US Presidential Election: Tuesday November 6th, 2012

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Plechazunga said:
Well that's what I meant by "And yes in some cases they surely buy some version of trickle-down" before going onto the others. I wasn't suggesting they were all fundies and bigots by any means, my point was that you can be poor, not much like low taxes for the rich, but still vote Republican for mainly cultural reasons.
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I see, sorry Plech. You're right.
 
Red Dreams said:
Thanks for your thoughts brad.

I work with a bunch of very well educated republicans. The owners of the company and many of the heads of departments are all republicans. They all know I am a democrat but I love those guys. We get on like a house on fire. But I fundamentally disagree with them on economics. Almost all of them dislike the demonisation of the President. They also are embarrassed by the Tea party crazies.

I put down the main reason them being republicans to them being brought up as republicans. For me it was obvious I would lean to labour. I grew up loving the great music of the 60s..and that music was closely tied to the great events happening in America that went on to influence the whole world. Of course the main political names of that period were JFK, Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. I grew up admiring these great men.
For me there was never a doubt I would be a democrat the moment I came to the US.

Simply put, the main difference I see between the parties is, the Democratic party is more about ordinary people and being 'inclusive'. The GOP is not about either.

That is why my hope is the changing demographics will help pull the GOP to the middle...and reasonableness.
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Good points. Agree completely. I have to say it really helps knowing at least a few sane repubs. Like yours, the sane ones I know are generally embarrassed by the tea party and appalled by the current crop of candidates. From what they've told me, they just aren't likely to vote at all (which suites me).

I definitely know more than a few nutters in those ranks as well, a few of them family :(
 
people reckon they will break the 2008 number for journalists arrested for covering protests at this years RNC conventions this year?
 
Shouldn't be a surprise given that its his home state and where he was previously a Senator. Time is running out for him though. Most of the primaries from now are in areas of the country that favor Romney. The pressure is going to mount on him to get out for party solidarity either this month or in early May.
 
brad-dyrak said:
I see, sorry Plech. You're right.
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No worries!

Red Dreams said:
Thanks for your thoughts brad.

I work with a bunch of very well educated republicans. The owners of the company and many of the heads of departments are all republicans. They all know I am a democrat but I love those guys. We get on like a house on fire. But I fundamentally disagree with them on economics. Almost all of them dislike the demonisation of the President. They also are embarrassed by the Tea party crazies.

I put down the main reason them being republicans to them being brought up as republicans. For me it was obvious I would lean to labour. I grew up loving the great music of the 60s..and that music was closely tied to the great events happening in America that went on to influence the whole world. Of course the main political names of that period were JFK, Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. I grew up admiring these great men.
For me there was never a doubt I would be a democrat the moment I came to the US.

Simply put, the main difference I see between the parties is, the Democratic party is more about ordinary people and being 'inclusive'. The GOP is not about either.

That is why my hope is the changing demographics will help pull the GOP to the middle...and reasonableness.
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My understanding, no doubt from a simplistic and European perspective, is that the basic ethos of the Republican party - not the current craziness but the fundamental world-view - is more in tune with the typical American attitude to life than the Democrats' is. It's optimistic, individualistic, patriotic, religious and validates freedom above all competing values (except national security).

The optimistic thing is an unusual fit with a conservative party - conservatives are normally very much aware of the precariousness of life, keen to batten down the hatches and avoid too much dangerous change and uncertainty. It's the left that's traditionally more optimistic, even utopian, more of a transformative movement. In that respect the GOP is more Thatcherite than traditionally conservative.

There's also a fundamental conflict between the individualist, libertarian aspects of US conservatism and its highly authoritarian tendencies, and a distrust of science that's not particularly typically conservative.

I think the more fairness-based, pro-government period in US politics, from the New Deal through the Great Society but also including Eisenhower who was a conservative but not a US-style conservative, was something of a blip.
 
Sir Matt said:
It's Santorum. He's berating Obama for being anti-war. What a douche Obama is for not having a hard-on for war. It doesn't have to make sense because Santorum doesn't.
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Santorum will fade back into obscurity shortly. Hopefully, it wont happen until he softens up Romney a bit more.
 
Raoul said:
Shouldn't be a surprise given that its his home state and where he was previously a Senator. Time is running out for him though. Most of the primaries from now are in areas of the country that favor Romney. The pressure is going to mount on him to get out for party solidarity either this month or in early May.
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Yeah, I know that its his home state, still, Pennsylvania doesnt feel like a state where his message would work.
 
Plechazunga said:
No worries!



My understanding, no doubt from a simplistic and European perspective, is that the basic ethos of the Republican party - not the current craziness but the fundamental world-view - is more in tune with the typical American attitude to life than the Democrats' is. It's optimistic, individualistic, patriotic, religious and validates freedom above all competing values (except national security).

The optimistic thing is an unusual fit with a conservative party - conservatives are normally very much aware of the precariousness of life, keen to batten down the hatches and avoid too much dangerous change and uncertainty. It's the left that's traditionally more optimistic, even utopian, more of a transformative movement. In that respect the GOP is more Thatcherite than traditionally conservative.

There's also a fundamental conflict between the individualist, libertarian aspects of US conservatism and its highly authoritarian tendencies, and a distrust of science that's not particularly typically conservative.

I think the more fairness-based, pro-government period in US politics, from the New Deal through the Great Society but also including Eisenhower who was a conservative but not a US-style conservative, was something of a blip.
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the country is changing....the demographics especially. that is the key.
 
You did see the vote on the budget Obama sent up to the house last week, right? And the 2012 budget?

I don't know a lot about the Ryan budget yet but I did hear Obamas comments and Wasserman-Schultz. Probably don't need to give their accounts. You can probably guess. ;)
 
Love that they wanted to ban guns from the RNC convention but weren't allowed thanks to Florida's retarded gun laws..

hmmm I thought more guns in a public place was always safer republicans? but seriously this is beyond ridiculous its a serious public safety threat because there will inevitably be protests outside and all it takes is one crazy person to shoot the liberals outside and you'll have mayhem
 
Plechazunga said:
Pennsylvania has a huge split between town and country, rural attitudes are very conservative.
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That's the entire country, actually. I believe the only cities of any size that Obama didn't take were in Arizona, McCain's home state. He might have had Reno and Salt Lake City as well, but it was the vast, vast majority.
 
Republican controlled legislatures and their laws on voter registration :nono:

Talk about making life difficult for minorities, especially in Florida
 
CNN Breaking News ‏ @cnnbrk Reply Retweet Favorite · Open
GOP presidential hopeful Rick Santorum to suspend campaign, senior adviser says
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Didn't see that coming...not just yet anyway

lack of $$$$ + Plunging poll numbers + illness in the family = Happy MRom.
 
His kid's been sick. Romney's suspended all anti-Santorum negative ads.

Also, it looks like Santorum might just lose Pennsylvania. If that's the case, there's not much chance of preventing Romney from hitting the magic number and the brokered convention scenario (that no one in the GOP really wanted) is officially DOA.
 
Mitt Romney. Money can't buy you happiness, but it can buy you a nomination for the nation's highest office.
 
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