Robert Reich thinks there are 6 political parties in the US.

[Uncaripswife]

Discuss?

Eta fixing link

m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1740759715936617&id=142474049098533

[Uncaripswife]

I mostly agree with him. But I think there are also progressives who no longer consider themselves Democrats. Are they a 7th party?

Also, I think the group he calls the Trump party *is* a coalition of party 1 and party 3, plus the never Hillarys. Maybe even some of party 2? I guess that's why he won.

[dc2london]

Oct 22, 2017 14:50:23 GMT -6 Uncaripswife said:

I mostly agree with him. But I think there are also progressives who no longer consider themselves Democrats. Are they a 7th party?

Also, I think the group he calls the Trump party *is* a coalition of party 1 and party 3, plus the never Hillarys. Maybe even some of party 2? I guess that's why he won.

The Progressives who no longer consider themselves democrats, I think, are going to be forced to be political nomads or lifelong independents. If you're talking about the same progressives I think you are, climate change and social justice are a huge deal to them and, to be blunt, the Republican party as it exists today will never be a home for them. So they can choose to not identify as Democrats, but they sure as hell aren't republicans

[dc2london]

Oct 22, 2017 19:09:40 GMT -6 @blanche said:

If we could ever move toward >2 parties at the table, sure they’d be called something different.

I have read that our forefathers deeply feared a scenario like our current, deeply divided two party system

[athn64]

It's definitely an oversimplification, but it's a good rendition about how divided the parties are within themselves. They are vying for control within their own "party" and that comes at the expense of the rest of us.

[blurnette989]

Yeah I'm one of those progressives who is far, far left of the Democratic party. However, I'm also pragmatic and have voted for Dems most of my life. I'm the kind of voter that is very dissatisfied with our system, but I participate.

It has been really exciting learning about the various parties in Portugal and seeing how a multi-party system works in action. I have two parties I identify with most and it is really cool.

[crimsonandclover]

Oct 23, 2017 1:24:01 GMT -6 blurnette989 said:

Yeah I'm one of those progressives who is far, far left of the Democratic party. However, I'm also pragmatic and have voted for Dems most of my life. I'm the kind of voter that is very dissatisfied with our system, but I participate.

It has been really exciting learning about the various parties in Portugal and seeing how a multi-party system works in action. I have two parties I identify with most and it is really cool.

I did an election quiz in Germany where you choose your position on various issues and then they tell you which parties your positions align with most closely. My top 2 - which were tied for 1st place - were on *completely* different sides of the political spectrum, which pretty much aligns with how I see my political views. I wouldn't vote for either of those parties because of other parts of their platforms, but yeah, I do enjoy living in a system where there aren't just two viable choices and you aren't "throwing away" your vote if you don't vote for one of the two largest parties.

[blurnette989]

crimsonandclover yes, exactly! One of the parties I align with had no stance on economic issues, so they will work with any of the parties if the legislation at hand is beneficial for their party goals. It makes for a lot more compromise, which is ultimately for the best I think.

[dc2london]

Oct 23, 2017 4:07:41 GMT -6 blurnette989 said:

crimsonandclover yes, exactly! One of the parties I align with had no stance on economic issues, so they will work with any of the parties if the legislation at hand is beneficial for their party goals. It makes for a lot more compromise, which is ultimately for the best I think.

I think that's true of the Parliamentary system by its very nature