Why I left the Democratic Party

I am not preventing progressives from doing anything. I support a good deal of them, I was glad when Amy McGrath won. I agree the DNC needs to regroup, clearly they are out of step. What I don't agree with is that democrats are wholescale corrupt. Some democrats, perhaps even those in leading positions are too old school and clearly favored Hillary Clinton during the 2016 election and did all they could to make sure she won the primaries because they felt she had to the best chance of winning.

When democrats/progressive democrats are in leading positions in both houses, then we can work on campaign reform in a big meaningful way and somehow change the law about citizens united. It is better to take lots and lots of small donations, but in this playing field against republicans, we would be fools to disarm by not accepting bigger donations.

You have a bad habit of making this all so personal and seemingly love to bash those who do not see everything exactly like you do, very judgmental. Which is why you tic people off the way you do.

I happen to think long time democrats and progressive democrats can come together and compromise in order to beat republicans. Sometimes it seems all you want to do is beat democrats.

I listen to probably 10 different political podcasts and one that I'm liking recently is called Pantsuit Politics where two women friends (one republican, one democrat) discuss the news of the day and interview authors and politicians on their weekly or twice weekly show.

They said something the other day about how they view politics within their friendship and how it helps them understand each other and the need for both a right and a left in the USA.

They use an automobile as an analogy, that a car needs both a gas pedal and a brake to function properly.
- on social issues, the left acts as the gas pedal, moving the car forward and the right acts as the brake.
- on financial issues, the right acts as the gas pedal, and the left the brake.

Nobody should apply a break on social justice, universal healthcare, and a living wage.
Nobody should accelerate toward corruption.

That is what Republicans and establishment Democrats are doing.
Period.

They need to be shut down.

Simple as that.

No we are not doing any of those things.

Simple as that.

You’re either an idiot or a liar.
Hillary Clinton, previous to the astronomical rise in Bernie’s popularity said: Universal healthcare will never happen in this country.

Pelosi said the same.

Your comments are worthless.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/hillary-clinton-single-payer-health-care-will-never-ever-happen/

Hillary Clinton: Single-payer health care will "never, ever" happen

Events change.



http://www.thejournal.ie/ian-paisley-quotes-1668331-Sep2014/<br />
Ian Paisley was a notoriously hardline Ulster Unionist. Here he is with Sinn Fein's Martin , forming a power sharing executive after the Good Friday Agreement was ratified which gave Republicans a say in the running of Northern Ireland.



Btw, what Hilary Clinton may or may not have said is irrelevant. She's yesterday's news. Have you thought of seeing a doctor about your obsessive monomania?

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/pelosi-throws-cold-water-on-sanders-single-payer-plan

The establishment Democrat Party has too much bribe money invested with big pharma to allow the people to have universal healthcare. They stood in the doorway, actively blocking us from making this life-saving change. They were successful, largely because of cheering lame brains who thought this was a popularity contest, rather than thinking critically and stepping back to look at the whole picture.

Tell me again the democrats didn’t prevent us from having universal healthcare.

BALTIMORE — House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi Wednesday threw cold water on a proposal by Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders to implement a single-payer health care system and the increased taxes needed to create it.

"He's talking about a single-payer system and that's not going to happen," the California Democrat told reporters at the start of the House Democratic retreat in Baltimore.

"There is no use having a conversation about something that is never going to happen," she added later.

I gauge what the Dems said before Bernie’s popularity made them afraid for their jobs.

You may be one who is released from a prison and turns to your former captors, and asks what they want you to do now. You won’t find me doing that. I’d try to beat his ass and put him in the cell.

It’s a new look on you, to reward someone who’d taken your right to decent healthcare. You must like the Tories who’ve weakened your healthcare. I’m sure you don’t want them voted out.

I’m sure they can change! Let them keep their jobs.

Like Izzy said, events have evolved. Most of the democrats speaking are open to universal health care now. Why can you not consider that a victory for progressives and move on?

In 2016, it simply made more sense to work on improving Obamacare rather than scrapping the whole thing and going with that rather complicated plan Bernie laid out for "Medicare for all." However, now that the administration has been doing its upmost to destroy Obamacare from within, it is better if we get power to start from scratch and figure out a way to have universal health care. Or work on improving our existing health care. Just as long as those that need it can get it, it makes no difference to me.

What you are talking about is different approaches to the same goals.

They are criminals who enriched themselves by making my healthcare unaffordable. People I love and I suffered ill health needlessly because those rich millionaires made themselves richer by taking bribes from the insurance lobby and the pharmaceutical lobby.

People have DIED because of this.

If you think those people should keep their jobs, I consider you to be as bad as they are. How brain dead are you people??

The only way that happens is to elect as many Democrats as possible. Even ones like Connor Lamb, although ideally not that many.

I know I'm preaching to the choir here.

You're starting to sound unhinged. You voted for Bush twice who promised even shittier healthcare and illegal wars. I've always voted Labour, always will.

Even the most rightwing Democrat wants better healthcare than the Republicans, yet you keep banging the drum for Trump.

You are simply ridiculous.

Mark Cuban: Both Parties ARE the Swamp
https://ivn.us/2018/05/18/mark-cuban-parties-swamp/

There has long been speculation that US businessman Mark Cuban might run for president as an independent or third party candidate in 2020.

While there is a giant question mark over a potential presidential run, it’s certainly clear that Cuban believes something needs to be done to break up the two-party duopoly:


Mark Cuban
✔
@mcuban
The problem is that no member of a major party can drain the swamp. They are the swamp. We need to reduce the ballot hurdles, particularly for federal offices , so that we get more and better candidates from outside the 2 majors parties https://twitter.com/loadamsklement/status/996941914300657664 …

9:41 PM - May 16, 2018
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And Cuban went on for several tweets about the need to unite as Americans and reject tribalistic politics and the two-party status quo:


Mark Cuban
✔
@mcuban
That’s ridiculous. Politics have changed. I believe that politicians have been corrupted by their desire to be re-elected and the demands of their party. It’s time for politicians to actually represent their voters rather than their parties. https://twitter.com/matthewstoller/status/996851937688596480 …

8:15 PM - May 16, 2018
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Mark Cuban
✔
@mcuban
George Washington called it more than 220 years ago. H/T @Chimayniac

10:39 PM - May 16, 2018
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Mark Cuban
✔
@mcuban
We have become so tribal that we no longer consider ourselves as Americans first. Which leads to warring parties and voters being too disgusted to get involved. On entrepreneurship, I know the #s show a decline but we do our best on Shark Tank to inspire future entrepreneurs https://twitter.com/matthewstoller/status/996965329258582016 …

12:02 AM - May 17, 2018
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As I continue to report on my column, In Full Color, there are serious efforts underway to challenge the duopoly.

Coalitions of reformers and civic action groups are forming to create a more accountable and representative political process. There are also organizations now that are providing the structural and financial foundation for independents to launch viable campaigns.

One of those organizations, Unite America, responded to Cuban to point out that what he is calling for is already in the works:




Unite America
@uniteamerica
.@mcuban is right: we're long overdue for new political competition!

But we don't need to wait around for it. Meet the trailblazing independent candidates who are running in 2018: http://www.UniteAmerica.org/candidates

CC: @AkGovBillWalker @GregOrman @HayesForMaine @nealjsimon @CSODear https://twitter.com/mcuban/status/996943847673548800 …

7:34 PM - May 17, 2018

Candidates
Unite America is proud to feature candidates and incumbent politicians who are willing to put Country Over Party and serve their constituents as independents.

uniteamerica.org
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Unite America is running a historic slate of independent candidates for statewide offices across the country, as well as for state legislative races in states like Colorado and Washington state.

These campaigns are viable, they are competitive, and they are seeing success on the campaign trail.

Alaska Gov. Bill Walker, for instance, is the only sitting independent governor in the US and has broad public support among his constituents.

I believe that politicians have been corrupted by their desire to be re-elected and the demands of their party.
Mark Cuban
In Colorado, the 5 members of the independent slate for state legislature outraised their Republican and Democratic opponents COMBINED.

Breaking the two-party stranglehold on our elections and the legislative process is not impossible.

The Otherside Documentary: A Liberal Democrat Explores Conservative America
Cuban is right. It will take the collective action of millions of people who are fed up with a system that puts the interests of private political parties over the will of voters.

But as Bridge Alliance Co-Director David Nevins points out, business leaders will need to step up as well.

Industry titans like Mark Cuban have the background, name recognition, and resources to help this crucial movement take on the two-party behemoths.

History is being made, and Cuban could play a big role in it. As he says, “It’s time for politicians to represent their voters, rather than their parties.”

Trump is not only a bigot and liar, but he has downgraded the position of POTUS in one year! He recruited family members to his administration when they have absolutely no experience in governance. He's an embarrassment to our country and the whole world. His character demeans the presidency to new lows, and many wonder if we can recover our position in the world after Trump. Even Wharton disavowed Trump for his uncouth character. It's really history making when any university disavows an alum who graduated from their institution, and became POTUS. That's about as low as one person can get in this world.

For better or worse, the last few days I think I have gotten my point across. I can see already the mid-terms and later the presidential race is going to come down to a relative few disgruntled so called progressive spending all their time and energy trashing the democrats instead of republicans and then when once again, republicans win, blame folks like me who prefer to compromise and work together rather than trashing the whole democrat party. Ground hog days ahead. Personally I don't understand why those who trash a party want to use the party to destroy it thereby letting republicans retain power, but it is useless talking and explaining and trying to reason with closed minds. I am going to regroup and think how I will proceed here. Mainly I think by avoiding these specific threads.

You would think that Trump destroyed the GOP, but some pundits are saying Trump can win a second term. https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/four-more-years-here-are-the-odds-bettors-are-giving-trump-to-win-re-election/article/2612438
I don't feel that Trump has impacted my life in any way, so I'm just a retired bystander viewing the political scene in somewhat of a detached manner. However, I also believe that Trump has degraded our standing in the world. I personally believe Trump is very ignorant about civic and economic issues, but it seems many don't care, and will re-elect him based on the fact that our economy is doing well.