Until now I have always felt that a third party would be the kiss of death. Until I realized we already have a third party.
The way the Republican leadership botched the Obamacare shutdown makes it plain to see that the wings of the Republican party do not appear to have the ability to unite in common cause. If this is so, then in effect we already have three parties, with the RINO wing and the Tea Party wing already constituting the kiss of death.
The democrats realize this and play off of it for maximum advantage.
I am not so far down this road to think an actual split in the Republican Party is a solution. But I am now willing to counter the argument that “we cannot have a third party” with “we already do.”