Harris isn’t pushing Medicare for All anymore. Progressives say that’s OK.
Harris isn’t pushing Medicare for All anymore. Progressives say that’s OK.
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So, I'm reading the article. This is what I'm getting out of it.
- Medicare for All is off the table.
- Harris is worried that a full-throated embracing of Medicare for All will turn off voters happy with their current insurance.
- She's got other plans, such as building off of Biden's wins in Student Loans, Infrastructure, and Medicare expansions.
- The votes aren't there for Medicare for All.
- Progressives are taking the mindset that it's better to stop Trump than hold Harris accountable.
- This doesn't mean they are going to go quietly into that night.
My thoughts are that the Progressives would be served by pushing for RCV in more places, while pushing Progressive candidates in the Primaries in 2026 and 2028. Hopefully the shitgibbon will be dead by then and the next person won't be worse on Team Red, so the Progs have some room to hold the Dems accountable. And hopefully the Progs recognise the reality on the ground and maybe advocate for Medicare Buyin before Medicare for All.
That said? If you're saying "We'd like better behaviour out of the Dems, but no way do we want Trump in office," I'll never have beef with you.
If you're saying "We'd like better behaviour out of the Dems, but no way do we want Trump in office," I'll never have beef with you.
This is what I'm trying to say but I think the time to get them to listen is now. The threat of Trump looms regardless. Everyone knows who he is and no thinking person will vote for him. I have been voting for more years than a lot of lemmings have been alive and I'm tired of picking the lesser of two evils again and again. If we keep giving everyone a pass I don't believe we will ever get what we want because there is always another threat.
This is where I point you to a simple fact. We don't always get what we want in elections. I know, that's defeatist mindsets, but let's get real. We live in a country where 3 out of every 4 voting aged adults say they are NOT liberal.
I know the lines that come next, but I think that's just ignoring the polling, which is never a good place to be. The good news is that the largest collection of people, the people who call themselves Moderates, outnumber the hard-alt-Right side of the Conservative spectrum. Like us on the Left, they don't want to see a Trump in office, nor Project 2025 implemented. But they also don't want to see many changes in their lives. Here's the hard part -- they get a say as well. If you push Medicare for All, just saying 'it's that or Trump', they're going to say, "I don't want either, so I'm just going to stay home." It's a lot easier to sell putting 3 million houses on the market, or forgiving loans after you've paid the principle back, or even 'if you want, you can pay a premium to Medicare and switch to that, or keep your insurance otherwise.' As the reminder goes to all voters -- it's not a marriage where you must find the Best Candidate Ever. It's public transit. You take the bus that gets you closest to where you're trying to go, and not all busses go exactly to the destination. Doubly so when other people want to go to different places than you want to!
I understand but I'm not sure I agree. The bus isn't going to go near where I want it to go if I don't speak up. However, I appreciate the thoughtful response nonetheless. Thanks.