opposed to the expansion of slavery into new American territories. (cite). They have evolved into a conservative view, right leaning party with strong beliefs. Since they are the opposing party to the Democrats, they also have passionate views on the economy, social justice, and government power. They believe a strong central government is not what the country needs, and would rather see the States be given more power. This will allow the States to have more legislative power and say in their local matters without having to worry about strong federal regulations. 

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