Capitol Hill Blue Forums Political Issues The Trump Administration Post-Election Mischief

There is a large truck driving around and around the White House with a big "LOSER" sign on the sides.

LOSER

You know Greger, I always said that both major parties owe their hearts and souls to corporations, wall street firms, lobbyist, special interests, mega money donors, etc. That's where they get all their money to run their organizations and campaigns. Taking care of all the above is always the first priority of both major parties. I do think we see eye to eye on more things than not, although we approach them from different perspectives. You as more or less as a progressive ideologue and me more or less as a political realist.

I do think we both distrust both major parties about as far as we could throw a 5,000 pound bull elephant. You vote Democratic because that party comes closest to your political ideology, the closest fit at the present. I swing back and forth tending to vote for the lesser evil or the least worst or even for the candidate I want to lose the least of the two major party candidates, many times voting third party against both.

For PDX, I'll not tell either party what to do. Now I'll give advice in how to win elections or tell them why they won or lost. I can recognize that this election was all about removing Trump at the presidential level and keeping the status quo down ballot. No mandate, no endorsement or rejection of either major parties ideals, agenda, philosophy if you will.

It's no secret that slogans like Defund the Police played a big part in the down ballot success of the republicans in their gaining house seats, state legislatures and a governorship. Especially among the non-affiliated, swing voters. These voters which made up 26% of those who voted, went big for Biden, 54-41, by 13 points just to get rid of Trump. Then they basically split their congressional vote down the middle, voting 50-48 for democratic congressional candidates. These folks as Greger would call them are the uninformed, the unwashed so to speak. They pay little to no attention to politics until election time. Why should they? They don't have any horses in the race, they had no say who the horses are or was. But it is these folks that usually decides who wins and who loses. Neither major party's base is big enough by itself.

Yet neither party recognizes this. I always found that dumbfounding.

Awesome!!!

Not true. Look at Bernie's (2016) and (2020) campaign and Trump's first 2016 campaign - all small donations. I believe that Biden was as well this year. Your both sidesism is really getting old and tired - like gum that has lost its flavor.

The problem in figuring out Sanders is his money was for primaries only and not really documented as candidates were in the general election.

In 2016 Sanders raised 230 million, which 135 million came from small donors. Small donors are defined as donating 200 dollars or less. 2020 Sanders raised 212 million which 114 million came from small donors. This is his primary totals.

Other candidates 2016 Hillary Clinton raised 770 million which 106 million came from small donors. Trump in 2016 raised 433 million million which 87 million came from small donors. Counting the primaries, Clinton raised and spent 1,191 billion, Trump 646.8 million.

2020 Joe Biden raised 1.6 billion which 407 million came from small donors. Trump in 2020 raised 1.1 billion which 378 million came from small donors.

The general election campaign is certainly more expensive than the primaries. So the figures are basically apples to oranges when dealing with Sanders. Putting Sanders aside since he hasn't, didn't particpate in the general election. One candidate doesn't make the both sideism untrue.

Only 13.8% of Hillary's money came from small donors in 2016, 20.6% of Trump's money came from small donors in 2016. In 2020 Biden received 25.4% of his money from small donors, Trump received 34.3% of his money from small donors.

Now Sanders did indeed raise over half of his money from small donors. But that was just the primary only. No one knows how or who would have contributed during the general election in which both major party candidates raised over a billion dollars each for 2020.

You obviously don't understand. Its really pretty easy. The Democrats are dedicated to fighting. Their problem is that they don't care who they are fighting as long as they can have a fight. They can attack the Republicans but its unlikely they will get a fight out of it. The Republicans are not so much fighters as liars, the whole damned bunch of them. They will call Democrats all sorts of names and stuff but not really fight at all. For a really good fight the Dems have learned that they gotta go after their own and THEN they will get a fight.

The interesting thing is that they just don't seem to get it. The result is that the jackbooted Republicans march in complete agreement no matter what and the result of that is, pretty much, that they stomp all over the Democrats before the Dems even notice as they are busy with 'important' stuff like going after one another rather than the opposition.

I never mentioned Hillary Clinton because she was never small donor - she has always been big-money Wall Street. You people start off arguments with a semi-answer to a question, and then, ALWAYS introduce another factor into the equation to support your predetermined agenda. I'm sick of it.

You get one, perhaps two who rely on small donors and ignore all the rest because it doesn't suit your narrative. I could carry this on back if I had the time to do the research, What about Obama vs. McCain and then Romney. Obama became the first presidential candidate to turn down matching funds because he could raise more than double that. Kerry and Gore vs. Bush and on back.

Rounding off the numbers 2012 Obama 800 million raised to Romney's 600. 2008 Obama 750 million to McCain's 250 million. 2004 G.W. Bush 350 to Kerry's 340. More even. Bush really out raised Gore in 2000 180 million to 120 million, but Bill Clinton in 1996 doubled Dole 160 million to 70 million.

I think you get it. You take an independent voter, doesn't have to be a Trumper, he hears the slogan Defund the Police. Now he isn't going to delve deep into that. Chances are he'll take it as meaning defund the police. He say, heck no. I like my police. He votes against Democratic congressional candidate because he sees a couple of democrats on the nightly news out front shouting about defunding the police. Then he's hit with all these GOP political ads stating the democrats want to do away with the police.

Now here's a guy, more or less the average independents who really doesn't pay much if any attention to politics or the daily grind going on in Washington. He's trying to make ends meet, take care of his family, rooting for his favorite sports team, watching his favorite TV shows. Politics and the actual meaning of Defund the police goes missing. He takes the slogan of defund the police as meaning exactly that.

You and I know different, but we're political junkies. If we weren't we wouldn't be on a site like this one. The average independent doesn't even know debating politics sites even exist.

A language problem, yeah, I'd say so. Perhaps the Democrats need to learn to say exactly what they mean. Not standing behind phrases and slogans that can mean many different things to different people. People who will hear the slogan or the phrase and think it means what it says.

They need a positive message like the Republicans have to win the votes of independents..

Things like Swastikas and slavery flags. They need leaders like Trump who put party over country and personal greed above all else.

They need armed insurrectionists storming statehouses and plotting to kidnap and Kill governors of the treason party.

They need to deny the results of elections and attack democracy.

That's what gets voters attention and gets them to the polls.


Demonstrating against police brutality loses votes and turns off the voters. Siding with blacks or queers is stupid and costs you votes. Democrats need to become more racist, more homophobic and much much greedier. They need to stop getting educated. They need to stop complaining about expensive healthcare, suck it up and die like men when they get sick. And living wages? You gotta be kidding! No one wants to make enough money to pay the bills!

Yeah, Democrats have totally got it wrong.