So the Republicans and Democrats had their conventions, and each produced a platform - which is a collection of policies and positions that the party delegates agree on. The platform is held out to be the official position the party takes on a number of issues. The terms for each specific position is "plank." Get it? The platform is made up of planks.
Clever I know.
The nasty truth is that there is no mechanism in place to force the party's nominees to run on these positions. Some might in fact make them less competitive than they would otherwise be to the independents that often make the real decisions about who will win the general election. Party nominees also tend to have their own sources of funding, so the party has nothing to force their candidate's hands on this.
Nevertheless, party platforms provide interesting insight into the state of each party at a particular moment in time, and allow for contrasts with each other. In that spirit. I want you to review the platforms of the two major parties and point out any similarities and differences between the two. Based on what you know about public opinion on each plank - which platform might be more or less competitive come November.
Click here for the platforms:
- The 2012 Democratic Platform.
- The 2012 Republican Platform.
If you are feeling ambitious, here's the Libertarian Party Platform, and here's the Green Party Platform.
