Gallup: 60% Of Americans Say We Need A Third Party

So writes Igor Bobic of TPM. I presume those expressing that opinion mean a viable third party, a rational third party, a broadly compassionate third party. We already have "third" parties that are none of those.

The other thing people forget when they advocate (or even join) a third party is that if we have a third major party, we'll need a revised system of voting for president (at least); otherwise, the third party will play the role of spoiler and nothing more. Remember when Ralph Nadir... excuse me, Nader... ran for prez as a Green? That really helped us, oh boy, didn't it.

What we really need is a system in which parties offer clearly contrasting alternatives. Right at the moment, while the Republican Party is held by the 'nads by its craziest element, it is pretty easy to distinguish the GOP and the Democratic Party. But when it comes to the President exercising his purported unitary executive privileges, or a party's fulfilling its "obligations" to its large individual donors and corporations, there's not much to distinguish Bush Junior from Obama: both have been a hazard to our civil liberties. Give me two parties, please, representing two outlooks.

Meanwhile, just give me a GOP in control of itself...