Can progressives learn anything from Republicans?

[TaraJo]

Right about now, Trump and the Koch brothers and the rest of the Republican party have me disgusted.  The way they're governing is going to leave a scar across the world that will last long after they're gone. And to me and a lot of other intelligent, educated people, we see Trump is an orange skinned windbag with no redeaming qualities as president.  Not only that, but Republicans haven't had a decent president since before I was born.  

But there's one big question: why do they keep winning?

I mean, serious, they've had a habit of nominating complete morons as president and those morons win.  How?  I had hoped after the disaster that was the Dubya presidency, we would have learned our lesson and not voted for idiots.  Then Trump came along and we threw that lesson right out the window.  I would have hoped after the mess they left the economy, we would know better than to believe that tax cuts for the plutocrat class are going to help anyone else.  But those same people are cheering on Trumps tax cuts, the ones that are mostly paying out to the people who benefited from the Bush bailouts.

I guess my question is, why do republicans keep winning with such bad ideas?  And whatever the method to the madness is, can democrats harness that for their good ideas?

[The Industrial Atheist]

They're really good at being aggressive and persistent politically, usually they're good at framing. They're better at religious pandering than the dems by far. They're better at selling out than the dems, hence better funding.

They're really really good at gerrymandering.

I only want dems to be better at being aggressive and persistent politically, and framing.

[The Grand Nudger]

 And whatever the method to the madness is, can democrats harness that for their good ideas?

I'd say no.  Those tools may be great at capturing seats, but that doesn't make them great tools to advance a good idea (or, for that matter, the common good).

[Anomalocaris]

 And whatever the method to the madness is, can democrats harness that for their good ideas?

I'd say no.  Those tools may be great at capturing seats, but that doesn't make them great tools to advance a good idea (or, indeed, the common good).

Not capturing seats would seem to be an even worse tool for advancing good ideas.

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Right about now, Trump and the Koch brothers and the rest of the Republican party have me disgusted.  The way they're governing is going to leave a scar across the world that will last long after they're gone. And to me and a lot of other intelligent, educated people, we see Trump is an orange skinned windbag with no redeaming qualities as president.  Not only that, but Republicans haven't had a decent president since before I was born.  

But there's one big question: why do they keep winning?

I mean, serious, they've had a habit of nominating complete morons as president and those morons win.  How?  I had hoped after the disaster that was the Dubya presidency, we would have learned our lesson and not voted for idiots.  Then Trump came along and we threw that lesson right out the window.  I would have hoped after the mess they left the economy, we would know better than to believe that tax cuts for the plutocrat class are going to help anyone else.  But those same people are cheering on Trumps tax cuts, the ones that are mostly paying out to the people who benefited from the Bush bailouts.

I guess my question is, why do republicans keep winning with such bad ideas?  And whatever the method to the madness is, can democrats harness that for their good ideas?

Yes.  Don’t assume if you let others live, they willl let you live.   When the side is the republicans, the only political good one can ever do must start by knocking the other side to the ground politically, and then kicking them to death, and then kicking them some more.

[The Grand Nudger]

I suppose it would on the surface..but some part of the explanation for why the GOP has turned into a bunch of creepy fuckers is that they are beholden to the seat capturing scheme.  The same would be true of democrats using the same scheme.

Let's put it into context, with just one part of the scheme. Telling dumdums what they want to hear. Obama told everyone they could keep their doctors. How'd that work out? Is there some great idea somewhere doing well by the application of the republican model?

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Or hey..hey, maybe the dems should suppress votes?  I;m sure that voter suppression could be the springboard to countless great things.

[Anomalocaris]

I suppose it would on the surface..but some part of the explanation for why the GOP has turned into a bunch of creepy fuckers is that they are beholden to the seat capturing scheme.  The same would be true of democrats using the same scheme.

Let's put it into context, with just one part of the scheme.  Telling dumdums what they want to hear.  Obama told everyone they could keep their doctors.  How'd that work out?  Is there some great idea somewhere doing well by the application of the republican model?

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Or hey..hey, maybe the dems should suppress votes?  I;m sure that voter suppression could be the springboard to countless great things.

The key isn’t telling people what they want to hear. The key is telling people what are afraid to hear, about your political enemies.

[The Grand Nudger]

Go nativist...?  Kicking off a great and productive nativist renaissance.

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Maybe just outright bullshit...like stomping your feet and refusing to play when you don;t like the rules..or a president, or their judicial nominations? Surely good things lie just behind that door.

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I could do this all night..but since this is america, how about a gun analogy instead?  5.56 is a great way to inflict horrific casualties on your enemy....but it's a lot harder to apply humanitarian aid with a bullet. The same is true of the republican model that's taken so many seats. It;s great at that thing...but....and this has been made apparent...not the other thing.

[Minimalist]

They keep winning because of stupid voters.  There are a few who hang around here when goose-stepping practice is over for the day!

[Anomalocaris]

Humanitarian aid must wait until your political enemies are dead. The more 50 cal bullets you fire into your enemy for each .223 he ties to fire at you, the faster you can get around to the humanitarian work.

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They keep winning because of stupid voters.  There are a few who hang around here when goose-stepping practice is over for the day!

They keep wining because the democrats don’t treat voters as stupid enough often enough.

[The Industrial Atheist]

I want the dems to be better at being persistent and aggressive, and to be better at framing in a logically and morally consistent way. It can be done.