Split The Right?

Should the left make a concerted effort to split the right?

Ralph Nader has been accused of using the Green party to split the left. Whether or not there is truth to the accusation, does anyone here think that BushCo is above such behavior?

Perhaps the Dems should support a Libertarian challenge to BushCo and the Neocons.

I believe us to be at war, a grass roots war to save Democracy. In war, efforts to divide the oppositional alliances are pretty standard.

What does the Democratic party stand to lose?

:dem:

but would he be agreeble? Then there's the problem of money, Bush's war chest is deeper than any war chest in history.

The right had their "spoiler" and the left had their "spoiler". The right was united, we were not. Yes, I know we got more votes. But Buchanan got minimal votes almost everywhere and many less than Nader did.

The right is united behind winning and picking and choosing battles in the hopes of advancing an overall agenda. We are united by nothing, and consist of pockets of people who demand ideological purity but only in the way that they specifically want it to manifest itself.

The prime example is the fact that at pro-life rallies or any right ring rallies you don't see placards or signs about issues that have nothing to do with the rally.

At left wing or liberal rallies or protests you see every single yahoo with an axe to grind about anything bringing in his or her own agenda to the point where it fractures us.

saw a post from a Libertarian who was itching to vote Dem next fall in order to spank Bu$h for being such a big spender.

Said something to the effect of "If we have to have someone in D.C. spending billions of dollars, better they spend it here at home than in Iraq."

Hope that lots of other Libbers feel the same way!

...is to run a pro-life candidate who's otherwise liberal, especially on economic issues; in other words, a neoprogressive. This neopro should run as an independent, primarily stressing his or her conservative views on social issues, especially on abortion and/or same-sex marriage, while downplaying his/her leftist economic views.

What is a "leftist economic view"?

In respose to this thread, just let me say that the wedge issue is this:
Republi-CONS have created the largest (fill in the blank) deficit, govt agency, denial of judicial rights, undeclared war, trade deficit, treaty busting, lying,____________ administration ever in the 200 year history of this here Democratic Republic of the United States.

You can't split the right on economics, because economics are the only thing that holds them all together.

There are all kinds of factions on the Republican side that can't stand each other - usually one faction has the upper hand and plays the others and throws them a bone once in a while (like Ashcroft).

Libertarians and Republicans have had an uneasy relationship for some time, and there is much muttering amongst libertarians that BushCo has sold them down the river, giving up the ideas of smaller government to build a military machine to "fight terrorism."

The Libs dealt with the defecit spending during Reagan, because they understood the logic behind outspending the USSR into political and economic collapse.

They are not so happy about the "war on terrorism" because they are quite against the Patriot Bill, and Orwellian acts against US citizens by elected officials.

I'm telling you, the Right only seems to be united. It is a splintering coalition, ready to be shattered.

I say we help it along.

They, like us, are a collection of different interests, (Pro gun, pro choice, pro business, limited gov't, strong military, aggresive foreign policy, etc.)but their interest groups are willing to each give up something to gain the victory and then are willing to accept a few slices of the loaf of bread instead of the whole loaf. They understand they can come back again the next cycle. Also, they are extremely close to be able to get things their way. All they need now is a filibuster proof senate, and they will be super actice trying to achieve that. While we are fighting, they are organizing, finding volunteers to do the shoe leather, etc.

They are almost immune to wedge issues. On the other hand the gay marriage issues is a super hot button wedge issue for them. And that group in Utah that is suing for multiple marriages is going to hurt us. The fact that the suit is legally silly is beside the point politically. All they have to do in their ads is simply state that such a suit has been placed.

I can't see any wedge issue that will work on them. We have to try and persuade the undecideds in the center.

The repubs cannot be happy with the neocons causing huge increases in government and in spending. The Neo party is driving high costs which the Repub party cannot support. Can we outline differences and leaders in the two partys',The Neo and Repub partys.

We need one of those Concord Coalition guys to shine the light on the mass amounts of pork that our GOP-run government is expending - especially in the Military Industrial Complex.

We don't necessarily harp on a smaller defense budget as much as more efficient use of our defense $$. Show how shifts in expenditures & cuts unrelated to actual defense may have covered some or all of the extra 87-Billion that * felt the need to ask for.

Wasn't it some ridiculous amount of the defense budget unaccounted for? Why don't we hear about that more?

I think this what has to happen eventually as a long term goal. I want them not only out of office but totally discredited, so that the public looks at them like the Communist Party or Neo-Nazis.

We have to keep hammering home that the Bushistas are Radicals.

you would have to pick a specific state or states and coordinate it just right.

Sorry, the "left" doesn't have that kind of power

The Western states like Utah, Idaho and Montana are religious/political/geographical isolationist to begin with, it wouldn't take much to peel them off of the Republican blanket. They all have relatively low populations, and are hotspots for anti-big government sentiments.

A candidate with a local following, some money, and the right message could easily grab 30 percent of the Republican votes in those three states. Enough to hand the set over to the Dems, especially if the Dem candidate was seen as fiscally conservative, supported gun ownership rights, and was down on the Patriot act.

Any other year, I would say forget it, but not this election.