Charles Barkley Would Like to Get Rid of 'Awful' Republican, Democratic Parties

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Basketball Hall of Famer Charles Barkley has advocated for a complete upheaval of the United States' political system. 

In an interview with Brandon Robinson of Scoop B Radio, Barkley said if he ruled the world for one day, he would "get rid of both the Republicans and the Democrats."

"They're both awful," Barkley said. "They fight all the time, like little kids. We got serious issues. We need serious people trying to solve them."

After his basketball career ended, Barkley has never been shy about voicing his political opinions.

Even when he was still playing, he openly considered running for governor in Alabama as a Republican in the 1998 election. Barkley again raised the idea ahead of the 2014 elections. By then, the 55-year-old had switched political affiliations.

He told reporters in 2006 he didn't consider himself a Republican anymore, saying "the word conservative means discriminatory practically." However, his move to the left side of the aisle didn't preclude him from saying the Democratic Party "[has] done a horrible job" and "a really crappy job" during George W. Bush's presidency.

Ahead of the 2016 presidential elections, Barkley also praised Jeb Bush and Chris Christie, who were running as Republicans.

Barkley appeared at a rally for Doug Jones, the Alabama Democratic senatorial candidate, last December as Jones was running against Republican Roy Moore. After Jones won the election, Barkley called it "a great night for Alabama."

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