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Why can far right politicians get elected in the US, but leftist politicians rarely can?
- Thread starter ToddBonzalez
- Start date
It annoys me when people say this because it isn't true. And it's quite literally parroting a Republican talking point used to justify anti-democratic structures and actions.
America is clearly a center-left country, evidenced by the fact that a Republican has only won the popular vote in a presidential election once in the past 30 years. Also, take a look at national public opinion polling on nearly every policy issue.
Our broken political system favors conservatives. That much is true. That doesn't mean our actual country is "inherently conservative."
Because corporations and billionaires run America and have essentially designed the overton window so that it excludes anything further left than milquetoast safety net policies. I also think cold war propaganda plays a part; boomers (and generations older than boomers) grew up in a world surrounded by anti-communist/left propaganda and that shaped their worldview, which makes leftist dialogue a hard pill to swallow
This is an extreme oversimplification though. A comprehensive answer would need to look at the history of the country as a whole, which I don't feel qualified write. But colonialist right wing politics are inherently intertwined with the history of America.
This is an extreme oversimplification though. A comprehensive answer would need to look at the history of the country as a whole, which I don't feel qualified write. But colonialist right wing politics are inherently intertwined with the history of America.
I really don't think it's a big ask for 1) defining what we mean by "far" left and right, and 2) some actual numbers instead of a few examples.
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Do you see the Democratic Party dealing with a socialist or fuck even a proper social democratic takeover of the party?
Nope
Do you see the Republicans embracing s fascist white nationalist extremist takeover of the party.
Absolutely
There you go.
The Republican Party backs up the far right. They often have complete party unity at all costs. The democratic establishment actively smear and actively dismiss more left leaning politicians. If your own party isn't with you, then it's hard to bring out the base.
Gerrymandering.
repulicans play the state and local game better, which allow them to push even the most extreme candidates up to the national spot light.
And by better I mean they cheat to win, constantly
not only that, but the Democratic part is a loose coalition rather than a United front. The republicans enjoy a base who completely goes with the flow. There party leaders flip on a whim, and the base follows without question.
repulicans play the state and local game better, which allow them to push even the most extreme candidates up to the national spot light.
And by better I mean they cheat to win, constantly
not only that, but the Democratic part is a loose coalition rather than a United front. The republicans enjoy a base who completely goes with the flow. There party leaders flip on a whim, and the base follows without question.
As others have said the left is more of a loose coalition of interest groups than the GOP,
Yes they OVERALL agree, but there is a shitton of contention over what the priority is and whenever one item gets pushed, the other factions get contentious over the "real priority" getting ignored. Whether it is civil rights issues, climate, socialism, etc, etc, etc. They only play nice until one gets pushed to the forefront.
At least that is my experience.
Yes they OVERALL agree, but there is a shitton of contention over what the priority is and whenever one item gets pushed, the other factions get contentious over the "real priority" getting ignored. Whether it is civil rights issues, climate, socialism, etc, etc, etc. They only play nice until one gets pushed to the forefront.
At least that is my experience.
Republicans don't care who they vote for as long as they have a R beside their name. Democrats are only loosely united. A centrist Democrat may not vote for a leftist democrat and a leftist may not vote for a centrist but a Republican will usually be fine voting for most other republicans.
The right will say, "well I can't let the democrat win." While the left will say, " I can't bring myself to vote for this person because of this......... can I have another option."
The right will say, "well I can't let the democrat win." While the left will say, " I can't bring myself to vote for this person because of this......... can I have another option."
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a combination of these things is the answer to OP.
It began during the Red Scare when communism = bad, then the right wing decided to equate socialism to communism, and since the communism = bad messaging had already been running, it stuck.
Depends on who you ask. Biden is supposedly the most communist leftist radical ever elected according to the opposition.
Let's not forget that the Democratic Party is barely two decades removed from outright right wing "centrism". They are still incredibly beholden to elite corporate interests despite their socially progressive appearance and virtue signaling.
At the end of the day, to be conservative is to be selfish, while to be progressive is to be selfless.
It's easier to be cruel than kind. It's easier to care about yourself than others.
Politicians on the far right champion self preservation, divisiveness, fear of the other. It's easier to uncritically vote for a party that has these values. It takes more effort to want to take care of others.
It's easier to be cruel than kind. It's easier to care about yourself than others.
Politicians on the far right champion self preservation, divisiveness, fear of the other. It's easier to uncritically vote for a party that has these values. It takes more effort to want to take care of others.
The American left is in its infancy. They still don't have a party or any kind of real structure to organize around.
The American far-right is the nation's founding institution. They have the influence and the means necessary to get their people elected.
The American far-right is the nation's founding institution. They have the influence and the means necessary to get their people elected.
well this covers most of it. The point on gerrymandering can't be understated. Republicans gained a huge advantage in redistricting after the 2010 midterms, and that advantage will be further compounded after this year's redistricting unless congressional Democrats do something to stop it.
As the system exists now, many Republicans are in extremely safe, gerrymandered seats that assure them a victory in the general, meaning they only really fear a primary to their right. Which naturally has only accelerated the party's march to the right.
Depends if you are talking population or geography. California skews the population vote because of how big and mostly democrat it is. But the south, se, midwest are all incredibly conservative and this is the only country in the world where evangelical christianity has any say in politics. This is still a conservative country. It's trending away from that. But 74 million people just voted for Trump, it's a conservative leaning country.
This. It's left over jingoistic brain washing from the cold war era.
The American rich ruling class have set up the system of governance in the US. to make sure that it is nigh impossible for it to happen. Everything from the Gerrymandering, Winner-Takes-All voting system, the Congress, Senate and Presidency intermingling, Lobbying and so on is all to make sure that the rich will always have the upper hand. Then just pump a steady stream of propaganda to the uneducated base of America through privately owned channels like Rupert Murdochs that tells people that everything Marxist related is cursed and will come to eat their babies, and you got a solid following of people who will vote the way you want them to.
America was founded on corruption (the entire revolutionary war by the founders was a massive tax evasion plan for the rich) and it will stay corrupted until the American people begins a second revolution. No amount of reforms is gonna change it. The American people have to walk out in force waving the red flag of the proletariat in active defiance of the bourgeois to be free from this.
There are human societies where humbleness and sharing are instead emphasized and desired traits, and so the people growing up in them become so. Like a hunter who has done a remarkable kill who comes back and when asked about it downplays it and begins the process of sharing his catch with the rest of the tribe. It's not innate within us to how we turn, it's something that our environment shapes us into.
America was founded on corruption (the entire revolutionary war by the founders was a massive tax evasion plan for the rich) and it will stay corrupted until the American people begins a second revolution. No amount of reforms is gonna change it. The American people have to walk out in force waving the red flag of the proletariat in active defiance of the bourgeois to be free from this.
Thing is, those things many call "human instinct" and so on like hate, greed etc. is nothing but human traits emphasized by the culture and society around them. A capitalist society will always emphasize the importance of being greedy, being selfish and so on.
There are human societies where humbleness and sharing are instead emphasized and desired traits, and so the people growing up in them become so. Like a hunter who has done a remarkable kill who comes back and when asked about it downplays it and begins the process of sharing his catch with the rest of the tribe. It's not innate within us to how we turn, it's something that our environment shapes us into.
I don't think people understand how much money and resources were spent giving leftism a bad name in the 20th century. Off the top of my head -
- McCarty-ism and the FBI keeping notes of anyone remotely left of center, tons of arrests and propaganda. People forget you could, in a "free" country, get blacklisted from working purely due to your politics
- The CIA engineering coups in countries that elected leftist leaders and sanctions on those countries that impoverished them, "proving" that leftists politics are bad
- Cold War paranoia
And lastly, the Dems simply don't want leftist politicians among their ranks. Ever since Bill Clinton, they've been slightly left of center and friendly with Wall St and big business. Meanwhile the GOP will let in anyone that votes red.
- McCarty-ism and the FBI keeping notes of anyone remotely left of center, tons of arrests and propaganda. People forget you could, in a "free" country, get blacklisted from working purely due to your politics
- The CIA engineering coups in countries that elected leftist leaders and sanctions on those countries that impoverished them, "proving" that leftists politics are bad
- Cold War paranoia
And lastly, the Dems simply don't want leftist politicians among their ranks. Ever since Bill Clinton, they've been slightly left of center and friendly with Wall St and big business. Meanwhile the GOP will let in anyone that votes red.
I'm centrist, slightly center right in my country (which is functionally somewhere in between AOC and Buttigieg in the US), but the truth of the matter is that right wing politics is a bit like the Dark Side. Quicker, easier, more seductive. Privileged too.
It's a whole of a lot easier to say "we should all pay less taxes so fewer freeloaders mooch off it!", than to say "actually we should raise taxes, even though that means you will get less money for working hard, and others will get more money on the dole, because this strengthens the resilience of our society, as it increases the self-efficacy of people down on their luck to contribute and the leveling of income will ultimately lead to... (add another ten minutes of sociological discourse to make it fit)". In our hyperfast media landscape, where nobody speaks on CNN for longer than ten seconds, good luck with getting that second message across ever again.
It's a whole of a lot easier to say "we should all pay less taxes so fewer freeloaders mooch off it!", than to say "actually we should raise taxes, even though that means you will get less money for working hard, and others will get more money on the dole, because this strengthens the resilience of our society, as it increases the self-efficacy of people down on their luck to contribute and the leveling of income will ultimately lead to... (add another ten minutes of sociological discourse to make it fit)". In our hyperfast media landscape, where nobody speaks on CNN for longer than ten seconds, good luck with getting that second message across ever again.
Leftist policies consistently poll highly amongst Americans, but we'll be damned if we ever choose to elect those who want to enact those policies.
Far left candidates are further away from what most people consider the 'center' than the far right is. It's less of a difference.
See: overton window.
See: overton window.
America is a conservative country at heart, and the big donors aren't going to give money to candidates who wish to them down a peg (aka leftist candidates).
This country is the sum of its parts. Taken together, it is absolutely not a conservative country. Conservative regions? Conservative states? Yes, absolutely. But the country is not conservative. The strength of conservatism in this country right now is almost entirely structural, not cultural. If we were to rid ourselves of things like legislative gerrymandering, the electoral college, and the Senate, the United States would absolutely resemble a Western European-style social democracy.
Also, regarding the bolded statement: There are numerous countries around the world where conservative Christianity is far more culturally dominant than it is here. In Africa. In Latin America. In Eastern Europe and Russia. Many of these countries still outlaw things like homosexuality and abortion and punish them extremely harshly. There are certainly unique aspects to white evangelical Christianity and its role in American politics and culture, but we aren't even close to a number of countries in terms of the cultural and legal power of conservative Christianity.
Bingo. Anything to help out non whites any sliver is frowned upon.
On both sides.
This is the correct answer, but to realize that requires people looking outside America, so good luck with that.
Same with "America can't have healthcare" and "America can't ban guns", really.
The right falls in line, the left falls in love, though in the opposite way you would expect from the idiom. Conservative politics are focused predominantly on emotions, especially on the far right, while liberals spend a lot of time and energy debating policy with less emphasis on calls for passionate action. At the end of their day people vote with their gut more than their brain and conservatives focus way more on the gut. And that's not exclusive to the US, the far left struggles just about everywhere for this same reason
Capitalism is inherently right wing. The far right is not anti-capitalist, the far left is so you can wonder why both political parties in a bougie democracy would try to defang the far left as much as possible, of course not just the political parties but our government agencies.
Due to the history of racism in this country as well, it has been used as a wedge to divide workers and limit or prevent mass organization. More recently the exportation of so many of the manufacturing jobs has been a significant blow against the potential for mass organizing of the working class.
Due to the history of racism in this country as well, it has been used as a wedge to divide workers and limit or prevent mass organization. More recently the exportation of so many of the manufacturing jobs has been a significant blow against the potential for mass organizing of the working class.
First post nails it. Its a multi-issue reason that won't be changed until the culture of america fundamentally changes.
You can only hold this view of you think the Democrats are actually a left wing party. Which they aren't (unless more AOC's get in there). America is a conservative country not because of Republicans but because the "left wing" party would be considered conservative else where in the would. At the end of the day both Dems and Republicans are in favor of our current corporate plutocracy. It's just that the Dems are better at social issues than the Republicans. That's why leftist are frustrated with Dems. They are likely to take the conservative position on economic issues.
It's definitely an interesting phenomenon. Nobody asks Republicans to moderate their positions or compromise.
The concern over a Democrat being too far left while never asking if Republicans are too right wing astounds me.
The concern over a Democrat being too far left while never asking if Republicans are too right wing astounds me.
U.S. is a right leaning country, the GOP is largely homogenous among white people fueled by fear, hate, and selfishness, which are much easier to promote than complex social policy based around deeper understandings of historical inequality and other reflections that require the ability to self-criticize and sacrifice.
Many democrats (voters) have very centrist views. Folks like Bernie are too radical for many still.
The GOP is full of idiots, so the far right garbage is easier for them to consume and still is in line with many of their beliefs
The GOP is full of idiots, so the far right garbage is easier for them to consume and still is in line with many of their beliefs
Taxes.
So, greed and caring only for one's self. That, above all, is America's m.o.
That and everyone who grew up from the 1950s-1980s still thinks of the world in terms of the Cold War.
So, greed and caring only for one's self. That, above all, is America's m.o.
That and everyone who grew up from the 1950s-1980s still thinks of the world in terms of the Cold War.
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Yep. These fuel voter suppression, American exceptionalism, hypervaluation of Evangelical/Fundamentalist Christian values, anti-blackness, political apathy, American Individualism, disinformation, economic inequality and other elements that make America devalue empathetic & humane treatment for every citizen regardless of status, ethnicity, gender or sex (or rather say that such is an American value while not putting it into action) & pursue ideals of "personal responsibility" & meritocracy that fools so many into thinking that those in the elite class have "earned" what they have & the disenfranchised aren't just not worthy of equal treatment but are active enemies of the people who think that America is an automatically fair country with zero problems, current or historical, beyond "welfare classes" who want "handouts" or "minorities" who want to oppress straight, white Christians.
All those examples you listed are recent and for good reason. The Republican party and the Democratic party when it was what the Republican party is now failed pushing far right candidates after the civil war. There is something about our current culture that allowed this strategy to work so well nowadays.
Georgia proved that the Republicans broke this long standing streak. Whether or not this is just a symptom of Trump's power remains to be seen but the fracture points have been obvious since 2016.