Republicans and Democrats

I start with an apology. I'm from the UK so I'm ignorant of the undercurrents that drive your politics.
This is a bit of daft question, but what are the main differences between your views and desires.
I'll admit the usual puzzlement of an outsider for Trumps popularity over other Republican candidates.
Sorry if this is obvious and boring to you guys, but it is genuine interest.

 

Trump is very popular because a substantial number of Republicans view him as honest and straightforward. I view him as a bull in a china shop and wish that he was not in the race, because of his age, but mainly his personality. I am a Republican, but not a total "never Trump" Republican. If I have a choice in November between Biden and Trump, I will vote for Trump. I will not vote for Trump in the primary election.

I will never vote for Biden. He is mentally unfit to hold the office. He is nothing a figurehead who is controlled by the left wing of his party. There are also strong indications that Biden is financially compromised because of the money his son has collected from the Russians and the Chinese who are enemies of the United States.

The far left of the Democrat Party are communists who have shown themselves to be antisemites. Some of them are simple minded college students who think of everything in terms "the oppressor and the oppressed." It's not their fault; it's what they have been taught.

I am a Nicki Haley supporter. Ron DiSantis is my second choice. I am pro-choice, but strongly opposed to late term abortions.

 

If you look most of my posts were just casual chat in Smarties bar and grill or climate change. But if you think I'm fake then ignore me.
Re Trump. Much of our media focuses on his 'crimes' and as a Brit we tend to be left of you guys both politically and religiously, so yes we struggle with Trump. I admit.

 

Does your media touch on Biden's crimes? and by that I mean both Bidens.

 

Are you talking about the ones the Republicans have never been able to prove after 4 years of investigation?

 

The way I see today's trumplicans is they focus on lies, dishonesty, conspiracy theories and isolationism.

They tend to focus on removing USA from the world of economics.
They tend to focus on immigration. While never offering any solutions, but a wall. A wall that is only a bandaid to immigration issues.
It's been endless conspiracy theory after another. The FBI, DoJ, media, the world is against the trumplicans.
They like to point fingers and never take responsibility for anything. As trump said so himself.

Dems to focus more on equal and fair treatment of all people. Regardless of an individual preference for sex orientation, skin color, gender, etc.

Abortion has been a big voting point since the USSC has made it so States can ban women from having an abortion. It's been costing R's some seats. And the conspiracy theories from trumplicans have cost the R party some seats.

 

Yes, the fake news conspiracy theory crimes.

 

I'm talking about the crimes Biden is accused of. Just to make you aware, news of criminal accusations often make the news. You might not know this but OJ Simpson was once accused of a crime, it wasn't proven that he did, and the story made a bit of news here and there.

 

American politics is more of a TV show now than anything else, with a significant online component. Both parties pander to morons and emotions rule the roost now. There's no room for logic, decency, compromise, or civility because anyone who isn't a part of your tribe wants to destroy America.

Some of this is the natural result of the internet and 24 hour cable, but the rest is on us as a people. We have no standards for politicians and increasingly, we elect whomever entertains us the most or whomever can come up with the best zingers against your mortal enemies aka your neighbors who aren't part of your tribe. This is how men like Joe Biden and Donald Trump get elected. It's how progressives and America First morons get elected. It's entirely responsible for the rise of demagogues like Trump, who despite openly and unabashedly making everything about himself and having absolutely zero respect for our country and it's institutions and laws, still enjoys the support of a significant amount of people who would otherwise consider themselves to be of good moral fiber. He enjoys a lot of support from religious folks, despite being the antithesis of everything a moral religion tends to stand for.

We've decided to all commit ourselves to the looney bin, thrown the guards and nurses out, and deadlocked the doors ala Doctor Who. Our politics may not make any sense and we must seem like a nation of 300+ million gullible window lickers, but atleast we are being entertained.

 

Is Biden being accused of something?

Since when?

Trump has been criminally charged 4 times.

Do you understand the difference?

 

Thank you John. So your what we call a right winger, stuck with Trump because the only alternative is a commie.
Bit like we had in 2019 with a Tory party (I'm not Tory) or Jeremy Corbyn (a commie) So I voted Tory as the lesser evil.
Seems we both need a third option.

 

Yes that's how it appears from outside. I was hoping to hear some policies that the press don't mention.

 

Its mentioned, but it pails against the number of crimes Trumps is accused of. And its between Biden's son and Trump, not Biden.

 

We understand that abortion laws have cost Trump much support, that the idea was to bring the right wing church goers onboard but seems to have backfired.

 

When the indictments roll in, we'll start listening.

 

Yeah, one guy is charged with taking papers home, the other guy wasn't.

Do you understand the difference?

 

I think you should ask yourself the following question: What is the likelihood that Dems (the majority of the population of the US), and most of the rest of the world are brainwashed, but a minority of MAGA folk in the US are the only ones enlightened, who see the truth?

The reality is, Fox News and RW media are the ones doing the brainwashing, and their viewers are very receptive to it.

As to the topic of the thread:

For profit media make bucks by feeding confirmation bias to their viewers, and this is amplified by social media. The result is that a majority of Americans view their countrymen from the opposite aisle of the political spectrum as their mortal enemy, who want nothing else than the total destruction of America. That's the root of the political polarization we are experiencing, and it is getting so emotional that people can't be reasoned with. Trump is very good at exploiting these emotions and creating a fan base that would die for him.

 

It backfired massively for the midterms, but Trump hasn't backed away from it. He is running on 'his' having RVW repealed.

When the left listens to and watches Trump, we see that he is in the race for himself. Not for the right wing of the party. He is short on policy, yet that is what many of our right leaning members touts as their reason for support.

 

We certainly understand the difference between the two, and we've discussed it many times. So I'll ask you...do YOU understand the difference?

 

If we can avoid the obvious rhetoric in both directions I would be pleased. I'm trying to understand how the average man sees the primaries.

 

It seems to be a popular methodology.
Don't say what you will actually do, just say you will make it better. Scarily it seemed to work here in the UK as well for while with Boris Johnston.
Part of what I was hoping to understand what policies each side were supporting, there must be some?

 

Biden is pro-war in the Ukraine, Middle East and China.
Haley is pro-war in the Ukraine, Middle East and China.
Desantis is pro-war in the Ukraine, Middle East and China.
Trump says he is against war in all three theaters. Given that he did not end the war in Yemen when he had the chance, it is hard to believe.
Vivek says he is against the wars.

Haley and Biden are for transing the kids.
DeSantis, Trump and Vivek not so much.

Biden, Trump, Biden, Haley and DeSantis are extremely pro-Israel.
Vivek not so much.

All of the candidates are pro immigration. Nobody is talking about shutting down all immigration for a decade or two which is what
America needs more than anything.

Biden and Haley are the worst candidates on illegal immigration and DEI.
DeSantis has proven track record fighting DEI.
Trump failed fighting DEI.
Vivek is anti-DEI and has promised mass deportations of illegals.

Biden and Haley are the candidates most eager to pull down monuments made by our ancestors.
Trump failed in protecting them when he was President but he blustered about them. Unfortunately we don't need talk, we need action.

Biden, Haley are the most pro institution (FBI/IRS/etc..).
DeSantis is moderately pro institution.
Trump/Vivek are anti institution (at least rhetorically).
Trump failed miserably at cleaning out the swamp.

Biden/Haley are the worst on gun rights and free speech. (Haley may be worse on free speech).
DeSantis is bad on free speech (house bill 269 was awful).
Trump failed miserably at protecting free speech/gun rights when he had the opportunity.
Vivek's rhetoric is good on free speech/gun rights but who knows.

Who are we kidding here. No President is going to fix our problems. It will take based billionaires who are on side. Unfortunately they are all on the progressive left. Balkanization has occurred. It will be interesting to see if we can exist as a balkanized nation or if we will descend into mass violence.

 

You had a few 'third options'.
You could have backed your environmental views and voted Green.
You could have backed your moderate views and voted Lib Dem.
You could have just stayed at home.

 

If you want to learn about Republicans, well, they voted for Trump. So, whatever he is, they are.


Just know that Democrats = good, and Republicans = bad.

hah!

 

I'm a conservative, but not a Republican.

I look at politics nowadays as similar to the opening act in 2001: A Space Odyssey before the arrival of the Monolith, where you have rival bands of apes battling for possession of a lake. There's little difference between each faction. Oh, the Republicans pay lip service to what their ideals used to be - fiscal responsibility, law and order, adherence to morality, and suchlike - but as the years go by no one believes it, even they themselves. In fact, I don't even believe they even do the lip-service thing anymore. And the Dems never had any dreams of financial responsibility to begin with and at this point are mere puppets of their victim constituencies, each of them with their hands out awaiting the blank check the Dems will give them. And for all intents and purposes, neither party stands for anything anymore save grabbing more power and money. I suppose the true believers of each party feel the same way. In fact, I'm sure of it. Morality only becomes an issue when a member of the other party does something stupid.

We have posters here on the Left who are proud of when the Dems cheat to win and believe breaking ethical and legal laws is virtuous with the basic philosophy of "The ends justify the means - and then some!" We have posters on the Right willing to ignore all the questionable-to-illegal things Trump has done and refuse to consider someone saner (if such exists) to get the nomination.

When I was a kid, I asked my Dad what the difference between Republicans and Democrats was, and he said "Republicans think government is the problem, and Democrats think government is the solution," - in other words, Republicans believe in less government, and Dems more. But when we got The Patriot Act, that was the final straw and I quit the Republican Party, hoping sanity would return someday. I doubt it ever will at this point. Right now I think choosing between the Reps and the Dems is like choosing which way you want to get executed - firing squad, or electric chair?

If it means anything, I wish our government was more like what the UK has with many, many parties to choose from - but on the other hand, you also have the Royal Family and while we can at least vote out our losers, you guys are stuck with that welfare family forever.