Unlike the American Political
System, third parties have more influence in the British System. Currently, the
Conservatives, by David Cameron, have the majority because of their fraught
combination with the Liberal Democrats, with Lib-Dem deputy prime minister Nick Clegg. While their
union makes strange bed-fellows on paper, the coalition permitted massive
spending cuts in the first few years of the Cameron Government.
government spending, Big Business and Big Government getting bigger have pushed
Britons to the brink, and empowered an anti-establishment, pro-free market
backlash from a formerly marginal third party, the United Kingdom Independence
Party, otherwise known as UKIP. While the Conservative Party has made promise
after promise to grant the United Kingdom an up-or-down vote on whether the
country stays in the European, and whether the country becomes a nation of laws
with a strong border control, UKIP reminds the country that they have not kept
their word.
out because of this lack of follow-through starting with Douglas Carswell,
followed by Mark Reckless, with pressure on the Tories (another term for
Conservatives) to stand by their values. Even though UKIP has peeled away Tory
lawmakers, the party is also enfeebling the minority Labour Government. The
liberals were hoping for an easy win next year, but now they are wondering
whether they will have enough Masters of Parliament (MPs) to hold any tenable
majority after May 7th, 2015.
UKIP, Carswell and Reckless, were forced to resign their posts and run again in
by-elections (special elections to US residents), where the two MPs won back
their seats with commanding majorities. As members of another minority
party, these two representatives must join with their former adversaries, the
Labour members. Rather than receiving a warm welcome, they face similar
opposition and ridicule for their new party's political views. Sometimes, the
members have had to admit that the UKIP leaders are working on explaining
their positions and establishing stances on key concerns.
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| Douglas Carswell |
In his first question [27:00 — 29:
00] during Prime Minister’s Questions as a UKIP member, Douglas
Carswell pressed his former colleague yet present Prime Minister about
passing recall legislation, which would force representatives to respect and
respond to their constituents’ concerns. Carswell's interest in his
constituency and their interests did not change, but his decision to break away
from disjointed leadership forced him to join the opposition. In other words,
policy mattered more than politics, principle more than partisanship.
second defector, Mark Reckless, commands great respect, too. Reckless
took questions from his liberal Labour peers during a committee discussion on
reforming the National Health Service. Just as the opposition will savage and
boo the Prime Minister during questions, Reckless endured interruptions,
outrages, scoffing, and a general disarray of disrespect from his new
colleagues.
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Yet he stood his ground, declared
his views, and argued effectively with Labour members. Despite his infrequent
stammering, he continued to relate political points, his defense for his new
party, and the proper designs of the National Health Service. While
conservatives around the world would dispute the role of government in health
care, at least Reckless defended his party, and made the most of what little
knowledge he possessed during the meeting.
those two UKIP defectors provide profiles in political courage. Willing to
break away from an unrepresentative majority, yet demanding the much-needed
reforms they had campaigned on, Carswell and Reckless are demonstrating
that populist momentum combined with grassroots support and a new media
can shake up the Westminster political-class complacency, and for the better.
if Unite States Congressional representatives were forced to explain
their views to their opposition in minority caucuses from time to time. What
would happen if the Speaker of the House and the Majority Leader of the US
Senate had to stand before both friendly as well as opposition colleagues and
explain their views? House Speaker John Boehner would have more likely heeded
the frustrations of the American people, fed up with a lawless President and
his executive amnesty. Former Senator Majority Leader Harry Reid would have
allowed votes on bipartisan legislation from the House. With the rising access
to federal legislative procedures and discussions, individual citizens can see
the work of their representatives (or the lack thereof) and hold them
accountable to speak on their behalf. They should start talking more, and
politicking less.
taking the upper chamber in January, following the passage of a pork-laden
CRomibus bill filled with gimmes and gimmicks for the Left and the Right, the
courage of third-party stalwarts like UKIP's Douglass Carswell and Mark
Reckless should compel American representatives, Democrat and Republican, to revamp
their positions of power and invigorate the legislative process. America’s
leaders, and her citizens, should demand reform not just of American federal
politics, but the daily procedures of governance and outreach still missing
from the American republic.