Caroline Babbitt

On October 16, 2024, JANUS held their latest event titled: “Is the Party Over? The Future of the Political Parties After the 2024 Elections”, featuring former U.S. congresswomen Stephanie Murphy and Susan Brooks. The JANUS Forum, sponsored by the Political Science Department, provides a space for engaging debate on Miami’s campus once each semester. 

Grace Gaston, Co-President of the JANUS Forum, introduced Brooks and Murphy. The other Co-President of the JANUS Forum and moderator for the event, Minnie Morfield, introduced the topic at hand: the future of the political parties in the wake of the upcoming November election. Morefield outlined the current issue of the two party divide as well as the emergence of third party voters. She expressed that, while this undefined middle is an increasing faction of US voters, voting infrastructure is built to only support a two party democracy. 

Morfield shared the impressive backgrounds of the congresswomen who came to this Forum to debate the future of party politics. Susan Brooks, a proud Miami alum, is a former Republican U.S. congresswoman of Indiana’s 5th district. Before becoming a U.S. congresswoman, Brooks had an extensive legal stint as a criminal defense attorney and was the Deputy Mayor of Indianapolis. One stand out achievement mentioned was Brooks’s receiving the Congressional Award for the Community Anti-Drug Coalition of America. 

Stephanie Murphy, the first Vietnamese-American Woman to serve in Congress, served as the Democratic representative of Florida’s 7th Congressional district from 2017-2023. Murphy’s career is marked by her hand in forming defense policies in the Asian Pacific Region as well as forming the Center Aisle Coalition whose mission is “to ensure that the true spirit of representative democracy prevails.” 

Brooks and Murphy shared their insights on the future of the two party system, and prospective standing of certain policy issues following the 2024 election. Brooks highlighted the enduring two-party system, despite the influence of technology and disinformation and emphasized the importance of local party engagement. Murphy discussed the shift in party values from their traditional stances and the need for healthy parties focused on policy rather than personality. Both agreed that negative campaigning often succeeds, and they stressed the importance of addressing voter fears and ensuring parties represent their constituents’ interests. The former representatives both stressed the importance of the grassroots efforts and how they uphold the institution of democracy. 

Introduction

Following the introductions by both Co-Presidents, the representatives each gave opening remarks.

Brooks shared her experience as a Miami University student, a topic she would return to when concluding that the friends and connections you make along the way will impact your career. Brooks additionally noted that her Miami experiences in student government and as president of her sorority built the foundation of her leadership skills. Brooks reflects on the value of philanthropic endeavors while supporting local elections just as much, if not more so, than national elections. She recounted her experience running for office in a crowded primary and winning by a narrow margin, again highlighting the importance of grassroots support. 

The main takeaway of Brooks’ opening remarks was her advice to the students in the audience. She told students to always keep an open mind in your future career, ready to pivot into public service at any time. These lessons about volunteering and getting involved, which she highlighted in all of her anecdotes, enlightened the audience about her perspective that little things promoted by the two party system—such as putting a yard sign up during campaign season—show how local efforts matter. 

Brooks goes on to acknowledge the change of the Republican Party under former President, and current presidential candidate, Donald Trump. Here, she was direct in declaring that the executive branch has little sway on the work of legislators, who are the real movers and shakers of political action. She concludes her opening remarks by stating that she doesn’t think the U.S. is ready for the emergence of a third party into America’s system of democracy. 

Murphy began her opening remarks by sharing her personal story of fleeing communist Vietnam as a child; an experience which she claims ultimately shaped her respect for the United States Military. She goes on to elaborate how this experience laid the framework for her life in public service, which wasn’t sparked until after the terrorist attacks on the U.S on 9/11. Following this call to action, she detailed her career path including working for a strategy consulting company, joining the Department of Defense and running for Congress after the Pulse nightclub shooting. 

Murphy highlighted the need for both parties to focus on policy debates rather than personality clashes and the importance of healthy party platforms. Murphy underscored how before she ran for office, she was more of an independent than a Democrat. Being not fully “steeped” in the Democratic Party, she revealed how this gave her the unique opportunity to embrace bipartisanship when emerging with her new office in a then Republican dominated Washington.

Is the Two Party System a Sustainable Form of Democracy? 

When asked if she believes the Two Party system will continue to work for the United States, Brooks argued that the two-party system is sustainable but acknowledged the challenges posed by technology and disinformation in modern politics.Brooks included a call to action for limiting the negative impact AI and social media can have on a foreign perspective of the United States.

Brooks went on to state that American politics are put on display to countries such as Iran and China, which she claimed makes the U.S. appear weak. Brooks also noted how coalition government in other parts of the world is very difficult. She claimed that a better solution to our current qualms with the system would be for Congress to address issues related to technology and commerce, which would, in her opinion, uphold democratic integrity. Brooks also emphasized both in the debate, and in my conversation with her afterwards, that across the aisle relationships between center conservatives and center liberals strengthen the reliable two party system. 

Murphy responded with her thoughts on the subject, making it clear that she believes party coalitions are forming and bound to strike change in the post-election political climate. She elaborated upon this claim by exemplifying the difference between progressives and centrists within the Democratic Party, expressing that the Democrats’ response to Trump winning the election would solely depend on which of these coalitions — centrists versus progressives —  is quicker to reflect the parties reaction. 

While Murphy agreed that the Two Party system is here to stay, she stressed the importance of increasing clear policy platforms to create healthy parties and opposed the continuous following of charismatic candidates not focused on true policy issues. Murphy calls on her experience with polling to highlight another issue: parties no longer reflect the concerns of their constituents. She cited a Pew Research study, which revealed 77% of people expressed that they felt the political parties acted in self interest instead of public interest — a fact she admitted is “a really damning thing to hear in a democracy.” 

Returning to some of the factors shaping this topic as a hot button issue, Murphy revealed that one reason she thinks that the two party system is here to stay is because aspects of campaign finance, and the way money is moved around in elections, is only one example of an infrastructure that is built for the two party system. 

Both former representatives believe that the two party system of democracy is not going away in America any time soon. Brooks highlighted the need to bolster cybersecurity and commerce to maintain the democratic integrity that the party system is striving to uphold. Murphy stressed the importance of cleaning up the parties and returning the focus to policy in order to make the party system more bearable. 

Voting Based on Fear, Not Personal Interest

The JANUS Forum set up a live link to submit questions from the audience. One audience member asked, “Seeing that the presidential election is so close, it’s apparent that many voters have shifted from voting for the candidate that best aligns with their personal interests, to now voting out of fear for the other candidate. Do you think that there is any way to fix this?”

Murphy responded by tying the conversation back to Brooks’ earlier concerns about the role of technology in politics today. She claimed that fear mongering has become the number one tactic of campaigning, made possible by the lack of required standards on platforms such as social media and cable. Murphy went on to say that instituting old broadcast truth requirements in campaign ads would help to assuage this problem. 

While Brooks acknowledged the common good desire to reach voters in a positive way, she expressed that in such a polarized environment, negative messages get more traction. She claimed that this is the sad truth of the current political landscape. Brooks goes on to claim that the parties now need to focus on attracting a broader range of voters, given her claim that the Republican Party used to consist of the college educated and big business constituents, but since the rise of MAGA, has become a party of more rural residential constituents and fewer college educated. 

This demographic shift is what she thinks that party ads should focus on throughout the remainder of the election season. Brooks honed in on the middle group of undetermined voters and again expressed how negative campaigning is more effective than positive pieces in “moving the needle.” 

To broaden this concept, she stressed that “only a few states matter” on the campaign trail which can make negative campaigning a vital tool. Brooks called for parties to expand the tent, as only “35 districts will decide the fate of the House.” Ultimately, Brooks concluded her response to this question by saying, “I hate Identity politics.”

Party Stances on Hot Button Issues After the Election

The discussion shifted to how the former representatives felt how the outcome of the election would affect pressing political concerns. Talked about were the challenges in U.S. immigration reform, citing the influx of unaccompanied minors and the collapse of a potential reform bill. Key election issues were identified as the economy and trade, with potential impacts on national security and foreign policy. 

Murphy claimed that a Harris administration might lean more on trade and tourism-dependent states if the election was won through a route other than the Rust Belt, as it was won by the Biden administration in 2020. This would give Harris room to enact some of her more centrist policies which Murphy said reminded her a lot of George W Bush’s in the realm of national security. While a Trump administration could impose significant tariffs, affecting lower-income families. Brooks pointed out  that the presidential power to impose tariffs up to 50% is ultimately vital for promoting American manufacturing. 

The conversation also touched on the influence of Trump’s legacy on the GOP, and the importance of bipartisan collaboration in divided government.

Brooks also commented on foreign policy, claiming that a Trump administration would bring about a new tone to the subject. She went on to detail how Trump ordered officials to put pressure on NATO members to pay a greater sum of their debts as the U.S. was paying their agreed upon portion and wasn’t a country geographically close to the Russian threat. Brooks admired how Trump analytically evaluated foreign allies based upon tariff deficits. 

Later on in the discussion, Murphy mentioned, having attended both party conventions, that she saw only MAGA republicans in Milwaukee and was dismayed at the lack of any voice from the older conservative coalitions. Brooks responded by admitting that the Republican Party basically is the Trump party now, saying that he has expanded beyond MAGA, which was a loud movement to encompass the true values of today’s Republican Party. When asked about whether the Trump Republican era would persevere, Brooks commented that the Trump family has other members likely to run for office in the coming years no matter the outcome of the 2024 presidential election. Brooks stated that “if vice president Harris wins the White House, I still believe the Tump influence will remain.” She went on to claim that while she greatly respects Liz Cheney, she sees no current path towards leadership in the Republican Party to Liz or her father, both known opponents to the Trump Republican coalition. 

Murphy added her perspective to this conversation as a BBC contributor whose job is to explain American Politics to a foreign audience. Both former representatives agreed that the Trump organization is now the Republican Party, with little influence of former platforms such as the Reagan and Bush administrations. 

Murphy emphasized that the future of both parties rested on the backs of “reasonable Democrats and reasonable Republicans.”

Advice to College Students

Morfield asked the former representatives what their advice would be to students interested in getting involved with politics. 

Brooks suggested that one of the best ways to do this would be to get involved with a candidate you respect, volunteer for their campaign and use this experience to make connections and enrich your resume. Brooks shared both in her advice, and in my conversation with her after the debate, the profound effect it had when eight of her friends from across the political spectrum came out to work the polls and support her campaign efforts. These were all friends she made while attending Miami University and this reinforced her earlier claim about the vital connections you make along the way that could alter the course of your life goals and career. 

Murphy revealed that in a class she teaches at her alma mater she requires students to obtain hours partaking in grassroots efforts such as making calls for any campaign of their choice. Murphy also underscored the value in talking to voters as individuals, which can put into perspective the applied goals of many policy issues. 

Both congresswomen stressed the importance of local elections, grassroots campaigning, and how getting involved is the best way to ensure democracy unfolds with integrity.