In the midst of bitter nationwide political rivalry, uncompromising ideology and divisive debate, it is surprising and invigorating to hear that somewhere in the country a Democrat and Republican can engage in meaningful conversation and cooperation. Yet this has been just the case for College Democrats President Sam Lewis '13 and College Republicans President Parker Hinman '13, whose friendship has significantly increased cooperation between the two groups.
"We don't get contentious about [political differences]. We have a lot of social [events] between the groups and it's a lot of fun," Lewis said.
Thrown into the mix are the College Libertarians, whose Co-President Joshua Schiefelbein '14 defines the organization's role as "a mediating influence" between Democrats and Republicans on campus.
With the upcoming presidential elections and Republican primary debate just four days away, all three organizations have experienced a surge of student involvement. Incoming freshmen are eager to join the ranks of political activists and older students are returning to continue the level of involvement of past years.
"I think there's definitely a lot more people involved this year because passions are a little higher about politics in general going into the election year," Arenne Clark '14, vice president of the College Libertarians, said.
United by an overarching goal of fostering dialogue among students, all three political organizations have engaged in joint ventures to increase political awareness around campus. Last Winter term, leaders from the three organizations banded together to protest a voting bill that would disenfranchise college students in New Hampshire politics.
On Oct. 11, leaders from all three organizations, joined by Student Body President Max Yoeli '12 and head student coordinator of the Rockefeller Center John Turro '12, are organizing the watch party for the Republican primary debate at Dartmouth.
College Libertarians pride themselves on their inclusivity of various political ideologies.
"We have disgruntled Republicans, disgruntled Democrats, people who believe government aka sanctioned violence should be limited to defense and few other functions, and a few anarchists who believe that government's roles can be provided better through an entirely different system of consent rather than violence," Libertarian Kris Brown '14 said.
At the same time, Libertarians are united by a fervent belief in limited government interference in the affairs of individual citizens.
"One of the main ideals of libertarianism is volunteerism so there is no government coercion. So you don't force people to pay taxes for a war they don't support," Clark said.
According to Clark, the College Libertarian organization has assumed the role of a safe haven for those students who are "socially liberal and fiscally conservative." Students arrive at Dartmouth from all over the country with predetermined ideals that are soon put to the test by fellow students and faculty.
"There are so many smart people who can challenge your opinion, that you don't want to be so strictly defined," Clark said.
The great challenge for Libertarians on the national level has been to establish themselves as a full-fledged political party with electable representatives. At Dartmouth, Libertarians have the luxury of not settling on a presidential candidate. Instead, the College Libertarians place emphasis on discussing the role that government should play in the citizens' lives, Clark said.
College Republicans, in contrast, face the daunting task of determining which candidate to support during the upcoming presidential election.
"I'm not going to pretend that our group is one cohesive unit and we all have the exact same views because I think it varies amongst individuals," Hinman said.
Gearing up for the primary debates, Republican club leadership invited a field organizer from the campaign of Gov. Mitt Romney, R-Mass. to speak to students about opportunities for canvassing neighborhoods in Lebanon, NH. In the past, the College Republicans worked on local New Hampshire campaigns including gubernatorial, congressional and senate elections.
Although they work closely with campaigns, political organizations on campus cannot officially endorse a particular candidate. An existing charter upheld by the IRS prohibits tax-exempt institutions like colleges from "participation and intervention" in political campaigns. The College Republicans will not, therefore, officially endorse a Republican presidential candidate.
On campus, Hinman believes the College Republicans' role is to foster a niche for "people who are conservative minded to get together with other people who feel the same way [and] talk about the issues."
College Democrats are similarly constrained by the charter. Nonetheless, individual students will be working on President Barack Obama's campaign in New Hampshire, a great battleground state.
"When it comes time for the election, people will care and the campus can be and is a place where a lot of ideas will get thrown around, and there will be a community of people who are just working on something," Lewis said. "That's all I care about something happening."
College Democrats are involved with voter outreach and voter registration in the Upper Valley region. In past elections, College Democrats and College Republicans have worked together on voter registration as well as running shuttles back and forth from Collis to the ballot box.
Sharing resources between the two organizations has increased partly due to Lewis and Hinman's friendship, Lewis said. Their relationship has few precedents on the national political arena. Lewis explained that party loyalties and the media are to blame for a lack of amicable personal relationships among politicians on different sides of the aisle.
"Could Barack Obama and John Boehner be good friends? Yeah, I'm sure they could. They both seem like normal people," Lewis said. Unfortunately, close cooperation can be seen as weakness on a "much grander stage and [when] everything is played up in the media," according to Lewis.
Despite their differences in ideologies, leaders of all three political organizations expressed their belief that the greatest issue facing our country is the economic downturn. The economy will be the main focus of Tuesday's debate.
"It's no secret that jobs are kind of scarce right now so I think that is definitely something we all should be worried about," Hinman said. "We should be interested in turning around the economy so there are jobs available to us once we finish this expensive Ivy League education."
Lewis agreed with his friend's sentiments.
"I am going to be out of college in two years and am going to need a job," Lewis said. "[The economy] affects everything in the country We are working towards a solution, in Washington they are, but it's a slow process."
