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Highway61

(2,568 posts)
Thu Mar 16, 2017, 05:37 PM Mar 2017

Dire times and drastic measures

I had an idea after seeing Bernie Sanders in McDowell County, West Virginia on Monday night. Why the hell would a senator from Vermont go and sit down with these people? The election is over and 75% of them voted for Trump. Because he CARES. And when it was over he had them. They understood. They felt empowered. I thought...why not request ALL the Democratic representatives and senators hold town halls in rural, republican areas just like McDowell County. NOT just in their oun districts but expand and get out there! There are so many forgotton people that vote against their own interests because they are ill informed...they get their "facts" from Fox "News" or talk radio.
The 2018 election is coming up and we MUST take back the House and Senate.
Tuesday I had a snow day and composed a short letter and sent it to every Democratic member of Congress. Many had to be physically mailed as "I am not in their district". (which pisses me off because at the end of the day when they vote on an issue it effects ALL of us!) If you want maybe send a letter to your congress members? Just a thought. These are dire times that call for drastic measures. We are at a dangerous crossroad. We MUST regain control of the House and Senate in 2018.






My letter (Use as a tempate?)......

I am writing to request that you do your part to help win back the House of Representatives and Senate in 2018. Getting the majority is a MUST and a PRIORITY. It's not an option. You see, I saw Bernie Sanders in a town hall in McDowell County, West Virginia on Monday. One must wonder why in the world a Senator from Vermont would go there for a town hall. A county where 75% of the folks voted for Trump. I'll tell you why. He CARES. Many of these people are not formally educated. Many of them are very poor. Many of them don't go anywhere, in fact many don't even own a car. He went there to hear firsthand what they had to say. He did so in a straightforward and uncomplicated way. In one hour he had won many of them over. Those people left that town hall enlightened, more informed and above all they felt empowered because someone influential took the time to actually sit down and listen to them and offer real solutions. Senator Sanders pointed out that healthcare for all, free public college tuition, opiate treatment and job retraining could be paid for by removing the enormous tax cuts the wealthy and corporations receive. He let them know, above all, that they were important. He correctly pointed out that the GOP plan for healthcare (call it Trumpcare) is a a two hundred plus billion dollar tax cut for the top two percent at the expense of millions losing their health insurance. Even though he is a Senator from Vermont, at the end of the day, they knew he works for ALL Americans - not just the people from Vermont.

I am requesting that you visit and sit down with folks in some of these areas that are heavily Republican. Schedule mutiple events in multiple areas that voted for Trump. If every Democrat in the House and Senate did this, it would win hearts and minds and make a huge difference in 2018. You must go beyond your district and carry the fight to the GOP. Not all Trump voters are filled with hate. I believe most of them are ill informed. They vote against their own interests for a reason. Simply because they don't know the facts (example: ACA and Obamacare are one and the same). We are at a critical crossroads in America and it is far past time to reach out to these people. Show them that you CARE. It's certain you're not going to change all minds, but many will be more informed the next time they go into a voting booth. They are going to remember and appreciate the honesty and integrity of your visit. Please, please consider doing this.

The Democratic Party is on the right side of most, if not all; the issues. Our views represent the interests of the majority of Americans and the future of this country. We must articulate these views to ALL the people, especially those that reside in these rural areas of the country. They feel as though they are forgotten. The truth will set them (and us) free...

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Dire times and drastic measures (Original Post) Highway61 Mar 2017 OP
People drawn to right-wing populist movements can Hortensis Mar 2017 #1

Hortensis

(58,785 posts)
1. People drawn to right-wing populist movements can
Thu Mar 16, 2017, 05:39 PM
Mar 2017

be drawn to left-wing populist movements, and vice versa. It often happens because they have a great deal in common. In fact, in a place like WV, it can be expected that some who assume they are conservatives like their friends are actually, by personality, more left wing. Same clueless resentment and angry frustration eager to set fire to some amorphous "the establishment" at fault for everything, though.

Sanders was given a position in the DNC to do outreach. He's reaching out. Both the Democratic leadership and he know he's also trying to build his own base with their resources. We'll see how it all turns out in the end, but for now, go, Bernie!

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