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CRP Chairman Nehring In The Tracy Press: Strong Democracy Requires Strong Parties

Today, in much of the world, democracy is the norm. And in those democracies, one pattern is abundantly clear: strong and stable political parties built around ideas are an essential ingredient for a strong and stable democracy.
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In the U.S., our two dominant political parties are strong and stable precisely because they are organized around ideas. There is a Democrat vision of activist government and a Republican vision of limited government. The debate that produced by the competition between these two parties is based on these differing visions and philosophies.

Those who seek to weaken or replace political parties based on differing philosophies, for whatever reason, should have to answer a critical question: replace them with what?
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Recently, some have complained about political parties being involved in local, so called "non-partisan" elections. The notion that there is any government office in this state that is immune from questions of what is the proper role of government is a fiction. Every office invariably involves the taxation of citizens and the use of those funds, making the very assertion of a "non-partisan" office a quaint theory divorced from reality. Anyone who's endured even a single city council or board of supervisors meeting understands this truth.
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In the final analysis, the evidence over time and around the world is clear: strong and stable democracies rely on strong and stable political parties that engage citizens, are organized and fiercely competing on the basis of ideas and do so on a level political playing field that favors no one, so the people's voice may be heard.