I rather thought that the function of these other issues was to suck the oxygen out of the room so they didn't have to talk about labor issues. Their donors tend to be wealthy and anti-union.

Generally the point of most social wedge issues from the point of view of the moneyed and political elite is to not have to talk about any kind of economic issues that affect the bulk of society, yes.

And also to divide the working class vote. Could you imagine how progressive this country could be if the working poor was united and consistently voted in line with their economic interests? FDRs ghost would be dancing in the street.

The Democratic Party is too large of an umbrella these days. Anybody whose primary concerns are among fiscal responsibility/the deficit, public education, effective foreign policy, civil rights, human rights, political corruption, science based public health/policy, climate change, domestic extremism, an independent judiciary etc. has moved into the democratic party.

The Republican Party is for people whose primary concern is one of a theocratic judiciary, paying less taxes if you make more than $400k/yr, white nationalism, extractive industries, military contractors, unrestricted access to any/all classes of firearms.

In both of those groups there are large pro-business, anti-labor contingents.

Hopefully one day we will move to ranked choice voting and other mechanisms that allow 3rd parties to compete and we can have more meaningful and direct connections between parties and specific policies instead of these two loose coalitions.

Have you ever talked to a single Republican? You’re way off base, especially with the race baiting.

Yes, many. I'm not saying that all Republicans are all of those things, just that those are the coalitions that make up the current Republican Party.

Did I miss a Republican Party coalition from my list?

But this is also I reason why I think ranked-choice voting is so compelling. I've met Republicans who essentially only vote Republican because they want to defend their 2nd amendment right but otherwise would be much more likely to support left-wing economic causes. But the way policies are bundled in our two parties they are forced to vote according to their primary concern.

Likewise there are a lot of working class Christians who would be strong allies in a labor movement but if that movement is inextricably linked to a pro-choice party it is a non-starter for them.

Entirely anecdotal, of course, but several of my republican relatives (big family) moved to Idaho a year and change ago -- shortly before the covid era.

The last family gathering we all had together, pre-covid thanksgiving, they all spent much of the time telling me how I had to "be afraid" of Mexicans and Arabs for a variety of reasons. I'm kind of dumb in social situations and kind of polite so I just stood there entirely unsure how I should even respond to that.

have I talked to a single republican? I've talked to several that I'd known all my life, who all came out with the race baiting stuff.

What do you view the Republican platform as being? What specifically is he wrong about?

OP is wrong about unrestricted access to all weapons. And not all Republicans are anti-abortion, although that is a big part of their platform due to the control it gives over evangelicals. (That is to say, I think if there is a schism, the more centric version of the party would not be anti-abortion.)

Also, white nationalism is only embraced by a small percentage of the party. It's not really part of their platform, it's just what the loudest shouters in the party want.

(Disclaimer: I do not identify as repbulican, but if this is your best faith effort to define their platform, you lack empathy for them which means you'll never understand even their lucid ideas. Granted, many of their ideas are vague and not lucid.)

> whose primary concern is one of...

I'm not saying that all Republicans are white nationalist and anti-abortion but I haven't met a Republican whose primary political concern wasn't one of the issues I listed.

And everybody I've met whose primary issue is one of those that I listed has been Republican.

The vast majority of my extended family, whom I love, is Republican. There isn't some great mystery to understanding their political motivations.

You left out climate. In NW Europe it is no different : anything goes as long as it not labor.

As far as I know they very much do support labor issues, they just haven't been as much of the flavor of the month lately due to the headlines of racial, transgender, and other related political issues since those usually garner more views in the media.

Part of the reason may be that the divide between Democrats and Republicans is much wider on those issues vs labor issues.

Obamacare got a lot of workers at places like amazon warehouses healthcare.

Cancelling student debt will help a shit tonne more workers.

He has a section on his campaign website addressing Union specifics:

https://joebiden.com/empowerworkers/

Well see what he can actually does, but with the senate in democrat hands, the sky is the limit.

"Cancelling student debt will help a shit tonne more workers."

I will feel terrible if that ever happens for folks that were smart with money and didn't incur tons of debt. It's gonna be a real bummer when you learn that you paid off your educational debt or never had any and that now you get to pay off debt of others that made bad decisions.

I, as someone with no outstanding student debts anymore, would be ecstatic to have universal student loan forgiveness. It is the right thing to do, and part of being a conscientious citizen is advocating for issues that help society, even if they don't help yourself.

Have you considered reaching out to some students or grads with debt and writing them a check to help them pay off their debt?

You're describing me.

I agree emotionally. But that's life, if you actually believe in education you can only really pay if forwards...

What a shitty attitude.

"bad decisions"

Imagine thinking that earning a degree was a "bad decision".

There are a lot of liberal/leftist communities online with that same gripe. Democrats pander to "pop politics" but have no plans for labor reform, healthcare reform, etc. that would go a long ways to helping the majority of the people in this country.

It's all theater.

> I can’t remember the last time I saw a Democrat run with supporting labor as their headline issue.

Bernie Sanders and AOC would like a word. Most of their platform is based around supporting the working class.

You arent aloud to say this!

On the off chance you're serious, here's Biden's union stance https://joebiden.com/empowerworkers/.

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