Private parties should not be funded with public money
By Warner M. Montgomery Warner@TheColumbiaStar.com

Political parties are not government agencies. They are not mentioned in either the U.S. or S.C. Constitution. Traditionally, they have not been supported by tax monies, but the South Carolina Legislature has just changed that. Your taxes will now finance party meetings otherwise known as primaries. But not all political parties, just two, Democrats and Republicans.

Political parties emerged during the debate over the ratification of the Constitution in the 1780s. The Federalists supported ratification; Anti- Federalists were opposed. Thomas Jefferson led the Democratic Republican Party to victory over the Federalists in 1800. Since that time one party after another has sprung up to challenge the party in power.

Whigs, Republicans, and Democrats have slept in the White House and have controlled the halls of Congress. They have been challenged over the years by broadbased parties such as the Progressives, Bull Mooses, Dixiecrats, and American Independents. The largest recent third parties have been the Libertarians, Greenies, and Constitutionalists. Single issue parties such as the Political parties, Free Soilers, Prohibitionists, Greenbacks, Populists, Fascists, Socialists, Patriots, and Pacifists have raised their heads occasionally.

All of our legislators are aligned with either the Democrat or Republican parties. No third party candidates have been elected to our State Assembly. This has been made certain by laws which exclude third parties from recognition or financing. It is illegal to limit the number of political parties, but it has become the practice of the Democrats and Republicans to limit the ballot access of third parties. though not an official part of government, do serve an important governmental function; they select candidates and present them to the electorate. However, anyone or any group can do the same thing…if laws passed by the parties in power do not restrict their activities.

Political parties do not run elections, the government does. For our General Assembly to take money from its citizens and fund the private activities of political parties is the equivalent of "taxation without representation." Unless, of course, it funds the private activities of ALL political parties.