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David Herrick's avatar

Elizabeth, I cannot deny that what you say is partially true, and the cynical ultra-rich, convinced they will always find a way to stay safe and comfortable, will likely double down on this GOP mindset. However, I believe they are greatly outnumbered by wanna-be millionaires who are, in fact - after 40 years of Reaganistic governance - having trouble making ends meet, working too many hours for shitty pay or not working at all and trying to keep their kids off oxycontin, all this while the truly rich keep getting richer and the folks who they believe are not "real " Americans seem (to them) to be right on their heels. I mean, some Trumpies might be convinced to switch to the Democrats for what most Democrats think are all the wrong reasons. So be it. I say it beats having them rampage through the Capitol chasing wild conspiracy theories.

I do not believe that any mindset cannot be changed, however hard it may seem, and this certainly can't be plan A for Biden. But I think if the dike springs a leak, the sea could be rushing through it in a hurry

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Reid (Seattle)'s avatar

I think it comes down to who they blame for their poverty, though. If the rich people and their sycophants are to blame, then what Biden is doing will make sense to them. But if it's the fault of people of color, immigrants, and women's rights, then the Rs have the lies all ready for them.

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Joan Friedman (MA, from NY)'s avatar

Either way, Biden's infrastructure plus tax-the-rich proposal has wide support among voters, including Republicans. So does the voting rights act including provisions to make it harder for billionaires to buy elections. Jane Mayer's article in the New Yorker talked about that. It's the reason the R's aren't bothering to campaign against it, just concentrating on convincing Joe Manchin to let them block by filibuster. We will see how that plays out.

https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/inside-the-koch-backed-effort-to-block-the-largest-election-reform-bill-in-half-a-century

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Reid (Seattle)'s avatar

The other cynical calculation being simply: hold on until we control the House (and possibly the Senate) in 2022. Obstruct everything until then. No ethics, no morals, not even any politics. Just: they are wrong, we are right, we will soon be back in power.

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Joan Friedman (MA, from NY)'s avatar

Also, the current R's don't want the federal government to do anything anyway, the exceptions being protection of the wealthy and forcing the religious views of a certain group on the rest of the country.

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Nancy Fleming's avatar

Well, they can be counted upon to be wrong, can't they?

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MaryPat's avatar

Thank you for link.

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