Preach it! My so-called independent mother claims she votes for the person not the party. Funny how from any office from dog catcher to President, that person has a R next to their name. I snapped at her after too much wine one night and told her the last time she voted for a Democrat was JFK!
I’ll step up and say I am a registered Democrat and I am immensely turned off by Sanders, AOC, etc. whom I would lump into the “progressive wing”. I would never consider voting for Trump, or in fact any Republican for any office, but I will be immensely unhappy if Sanders is the nominee or if the Democratic Party becomes the party of AOC-like members. I would most likely move my party affiliation to Independent, stop donating, and if my choice in an election is Extreme Left vs. Extreme Right I’d start abstaining from voting.
I disdain extremism in all its forms and in my view this new “progressive wing” is just another version of The Tea Party within the Republican Party. Sanders, AOC, et.al, are more interested in ideological purity and tilting at their pet boogeymen. There seems to be no consideration for actual effective and obtainable governance that moves important Democratic policy positions forward. If you are in the Democratic Party today and voice any opposition to the progressive left, you are being made to feel very unwelcome. The progressive left of AOC and Sanders have even borrowed the Tea Party approach of labeling anyone in the Democratic Party who doesn’t provide full-throated 100 support behind every word that falls from their mouths as Democrats-In-Name-Only (DINO). They seem to have zero comprehension how the rest of the country views their message or approach to complex issues and they no care for the consequences of their sweeping policy positions would have on real-life people.
Both Sanders and AOC are supporting the moderate approach of fixing the ACA now rather than insisting on their progressive plan of Medicare for All.
Progressives Support Shoring Up ACA Before Tackling Medicare For All
My favorite is, “I didn’t leave the Democratic party; the Democratic party left me.”
Now let’s see, exactly when did that Democratic party leave these people? Was that in 1948, when Truman integrated the military, or was that in 1964-68, when the Democrats started rolling out civil rights legislation?
Translation: “I liked the Democrats better when they were the party of Woodrow Wilson and Stephen Douglas – well, I liked Douglas, at least.”
I totally believe the description of events in the OP is happening, prolly everywhere in the country. By the time Election Day 2020 rolls around, there likely won’t be but a couple hundred Democrats left in the country!
Just tell folks that electing folks like AOC is necessary as long as the Republicans elect folks like Louis Gohmert, Mo Brooks, and Steve King. We’re just trying to keep the center in, well, the center.
Published on CNBC 21 hours ago.
Majority of Americans support progressive policies such as higher minimum wage, free college
Paid maternity leave 84% support
Gov’t funding for childcare 75% support
Boosting minimum wage 60% support
Tuition free public/state college 57% support
Medicare for all 54% support
When people say that Progressive policies aren’t popular with the American people, they’re not only wrong about the Democrats, they’re wrong about many Independents and Republicans as well.
The majority of Americans support a number of Progressive issues, some even with a majority of Republican support.
I’m surprised anyone would think that the legislators supporting Medicare for all would be OK with millions of people losing their coverage under the ACA simply because Medicare for all can’t yet be passed.
From your cite -
The Democratic spin on the 2017 tax cuts, that they were just a benefit for the rich, doesn’t seem to be working.
It would be interesting to run the figures, and find out how much the tax on wealth over $50 million and incomes over $10 million would raise, and then re-ask the questions.
People want freebies. As your survey shows, this is hardly confined to Democrats.
Regards,
Shodan
Well, yes, they were just a benefit for the rich. A lot of middle-class folks saw their own personal taxes rise in the “cut”.
Which Democratic policies were the ones supported by a majority of Republicans?
It might not be a majority, but tax season isn’t over yet, and 46% is getting pretty close to a majority. I’d like to see that one revisited later in the year.
$2.75T over 10 years. In which direction do you think this would affect the survey?
Oddly though, people didn’t go for UBI, which is a freebie. I don’t think there’s enough awareness about that for people to know what it is.
Regards,
Heffalump and Roo
The government-supported childcare (56%) and paid maternity leave (73%) had majority Republican support. The article mentioned something about Trump, but I didn’t understand the reference.
But the last two, miniumum wage and tuition free college, don’t have majority Republican support overall, based on the article. I’m not sure what distinction they’re drawing there between majority Republican support and majority support in Republican congressional districts.
I should also add that I don’t know which of the policies originated as Democratic. Even ACA wasn’t originated as a Democratic policy. The policies in the survey are getting pushed on the Progressive platform now though.
Red Wiggler is in LOVE with it and wants to MARRY IT!
Depends if people believe $275 billion is enough to pay for free tuition and M4A. (It won’t - it won’t even eliminate the current deficit.)
Regards,
Shodan
Haha. That’s like comparing apples and oranges, then throwing in some mangoes and coconut.
It would be difficult to eliminate the current deficit when the latest tax plan just blasted a $2T hole in it. If people aren’t worried about that, I don’t see why they’d be worried about eliminating it.
Free tuition is estimated to be $75B a year by Bernie Sanders back in 2016. If that’s a decent estimate, then the $275B should easily cover that.
As for Medicare for all, the messaging has to include the idea that the increase in tax would be offset by the decrease in insurance premiums and medical expenses not covered by insurance. As long as that’s a wash, people wouldn’t be worse off.
Re: the OP, they could be real-life concern trolls. But even if they’re not, you’re always going to have some small percentage of wing nuts of any political persuasion. And IME it’s the wing nuts who are more likely to call or write. Absent polling, it’s hard take anything useful from individuals.
We’ve discussed this a lot here. It won’t be a wash.
If we cut significantly on administrative costs, AND if we reduce payments to doctors and health care providers such that they lose money on 80% of their patients, AND significantly cut drug costs, AND double personal and corporate income taxes, that will not cover M4A. Doubling taxes on everyone - everyone, not “the rich”, not “the 1%”, not “the other guy” - instead of insurance premiums will not cover M4A.
So, if Democrats try to include the idea that tax increases will be offset by reducing insurance premiums, they will be lying. Maybe they can get away with it - as I said, people love free stuff. Maybe this time “the average family will see its premiums go down by $2500 a year and your taxes will double” will work.
Maybe.
Regards,
Shodan
What? Why not? In most states which primary people vote in is a matter of public record. You should be able to look it up in 10 minutes. It’s not a perfect measure of whether someone is a ‘registered democrat’ or not but it’s pretty good.
Yeah, my dad brought that one out a year or so back. Without thinking, I snapped back, “Yeah, we kicked out all the racists.”
It was a tense Thanksgiving.
Ippon! Mr. Chance
I love the way the people who voted Republican because they were Economic Conservatives have disappeared. Of course it was always just a cover for their various bigotries, they still vote Republican.
And, honestly, most of those who claim they won’t if AOC or Bernie or something take over still will. Especially with the older cohorts changing voting patterns is rare and changing it to an extent of voting for the other party is vanishingly rare.
When you look at voting patterns you tend to find that even among so-called ‘independents’ there are very few who don’t consistently vote for one party or the other. They’re just not the sort to join or get involved.