Good Cop/Bad Cop

As a two party system, our government naturally falls into an adversarial dynamic. With alternative, outside viewpoints being so rare, the Democrats and Republicans define themselves by their opposition to each other. The parties work together so rarely that the ability to pass legislation seems to depend almost entirely on one party having a majority in both the House and the Senate. If the President is a Democrat, then the Republicans in Congress will do everything they can to oppose him, and vice versa. Meanwhile, partisan voters will cheer on the party they support and condemn members of the other party as foolish, or evil, or un-American.

However, this is all simply a smoke screen that covers the rampant, debased, and destructive corruption that is behind all the actions of most of the lawmakers in both parties. The Democrats and Republicans have many stated ideological differences, and they will argue with each other and threaten to shut down the country over their inability to reach compromises, but behind the scenes they have identical goals. The Democrats and Republicans are engaged in a long term game of Good Cop, Bad Cop with the American people. And like police detectives on television, it’s not surprising that their different strategies are in support of the same goal.

For those who are unfamiliar with it, the Good Cop, Bad Cop routine is a common trope in movies and television, when police officers are trying to interrogate suspects. The Bad Cop enters first, threatens or assaults the suspect, and then the Good Cop intervenes to help the suspect. This earns the suspect’s trust and makes him more willing to cooperate. Even though the officers seem to be opposed to each other, they are working together to get the suspect to cooperate. This is perfectly analogous to what happens every day in Washington, DC.

No matter which party controls Congress, one party is always threatening to do something that frightens a segment of the population, while the other party acts like they’re trying to stop them. This could be the Republicans threatening to cut social security or Medicaid while the Democrats try to protect them, or it could be the Democrats threatening to raise taxes while the Republicans fight the tax increase. Whatever the issue of the day is, one party is always trying to take something important from Americans, and one party is always opposing them.

All the while that this is happening, the Republicans and Democrats are quietly accomplishing their real goals. Every year, whether the President is a Democrat or a Republican, whether Congress is controlled by Democrats, Republicans, or deadlocked, the same kind of legislation consistently gets passed. The only laws this government is interested in are ones that make their friends on Wall Street richer. Every year, government spending goes up, and every year, they cut corporate taxes and find other ways to make the bankers wealthier. Both parties are so corrupt that they are happy to distract the American people with arguments about taxes and health care, and they make sure that these problems never get resolved. Meanwhile, the voters learn to hate the “other side,” and are happy to support their party in whatever they choose to do, as long as they are thwarting the Bad Cop.

This strategy has worked well for the Republicans and Democrats over the years, but it’s starting to fall apart. Their game is becoming too obvious, and more and more Americans are catching on to their corruption. It is time for all Americans to work together to put an end this cynical game. We need an option from outside of the two party system, if we ever want to find a solution for the problems that are hurting America. I urge all Americans to join me in 2016 by voting for me, Art Drew, for President of the United States.