#third parties

[tomorrowusa]

Don't risk a rerun of the 2000 election.

In the first presidential election of the 21st century many deluded progressives voted for Green Party candidate Ralph Nader.

Their foolishness gave us eight years of George W. Bush who plagued the country with two recessions (including the Great Recession) and two wars (one totally unnecessary and one which could have been avoided if he heeded an intelligence brief 5 weeks before 9/11).

Oh yeah, Dubya also appointed one conservative and one batshit crazy reactionary to the US Supreme Court. Roberts and Alito are still there.

Paul Waldman of the Washington Post offers some thoughts.

Why leftists should work their hearts out for Biden in 2024

Ask a Democrat with a long memory what the numbers 97,488 and 537 represent, and their face will twist into a grimace. The first is the number of votes Ralph Nader received in Florida in 2000 as the nominee of the Green Party; the second is the margin by which George W. Bush was eventually certified the winner of the state, handing him the White House. Now, with President Biden gearing up for reelection, talk of a spoiler candidate from the left is again in the air. That’s unfortunate, because here’s the truth: The past 2½ years under Biden have been a triumph for progressivism, even if it’s not in most people’s interest to admit it. This was not what most people expected from Biden, who ran as a relative moderate in the 2020 Democratic primary. His nomination was a victory for pragmatism with its eyes directed toward the center. But today, no one can honestly deny that Biden is the most progressive president since at least Lyndon B. Johnson. His judicial appointments are more diverse than those of any of his predecessors. He has directed more resources to combating climate change than any other president. Notwithstanding the opposition from the Supreme Court, his administration has moved aggressively to forgive and restructure student loans.

Three years ago the economy was in horrible shape because of Trump's mishandling of the pandemic. Now unemployment is steadily below 4%, job creation continues to exceed expectations, and wages are rising as unions gain strength. The post-pandemic, post-Afghan War inflation rate has receded to near normal levels; people in the 1970s would have sold their souls for a 3.2% (and dropping) inflation rate. And many of the effects of "Bidenomics" have yet to kick in.

And in a story that is criminally underappreciated, his administration’s policy reaction to the covid-induced recession of 2020 was revolutionary in precisely the ways any good leftist should favor. It embraced massive government intervention to stave off the worst economic impacts, including handing millions of families monthly checks (by expanding the child tax credit), giving all kids in public schools free meals, boosting unemployment insurance and extending health coverage to millions.

It worked. While inflation rose (as it did worldwide), the economy’s recovery has been blisteringly fast. It took more than six years for employment rates to return to what they were before the Great Recession hit in 2008, but we surpassed January 2020 jobs levels by the spring of 2022 — and have kept adding jobs ever since. To the idealistic leftist, that might feel like both old news and a partial victory at best. What about everything supporters of Bernie Sanders have found so thrilling about the Vermont senator’s vision of the future, from universal health care to free college? It’s true Biden was never going to deliver that, but to be honest, neither would Sanders had he been elected president. And that brings me to the heart of how people on the left ought to think about Biden and his reelection.

Biden has gotten things done. The US economy is doing better than those of almost every other advanced industrialized country.

Our rivals China and Russia are both worse off than they were three years ago. And NATO is not just united, it's growing.

Sadly, we still need to deal with a far right MAGA cult at home who would wreck the country just to get its own way.

Biden may be elderly and unexciting, but that is one of the reasons he won in 2020. Many people just wanted an end to the daily drama of Trump's capricious and incompetent rule by tweet. And a good portion of those people live in places that count greatly in elections – suburbs and exurbs.

Superhero films seem to be slipping in popularity. Hopefully that's a sign that voters are less likely to embrace self-appointed political messiahs to save them from themselves.

Good governance is a steady process – not a collection of magic tricks. Experienced and competent individuals who are not too far removed from the lives of the people they represent are the best people to have in government.

Paul Waldman concludes his column speaking from the heart as a liberal...

I’ve been in and around politics for many years, and even among liberals, I’ve almost always been one of the most liberal people in the room. Yet only since Biden’s election have I realized that I will probably never see a president as liberal as I’d like. It’s not an easy idea to make peace with. But it suggests a different way of thinking about elections — as one necessary step in a long, difficult process. The further you are to the left, the more important Biden’s reelection ought to be to you. It might require emotional (and policy) compromise, but for now, it’s also the most important tool you have to achieve progressive ends.

Exactly. Rightwingers take the long view. It took them 49 years but they eventually got Roe v. Wade overturned. To succeed, we need to look upon politics as an extended marathon rather as one short sprint.

Republicans may currently be bickering, but they will most likely unite behind whichever anti-abortion extremist they nominate.

It's necessary to get the word out now that the only way to defeat climate-denying, abortion-restricting, assault weapon-loving, race-baiting, homophobic Republicans is to vote Democratic.

#paul waldman #liberalism #election 2000 #election 2024 #joe biden #third parties #vote blue no matter who #donald trump #dumpster fire #trumpster fire #fascism vs. democracy #nra republicans #abortion #climate change #lgbtq+ rights #race-baiting #take the political long view #phil hands

[offical-firefox-nightly]

Hey guys, uh I need y'all to do me a favor-

Go to each of your blogs' settings and turn the highlighted settings on- it'll opt you out of being shared to third parties, including being trained for AI. Unless you want to be used for AI idk up to you. Sorry not sorry for the ping btw.

@claires-unofficial @nasa-real @totally-dollar-tree @totally-official-yahoo @totally-official-goodwill @the-true-internet-explorer @realsafari @im-pandora-i-promise @the-tumblur-searchbar @definitely-wikipedia @firefox-official @official-fedex @its-target-official @hot-topic-unofficial @spotify-official @walmart-the-official @the-real-google @the-real-firefox @totally-ikea @yahoo-official @mcdonalds-official-verified @official-opera-gx @official-chai @theveryrealvine @bingle-official @intothegimmickverseofficial @spotify-kids-real @same-pic-of-pluto-everyday @sams-club-official @same-pic-of-neptune-everyday @same-pic-of-a-dictionary-daily @the-one-and-only-pornhub @post-uwuifer @definitely-spirit-halloween @definitely-youtube @definitely-tor-browser-official @scottishslenderman @slenderdawg @robloxian-slenderman @the-fake-list-of-ominous-threats @bitchlessslenderman @gimmick-blog-stimboards @are-there-grammar-errors @grammarly-unofficial @important-question-anon uh I probably forgot a gazillion people but that's okay

#firefox nightly says #this is very important #ai training #tumblr settings #opt out #third parties #reblog this #gimmick account #gimmick blog #corpo blog #corporation blog #this bug will be fixed in the next updates

[mostlysignssomeportents]

When parties fail, movements step up

This Saturday (19 Aug), I'm appearing at the San Diego Union-Tribune Festival of Books. I'm on a 2:30PM panel called "Return From Retirement," followed by a signing:

https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/festivalofbooks

Does anyone like the American two party system? The parties are opaque, private organizations, weak institutions that are prone to capture and corruption, and gerrymandering's "safe seats" means that the real election often takes place in the party's smoke-filled rooms, when a sure-thing candidate is selected:

https://doctorow.medium.com/weak-institutions-a26a20927b27

But there doesn't seem to be any way to fix it. For one thing, the two parties are in charge of any reform, and they're in no hurry to put themselves out of business. It's effectively impossible for a third party to gain any serious power in the USA, and that's by design. After the leftist Populists party came within a spitting distance of power in the 1890s, the Dems and Repubs got together and cooked the system, banning fusion voting and erecting other structural barriers.

The Nader and Perot campaigns were doomed from the outset, in other words. Either candidate could have been far more popular than the D and R on the ballot, and they still would have lost. It's how the deck is stacked, and to unstack it, reformers would need to take charge of at least one – and probably both – of the parties.

But that's not cause for surrender – it's a call to action. In an interview with Seymour Hersh, Thomas Frank (Listen, Liberal) sets out another locus of power, one with the potential to deliver control over the party to its base: social movements:

https://seymourhersh.substack.com/p/ordinary-people-by-the-millions

It's been done before. The parties are routinely transformed by power-shifts within their internal coalitions: since 1970, corporate Dems have consistently pushed the party to the right, making it the power of white-collar professionals and relying on working people showing up and marking their ballots with a D because they have "nowhere else to go."

Bill Clinton was the most successful of these corporate raiders, delivering the parts of the Reagan Revolution that Reagan himself could never have managed: dismantling tariffs and bank regulations, passing the crime bill and welfare "reform." He came within a whisper of (partially) privatizing Social Security.

This set in motion the forces that made Trumpism possible: when Dems told deindustrialized workers to "learn to code" and blamed them for the destruction of their communities, it opened a space for Make America Great Again, the (empty) workerist rhetoric of the GOP. The Dems' plan of putting "really smart people" in charge and letting them run things was a (predictable) disaster. "Really smart" isn't the same as "infallible" and really smart people can be spooked or bulled into doing the wrong thing – like Obama "foaming the runways" for the banks with the houses of mortgage holders, and leaving the bankers responsible for the Great Financial Crisis unscathed:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/03/15/mon-dieu-les-guillotines/#ceci-nes-pas-une-bailout

"Really smart people" can't get us out of this mess. Instead, we need the kind of muscular political action – the "whirlwind" – that characterized FDR's New Deal: "complete reformation of the banking industry.. just about every other industry as well. Regulation. Social Security. Public works. Antitrust. Soil conservation."

FDR got there by alienating his former classmates and refusing the go-slow entreaties of his cronies. He got there because there was a mass social movement that made him do it ("I want to do it, now make me do it"):

https://humanizingthevacuum.wordpress.com/2014/09/16/i-agree-with-you-i-want-to-do-it-now-make-me-do-it/

Every time in US history where one of the political party duopoly listened to its base, it was because of a mass social movement: the farmers' movement (1890s), labor (1930s), civil rights and antiwar (1960s). As Frank says:

Social movements succeed. They build and they change the intellectual climate and then, when the crisis comes, they make possible things like agrarian reform or the New Deal or the Civil Rights acts of the 1960s.

Today, we see the seeds of those social movements: the new union movement. Black Lives Matter. Neobrandeisians with their "hipster antitrust." These are the movements that are creating "ideas lying around": ideas that, in time of crisis, can move from the fringe to the center in an eyeblink:

https://doctorow.medium.com/ideas-lying-around-33a28901a7ae

They are setting in motion another transformation of the Democratic Party, from its top-down, "really smart people" model to a bottom-up, people-powered one, kept in check by movements, not party bosses. As Frank says, "They require the mass participation of ordinary people. Without that, I am afraid that nothing is possible."

I'm kickstarting the audiobook for "The Internet Con: How To Seize the Means of Computation," a Big Tech disassembly manual to disenshittify the web and make a new, good internet to succeed the old, good internet. It's a DRM-free book, which means Audible won't carry it, so this crowdfunder is essential. Back now to get the audio, Verso hardcover and ebook:

http://seizethemeansofcomputation.org

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/08/17/popular-front-of-judea/#speaking-frankly

#pluralistic #sy hersh #theories of change #third parties #us politics #thomas frank #unions #labor #organized labor #civil rights movement #black lives matter #dinos #entryism #occupy democrats

[theculturedmarxist]

"Why bother voting for a third party? It's not like they can actually win."

First, "winning" shouldn't be your singular goal. There's more to the campaign than winning. At the very, very least, it's an expression of discontent, which can send a powerful message to the people.

Second, if the choice is between a Theocratic Fascist Dictator™, a Genocidal War Criminal, and someone who isn't either of those things, then why on Earth would you not give your vote to someone that isn't horrible.

Third, third party campaign finance is determined in part by how well they poll on election day. If a candidate gets more than 5% of the vote, they qualify for campaign contributions from the government. Voting third party materially benefits them.

#third parties #voting

[decolonize-the-left]

"Politicians are wonderful ideas but what you need is change. You don't need some icon. You need someone that is going to make sure you can feed your family, educate your children, spend time with them." - Jasmine Sherman

Debate starts at 2:05:25

A good watch for most people who wanna know if 3rd parties know what they're talking about, watch them debate, or learn about other candidates!

#american politics #american election #2024 primaries #2024 elections #voting #electoral politics #usa #third parties #leftist #progressive #green party #socialism #democracy #anarchists #lgbt #human rights #equal rights #roe v wade #pro choice #anti racism #equality #feminism #classism #joe biden #Claudia de la cruz #jasmine Sherman #claudia karina 2024 #jasmine sherman #jasmine sherman 2024 #vbnmw

[nodynasty4us]

If you vote for Cornel West or Robert Kennedy Jr this year, you are — shall we not put too fine a point on it? — a moron. You’re making a meaningless choice in the most meaningful election in modern American history so as to indulge your narcissistic sense of self-righteousness.

Steve Erickson, 13 New Year’s Resolutions for Saving Democracy - The Le...

#third parties #nobody #featured

[nansheonearth]

And on that note, the green party is such a trash party.

I'm only registered green because of their current national ballot access. It seems like they've lost a lot of momentum. Less candidates run and less candidates get elected each year. And I feel that has to do with the level of professionalism that goes into the party. The website really needs an entire update on functionality and there are tons of typos and links that are messed up. A scene kid from myspace could make a better website. Under the 2024 candidates page (a page that isn't a list of candidates, but a feed of articles including some relating to candidates) there's a picture of a candidate where most of his face isn't even in the picture.

When it comes to candidates my biggest gripe is that many don't take the time to make a campaign website. In 2024, it's pretty much a requirement to at least have something come up in your name in a search engine. Second gripe is that many seem to think an ill fitting polo is formal wear and most don't even think that is a requirement. No one is going to elect someone who only wears tshirts and cargos.

I've wanted to get involved myself over a decade ago and was even asked by another candidate to run but now my focus is on women. Regardless of which party is picked I would still have to fight for female liberation under any of their platforms. I'm more invested in a push for ranked choice voting when it comes to elections.

(Third gripe, the green party is a total sausage fest)

#radfem #elections #2024 election #2028 election #green party #third parties #o #ranked choice voting #usa

[sagittariusmars2]

(Top to bottom) how they feel about you vs third party

Pile 1

I see that they feel like the third party is mean or has high defenses, I see that they feel like they don’t know to handle the situation and they feel unbalanced. I see that they have hope the connection will get better or they can find some peace with the third party. I see that they want you to be patient with them to figure things out, they love your body and they like having sex with you but they’re not ready to be emotionally intimate. I see that they’re getting advice about what to do and they still are confused, they’re scared of being serious with you so they may purposely sabotage things. They feel a emotional connection with you that scares them, I see that they don’t want to hurt you or the third party. Signs- Sagittarius/cancer. Initials- L, O, Z

Pile 2

I see that they get overly emotional or have anxiety about the third party, I see that they think about the connection a lot and they feel defeated. I see that they wanted something more stable and fulfilling, I see that they feel like they had to walk away from something they put alot of energy into. I see that they go back and forth in their head about how much they like you or how much they like you compared to the third party. I see that they’re trying to listen to their intuition and they want to compromise to make things work, I see that you mean a lot to them and they desire you badly. You give them a lot of emotional fulfillment. Signs- Capricorn/cancer. Initials- M, F, B, R

Pile 3

I see that they have alot of passion for the third party and they have a lot of fun together, they’re very attracted to them and their confidence. I see that they have a lot of sexual desires for them. I see that they want you to be patient for them, they know they have feelings for you but they need to be more balanced. I see that they feel like you give them a lot of emotional fulfillment and they’re sexually attracted to you to, they feel like they need time and space but they do want a reconciliation. I see that they don’t know what the future holds for you and they don’t think they would get along with your family. Signs- Aquarius, Taurus, Aries. Initials- Y, E, O,G

Pile 4

I see that they overthink a lot about the third party, I see they know already that the third party won’t work out but they’re trying to be patient and see what happens. I see that they are ignoring the red flags and feel like they’re trapped between doing the right things and giving in to their desires. I see that they may not be on good terms with the third party or the third party has strong boundaries, i see that they want to be friends with the third party. I see that they feel like you give them a lot of emotional fulfillment and they have strong feelings for you but they wonder how you feel about them, i see that they’re very attracted to you and they want to see you or have sex with you. I see that they know you were right about something you told them and they don’t want to lose you. Signs- Capricorn, Taurus, Aries. Initials- J, W, Y, G, Q

Personal readings always available, please watch my pick a card reading on YouTube

#scorpio #cancer #leo #gemini #watersigns #water signs #intuitive #tarot #tarotcommunity #intuitive readings #oracle #oracle reading #tarot reading #cartomancy #spirituality #pac #third parties #love pick a card #love reading #general reading #tarot readers of tumblr #tarotblr #tarot pac #oraclereader #oracle community #oracle cards #spiritual advisor #card divination #trending #viral

[originalleftist]

Robert Kennedy Jr. is not a third party alternative.

He is a friend of Trumpers, his campaign is staffed by Trumpers, and its goal is to help Trump win. He is a MAGA Trojan Horse.

#US #Politics #Election #2024 #Third Parties #RFK Jr. #Anti-Vaxxer #Traitor #January 6th #Trojan Horse #The Worst Kennedy #Vote Blue

[fieriframes]

[Cathedra or to impress third parties, but speaking directly.]

#s15e09 handcrafted #guy fieri #guyfieri #diners drive-ins and dives #third parties #cathedra

[tomorrowusa]

Trump minions.

A reminder that Jill Stein already has a record of serving as a useful idiot for Trump. She and Trump's future National Security Adviser (and still QAnon fanatic) Michael Flynn were in Moscow in 2015 for an anniversary celebration for RT – Russia's international propaganda channel. You don't sit at Putin's table just because he enjoys your delightful dinner conversation.

Trump himself is a useful idiot for Vladimir Putin. Hapless third party losers are useful idiots for a useful idiot. SAD!

#donald trump #third parties #trump's useful idiots #vladimir putin #russia #election 2016 #jill stein #joe manchin #cornel west #rfk jr #michael flynn #election 2024 #mike luckovich

[social-battery-low]

A vote for something is a vote for that thing. That's how voting works. So, a vote for third party is a vote for third party. If third parties don't win, it's only because YOU don't vote for them. YOU DON'T HAVE TO VOTE FOR RED OR BLUE. Those two WANT you to think you have no choice because it's in THEIR best interest, NOT YOURS. If you truly care so much about democracy, then protect and advocate for the right to vote for parties outside of the duopoly. Get mad and stay mad at those in power, not your neighbors.

#abandon biden #joe biden #palestine #free gaza #voting #third parties #genocide joe #donald trump #both parties are genocidal

[racefortheironthrone]

What was the most successful third party electorally? What was the most successful third party in terms of getting their policies enacted?

Ok, I'm going to assume that you're referring to third parties in American politics as opposed to countries where multi-party political systems - proportional representation parliamentary regimes and the like - are the dominant form of politics.

This is a bit of a tricky question, because it depends a little bit on what your criteria for success are. For example, if we're talking about electoral success, are we talking about their proportion of the popular vote for president (in which case it's Teddy Roosevelt in 1912), the raw number of votes for president (in which case it's Ross Perot in the 90s), or their performance in Congressional elections and state and local elections (in which case, we're probably talking about the Populist or People's Party in the 1890s)?

However, if we're talking policy success, leaving aside single-issue parties like the Greenback Party or what have you, where success or failure becomes a bit binary, I would have to say that the Populist Party probably takes this one. Not only did they get the system of initiative, referendum, and recall adopted pretty widely across the United States at the state level, but a lot of their policy ideas about the regulation of banks and railroads, monetary policy, direct federal support for farmers, legalization of unions, etc. were eventually adopted during the Progressive Era and the New Deal in some form.

#history #american history #third parties

[theculturedmarxist]

Democrats are mounting a coordinated mission to kill a third-party presidential bid — and it’s coming soon to Capitol Hill.

Officials from the progressive group MoveOn and centrist group Third Way are planning to brief Senate Democratic chiefs of staff on July 27, according to an invitation obtained by POLITICO. It’s part of an effort to educate Democrats about the risk that a third-party bid funded by the well-heeled group No Labels could pose to President Joe Biden — particularly if centrist Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) runs for president rather than reelection.

You know, you really wouldn't have this kind of problem if you gave people a reason to vote for your party aside from "you don't want the bad guys to win, do you?"

#democrats #third parties #2024 presidential election

[shiftingforyeonjun]

If you’re manifesting a specific person and they are with someone else, it’s still possible.

Third parties DONT MATTER!

My ex came back after 5 years and within the 5 years, he got married… and he STILL came back.

Don’t lose hope. It’s possible.

#shiftingforyeonjun #shifting #shiftblr #kpop shifting #shifting kpop #shifting realities #tomorrow x tomorrow #manifest specific person #manifest an ex #manifest #manifestation #manifesting #specific person #third party #third parties #loa #law of attraction #law of expectancy #law of manifestation #law of assumption

[nodynasty4us]

Will disgruntled young people vote in surprising numbers for Jill Stein? Will they refuse to vote? Will they conclude that Trump isn't the staus quo and Biden is, so voting for Trump is kinda-sorta like voting for Bernie? Or will they come home to Biden? It'll be some combination of those, but I don't know the proportions.

No More Mister Nice Blog: A GOOD POLL FOR BIDEN, WITH SOME UNSETTLING RESULTS

#polls #young people #third parties #jill stein