What simple truth can penetrate the wall of division?
I have always believed that somewhere in all of our brains is a small opening that will permit the light to shine in. Somewhere in the brains of even the most right-wing Obama "haters" is a small crack that will permit the truth to enter.
What is that truth? Does it exist in the present environment?
It seems to me to be such a waste of time and effort to keep begging for money so as to keep repeating the same message over and over? I don't believe it inspires more people to go to the polls, but to the contrary, I think it may turn off more voters than it encourages?
Like most folks here, I have been inundated with pleas for contributions, which they will double? If I do not contribute, the loss of the Senate is directly on my shoulders. It is my fault. Now, that is a novel way to fund raise, I must admit.
But, where is the message that can reach the most voters, either to get them to the polls or to make them think twice about who they are voting for?
In my opinion, it is somewhere in the way our government is being run, or not being run, as the case may be. I believe the citizens of this country, the majority of both Democrats and Republicans, are turned off by the gridlock and the poisonous atmosphere of our House and Senate. Even moreso than they might hate Barack Obama.
That is the point that we should focus our message, in my opinion. The Democrats blame McConnell and Boehner for blocking everything. The Republicans blame Harry Reid for holding up all their bills in the Senate. And never the twain shall meet.
The truth of the matter is that McConnell and Boehner are attempting to block everything proposed by this President and the Democrats. Likewise, Harry Reid is not going to put forth the Republican-passed bills that have failed so miserably in the past, like taxcuts for the wealthy, that the President would likely veto anyway. Or the XL pipeline that might threaten the environment and water supply?
In my opinion, this is the cause of most of the voter apathy in this country. How do we break through this wall?
Continuing to contribute to a political process that is addicted to contributions is not the solution. We cannot preach that we are against the vast amounts of money in our political system and then ask for more money to compete against our competition in the same system.
The truth, as I see it, is that there are more Americans that believe Republicans are to blame for the gridlock in Washington than are the Democrats. Most Democrats already believe that. The problem is with the other side. How do you shine that light through that small crack in their brains?
The message, as I see it, should be concise and straight to the point. It should be repeated often enough to be heard by the other side. That message is that it is the Republicans that are mostly to blame for failure of our government in Washington. It is they that refused to work to make the ACA better. It is they that have blocked the minimum wage increase. It is they that have voted against equal pay for women. It is they that have blocked help for student loans. It is they that blocked even the appointment of judges until the rule had to be changed so that the judicial system did not become totally clogged. It is they that have preached hatred for this President and promised their supporters they would do everything possible to make him a one-term President and would use the rules of the Senate to block everything that he might propose. It is they that have even criticized the decisions of the President in foreign policy - the old rule of "politics stop at the water's edge" does not apply to this bunch of Republicans.
So the most concise message is one that confronts the issue head on: "The government in Washington is not serving the people. Republicans are not the ones to fix this problem. Republicans are the ones that caused this problem."
Republican voters must be forced to question their support for this radical and destructive element that has taken over their Party.
= new reply since forum marked as read
