What is the winning strategy in 2018 and beyond?

[Foxfyre]

Stay the course. Bump

I agree eagle, with the caveat that real change comes in fits and starts, sometimes with one step back for every two steps forward. And there will be misunderstandings and miscalculations along the way and mistakes will be made. President Trump's greatest strength, I believe, other than his vision and willingness to see things differently than the status quo demands, is his ability to see that Plan A is unworkable and move on to a Plan B or C or D or whatever until he finds what will fix the problem and/or accomplish the objective. For sure he refuses to be tied to anybody's concept of 'it has always been done this way or that way' and that is what marks him as a true leader.

All great leaders have noble goals and ability to accomplish them which generally results in positive change. And no real change has ever happened without some downsides.

 

[candycorn]

A genuinely good strategy would be to remake the central government closer to the original sentiments and ideals of the founders updated by science and experience.
To start with, an abolition of of the two party dictatorship.
Re-examining the geo-political situation and remolding policy to the spread of democratically established republican government everywhere.
Women equally represented in any public decision-making bodies.
Setting up a carefully crafted blend of capital-based enterprise and basic sense of brother/sisterhood.
Well, one can imagine whatever one might. The almost certain fate of America is to continue to careen through unnecessary crises engineer by the controlling duopoly.

I think our current Administration not only understands the original intent re the role of the central government but has been doing a better job than most of operating under that principle.

I am seeing a shift of the non-diehard partisans--you know, those people who actually think for themselves instead of toe and/or parrot the party line--who are looking for people like the President who have a vision and an agenda they can get behind and who will also do their best to achieve that vision and that agenda. THAT is the best and only way to break the two-party dictatorship. (That is also why the President is getting so much resistance from both parties who LIKE the status quo that so greatly benefits them personally.) The President is neither partisan nor ideologue and the permanent political class can't stand that.

I can't support regime change or nation building as even the great United States does not have the time, energy, or resources to conquer and then remake all the messed up countries out there and anything short of that is simply perpetual war. We should lead by example, not by colonization.

If you go with the original intent of the Constitution, it was never given to the central government power to create sisterhood/brotherhood or any other sociopolitical situation, but the government was intended to completely stay out of that and defend the peoples unalienable right to govern themselves and create whatever sorts of societies they wished to have.

And speaking as a woman, I don't want anybody assigned to anything based on race, gender, ethnicity, group, etc. etc. etc. but rather I want the best people with the best intent, qualifications, experience put in positions of leadership.

Please note "updated by science and experience".
Please note that Coca Cola, Levis and Rock and Roll conquered the world through publicity and propaganda, not military intervention. The same can be done with ideas and ideals.
Please note that a large amount of the world's woes are the result of the predominance of males in positions of power and the only way to reverse that is with women.
Please note that government cannot avoid being involved in economics, so it should do so intelligently and constructively.
Please note that no hope of real change is held out.

But I believe thoughtful leadership based on real ideals and principle rather than fuzzy ideological concepts--example: income equality, social justice, women's reproductive rights, et al--can make a difference.

I believe President Trump is basing his agenda and talking points on real ideals and principle--love of what God/flag/country stands for and protocol regarding those--encouraging economic initiative and prosperity in the private sector among ALL segments of society--putting America's interests on the same level with everybody else--peace through strength etc. And all of that is real change compared to what we have had with the last several administrations. It is because he has little or no respect for the status quo in much of anything that he is making a significant difference, and most of it is turning out so much better than his critics and the haters have predicted.

And if you look at those nations headed by women over the course of history, female leadership is not much different than male leadership or at least the gender of the leader doesn't make much difference in the grand scheme of things. Some female monarchs were quite notorious. But many women, as do men, have distinguished themselves in leadership roles and left their mark on history, not because they were women but because they had a vision and perspective that resulted in good things. Gold Meir of Israel, for instance, was instrumental in Israel becoming an independent country. And Corazon Aquino was instrumental in the Phillippines becoming a democracy. I have great admiration for both ladies and adored Maggie Thatcher as well as others.

So again I look for a vision and competence in people regardless of their gender.

Remember the infrastructure bill? Incompetence. It’s gone
Remember the replacement for Obamacare? Incompetence. It’s gone.
Remember the border wall? Incomptence. Its not being funded and Mexico isn’t paying for it.
Remember the “hiring the best people” Many senior officials have already been sacked. Incompetence.

If you’re looking for competence; you find very little in the current administration.

As for the bullshit about Trump loving the country; he apologized to the Russian President for the state of relations.

You are clueless.

 

[Foxfyre]

And there you have the problem with the Democratic platform:

Trump sucks
Trump is bad
Trump is evil
Impeach Trump

But nothing to counter all the goods some of which is listed in Post #10.

Is that a winning strategy? If it is, this country is in terrible trouble.

Allowing students to re-negotiate their student loans
More funding for public health to mitigate the opioid crisis
Working with our allies (if there are any left after the blob gets through) to combat illegal immigration
Finding a way to reinvigorate the federal agencies who are being depleted by this pervert
Strengthening law enforcement through more interagency cooperation
Addressing the wage gap by encouraging a higher minimum wage

Just a few of the things democrats are talking about. Your vast amount of ignorance is only matched by your vast amount of intellectual dishonesty; or do you still think Trump never told a lie?

The Democrat agenda I am hearing--and I am listening--more free government stuff along with higher taxes, more regulation, roll back reforms, keep Obamacare as it was, etc. etc. etc.

But mostly Trump and anybody who supports his agenda suck.

There's room for both the Democratic party's good government stances as well as pointing out the vacuum of morality and decency that people like you occupy; yes.

The Democrats haven't shown us much 'good government stances' lately. And lately it is been pretty much Trump sucks, his agenda sucks, and anybody who supports his agenda sucks. Thank you for continuing to reinforce my opinion on that.

 

[candycorn]

And there you have the problem with the Democratic platform:

Trump sucks
Trump is bad
Trump is evil
Impeach Trump

But nothing to counter all the goods some of which is listed in Post #10.

Is that a winning strategy? If it is, this country is in terrible trouble.

Allowing students to re-negotiate their student loans
More funding for public health to mitigate the opioid crisis
Working with our allies (if there are any left after the blob gets through) to combat illegal immigration
Finding a way to reinvigorate the federal agencies who are being depleted by this pervert
Strengthening law enforcement through more interagency cooperation
Addressing the wage gap by encouraging a higher minimum wage

Just a few of the things democrats are talking about. Your vast amount of ignorance is only matched by your vast amount of intellectual dishonesty; or do you still think Trump never told a lie?

The Democrat agenda I am hearing--and I am listening--more free government stuff along with higher taxes, more regulation, roll back reforms, keep Obamacare as it was, etc. etc. etc.

But mostly Trump and anybody who supports his agenda suck.

There's room for both the Democratic party's good government stances as well as pointing out the vacuum of morality and decency that people like you occupy; yes.

The Democrats haven't shown us much 'good government stances' lately. And lately it is been pretty much Trump sucks and anybody who supports his agenda sucks. Thank you for continuing to reinforce that opinion.

Its pretty hard to do much with your agenda when you control neither house of the Congress or the Oval dear.

 

[doesanyoneknowmyname]

The poll is structured to allow multiple choice and you can change your vote if you have a change of heart.

It is said that the 2018 election may determine the course of this country for a very long time to come, probably for the rest of our lifetimes.

We are currently seeing numbers in the economy and in American society that we have not seen for a very long time:

--Record or near record low unemployment in almost all categories: black/white/Hispanic/Asian etc., high school diploma or less, women, youth, etc etc etc

--Individual and family incomes are rising again after steady decline in the Obama years and to some extent in the Bush43 years. That is mostly due to tax reform, removal of unnecessary regulation, and a pro-business approach resulting in more honest low unemployment numbers and business confidence and prosperity enabling employers to pass on higher profits to their employees via increased wages, bonuses, benefits etc.

--We are approaching the reality of the people being in charge of their government again via the ballot box instead of unelected, unaccountable courts and unelected, unaccountable faceless bureaucrats dictating what the law will be and how we are required to live our lives.

--We are seeing support for securing the border and enforcing necessary laws to protect and empower those in the country legally.

--We are seeing significantly less dependence on social services and more empowerment of people to choose and pursue their own destinies on their own initiatives.

--And for the first time in a long time we are seeing government policies that produce positive results initiated instead of what is 'politically correct' or what 'looks good' ideologically. And if Plan A doesn't produce the desired results, we are going to Plan B or C or whatever does produce the desired results instead of being stuck in a feckless status quo.

So where do you stand? Stay the course we are on keeping whatever policies are working? Or return to the policies of the previous Administration? Obviously a poll cannot include every possible issue or ideological stance, but how members respond to the options in the limited posted poll and vote in November and beyond will determine the direction the country will go.

"11. Government that decides what the law will be"

need clarification.....a Government that you DO trust or a Government that you DON'T trust...? Thanks.....

15; put evangelical dominionists and conservatives in every position in the government, re-write/shape the constitution to be a CHRISTIAN document, make the bible the law of the land and start punishing gods enemies; liberals, gays, feminists, muslims, wiccans, more liberals, rinos

16. Newt Gingrich "we must change the laws of the land to reflect our (christian) religious beliefs and see to it that they can NEVER BE CHANGED AGAIN!"

17. Roy Moore; the bible should be the source of law in America and gays should be criminalized.

18. Trump "VOTE FOR ROY MOORE!"

 

[Natural Citizen]

End The Fed!​

 

[doesanyoneknowmyname]

The poll is structured to allow multiple choice and you can change your vote if you have a change of heart.

It is said that the 2018 election may determine the course of this country for a very long time to come, probably for the rest of our lifetimes.

We are currently seeing numbers in the economy and in American society that we have not seen for a very long time:

--Record or near record low unemployment in almost all categories: black/white/Hispanic/Asian etc., high school diploma or less, women, youth, etc etc etc

--Individual and family incomes are rising again after steady decline in the Obama years and to some extent in the Bush43 years. That is mostly due to tax reform, removal of unnecessary regulation, and a pro-business approach resulting in more honest low unemployment numbers and business confidence and prosperity enabling employers to pass on higher profits to their employees via increased wages, bonuses, benefits etc.

--We are approaching the reality of the people being in charge of their government again via the ballot box instead of unelected, unaccountable courts and unelected, unaccountable faceless bureaucrats dictating what the law will be and how we are required to live our lives.

--We are seeing support for securing the border and enforcing necessary laws to protect and empower those in the country legally.

--We are seeing significantly less dependence on social services and more empowerment of people to choose and pursue their own destinies on their own initiatives.

--And for the first time in a long time we are seeing government policies that produce positive results initiated instead of what is 'politically correct' or what 'looks good' ideologically. And if Plan A doesn't produce the desired results, we are going to Plan B or C or whatever does produce the desired results instead of being stuck in a feckless status quo.

So where do you stand? Stay the course we are on keeping whatever policies are working? Or return to the policies of the previous Administration? Obviously a poll cannot include every possible issue or ideological stance, but how members respond to the options in the limited posted poll and vote in November and beyond will determine the direction the country will go.

" Courts that rule on what the law is"

I find this one confusing.....When a liberal judge does this (bases a ruling on his interpretation of the constitution) it REALLY pisses me off and I want to DEMAND that he just FOLLOW the law and NOT interpret it.....

but
when a conservative judge says (like roy moore) "I use the bible as MY source of law"...(ignoring the constitution completely)....I support him wholeheartedly!.......does this make me a hypocrite?
or an arsehole?
or just a moron?

 

[Foxfyre]

The poll is structured to allow multiple choice and you can change your vote if you have a change of heart.

It is said that the 2018 election may determine the course of this country for a very long time to come, probably for the rest of our lifetimes.

We are currently seeing numbers in the economy and in American society that we have not seen for a very long time:

--Record or near record low unemployment in almost all categories: black/white/Hispanic/Asian etc., high school diploma or less, women, youth, etc etc etc

--Individual and family incomes are rising again after steady decline in the Obama years and to some extent in the Bush43 years. That is mostly due to tax reform, removal of unnecessary regulation, and a pro-business approach resulting in more honest low unemployment numbers and business confidence and prosperity enabling employers to pass on higher profits to their employees via increased wages, bonuses, benefits etc.

--We are approaching the reality of the people being in charge of their government again via the ballot box instead of unelected, unaccountable courts and unelected, unaccountable faceless bureaucrats dictating what the law will be and how we are required to live our lives.

--We are seeing support for securing the border and enforcing necessary laws to protect and empower those in the country legally.

--We are seeing significantly less dependence on social services and more empowerment of people to choose and pursue their own destinies on their own initiatives.

--And for the first time in a long time we are seeing government policies that produce positive results initiated instead of what is 'politically correct' or what 'looks good' ideologically. And if Plan A doesn't produce the desired results, we are going to Plan B or C or whatever does produce the desired results instead of being stuck in a feckless status quo.

So where do you stand? Stay the course we are on keeping whatever policies are working? Or return to the policies of the previous Administration? Obviously a poll cannot include every possible issue or ideological stance, but how members respond to the options in the limited posted poll and vote in November and beyond will determine the direction the country will go.

"11. Government that decides what the law will be"

need clarification.....a Government that you DO trust or a Government that you DON'T trust...? Thanks.....

15; put evangelical dominionists and conservatives in every position in the government, re-write/shape the constitution to be a CHRISTIAN document, make the bible the law of the land and start punishing gods enemies; liberals, gays, feminists, muslims, wiccans, more liberals, rinos

16. Newt Gingrich "we must change the laws of the land to reflect our (christian) religious beliefs and see to it that they can NEVER BE CHANGED AGAIN!"

17. Roy Moore; the bible should be the source of law in America and gays should be criminalized.

18. Trump "VOTE FOR ROY MOORE!"

So you are of the Trump sucks, Trump's agenda sucks, anybody who supports Trump's agenda sucks group?

I'm sorry, but there are people in both parties who get it wrong, who are not mainstream, who hold opinions that most people reject. There are a lot of sinners in all political parties and saints are really hard to come by as there is no provision in place to 'approve' who will or will not be allowed to register as a member of a political party. To extrapolate that fact to insist that because one person holds an indefensible position on something, all others in that party hold that same position is not only absurd but patently intellectually dishonest.

And also a lot of people have their point of view and/or opinion so maliciously taken out of context and/or so distorted and/or so misrepresented as to be unrecognizable from what they actually have said or promoted.

At the same time, throughout human history, some of the most unlikeliest people have been raised up to accomplish great things. What a person has been is not always a good benchmark for who a person is and/or the vision and possibilities a person sees now.

 

[Foxfyre]

The poll is structured to allow multiple choice and you can change your vote if you have a change of heart.

It is said that the 2018 election may determine the course of this country for a very long time to come, probably for the rest of our lifetimes.

We are currently seeing numbers in the economy and in American society that we have not seen for a very long time:

--Record or near record low unemployment in almost all categories: black/white/Hispanic/Asian etc., high school diploma or less, women, youth, etc etc etc

--Individual and family incomes are rising again after steady decline in the Obama years and to some extent in the Bush43 years. That is mostly due to tax reform, removal of unnecessary regulation, and a pro-business approach resulting in more honest low unemployment numbers and business confidence and prosperity enabling employers to pass on higher profits to their employees via increased wages, bonuses, benefits etc.

--We are approaching the reality of the people being in charge of their government again via the ballot box instead of unelected, unaccountable courts and unelected, unaccountable faceless bureaucrats dictating what the law will be and how we are required to live our lives.

--We are seeing support for securing the border and enforcing necessary laws to protect and empower those in the country legally.

--We are seeing significantly less dependence on social services and more empowerment of people to choose and pursue their own destinies on their own initiatives.

--And for the first time in a long time we are seeing government policies that produce positive results initiated instead of what is 'politically correct' or what 'looks good' ideologically. And if Plan A doesn't produce the desired results, we are going to Plan B or C or whatever does produce the desired results instead of being stuck in a feckless status quo.

So where do you stand? Stay the course we are on keeping whatever policies are working? Or return to the policies of the previous Administration? Obviously a poll cannot include every possible issue or ideological stance, but how members respond to the options in the limited posted poll and vote in November and beyond will determine the direction the country will go.

" Courts that rule on what the law is"

I find this one confusing.....When a liberal judge does this (bases a ruling on his interpretation of the constitution) it REALLY pisses me off and I want to DEMAND that he just FOLLOW the law and NOT interpret it.....

but
when a conservative judge says (like roy moore) "I use the bible as MY source of law"...(ignoring the constitution completely)....I support him wholeheartedly!.......does this make me a hypocrite?
or an arsehole?
or just a moron?

Moore’s underlying philosophy of law is that only God and the Bible can be the source of moral authority. It is not given to the courts to dictate that. That is very different than saying that the Bible is his source of law. So let's keep it honest here.

The Constitution IS the original law of the land, and therefore a judge's interpretation of it is critical. I want judges who know and understand the original intent of the Constitution rather than judges who twist that into something they want the Constitution to say and/or what they think it should say.

And ditto re the law. It was not given to unelected judges to make federal laws and no state gives judges the authority to make state law. The Constitution and state constitutions give the people via the representatives THEY elect that authority and specify the process by which that is done. It is the duty of the courts to interpret the laws as intended by those representatives, and if the law is silent then so also should be the courts.

In my opinion, the court ruling that any given law is unconstitutional does not negate or change the law. It is imperative that the people's elective representatives have the obligation to change a bad law to conform to the Constitution as their sworn oath requires.