I put up my hands and admit I think the US political system is stronger to the one we have in the UK. Why do I believe this? Because the British system, with the possibility that Prime Minister may be thrown out at any moment, creates a non-stop tedious soap opera about political personalities and factions which distracts us from what politics should be about: debating on and deciding what the right policies for the country are. Tony Blair’s government was completely dominated by his relationship with Gordon Brown, especially the question of when Brown would take over from Blair. What was the result? A Prime Minister without any positive achievements to show despite a landslide victory, and second big win in 2001 and a decade in power.
This problem has only been made worse by the creation of 24/7 news, which feeds off resignations, coup attempts and personalities- hence the rise of Boris Johnson. In Britain, there was once a time when we had Labour and Conservative parties which stood for two different directions for the country, and were led by political giants in comparison to today’s bland cardboard-cut-out leaders. This allowed them to debate the direction of the country and go to the country every four years with differing manifestos. When this was the case turnout was much higher. All the evidence appears to show that the voters have become less interested in politics as it has become more about personalities and factions than big issues. Turnout has in the last thirty years declined dramatically, and political parties have become shells in terms of their membership.
In comparison to David Cameron, Barack Obama can govern without having to worry about coup attempts or whether anyone will challenge him for his job. Sure there is debate over who will run for President, but there is far less of the non-stop chatter that we have to endure in the UK. This allows the system to focus much more on debating the key issues of the day, hence the debates over healthcare and immigration that Congress has had in the past few years.
