4 ms·

The American people voted for this.

vkou 2y ago
A significant subset of the American people voted for this. This is their gift to the world. A subset that is almost as large was appalled by this.
- roamerz 2y ago
  It’s crazy how divided we are on the issues. In the last 4 years the needle went so far left, way past what even traditional Democrats wanted. Now it’s heading to the right faster than a Falcon 9 rocket. The people in the center are probably just frustrated. The far left are visibly enraged and the far right are celebrating at every EO. Crazy times.
  - majormajor 2y ago
    > In the last 4 years the needle went so far left, way past what even traditional Democrats wanted. Not in many useful ways by global standards of "left." There was a certain amount of public investment in infrastructure, but beyond that... Better public healthcare? Getting prescription prices under control? The use of left-leaning methods to address housing prices (rent control, say)? The FTC went after some mega-corps, at least, but without much hope of success because the legislature didn't do anything new in the M&A or antitrust space.
  - midnightclubbed 2y ago
    Did the needle go far left? I didn’t see it go much past the American center (which is very right compared to most of the western world). We got some DEI that has for the most part been proven to be lip service, so much for equal under law and land of the free. We got some money for infrastructure, we put people who participated in an insurrection in jail, we got business as usual. We didn’t get universal healthcare, we didn’t get a reduction of the power of monopolies, we didn’t get a reduction in the military budget, we didn’t get a minimum wage that tracked inflation let alone was a livable wage, we didn’t get money out of politics and politicians, we didn’t get the rich to pay their fair share. The only way I’d measure the past 4 years as being left is because of the current jarring swerve into a right wing oligarchy
    - card_zero 2y ago
      "Let's check the military" is the latest thing, so you might get a reduction in the military budget now, who knows. Perhaps in relation to things like throwing Ukraine under the bus. Is this a very left-wing thing, a small military?
      - orwin 2y ago
        Yes. That's probably why I don't see the DOD budget move much. Maybe bigger contracts with Tesla,spaceX, neuralink and starlink to replace some of Boeing.
  - cyberge99 2y ago
    Not really. The Overton Window has been moving rightward recently and sadly.
  - vkou 2y ago
    Really? In the past four years, did we get land reform? Housing reform? Healthcare reform? Something that addressed wealth inequality? Police accountability? Worker rights? Anything to address the mental health crisis? Anything to tackle the problems people with drug addiction are facing? Any change to the trajectory of climate change, as opposed to just kicking the can down the road? Affordability of childcare? Cost of education? I could go on and on. We aren't 'divided' on how to deal with our issues. The right doesn't see any of the above as issues, and doesn't see any need to address them. Your perception that things swung left does not match the reality. The right echo chamber has driven itself into a frenzy to try to manufacture this perception, as justification for their reactionary politics.
    - senordevnyc 2y ago
      Some trans women played in some sports. So basically the downfall of western civilization.
mjevans 2y ago
About 55%, who voted, nationally voted for the current president of the USA. My _opinion_ is around 20-30% of those that voted 'voted for this' or otherwise like it. The other 35-25% maybe didn't get what they voted for; I believe if None of the Above (reject everyone and give all new candidates) had been on the ticket in ANY sort of instant runoff voting system, would have voted for that with higher preference. I'm for _requiring_ that everyone who is eligible to vote, does so. They're free to officially abstain. I'd like for None of the Above to be a mandatory option for all votes with the effects described above. I'd also like for ANY Instant Runoff Voting system, though I prefer "Path Vote" ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schulze_method https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schulze_method ) I do mean any IRV method. I would also like, FFS, if we're going to HAVE primaries at all, that they're always open and required, no free passes in. Finally, all Elections should be Voting Holidays. I'd love if every state did all Mail In Ballots like WA state. I'd also like any ballot mailed before midnight at the end of the Voting Holiday to be postmarked, and counted (but please get your votes in early). I'd like all Non-Emergency votes to be limited to the 4th of July and Nov (whatever the format is) as those Voting Holidays.
- nubinetwork 2y ago
  > none of the above What do you do if that were to happen? Another 6 months of campaigning while nothing gets done? That's no way to run a country.
  - mjevans 2y ago
    That's a great question too. Proposal 1: You don't get to leave the job until the replacement is hired. Proposal 2: Follow the chain of succession to a position that did get elected / appointed. I wonder if cabinet members retain their jobs until replaced? Also, that would count as an Emergency election. Maybe we could do a crack at 2 months to 'primary' and 1 month to campaign? Other countries seem to get by just fine.
- card_zero 2y ago
  Well then the people would elect None of the Above over and over again, leaving the country in permanent political limbo, like Belgium. The government wouldn't be able to do anything. But I suppose on the plus side, the government wouldn't be able to do anything. The majority of the electorate has dissatisfaction after any election. The job of democracy is not to obtain good governments, but partly tolerable ones.
sebazzz 2y ago
People didn't know what they voted for.
- krapp 2y ago
  Trump's agenda has been widely known, disseminated and broadcast on all channels for almost a decade, and most of it is based on alt-right/Evangelical Christian/neocon beliefs that have been around for much longer. Trumpism has become a worldwide political movement, it's nigh inescapable. Maybe there were some rubes, but most people who voted for Trump knew exactly what they were voting for, because it's what they voted for in 2020, and in 2016, and what they wished in their heart of hearts would happen ever since Obama did 9/11.
  - sebazzz 2y ago
    People still didn't know what they voted for though. There are many reasons, voters often don't truly research on who they are going to vote. They either are going by just "the man" they vote for because of promises, they believe the garbage on social media without any second thought, and reject anything that doesn't fit their view because it comes from the deep state fake news. That's why Project 2025 didn't get the attention it should have.
- deleted 2y ago
  [deleted]

vkou 2y ago

A significant subset of the American people voted for this. This is their gift to the world. A subset that is almost as large was appalled by this.

roamerz 2y ago
It’s crazy how divided we are on the issues. In the last 4 years the needle went so far left, way past what even traditional Democrats wanted. Now it’s heading to the right faster than a Falcon 9 rocket. The people in the center are probably just frustrated. The far left are visibly enraged and the far right are celebrating at every EO. Crazy times.
- majormajor 2y ago
  > In the last 4 years the needle went so far left, way past what even traditional Democrats wanted. Not in many useful ways by global standards of "left." There was a certain amount of public investment in infrastructure, but beyond that... Better public healthcare? Getting prescription prices under control? The use of left-leaning methods to address housing prices (rent control, say)? The FTC went after some mega-corps, at least, but without much hope of success because the legislature didn't do anything new in the M&A or antitrust space.
- midnightclubbed 2y ago
  Did the needle go far left? I didn’t see it go much past the American center (which is very right compared to most of the western world). We got some DEI that has for the most part been proven to be lip service, so much for equal under law and land of the free. We got some money for infrastructure, we put people who participated in an insurrection in jail, we got business as usual. We didn’t get universal healthcare, we didn’t get a reduction of the power of monopolies, we didn’t get a reduction in the military budget, we didn’t get a minimum wage that tracked inflation let alone was a livable wage, we didn’t get money out of politics and politicians, we didn’t get the rich to pay their fair share. The only way I’d measure the past 4 years as being left is because of the current jarring swerve into a right wing oligarchy
  - card_zero 2y ago
    "Let's check the military" is the latest thing, so you might get a reduction in the military budget now, who knows. Perhaps in relation to things like throwing Ukraine under the bus. Is this a very left-wing thing, a small military?
    - orwin 2y ago
      Yes. That's probably why I don't see the DOD budget move much. Maybe bigger contracts with Tesla,spaceX, neuralink and starlink to replace some of Boeing.
- cyberge99 2y ago
  Not really. The Overton Window has been moving rightward recently and sadly.
- vkou 2y ago
  Really? In the past four years, did we get land reform? Housing reform? Healthcare reform? Something that addressed wealth inequality? Police accountability? Worker rights? Anything to address the mental health crisis? Anything to tackle the problems people with drug addiction are facing? Any change to the trajectory of climate change, as opposed to just kicking the can down the road? Affordability of childcare? Cost of education? I could go on and on. We aren't 'divided' on how to deal with our issues. The right doesn't see any of the above as issues, and doesn't see any need to address them. Your perception that things swung left does not match the reality. The right echo chamber has driven itself into a frenzy to try to manufacture this perception, as justification for their reactionary politics.
  - senordevnyc 2y ago
    Some trans women played in some sports. So basically the downfall of western civilization.

mjevans 2y ago

About 55%, who voted, nationally voted for the current president of the USA. My _opinion_ is around 20-30% of those that voted 'voted for this' or otherwise like it. The other 35-25% maybe didn't get what they voted for; I believe if None of the Above (reject everyone and give all new candidates) had been on the ticket in ANY sort of instant runoff voting system, would have voted for that with higher preference. I'm for _requiring_ that everyone who is eligible to vote, does so. They're free to officially abstain. I'd like for None of the Above to be a mandatory option for all votes with the effects described above. I'd also like for ANY Instant Runoff Voting system, though I prefer "Path Vote" ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schulze_method https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schulze_method ) I do mean any IRV method. I would also like, FFS, if we're going to HAVE primaries at all, that they're always open and required, no free passes in. Finally, all Elections should be Voting Holidays. I'd love if every state did all Mail In Ballots like WA state. I'd also like any ballot mailed before midnight at the end of the Voting Holiday to be postmarked, and counted (but please get your votes in early). I'd like all Non-Emergency votes to be limited to the 4th of July and Nov (whatever the format is) as those Voting Holidays.

nubinetwork 2y ago
> none of the above What do you do if that were to happen? Another 6 months of campaigning while nothing gets done? That's no way to run a country.
- mjevans 2y ago
  That's a great question too. Proposal 1: You don't get to leave the job until the replacement is hired. Proposal 2: Follow the chain of succession to a position that did get elected / appointed. I wonder if cabinet members retain their jobs until replaced? Also, that would count as an Emergency election. Maybe we could do a crack at 2 months to 'primary' and 1 month to campaign? Other countries seem to get by just fine.
card_zero 2y ago
Well then the people would elect None of the Above over and over again, leaving the country in permanent political limbo, like Belgium. The government wouldn't be able to do anything. But I suppose on the plus side, the government wouldn't be able to do anything. The majority of the electorate has dissatisfaction after any election. The job of democracy is not to obtain good governments, but partly tolerable ones.

sebazzz 2y ago

People didn't know what they voted for.

krapp 2y ago
Trump's agenda has been widely known, disseminated and broadcast on all channels for almost a decade, and most of it is based on alt-right/Evangelical Christian/neocon beliefs that have been around for much longer. Trumpism has become a worldwide political movement, it's nigh inescapable. Maybe there were some rubes, but most people who voted for Trump knew exactly what they were voting for, because it's what they voted for in 2020, and in 2016, and what they wished in their heart of hearts would happen ever since Obama did 9/11.
- sebazzz 2y ago
  People still didn't know what they voted for though. There are many reasons, voters often don't truly research on who they are going to vote. They either are going by just "the man" they vote for because of promises, they believe the garbage on social media without any second thought, and reject anything that doesn't fit their view because it comes from the deep state fake news. That's why Project 2025 didn't get the attention it should have.
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]