The Partisan Divide on Issues

[Eric the Green]

(09-11-2020, 04:35 PM)Classic-Xer Wrote:

(09-11-2020, 05:15 AM)Eric the Green Wrote:

(09-11-2020, 01:51 AM)Classic-Xer Wrote:

(09-10-2020, 10:33 PM)Eric the Green Wrote:

(09-10-2020, 05:42 PM)Classic-Xer Wrote: I'm not but you've been doing it for many years and you're still doing it as far as I can see. Do you know what happened the last time the nation split and resolved an age old problem and split the time before to resolve an age old problem? So, who represents my interests on the Democratic side? I saw one Democratic candidate who sort of did who I pointed out as the best prospect I saw for a national candidate? I mean, she's the one who took out your vice presidential candidate who was picked strictly on the basis of race and gender vs her merits and integrity/character. I know this isn't politically correct or proper to say about a woman of color these days but I have a Democratic friend who refers to her as heels up Harris. Evidently, it's pretty well known that she f-d her way to the position that's she's today.

I'm not but you've been doing it for many years and you're still doing it as far as I can see. Why do you vote for an unequal country or state that's mainly divided between rich and poor, race and gender, capitalism and socialism that is not sustainable and will eventually fail? You can't seem to face up to this.

So, who represents our/my interests on the Democratic side today?

All Democrats represent the interests of working people and those of average income. Democrats represent those interested in greater equality and less of a wealth and education gap between rich and poor and between black/brown and white.

I don't know how rich you are, so I don't know which party really represents you. But the Republicans are the Party that seeks to preserve the power and wealth of rich people. That could not be clearer, and if you don't see that, you must be living in your own world.

Some authors and pundits note that less-educated and "credentialed" people who are frustrated with an economy of diminishing opportunity and much unemployment, are resentful of college-educated people, and vote for Republicans and Trump who appeal to their frustration at these supposed elitists. But Republicans and Trump do nothing for them at all, so voting for these strong-man autocrat phony-populists does nothing but make their situation much worse, because the actual Republican and Trump policies benefit only rich people.

Their only pitch is to lower taxes on the rich and upper middle class, lift regulations on business and dirty, outdated industries, and give permission for big financiers to speculate. They claim that giving breaks to rich people will cause benefits to trickle down to the middle class and the poor. It is a false claim; the rich simply pocket the extra dough, buy out companies, automate, ship jobs overseas, fire employees, speculate, pollute, and buy influence. They don't raise wages or benefits with these breaks that Republicans give them. Republican "jobs programs" amount to nothing more than this trickle-down economics nonsense. Trump offered tariffs, which might protect USA workers, but he hasn't delivered much except a trade war. 

In exchange for his lack of support for their real interests, Trump offers less-educated whites xenophobia, white identity, patriotic slogans, opposition to abortion, support for guns, conspiracy theory, lies, magical thinking, pep talks, entertainment, and other nostrums and irrelevancies that appeal to their emotions, fears and prejudices.

The Democrats mainly represent the rich Liberals/ upper middle class Liberals and poorer workers ( low income people and retiree's living on fixed income ) and welfare recipients  (mainly single moms) and Democratic voters/ supporters mainly related to them and a group of union government workers, a group of Liberal academics and a group of Liberal activists related to them and their followers where as the Republicans pretty much represent America, the bulk of it's national defense and it's private sector economy, it's landowners and the bulk of its middle class workers, it's higher skilled workers, it's self employed workers, it's smaller union workers and it's upper end workers/ taxpayers these days.

You focus on which groups support which Party, calling those groups that support Republicans "America." But these groups' support for Republicans reflects mainly their refusal to understand which Party's policies really represent their interests, as opposed to their prejudices. Republicans really represent the interests of the wealthy, and no-one else, through their free-market, trickle-down economics ideology. Other Republican voters vote their "values" (i.e. their fears and prejudices and their group identity) which Republicans appeal to.

Democrats are making inroads into these groups these days, especially in the middle class, mainly because of the current unfitness of the Republicans and their ridiculously-evil president these days, but also because of some demographic changes, which Trump is trying to hold back. How far this shift has really gone will be seen on election day 2020, and in elections to come-- assuming Trump does not win in 2020 and ruins all future elections. 

Assuming Trump loses and the Republicans choose a less-incompetent leader in the future, the shifts occurring in 2020 toward Democrats may be less severe in the following years. On the other hand, the demographic changes and the sterility and staleness of the Republican ideologies may keep the anti-Trump shift going, even under a less-toxic standard bearer. The success of both sides depends on the horoscope score of their presidential nominees. The personal qualities and appeal of the chosen leader counts a lot. Both sides should consult these scores and pick out a candidate who can beat the other party's leader's score.

Classic Xer's description of the groups suggests that the majority support Republicans. But in the popular vote for president, Democrats won by .5% in 2000, lost by 2% in 2004, won by 6% in 2008, won by 5% in 2012, and won by 2% in 2016. Republicans have won the popular vote only once since Bush won it in 1988. Only gerrymandering has kept the House in Republican hands any time during these years.

Classic Xer's description of the Democratic Party groups amounts mostly to a list of scapegoats.