Why Is America So Politically Divided?

One Nation under God, Indivisible, with liberty and justice for all, or so we say. It is no question that the United States is not so united right now. We have felt this divide since we split from the Patriots and people loyal to the British crown. However, during the past few years, we have really tested how indivisible we are: studies have proven that the Democratic and Republican Parties have split more after Donald Trump was elected. In a CNN episode of The Point, host Chris Cillizza stated that from Jan. 2017 to Jan. 2018 Trump had an 83% approval rate from Republicans and an 8% approval rate from Democrats. He followed this by claiming that Dwight Eisenhower, John F Kenedy, Linden Johnson and George Bush together have averaged 40% approval ratings from their opposing parties. The approval-rating gap between parties is unlike what it has been in years past, a direct result of Trump’s controversial presidency.

In early January this year, when Trump’s impeachment trial began, we really saw the contrast between the parties’ views on the president. PEW Research Center conducted a study on people’s stance on removing Trump from office, and while 86% of Republicans opted to keep Trump in office, 85% of Democrats chose Trump getting removed from office. The two parties have such different opinions on Trump that it is difficult for them to find common ground. The fact that Republicans and Democrats cannot agree leads to people avoiding others with opposing political views. Dr. Pamela B. Paresky states, “Democrats who have few or no Republican friends see the other side as more extreme than do those with more politically diverse friends.” So Democrats who are open to listen to others opinions, whether it is Republicans or independent parties, are more likely to understand where their opinions are coming from. When people, no matter what party, avoid interacting with people they disagree with they will always view them as in the wrong and uneducated. America is divided internally for many reasons, but having a controversial president and closed-minded people will only lead to more divide.