Political Priorities

[Big Red 40]

Thinking back on a conversation i had with my father (RIP) years ago about who he was voting for , and how much our priorities differed. When you decide to vote for a candidate what are your priorities? Do you vote based on one single issue? Strict party voter? Overall platform of the candidate? Likeability?  I'm a registered Democrat and i feel like their basic philosophy more matches mine.I also try to vote based on things that directly effect my life. I can think of a few things i want my candidate to stand for.

1. Strengthened social programs . I've paid into these programs most of my life and i may need them some day soon. Fix them if needed, or leave them alone. I support a fair shake/ decent quality of life, for ALL citizens, and help for those in need. Im in favor of Universal health care also. 

2. Military. I think we spend far too much money on the war machine , and have our hands in way too many countries business. I favor diplomacy and negotiations over war , and i support scaling back or ending the wars we are currently stuck in too. Death, and life destroying, of people on both sides, gets us nowhere in my opinion. I don't see the need to force  our agenda, or  assert our dominance on other countries either. Breeds hatred IMO

3, The workplace. i support strong workplace laws, unions, living wage etc. Anyone who works in the most prosperous country in the world should be compensated well , and be provided with a safe, fair, harassment free environment to work in. They should also be able to afford a decent standard of living for their efforts.

Lets hear yours. 

Edited December 22, 2017 by Big Red 40

[NM11046]

Good topic 40!

 

I'm very similar to you.  Upon reflection, I've voted party lines pretty much my entire life, but the issues in lump sum that I align to are social ones.  And the dems check those boxes on my hot buttons pretty consistently.  I was not opposed to Bernie this year, but obviously that didn't come to fruition.  So:

 

1. Womens't Equal Rights
2. Women's Right to Choose
3. Gay Marriage
4. Equal Pay/raising minimum wage
5. Racial inequities
6. Environmental issues
7. Health insurance coverage for all

[NM11046]

Oh, and I had a discussion with my dad this week, actually had him take the bias test that Zoogs shared with us, and (not kidding or exaggerating) he said, "what the hell are social issues"?  No joke.  I had to explain them to him.

 

We too differ greatly on our political views.  We have a "no discuss" rule during the holidays (and always).  I want to still love and respect him.

Edited December 22, 2017 by NM11046

[Fru]

Healthcare, Education, Environment tend to be what I look at first 

[Kiyoat Husker]

1. Removing corruption / special interests from politics.

2. Protecting our citizens from toxic pollution and disease.

3. Protecting our country's natural resources from destruction and exploitation.

3. Protecting workers' and consumers' rights.

4. Protecting and helping the most vulnerable members of our society.

4. Putting community interests above self interest.

5. Promote efficient and responsible government use of tax money.

6. Basing governmental policy on sound scientific principles and research-based conclusions.

 

I think this is a good exercise.  With my above goals/priorities, there are many different strategies to reach them.  I need to stay open to both liberal and conservative strategies, as long as my values are consistent.  For example:

 

1. I'm pretty socially liberal, but to me, there can be no justification for deficit spending.  The only reason it happens is because of political expediency.

2. There are multiple schools of thought from respected economists.  There really isn't consensus on whether supply-side economics can work or not.  Therefore, I am not completely opposed to a conservative strategy there.  Most conservative economists don't even like the Trump Plan, though.

Edited December 22, 2017 by Kiyoat Husker
...apostrophe stuff...

[BIG ERN]

1. Cut military spending. That solves many many issues and clears up a lot of cash on things that actually matter 
2. High taxes for large corporations and billionaires 

[Nebfanatic]

Social issues are at the top of the list for me. Equality and respect for everyone is the most important thing for me. After that I am a little more conservative. Fiscal responsibility and more power to the states. I like these ideas but ultimately the social issues trump everything else. 

 

A bit off topic, but in response to @BIG ERN's post, I think cutting the corporate tax rate isn't a bad idea on its face, but that needs to come with closed loopholes that force corporations to pay that tax rate in full. 

[BIG ERN]

High Income Tax Rates:

1921 73%

1923 56%

1924 46%

1929 24%

WEALTH INEQUALITY PEAKS...GREAT DEPRESSION 

 

1945 84%

1955 81%

1965 70%

1982 50%

1993 38%

2007 35%

WEALTH INEQUALITY PEAKS... GREAT RECESSION

 

2016 39%

2018 20%

WEALTH INEQUALITY PEAKS...

[Kiyoat Husker]

48 minutes ago, BIG ERN said:

High Income Tax Rates:

1921 73%

1923 56%

1924 46%

1929 24%

WEALTH INEQUALITY PEAKS...GREAT DEPRESSION 

 

1945 84%

1955 81%

1965 70%

1982 50%

1993 38%

2007 35%

WEALTH INEQUALITY PEAKS... GREAT RECESSION

 

2016 39%

2018 20%

WEALTH INEQUALITY PEAKS...

 

I'd like to see these years with the capital gains tax rate, too.  Most of the top [insert percentage] richest people don't rely on an actual income.  Not surprisingly, this rate is untouched in the current tax reform....

[zoogs]

I think I have one overriding priority right now and that is

1) not desiring authoritarian rule

 

 

[Danny Bateman]

@Kiyoat Husker Well said my friend. Our interests overlap a good deal. Not perfectly, but I really like your list.

 

@BIG ERN Preach brother! My current readings overlap heavily with what you're discussing there. Economic inequality is a top issue for me right now. This tax bill is a powder keg for making it worse.

 

For me, I weigh each candidate on the merits. I think I voted for some indies or conservatives for local races in 2016. Honestly, I want someone I feel like I can trust to actually work in my interests and work to make our society better & not just someone who hocks snake oil or spits out the right talking points.

 

I still maintain 2016 should have been no contest. I don't care how refreshing Trump was or how tired we all were of Clinton. That guy was DQ'd on the merits for me as soon as he demonized immigrants & mocked a disabled reporter. Let alone going after John McCain. He's grossly unfit for his office based on his character alone. The compulsive lying also led me to believe I couldn't count on him actually fulfilling much of what he promised anyway. I wish more people would've agreed. 

 

My interest list is currently what I think any challenger for Trump should run on in 2020 & consists of the following, roughly in order:

 

1. End corruption & cronyism in Washington. I'm tired of special interests running the show & thinly veiled quid pro quo. Trump's administration is by far the least transparent & most corrupt of my lifetime.
2. End gerrymandering & a new Voting Rights Act that restores voting rights for all Americans. A rigged voting system, either way, is morally wrong. Find a way to return to public funding of elections - dark money in politics has a corrupting influence. Make election day a holiday.
3. Improve the economy for the lower and middle classes. Stop ceding power to the ultra-wealthy & gigantic corporations. Bring a big stick & be prepared to use it on them. Restore the power of unions - right-to-work laws marginalize them at the behest of right-wing special interests, & thus marginalize workers. Be prepared to do some trust-busting one in power - I'm incredibly uncomfortable with how much power we're ceding as a country to corporate America through mergers and the like right now.
4. Universal healthcare. This is almost inseparable from #3 because they both have massive economic implications for all Americans. Republicans have bungled their attempt at reforming healthcare & in fact needlessly made it more expensive & less obtainable through their tax bill. 
5. Restore the EPA to a functioning agency. Pruitt is running it into the ground & the contention that his EPA is anything but a corporate interest puppet is a joke at best. If we don't face the facts & make real strides against climate change soon, we are ruining the planet for future generations. There is one modern political party in the world that decries climate science & tries to muddy the water, for obvious special interests - the American Republican party. It's beyond time we stop pretending they're making an intellectually honest argument on the climate.
6. Improve the educational system w/ a focus on civic education. I can speak only for my own generation, but far too many Millennials have a tenuous grasp on political matters at best. We need a smarter, more engaged electorate if we are to maximize our political system for our own interests & prevent obvious frauds like Trump from rising to power in the future.
7. Large-scale infrastructure improvements. This would be a great way to both provide jobs to Americans in need of work as well as improve our own transportation. America's infrastructure is sorely in need of upgrade. I'm not talking the type of half-hearted public-private partnership cheapo attempt favored by Trump or the GOP either. Dumping public money into this would be expensive, but it's a very worthwhile long-term investment.
8. Criminal justice reform. Return to Obama era policies. The Trump/Sessions DOJ heavy-handed "law & order" approach is an antiquated relic of a bygone era that drives our law enforcement & the communities they serve further apart & inflame both sides, rather than bringing them together & building trust. So far as I know, their approach hasn't shown to empirically be superior in any way& thus I don't see the point unless you're virtue-signaling toughness. I'm still in disbelief that a POTUS joked about law enforcement roughing up citizens. Even joking gives implicit permission to utilize such techniques - after all, they're funny, right?
9. Reduce military spending: This one is a catchall that could be used to finance all of these other large-scale initiatives. I'm with several of you as well - we spend far too much money on the military & yet we still get the same "rebuild the decimated military" from the war hawks every election cycle. There's a lot of wasteful spending that goes into the military, but it would require political courage to call it out and try to fix it, so almost no one does so. Very NIMBY-like attitude toward fixing military spending. We can be allocating our finances in a much better way than feeding our massive war machine, IMO. Hell, even a shift of military spending to favor more in veterans benefits would be greatly appealing to me - we spend too much sending them to war & not enough taking care of them when they come back.
10. Common-sense gun safety legislation. This is a touchy one and thus last on the list. Morally, I believe it is the right thing to do, rather than the unmitigated gun rights expansion approach favored by Congress right now. I'm not talking revoking people's guns either - America has a uniquely pro-gun culture and thus anything short of repealing the second Amendment probably isn't going to make a serious dent in gun safety levels here. I'm in favor of fixing the background check system, doing what we can to improve gun user safety (i.e., proof of training, biometrics, etc) & being able to research gun violence trends for more effective legislation. In general, a return to independent thinking instead of taking marching orders from the NRA would be desirable. However, this is not at all a politically advantageous issue for any Dem to run on, as there are so many single-issue gun voters they would repel by even talking about gun control at all, so naturally I would probably shy away from campaigning on it.

 

I think that covers my list, for now. If any politician ran on this platform against Trump & stuck to the issues, I feel they'd cruise to a sizable victory & be well-positioned to improve the country immensely. 

[Big Red 40]

On 12/22/2017 at 8:02 AM, NM11046 said:

Oh, and I had a discussion with my dad this week, actually had him take the bias test that Zoogs shared with us, and (not kidding or exaggerating) he said, "what the hell are social issues"?  No joke.  I had to explain them to him.

 

We too differ greatly on our political views.  We have a "no discuss" rule during the holidays (and always).  I want to still love and respect him.

My dad and i had that conversation one time and without another word, we understood it would be the last time lol. Dad was a very intelligent , educated man. and a Korean war vet. Above all though he was a man of strong Christian faith, and that how he voted. Opposing gay rights/marriage,  Abortion, and eradicating evil from the planet were top priorities . Righteousness and the will of God was what he wanted his candidate to reflect . Great respect for the man, (RIP) but i didn't agree with his list at all. All my siblings and relatives are "Christian Conservatives" too , and that kind of thinking is a big reason our states electoral votes go Republican every election. imo

[Big Red 40]

Very cool and interesting lists so far. 

[LadyGlitterSparkles]

Once you look at my list, I think you'll see why I'm to the point where I don't know if I can, in good conscience, vote anymore.

 

1) Pro-life - This is an absolute requirement. I have never and will never vote for someone who is not pro-life. Yes, I am a woman. And as a woman who has been pregnant twice (and blessedly has 2 beautiful young boys), my feelings on this topic have only gotten stronger as I've gotten older.

 

2) Universal health care - Sadly, the candidates who are with me on issue #1 are inexplicably against me here. I am also a strong Christian and I will not look my Lord in the eye one day and tell Him that I was in favor of letting anyone, particularly children, die because they couldn't afford to see a doctor.

 

3) Legalize marijuana - I've never touched the stuff and have on interest in ever doing so. But to me, it just seems logical to make it legal and tax it the same way we do tobacco. In addition, I'm tired of people being sent to jail over something that is, as far as I can tell, actually less dangerous than alcohol. Remove the burden from our courts and prisons, stop creating criminals who now have had their lives and families destroyed, and take in more money in taxes... seems win/win/win to me.

 

4) Fight for the 2nd Amendment - Strong proponent of the right to protect myself and my family and will not vote for anyone who seeks to take that right from me.

 

Find me a candidate that is with me on all 4 of these and I could overlook a lot of other issues.

[commando]

lately all i can do is hold my nose and vote for the lesser of the evils.   this year i hated clinton...but thought trump was so much worse that i couldn't vote for anyone other than clinton.  just give me someone who i may not agree with...but who i think is smart and honest and really has the best interest of the country rather than these extremists ideals and i would consider it a big improvement.