Republicrat [1] or Demopublican [2] [3] (also Repubocrat, [1] [4] Demican, [1] Democan, [1] and Republocrat [1] ) are portmanteau names for both of the two major political parties in the United States, the Republican Party and the Democratic Party, collectively. These derogatory names first appeared in the 1872 U.S. presidential election. [5]
The terms have several meanings. One use is to insult politicians that the speaker believes are too moderate or centrist. This use is similar to saying that a Republican is a "Republican in Name Only" (RINO) or a Democrat is a "Democrat in Name Only" (DINO). Another use is to indicate that the two major parties are essentially interchangeable from the speaker's perspective because neither major party supports the changes that the speaker wants to see. This often carries an unspoken implication that the U.S. is in spirit a dominant-party system.
Republicans have often portrayed themselves to be pro-business and aggressive on foreign policy; Democrats have tended to campaign on more liberal social policies and a more important role for government-funded social programs. Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines it as "a member of the Democratic party esp. in the southern states who supports to a large extent the policy and measures of the Republican party". [6] Oxford Dictionaries defines the term as "[a] person whose political philosophy is a blend of policies and principles from both the Republican and Democratic parties". [7]
The term is sometimes used in a pejorative sense by members of one party to attack members of their party who are either centrist or who have what they perceive to be the wrong ideology. The term Republicrat is commonly used by liberal Democrats to attack conservative and centrist members of the party, such as Senator Joe Lieberman. On the Republican side, George W. Bush, Mitt Romney, and Newt Gingrich are common examples of Republicrats due to their liberal stances on various political issues. Another term used by liberal Democrats to describe conservative and centrist members of their party is "Democrat in Name Only" or "DINO"; a conservative Republican term for liberal and centrist Republicans is "Republican in Name Only" or "RINO".
Another usage of the term puts the words together in order to voice the opinion that the two mainstream American political parties are so ideologically similar as to be interchangeable. This usage often expresses the sentiment of ordinary citizens who see all politicians as serving the same special interests and make little distinction between the two parties. Earl Killian's U.S. political glossary defines the term as "a portmanteau of the words 'Republican' and 'Democrat' ... used to symbolize the one-party nature of U.S. politics, when it comes to issues on which the dominant parties of the two-party system agree ... . In this view ... Republicrats is then the name of the single U.S. political party, and the Republicans and Democrats are seen as factions of this one-party system, rather than as true independent parties." [8]
Some commentators, such as right-wing radio talk-show host Michael Savage and left-wing activist Ralph Nader, who have both used the terms, have opined on how it is often hard to tell the parties apart, leading to the term's popularity. This was a view shared on the left by the Green Party during the 2000 U.S. Presidential election, whose bumper stickers read: "Bush and Gore make me want to Ralph." Former Dead Kennedys vocalist and Green Party member Jello Biafra has used the term during interviews. In 2004, boxing promoter Don King told Larry King he was a Republicrat. He defined it as being for "whoever's going to be doing something or the upward mobility of America, black and white alike". [9]
An equivalent term used in the United Kingdom is Lib-Lab-Con or LibLabCon, a pejorative portmanteau referring to the three main political parties (the Liberal Democrats, the Labour Party, and the Conservative Party), suggesting that there are no real differences between the three and that the UK is effectively a single-party system.
An equivalent term used in Canada is Lib-NDP-Con or LibNDPCon, a pejorative portmanteau referring to the three main political parties (the Liberal Party, the New Democratic Party (NDP), and the Conservative Party), suggesting that there are no real differences between the three and that Canada is effectively a single-party system.
An equivalent term used in Australia is Lib-Lab-Nat, a pejorative portmanteau referring to the three main political parties (the Liberal Party, the Labor Party and the National Party), suggesting that there are no real differences between the three and that Australia is effectively a single-party system.
American electoral politics have been dominated by successive pairs of major political parties since shortly after the founding of the republic of the United States. Since the 1850s, the two largest political parties have been the Democratic Party and the Republican Party—which together have won every United States presidential election since 1852 and controlled the United States Congress since at least 1856. Despite keeping the same names, the two parties have evolved in terms of ideologies, positions, and support bases over their long lifespans, in response to social, cultural, and economic developments—the Democratic Party being the left-of-center party since the time of the New Deal, and the Republican Party now being the right-of-center party.
The Rockefeller Republicans were members of the United States Republican Party (GOP) in the 1930s–1970s who held moderate-to-liberal views on domestic issues, similar to those of Nelson Rockefeller, Governor of New York (1959–1973) and Vice President of the U.S. (1974–1977). Rockefeller Republicans were most common in the Northeast and the industrial Midwestern states, while they were rare in the South and the West.
In United States history, the pejorative scalawag referred to white Southerners who supported Reconstruction policies and efforts after the conclusion of the American Civil War.
Moderate is an ideological category which designates a rejection of radical or extreme views, especially in regard to politics and religion. A moderate is considered someone occupying any mainstream position avoiding extreme views. In American politics, a moderate is considered someone occupying a centre position on the left–right political spectrum.
The Blue Dog Coalition, commonly known as the Blue Dogs or Blue Dog Democrats, is a caucus of moderate members from the Democratic Party in the United States House of Representatives. The caucus was founded as a group of conservative Democrats in 1995 in response to defeats in the 1994 elections. Historically, the Blue Dog Coalition has been both fiscally and socially conservative. At its peak in 2009, the Blue Dog Coalition numbered 54 members.
In US politics, Republican in Name Only is a pejorative used to describe politicians of the Republican Party deemed insufficiently loyal to the party, or misaligned with the party's ideology. Similar terms have been used since the early 1900s. The acronym RINO became popular in the 1990s, and both the acronym and the full spelling have become commonly used by former President Donald Trump and his supporters to refer to his critics within the Republican Party.
Democracy is Freedom – The Daisy, commonly known simply as The Daisy, was a centrist political party in Italy. The party was formed from the merger of three parties within the centre-left coalition: the Italian People's Party, The Democrats and Italian Renewal. The party president and leader was Francesco Rutelli, former mayor of Rome and prime ministerial candidate during the 2001 general election for The Olive Tree coalition, within which The Daisy electoral list won 14.5% of the national vote.
This article gives information on liberalism worldwide. It is an overview of parties that adhere to some form of liberalism and is therefore a list of liberal parties around the world.
Liberalism and radicalism have played a role in the political history of France. The main line of conflict in France in the long nineteenth century was between monarchists and republicans. The Orléanists, who favoured constitutional monarchy and economic liberalism, were opposed to the Republican Radicals.
In American politics, a conservative Democrat is a member of the Democratic Party with more conservative views than most Democrats. Traditionally, conservative Democrats have been elected to office from the Southern states, rural areas, and the Midwest. In 2019, the Pew Research Center found that 14% of Democratic and Democratic-leaning registered voters identify as conservative or very conservative, 38% identify as moderate, and 47% identify as liberal or very liberal.
A big tent party, or catch-all party, is a term used in reference to a political party having members covering a broad spectrum of beliefs. This is in contrast to other kinds of parties, which defend a determined ideology, seek voters who adhere to that ideology, and attempt to convince people towards it.
Radicalism was a political movement representing the leftward flank of liberalism during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Certain aspects of the movement were precursors to modern-day movements such as social liberalism, social democracy, civil libertarianism, and modern progressivism. This ideology is commonly referred to as "radicalism" but is sometimes referred to as radical liberalism, or classical radicalism, to distinguish it from radical politics. Its earliest beginnings are to be found during the English Civil War with the Levellers and later the Radical Whigs.
In politics, triangulation is a strategy associated with U.S. President Bill Clinton in the 1990s. The politician presents a position as being above or between the left and right sides or wings of a democratic political spectrum. It involves adopting for oneself some of the ideas of one's political opponent. The logic behind it is that it both takes credit for the opponent's ideas, and insulates the triangulator from attacks on that particular issue.
The Oklahoma Democratic Party is an Oklahoma political party affiliated with the Democratic Party. Along with the Oklahoma Republican Party, it is one of the two major parties in the state.
The Democratic Party of the United States is a party composed of various factions. The liberal faction supports modern liberalism that began with the New Deal in the 1930s and continued with both the New Frontier and Great Society in the 1960s. The moderate faction supports Third Way politics that includes center-left social policies and centrist fiscal policies. The progressive faction supports progressivism.
"Wingnut", wing nut or wing-nut, is a pejorative American political term referring to a person who holds extreme, and often irrational, political views. It is a reference to the extreme "wings" of a party, and shares a name with the hardware fastener also known as a wingnut.
In parliamentary politics, balance of power is a situation in which one or more members of a parliamentary or similar chamber can by their uncommitted vote enable a party to attain and remain in minority government. The term may also be applied to the members who hold that position. The members holding the balance of power may guarantee their support for a government by either joining it in a coalition government or by an assurance that they will vote against any motion of no confidence in the government or will abstain in such a vote. In return for such a commitment, such members may demand legislative or policy commitments from the party they are to support. A person or party may also hold a balance of power in a chamber without any commitment to government, in which case both the government and opposition groupings may on occasion need to negotiate for that person's or party's support.
In U.S. politics, Democrat in Name Only (DINO) is a pejorative used to describe politicians of the Democratic Party to indicate that their governing or legislating style is more like a member of the Republican Party.
Progressive conservatism is a political ideology that attempts to combine conservative and progressive policies. While still supportive of capitalist economy, it stresses the importance of government intervention in order to improve human and environmental conditions.
Centrism is a political ideology associated with moderate politics placed between left-wing politics and right-wing politics on the left–right political spectrum. Various centrist movements have developed in different countries, based on the specific country's political environment.