Derec
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Biden let himself drag significantly to the Left by the DSA faction of the Democratic Party, even if he was considered a moderate earlier in his career.
2026 Mid-Term Elections
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laughing dog
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Spoken like a true conservative.
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Extremists can only get so far before their positions become anathema to the voters. See MAGA at present for all the proof of that you need.
Trump's job approval hits record low, driven down by Gen X, white Americans, and Independents
34% of U.S. adult citizens approve of Trump's job performance, tied for a record low for either Trump term. His net job approval is -28, also a record low
yougov.com
Derec
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It is not a socialist system. But the Dems are at fault for the confusion too. Whenever somebody offers a criticism of socialism, they act like things like public roads are "socialism" even though redefining the term in such a way renders it meaningless.
US already has a regulatory network. Some regulations could be strengthened, but some could also be loosened. Same for social safety net. It is not as generous as that in western Europe for the most part, but it is not weak either. We spend more on Medicare (healthcare for the aged) than on defense for example.
Facile descriptivism, i.e. accepting anybody's misuse of words as equally authoritative as somebody else's correct usage, leads to words not meaning anything at all, since everybody can mean anything with any word. That is the case with this (in my opinion disingenuous) attempt to redefine "socialism". I think it is part of a bait and switch since socialists themselves know who they are and what socialism is. DSA talks about rejecting private profits in favor of "popular control of resources and production" and "economic planning". Mamdani talks about the end goal of "seizing the means of production". That is socialism in its actual real meaning, not this nonsense about any system with a safety net and a regulatory framework.
Nonsense.
Derec
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MAGAification certainly hurt the GOP brand. Why should Dems follow suit and DSAify?
laughing dog
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Isn’t that putting the cart before the horse?
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Because they are proposing a lot of things most people want. Medicare for all for example, raising the minimum wage, and better rights for labor.
Derec
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No. Spoken like a true moderate independent.
laughing dog
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As another true moderate independent says - Sure, Jan.
Politesse
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Can't speak for Zipr, but I sure am.
No, because the neofascists and their corporate allies control the central government.
southernhybrid
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https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/31/...e_code=1.11A.w92R.G0T4D91LHDbG&smid=url-share
This is a shared article, so if interested, read the entire thing. It's fairly long and is good news for the Dems.
This is a shared article, so if interested, read the entire thing. It's fairly long and is good news for the Dems.
Harry Bosch
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Socialism is not very popular with most people. So, it's really the GOP who try to define any politician slightly to the left of the middle as a socialist. I first heard it in the 1980's when Reagan called Carter a socialist for wanting to help the poor through several proposed new laws (I think it was the job corps act but can't remember). It's a very effective political attack. Over time, the right have successively convinced many that any act that increases the safety net or might improve some people's lives is "socialism". I really don't know why some on the left fall for this trick. I'm hoping that the DSA broadcasting their specific agenda will shine the light on this movement and turn people away from this socialism:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026...-over-democratic-socialists-of-america-ideals
Jimmy Higgins
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It hurt the brand, but it accomplished the goals. Project 2025 is well into action. It'll take decades to undo the first two years of the second Trump term. Transitioning the US Government to a pre-1960s regulatory setup.
Your obsession with socialism seems misplaced with "stuff that will actually impact your life".
Jimmy Higgins
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The GOP will try to juxtaposition it to the Democrats. They saw how marvelous this worked in Florida. The question is whether the GOP is overly confident this will work where Cuban Americans don't live. The GOP's problem at the moment is that they are underwater with almost every voting group. That the Dems have a shot at the Senate shows just how badly the GOP looks at the moment, mainly because they haven't accomplished a darn thing! The deportation of people might get some on the right a bit tight in the pants, but it doesn't pay for the gasoline. Losing the Senate would cost the GOP dearly with the courts. A wasp sting at most seeing they've done a good job filling up the courts, but it will still sting.
Jimmy Higgins
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It seems like Kirk's murder led to a pop and then Iran did. As Iran has gone no where, the partisan interest of ensured easy victory has dwindled. It isn't exactly surprising that the angry out of power people are more engaged than once they have won. And I wouldn't call these people "right-wing" influencers. These are amateur commentators. Kirk managed to make his role a big deal, but overall, these people are nobodies that are more parasites or formerly marginalized racists that were able to grab onto the MAGA movement.
These people are scurrying about trying to hold onto audiences and grab more influence post 2026 and 2028. These people aren't like Hannity or Levin. They are the bottom of the barrel dredging. Most importantly, these people don't do a damn thing. They are less important than Hannity's and Levin's who also don't actually produce anything. Heritage and the like are the ones pulling the strings and there is little sign they are weakening.
Using the word socialism when discussing US politics is completely meaningless. I wouldn't even describe the DSA boogeymen as proper socialists.
Kirk was astroturfed as fuck, then his sugar daddy died during COVID. His brand has suffered since (other than that brief period of grifter mortis).
laughing dog
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“Socialism “ is a bogeyman word used by the GOP, conservatives, MAGATards, and their dupes to evoke USSr or Red China type authoritarian anti capitalist anti-american political structures. It’s been used to Social Security and Medicare which are extremely popular. The US highway system and farm support meet the bogeyman definition, yet remain popular, especially in red states. Dams and public airports are popular. Hell, deficit spending is embraced by all!!!
So while the illusionary boogeymen scares many Americans only when he’s not helping them.
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This is exactly why people like Derec never like to talk specifics about why they think people like Biden or Clinton are "socialists". It sounds absurd when you spell out in words that you think Bidenomics is a Marxist theory.