Serving the Flathead Valley & Montana since 2006. A reality based independent journal of observation & analysis. © James Conner.

 

9 April 2014

Building political party platforms

Spring marks the beginning of political platform building season. The timing and details differ from party to party, but the process commences at the precinct level and concludes at the county, state, or national level. Political platforms, for all their quirks, qualifiers, and evasions, are the blueprint for the society the party wants to build if its candidates win the election.

One of the best sources of historical national political party platforms, as well as inaugural addresses and state of the union speeches, is The American Presidency Project at the University of California at Santa Barbara.

For Democrats, I recommend the Democratic Party’s national platforms for 1940, 1944, 1960, and 1964, and FDR’s 1944 state of the union speech. The Progressive Party’s 1912 platform provides a historical yardstick for measuring other platforms.