The Politics Thread

[DRW50]

 

Many on the right with big money use their money to build up and invest their causes. Those on the left often seem more likely to give token amounts of money to causes of the day, while their policies and views are in many ways antithetical to a true progressive view. Jeff Bezos being the latest example.

[sivad40]

I admire your optimism. Trump has said and done things that would destroyed previous presidents politically, but he still has his base and conservative political machine behind him. They are in the process of destroying social programs, and deregulating everything that was created by the New Deal, the Great Society and Obama era regulations and will either privatize it or hand it over to religious organizations. The gerrymandering, the disenfranchising voters, The Senate rubbing stamping Trump's federal judges, and the SCOTUS is a heart attack or a stroke or away from being a conservative dominated court for a generation.

[JaneAusten]

What choice do we have. Sit back and let them gut it for eternity?  This country was run by the oligarchy and backroom deals before Teddy Roosevelt came in and busted it up. We then went through years of deregulation and conservatism until FDR came along. We have the New Deal programs primarily because so many Americans supported FDR doubling the size of the Supreme Court because they were so conservative, so they started ruling in his favor. Yes I agree with everything you said. But I still believe most people in this country are somewhere in the middle and beg for compromise and effective leadership. And I am optimistic that people, particularly women, have woken up. Time will tell I guess.

[Juliajms]

I think it depends on how you define that.  I would say that if you compare the US to most industrialized western societies we are a deeply conservative country.  That doesn't mean there are more Republicans in our country.

 

All you have to do is look at how hard it is to maintain any kind of social safety net to see how deeply our puritanical roots go. A lot of people still believe that if you don't work you shouldn't eat. Even Bill Clinton went in for catastrophic welfare reform. 

 

When was the last time an admitted atheist was elected to office? The people who are elected are largely trying to codify their religious beliefs. Then you have our schools, where some kids are still being taught Creation. It's insane.

 

 

[DRW50]

I think this is a center-right country and that far right religious and financial figures have been skillful in using the media and the GOP to slowly but surely move the needle further and further to the right. I also think that many on the left are more likely to give up or turn against each other, while many in the middle don't care. That means the right get what they want. I noticed again after Democrats voted to end the shutdown that liberal websites were pushing "Democrats don't care about us" articles. And they will depress turnout, as they always do. That's much less common with the right, where they will still show up and vote even if deep down they know the person doesn't go along with their best interest. 

 

It's also much easier to motivate some based on hate and fear than it is on ideals and hopes. 

 

What the Republicans do is run based on making sure you hate the right people. That is your existence. Even if you lose everything, as long as the people you hate have also lost everything, then you're doing fine. 

 

Democrats still don't know what to run on or who to be. They don't have the heart to just let everything be burned down and do their best to sabotage Trump. And even if they did, it wouldn't work out for them the way it did for the GOP, because the media wouldn't let it anyway. The media, for all their anti-Trump huffing and puffing, is still dewy-eyed for the GOP, and struggle to hide it.

[Juliajms]

They've really been so successful with this, it's sad.  The whole "alternate facts" concept was been very useful for them along with Fox brainwashing.  I've always seen them as having influence on the nutty fringes, but I'm starting to see that was wishful thinking.

[JaneAusten]

There is a great documentary by Ana Duvernay "13th" on the 13th amendment. Much of what was shown were things I knew but not to the extent presented. The divisive strategy has been in place since Nixon and his southern strategy along with his law and order mantra, pitting not only African Americans but the "hippies" in the anti war movement as those responsible the lack of order in this country against everyone else.  It's been working in various variations since.

 

And Bill Clinton won in 92 partially by continuing this "Law and Order" premise. The Crime Bill was devastating and we suffered the largest increase in the prison population under his presidency than under Reagan, Bush, or Obama. That was something I didn't know. It makes me sadly laugh at how anyone considered him some kind of savior for minorities. Heck even Newt Gingrich was in the film contributing and being honest about how the "others" have been scapegoated by the political establishment over the years for leverage.

Edited January 29, 2018 by JaneAusten

[Juliajms]

Coincidentally, I'm reading "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander right now.  It's terrible to realize how far the injustices go. Not that I ever doubted they existed, but the pervasiveness is absolutely shameful.

 

As for Bill Clinton, I wonder if he really understood the consequences his crime bill or his welfare reform bill.  Do you know if he's spoken on these issues much recently? I know Hillary apologized for the super predator remarks.

Edited January 29, 2018 by Juliajms

[DramatistDreamer]

[Juliajms]

So the White House is denying that Trump was involved in the Deputy Director of the FBI stepping down.  I don't believe them.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/29/politics/andrew-mccabe-fbi/index.html

 

 

[Wendy]

 

Like Trump never tried to fire Mueller. And, well, we know how that turned out. Right?

[Roman]

These republicans. My goodness. a partisan memo written by Nunes' people, giving the reps the cause to investigate THE FBI. the worst political period in my lifetime.

[DramatistDreamer]

So basically, no sanctions for Russian meddling despite the bipartisan agreement?

 

[Khan]

Dear Jeffrey Toobin:

 

 

 

Neither do I.  McCabe's exit has Trump's stank all OVER it.

[Juliajms]

https://www.politico.com/story/2018/01/29/senate-trump-20-week-abortion-ban-316002

 

I'm disgusted at the way the Republicans keep trying to chip away at abortion rights.  Luckily they failed this time.