A Bipartisan Presidential Ticket?
One in five Democrats and Republicans now view the other as “evil,” according to a recent Axios poll. How we bridge the political divide should be the preeminent question of the next election. Can a candidate answer it by making a bold, Linconesque pledge at the outset of their campaign to choose a running mate from the opposite party?
This idea is not new, even in recent times. Republican John McCain seriously considered picking Democrat-turned-independent senator Joe Lieberman as his running mate in 2008. His aides advised against it, warning it would divide the party. The irony.
Critics may dismiss a bipartisan ticket as a pipe dream, believe I g that the “base” of both parties would never go for it. Yet a recent Unite America poll of voters in New Hampshire, home of the nation's first primary, found 61% would support their preferred candidate choosing their running mate from the other part. That includes 67% of Democrats, 65% of independents and 51% of Republicans. Further, in a Democratic primary that will likely split the progressive coalition across more than two dozen candidates, a "Unity" candidate who makes a unique appeal and consolidates centrist voters may find a winning ticket not only to the convention, but also through the general election.
This idea may seem worthy of real consideration in our current political environment,
In the original design of our Constitution, the vice president was to be the second place finisher for president in the electoral college. Our Founders opposed and did not anticipate the rise of political parties, which ultimately made that design untenable by putting rivals together in the White House. The point remains: our constitutional system was not made for two tribes intent on waging zero-sum political warfare.
A Bipartisan administration, including a bipartisan cabinet, would likely have a greater chance at advancing reforms and its agenda because it could potentially build a broader base of support within the Congress –rather than succumb to structural partisanship that immediately turns roughly half of the body into hardened opposition.
In any event, we should not accept today’s partisan politics as “normal.”
Can you see this happening? A potential ticket you'd like to see?In my view, the divided is no longer just political. Americans have split due to ideologies, and no longer have the same ideas or ideals in regard to what they see for America. I think this divide is set in cement. I don't think either side would be willing to bend on ideologies or give up their basic ideals.
Unfortunately, for this current time, I have to agree with your assessment.
The far wings of each party may never come together but consider the "perception gap"
https://perceptiongap.us/
"More than three quarters of Americans believe our differences are not so great that we cannot come together. Yet someone scrolling through a social media news feed, or switching on cable TV or talk radio could be convinced that we’re a country heading towards civil war. This study shows that an important source of this polarization is the false beliefs people have of their political opponents."I can't debate you here as to the vast majority believing that we can come together. But how does that translate once we get to the ballot box? I happen to be among the 1/4 that is not so optimistic.
For my example, I was a stark supporter of either Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren for the Democratic nomination for President last year. Although my values and inclinations are substantially Left/liberal, Bernie went a little far even for me, but he was better than the rest. The fact that Biden was nominated was not something the populist left was thrilled over. But reality forced us all into a "settling" mode, better to support an relative angel with a pair of soiled wings than the Devil, itself, Donald Trump. I saw in Biden a milquetoast regarding the pursuit of the party's goals and ambitions. But, at least, we could get something from him that the other side would not even consider.
I suspect that Trump supporters that were not necessarily enamored by Trump still saw in that part of a soiled container a man that held the line on basically conservative, Republican values. Thus, they were willing to overlook his shortcomings in order to attain to the policies more important to them.
A third or fourth party where a win is considered based on a plurality(if that is possible) may allow more of us to find a political home among a greater variety of political and ideological positions. This, keeping us from having to select from extreme candidates when moderation is the goal.As you describe your dilemma at the ballot box I think you are getting to the actual essence of our democracy which is compromise. I'd say we essentially elect a homogeneous government as a heterogeneous population. It's the result of a lot of compromise.
Democracy is hard work and requires a lot from those who participate in it. It requires people to respect those with different views from theirs and people who don’t look like them. It asks citizens to be able to sift through large amounts of information and process the good from the bad, the true from the false. It requires thoughtfulness, discipline and logic.
There are no simple answers to complicated questions even though far right populists suggest so. In my opinion, democracy requires a tolerance for compromise. But unlike Democracy, which makes many demands, the far right make just one. They insist that people be loyal. Loyalty entails surrendering to the nationalist vision. It’s easy to pledge allegiance to an authoritarian leader than to do the hard work of thinking for yourself as demanded by democracy.
Thankfully I believe we still have a majority in this country who want to continue doing the work of democracy.Compromise in Washington today is akin to having oil and water mix. With the exception of the continuation of the Republic, with some factions of the political right I question that as well, we have little in common.
We have had the same requirements of the populace for a successful experiment in Democracy since the founding of the Republic. So, why are people so "confused" today in the midst of the Information Age?
With noted exception of the Civil War Era, never have we all been so disjointed.
It is not from "my side" that so many people offer unwavering loyalty and fidelity to a single man, not the Republic, not to the American Way, nor even to the Republican Party, but to him personally and solely. He has told Republicans to boycott elections based on his unsubstantiated accusations of voter fraud, and they do it!! Just because he says so. The seeds of fascism are being sown, do people recognize it? That is a first and that is the danger and with such thinking becoming so prevelent these days, it correlates with my sense of dread for our future and my reluctance to seek common ground with anyone having this sort of attitude.All extremes expect that type of loyalty, Left or Right or Religious, there is no difference in their expectations from the 'faithful'. Tow the party line or be cast aside, denigrated, and labeled.
Indeed, and we have a system built to feed the divide.
MSNBC and CNN work from a completely different "reality" today than FOX and OAN.
Of course BOTH sides of the MSM political spectrum deliberately ignore many of the truths of what is going on elsewhere in the world, keeping the population tuning into their programs in the dark, relatively speaking, and feeding into that which divides.
A good example of how news doesn't tell truths anymore, as well as how corrupt and false our politicians are, can be seen in this clip (from the 1 minute mark to the 2 minute mark):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djKJQ2GcNJY
The reality is that GM has hindered the development of EVs and if it were not for Tesla, there would be no EV revolution going on in the world today.
Secondly, the EV revolution is being led by China, and it will be Chinese made EVs that flood America in the years ahead, not GM made EVs, much like it was Japan that flooded America in the 70s with 4 cylinder engine vehicles and still dominates today... not GM.
I could go on and on about this, in depth, this is just one example of how completely false the narrative being sold today to Americans is.
If not for Tesla, America would not even have skin in the game for the EV Market which will dominate the world going forward in the years ahead.
Yet today, the Biden Administration is using its power to attack Tesla in a variety of ways, while making sure GM gets billions in federal aid.
China's CCP uses its power to help its EV makers to dominate the industry and the world, America's government uses its power to derail the one American company dominating the industry... a clear example of how one Government is failing its nation and sabotaging its position in the world in favor of stagnant technology and corruption.Thankfully the majority of Americans do not identify with either extreme of the political spectrum even though media would have you believe so.
(Gallup 2020)
30% identify as Democrats on average in 2020, 29% as Republicans and 39% as independents. Only when factoring in independents' leanings do Democrats enjoy a true edge over Republicans in national support, 48% to 43%.
But party ID doesn't tell the full story on the nation's political will, as there are ideological crosscurrents. While most Republicans identify as conservative, a quarter hold moderate or liberal views. And Democrats exhibit even more heterogeneity, with close to half identifying as moderate or conservative and the slight majority identifying as liberal.
Independents, meanwhile, are predominantly moderate in their ideological views, which is where leaders seeking bipartisan support or hoping to unite the country may need to pitch their policy proposals.First, 2020 was so long ago.
We are Post-Trump, Post-Covid-Lockdowns (until the next one), Post-Election.
We are undergoing continuous changes in how Social Media works, how people are banned, barred, disenfranchised on Media Sites... and how Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, etc. work in conjunction with one another to ban individuals and entities at the same time... while allowing other equally reprehensible voices to keep their platforms based on political ideology or race.
We have become a society looking inward, a society of victims and villains, of social theories of extremes to the point where making a person feel insecure or threatened is considered a crime... merely wearing a hat, or being of a certain race, is now considered threatening and cause for exclusion if not outright attack.
We don't see this in the core parts of society... yet... but because it is allowed to flourish unchallenged by the governing bodies and our MSM, but it will become part of our everyday existence in a short amount of time.
Our children are already being programmed to think and believe in such today, children sit at Thanksgiving dinner calling relatives racists and sexists for holding what "moderates" consider common sense views and values. Those "common sense" beliefs are well under attack.
This is not however an evolution of our society to a more egalitarian existence, it is a sign of decline, of decaying social and moral norms, this is how a faltering society and economy looks before its collapse.
We can look back throughout history and see this, typically wars that span continents occur and society is rebuilt anew... not sure what is going to occur this time around, certainly the transfer of global wealth and power from the US to China is not only occurring but is now unstoppable... but an actual war may not occur as is so often the case during such a transition period.
America seems to be fraying because it is. The looting of stores in cities, the riots, the rising gas prices, are signs of worse things to come for many.
The difference between past pleasant years of politics (say mid-70s to mid-90s) to what has developed today are events not so easily bridged.
We have actual political events, the Ross Perot injection to change the 1992 election, the Clinton Impeachment, the Bush hanging-chad election, the Trump years, and currently Biden, which are like dominoes falling, only widening the political gap and the angst people have.
We have Trade Agreements and Laws passed that crushed America's future & now current economic clout from China's Favored Nation non-tariff status and NAFTA to Biden's current self-inflicted embargo on Oil produced and piped in America causing prices to skyrocket and the inability to correct Port logistics nationally allowing it to become a crisis.
We have an education system, our universities and colleges, that produce tens of thousands of graduates in Social Justice, Critical Race, Equity studies yearly that polarize and inject into young minds ideas that Capitalism and Equal Opportunity are evil concepts...
... while China produces 8 times the amount of STEM field graduates today that America does.
Engineering, Biology, Chemistry, Coding... the primary core components from which a society's success will truly be built in the coming decades. America is too busy graduating people wanting to make sure we have an Equitable system that favors those who have been designated victims to worry about if it has enough Computer Engineers and Doctors to keep its society functioning.
These are not 'bridgeable' gaps, these are flagrant signs of societal stress and an impending collapse from world domination... economically, militarily, and technologically.
Cred, I have faith that at some point we can see through all the fog, and just come out the other end with more understanding. I think you and I "at times" are able to agree.
I thought about this and then I thought about it some more and I came to a conclusion.
I will never give an inch to any liberal on any topic in any way.
There are reasons for it.
I was raised in a home with family members who survived life in the Soviet Union under Stalin and beyond. I heard the horrors of Communism from family members who had lived it. I went with my family in the 1970s to visit relatives still in the Soviet Union. I saw and experienced living under communist rule.
Liberalism reminds me too much of communism. NO human being should be forced to live under Communism.
There are many people in the Democrat party who are decent people. I know Democrats who hate what their party has become as much as anyone. They dislike liberal and progressive ideas as much as myself. It is unfortunate their voices are being drowned out by the radicals. I've been told their power is decreasing more and more in their party.
I see those who prefer the benefits of a free-market economy coming together. I see those of us who are beyond obsessing on race for power coming together. When those in the Democrat party who believe this way regain control of the party, I believe it will be possible to come together.
Until that happens, liberals and liberalism and progressives should be confronted and called out on their ideas every minute of every day. I could write many paragraphs about their lies, stupidity, and dishonesty. I could also spend quite a bit of time illustrating the similarities between them and communists.
So, if things change, we can come together. If things don't, then, as they say in the old country, "An unwanted future awaits us all."You realize that you are led to believe (through media) that you are "fighting" an extreme faction that is taking over our country. Do you realize that the progressive wing makes up only about 8% of the left while We have about 6%, identifying with the very far right. These days, to call someone a Democrat or a Republican is overly simplistic as both encompass various factions on their own spectrum.
The point being, The majority are in the middle and we are increasingly exhausted with extremists on both ends that do not represent our concerns. You have your right to believe that communism is on the March. I don't think there are any facts to bear that out. Has anyone done a poll on the numbers of Americans who identify with either socialist or communist parties/ideals?
While the two extremist ends of the spectrum continue to wage, baseless and quite frankly useless ideological wars hopefully the rest of us in the center can begin to take back the country or at least dim the spotlight of these partisan antics.
Louie Gohmert does not represent the entire Republican party just as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez does not represent the entire Democrat party. Let's stop acting like they do.Alexandrea Ocasio-Cortez and the "Squad" have increasing power in the Democrat party. That can NOT be denied. They and those with their beliefs are the force behind the "defund the police" movement. This has resulted in HUGE spikes in crime in Democrat cities. They have legions of followers who believe in taking away people's second amendment rights, punishing Christians, limiting free speech and more.
There is plenty of evidence that liberals behave like communists. You can google many stories from academics around the country who make that connection. It's a fact. They don't want to identify as communists as that would be unpopular, they instead choose to behave like communists. I could go on and on about what liberals do that are similar to how a communist would handle things.
I don't consider Louie Gohmert extreme at all. I don't know why you mentioned him.
I think those in the middle will take back the country. After the performance of the senseless, babbling, fool we have in the White House, a red wave is coming in 2022. Many believe it will be a Tsunami.
Thing ARE going to change.
Do you plan to write any article for Hubpages? Just wondering.A national survey found two-thirds of American voters do NOT support repeal of the Second Amendment, which protects the “right to keep and bear arms.”
The poll asked questions about gun-ownership rights. The canvass of 1,000 likely voters by The Heartland Institute, a national free-market think tank (conservative/Libertarian) , and Rasmussen Reports, a leading polling firm, was conducted on November 13 and 14.2020.
I can't even begin to touch the "Defund the Police " comment as I feel this is more of a catch phrase than an actual movement of any sort.
As to writing articles, who knows. That's a bit of effort. I do enjoy reading here though. It's a fairly well rounded representation of views.
As far as "the squad" they're a fire brand for media fodder. From a middle view I see them as marginalized by Biden and Pelosi and I've also seen several interviews of various squad members and their frustration over their marginalization. Biden and Pelosi both understand that the squad represents a very low percent of voters. Those are just the facts."catch phrase than an actual movement of any sort"
Are you for real? Read the list of cities who have cut funds for their police department. It is one of the stupidest things those on the left ever thought of doing. Considering the list of stupid things they've done, this is impressive.
Here is a list of some of the big cities that cut the funds for their police departments. The first one on the list is Minneapolis and it gets worse after that.
"There's a new trend sweeping across America. Violent activists are demanding that police departments be defunded, or even abolished. In a few major cities, officials and policymakers are caving to the demands of these radical activists, slashing police department budgets in crime-ridden areas. Unsurprisingly, there are now surges in violent crimes in cities that are actively defunding their police. "
"The Minneapolis City Council has recently approved cutting $10 million from the police budget. This is the first permanent cut with more expected to follow.
“[Dismantling the police] is one step in a direction to create safety for every single resident of our city” - Minneapolis City Council
60% more homicides this year than last year
269 violent shootings this year by July, equaling all of the shootings from last year."
https://www.secureamericanow.org/cities … %20More%20
"Do you plan to write any article for Hubpages? Just wondering."
Geez Mike. That was shitty. Wasn't it also you that had a problem with foreign forum members commenting on American politics?
GAHow is that shitty? Please explain. This is a writing format. The vast majority of people here have written articles.
It's a fair question. Don't know why it bothers you so much.Is it a requisite to write articles to browse here or post opinions and discussion forums? I landed here after a Google search for specific topics in education and found more of interest. I may not have it in me to formulate articles. Sue me
Maybe it was a subconscious trigger, or something. As a closing to your comment, it grabbed for attention, kinda like when you're cruising along a smooth road and hit a pothole.
I didn't read it as a collegial interest. If you say it was then my comment was based on a misimpression. My bad.
GA
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