# What happens if the Republicans win? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [February 3, 2016, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081 "2016-02-03T19:04:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2016, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/62 "2016-02-05T17:04:02Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > Continued Brazilianization if its anybody besides the Donald. Bikini waxes for everyone? ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2016, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/63 "2016-02-06T06:19:07Z")
> [@septimus](#): > > :smack: 😕 :smack: 😕 > The three most recent Democratic Presidents – Carter, Clinton, Obama – have all done an excellent job of keeping us out of war. GWB’s warlust stupidity tops that of all other Presidents of the past 100 years added together. Carter’s foreign policy was disastrous and made future wars more likely. His one military operation was an incredible cockup. Clinton and Obama got us into numerous small wars, all of them fought solely with air power. A ridiculous warfighting doctrine that owes more to politics than to sound military strategy and which is going to lead to disaster one of these days. Currently, it’s merely leading to not winning. As for Republican Presidents, REagan, Bush 41, and Nixon all had better foreign policies and did a better job of managing the military(mainly by micromanaging it less than Democratic Presidents, who learned nothing from Vietnam apparently). ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2016, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/64 "2016-02-06T06:46:30Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Carter’s foreign policy was disastrous and made future wars more likely. His one military operation was an incredible cockup. Since Carter’s Camp David Accord there have been no wars between Israel and Egypt, in contrast to several before then. Or were you referring to the Panama Canal Treaty where you think the U.S. should have kept that land? ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2016, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/65 "2016-02-06T07:03:32Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > Wall built and paid for by Mexico. Yeah, no, that one, at least, is nonsense. They might get a little wall built, but they aren’t getting either Mexico or Mexican immigrants to pay for it. In fact, given what they’ll do to the USA economy, there won’t be enough new Mexican immigrants to pay for a mile of wall. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2016, 7:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/66 "2016-02-06T07:06:39Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > Since Carter’s Camp David Accord there have been no wars between Israel and Egypt, in contrast to several before then. > > Or were you referring to the Panama Canal Treaty where you think the U.S. should have kept that land? I didn’t say Carter didn’t have accomplishments, but he did keep us out of war by basically ignoring an act of war(Iran’s invasion of sovereign US territory and taking of diplomats as hostages), and then botched the handling of the problem once he did decide not to go to war. I guess FDR would be lauded as a wise President by modern liberals had he ignored the attack on Pearl Harbor and kept us out of war. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2016, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/67 "2016-02-06T07:24:19Z")
> [@inscrutable](#): > > No, his is one of the few posts in this thread that ISN’T alarmist propaganda bullshit. I’m a Communist! (well, actually a Green socialdem, but eh) and I agree that this thread is very silly and \*\*Sam Stone \*\*comes off closer to reality than the average post in the thread. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2016, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/68 "2016-02-06T07:44:09Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Privatization isn’t going to happen. We had control of everything and couldn’t get it done due to massive opposition. We’re not Democrats, we don’t keep on putting our hands in the fire. > > No, we’ll handle entitlements the same way we did in 1982, probably with a combination of payroll tax increases(probably just raise the cap to $300K or so, the rate can’t really go any higher), benefit cuts, and a raise in the retirement age. > > Medicare will be handled the same way all single payer systems are handled: we’ll just buy less health care. We’ll call it “provider cuts”, but provider cuts are benefit cuts. Thanks for giving us political cover on that, Democrats. We’ll put it to good use. Yeah, this sounds credible. And then you say nonsense like this: > [@adaher](#): > > No, the envelope just shouldn’t be pushed. Our laws weren’t made to be gotten around. Consequence of electing lawyers instead of real occupations. You think lawmakers and executives shouldn’t have law degrees? Like, at all? > [@YogSothoth](#): > > The GOP got their most recent Repeal Obamacare vote to Obama’s desk by using budget reconciliation to move it past the Senate. So if they keep the House and Senate, they’ll do the same thing, and then President Trump or Cruz will gleefully sign it (and probably burn a copy of Obamacare as symbolism on the White House lawn) Maybe. > [@OffByOne](#): > > We would finally be able to prove that defunding Planned Parenthood will not balance the budget. Yep. The real disasters will be environmental, but it’s not like the Democrats are doing so well on that score either. Oh, and since Trump has the best shot at the White House (whatever contrarian nonsense I just vomited up in the NH Primary bragging thread), I expect _lots_ of ethnic violence. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2016, 7:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/69 "2016-02-06T07:53:08Z")
> [@foolsguinea](#): > > You think lawmakers and executives shouldn’t have law degrees? Like, at all? There should be some law degrees in Congress. But the ability to pass laws is of little value when they don’t know about anything else. Are lawyers qualified to regulate the oil industry? Plus you have the ridiculous specter of the laws being bent in absurd ways and it just being accepted because, well, lawyers do that. As I said, experts in law belong in the judiciary. Congress, as the people’s body, should be more diverse. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2016, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/70 "2016-02-06T18:08:57Z")
> [@2ManyTacos](#): > > Well, Obamacare wouldn’t be _repealed_ because that would require 60 Senate votes, which won’t be there even under the most optimistic projections for the GOP. I don’t expect that the filibuster would exist this time next year if the GOP won the White House and held onto 50+ Senate seats. So they could pretty much do whatever they wanted. One big difference between now and, say, 2005 is that Bush still wanted some level of Dem buy-in to privatize Social Security, so it could be blamed on them too when it all went south. (Nancy Pelosi - “how does ‘never’ work for you?” - is still one of my heroes.) This crew doesn’t care about that: if they want it, and they have enough votes in caucus, it’ll happen. Kiss Obamacare goodbye. Medicaid would be block-granted, its funding cut, and essentially rendered a shadow of its pre-Obamacare self. Medicare would be voucherized for those of you under 55. Hard to tell if they’d be feeling their oats enough to privatize Social Security. Could go either way, IMHO. I doubt they’d have the balls to abolish the minimum wage entirely, but enough Republicans are against the very existence of a minimum wage that I’d expect them to find ways to weaken it. Obama’s executive actions expanding the applicability of time-and-a-half for overtime - kiss those goodbye. And staff for enforcement of laws and regulations concerning wages and working conditions would become a thing of the past. Climate change initiatives and environmental protection generally - kiss 'em goodbye. And BLM lands and national forests would be sold off _en masse_, now that the Bundys have made that a conservative cause. Enforcement staff for laws relating to clean air, clean water, food safety - clean out your desks, guys. Kiss Dodd-Frank goodbye. And little enforcement staff for financial regulation, unless there are regulations that the big money boys _want_ enforced to preserve their advantages. Massive tax cuts for the rich, resulting in massive deficits that will justify massive spending cuts. And, of course, the Supreme Court. Scalia and Kennedy will retire while a Republican can pick their successors, who will be Sam Alito clones. Ginsburg and Breyer will turn 84 and 79, respectively, next year, and the odds that the next President will be able to replace one or both are pretty good. So say goodbye to _Roe_, and hello to _Lochner_. In general, a Rubio Administration (he’s really the only Republican I think can win, but same goes for Cruz) would make liberals like me _miss the good old days of the Shrub Administration._ No, I’m not fucking joking. I hope to God we don’t get the chance to find out whose predictions are closest to being accurate. But these are the things Republicans say they want, and I see no reason not to believe them. ---
**Author:** ![coremelt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@coremelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coremelt)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2016, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/71 "2016-02-06T18:29:04Z")
No one has posted this yet? [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/JmzuRXLzqKk/hqdefault.jpg "Mass Hysteria") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmzuRXLzqKk) ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2016, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/72 "2016-02-07T02:15:44Z")
The filibuster won’t be undone. Two big reasons: 1. Republicans still like Democratic buy-in. Better to not pass a law and blame Democrats for obstruction than to pass a law with only Republican votes and have that law be unpopular. 2. Conservatism by its nature means that it’s just as good to stop bad laws from being passed as to pass good laws. So being able to stop bad law while in the minority is more important than being able to easily pass laws while in the majority. So that will limit what Republicans can do, but that’s okay. There are no laws worth passing that at least some Democrats won’t support. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2016, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/73 "2016-02-07T05:36:06Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > There should be some law degrees in Congress. But the ability to pass laws is of little value when they don’t know about anything else. Are lawyers qualified to regulate the oil industry? Plus you have the ridiculous specter of the laws being bent in absurd ways and it just being accepted because, well, lawyers do that. > > As I said, experts in law belong in the judiciary. Congress, as the people’s body, should be more diverse. OK, I agree. ---
**Author:** ![davida03801](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5e925/32.png) [@davida03801](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davida03801)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2016, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/74 "2016-02-07T13:00:20Z")
Well for one thing the 4th Estate (the Press) would wake up from their 8 year slumber. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2016, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/75 "2016-02-07T13:34:07Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > I don’t expect that the filibuster would exist this time next year if the GOP won the White House and held onto 50+ Senate seats. So they could pretty much do whatever they wanted. > > One big difference between now and, say, 2005 is that Bush still wanted some level of Dem buy-in to privatize Social Security, so it could be blamed on them too when it all went south. (Nancy Pelosi - “how does ‘never’ work for you?” - is still one of my heroes.) This crew doesn’t care about that: if they want it, and they have enough votes in caucus, it’ll happen. > > Kiss Obamacare goodbye. > Medicaid would be block-granted, its funding cut, and essentially rendered a shadow of its pre-Obamacare self. > Medicare would be voucherized for those of you under 55. > Hard to tell if they’d be feeling their oats enough to privatize Social Security. Could go either way, IMHO. > I doubt they’d have the balls to abolish the minimum wage entirely, but enough Republicans are against the very existence of a minimum wage that I’d expect them to find ways to weaken it. Obama’s executive actions expanding the applicability of time-and-a-half for overtime - kiss those goodbye. And staff for enforcement of laws and regulations concerning wages and working conditions would become a thing of the past. > Climate change initiatives and environmental protection generally - kiss 'em goodbye. And BLM lands and national forests would be sold off _en masse_, now that the Bundys have made that a conservative cause. > Enforcement staff for laws relating to clean air, clean water, food safety - clean out your desks, guys. > Kiss Dodd-Frank goodbye. And little enforcement staff for financial regulation, unless there are regulations that the big money boys _want_ enforced to preserve their advantages. > Massive tax cuts for the rich, resulting in massive deficits that will justify massive spending cuts. > And, of course, the Supreme Court. Scalia and Kennedy will retire while a Republican can pick their successors, who will be Sam Alito clones. Ginsburg and Breyer will turn 84 and 79, respectively, next year, and the odds that the next President will be able to replace one or both are pretty good. So say goodbye to _Roe_, and hello to _Lochner_. > > In general, a Rubio Administration (he’s really the only Republican I think can win, but same goes for Cruz) would make liberals like me _miss the good old days of the Shrub Administration._ > > No, I’m not fucking joking. I hope to God we don’t get the chance to find out whose predictions are closest to being accurate. But these are the things Republicans say they want, and I see no reason not to believe them. QFT. Also, they’d likely find it convenient to start a war somewhere. Big defense contractors are Job Creators too. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2016, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/76 "2016-02-07T13:57:57Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > Pretty much everyone with exchange insurance will probably eventually get a job with health insurance, since almost all of those people are workers as it is. Those who aren’t working or are minimum wage workers are on Medicaid, and they can also be grandfathered, although they might be grandfathered for life. If Obamacare is repealed, fewer jobs will have health insurance. That is the main reason Republicans oppose Obamacare, because it mandates most employers to provide health insurance. ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2016, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/77 "2016-02-07T14:21:09Z")
“Bernie bros” will be scapegoated to deflect from Hillary’s failure, just like Nader was for Gore’s. There might be a further excuse that a lot of the country just hates Hillary on a personal level, so you can keep the same neo-liberal policies as long as you run with someone more charismatic, like Obama or Bill. If the GOP proves popular the Dems will chase them rightwards. If the GOP shoots itself in the foot the Dems will be OK being a regional party until the next cycle so they can be the sane alternative. There might be a mild backlash of leftist organization, similar to the Bush years, but it won’t amount to much. People will still be writing articles about how the GOP is doomed to collapse because of demographics. I’m not sure how people can confidently predict anything this crop of Repubicans will do. When they get up their and advocate for war crimes like carpet bombing Iran or Iraq or torturing prisoners I can usually brush it off as red meat to the base, but some of these guys look like true believers. Probably a grim outlook for what’s left of the labor movement. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2016, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/78 "2016-02-07T19:11:55Z")
> [@davida03801](#): > > Well for one thing the 4th Estate (the Press) would wake up from their 8 year slumber. Indeed, they must be pining for the W years, he gave them so much, much more :eek: to work with. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2016, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/79 "2016-02-07T19:20:39Z")
What happens if the Republicans WIN? Paradox. Paradox happens. I’ve already issued a decree forbidding the Republicans to win the presidency ever again. This would violate that decree (and it happens to be a decree to which compliance is mandatory and non-negotiable). So, the universe would have to collapse in on itself and start over. _AGAIN_. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2016, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/80 "2016-02-07T19:21:15Z")
I hate when that happens. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2016, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happens-if-the-republicans-win/745081/81 "2016-02-07T19:32:06Z")
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