Where is the "far Left" in America? Hell, where's the "moderate Left"?

[Ardent15]

Most of the politicians in both the Democratic and the Republican Party would be considered right-wing, to one extent or another.

A far-right Republican relative said, "The far left has taken over the Democratic Party." Which is ironic, because the far right has taken over the GOP completely.

So, my question is, where the fuck are the left-wing politicians?

[FarLeftFist]

1. This country has moved so far right its disgusting

And people wonder why we can't break our downward spiral. Our Leftist politicians aren't Left enough.

[amborin]

3. so many are co-opted by, or acting collusively with, big corporations,

lobbyists, the capitalist elite, and they are implementing an elite agenda; many, many people are so busy struggling to make a living that they don't have time to delve into the issues and contest the direction pols are taking the country;

[Warpy]

2. We're being kept out of power by the same men who put

conservatives in both parties into power.

By that, I mean party bosses, corporate donors, and the general gaggle of movers and shakers who approach people to run for office.

Few people are wealthy to wake up on a Tuesday morning and decide they want to chuck it all and get elected to the Senate. They are courted by a consortium of businesses plus party bosses.

We've been offered a choice between bad and worse for decades, with no one who will actually represent us, and it's by design.

The best we can do is keep worse out of office in the short term. I have no idea what will happen in the long term.

[EFerrari]

6. I think you're right. And populism, activism on the left

is roundly scorned by both right and left leaders where the same on the other side is coddled.

Unreal.

[still_one]

4. No offense, but your relative has obviously drank the fox koolaide. I would be curious

to know what your relative considers as "far left"?

Is social security "far left"?
Is Medicare "far left"?
Is workplace saftey "far left"?

Democrats come in all flavors, which your relative may not realize

republicans on the other hand, do NOT allow anyone a voice who don't subscribe to the far right agenda of what the party has become.

Does your relative realize that it was the policies of reagan and the republican parties philosophy of deregulation that has gotten the country into the situation we are in now?

[Dr Morbius]

5. Your relative is speaking with the words of Fox "News."

Ask him or her to define his or her terms, and I bet money they'll be unable.

"Far left" means anyone to the left of Bill O'Reilly. So in truth, almost the whole country is "far left."

[laughingliberal]

7. It's not new. The 'right' has been defining the dividing line for 3 decades now

And every few years it moves further right. What was once a moderate Republican is now a leftist. In fact, what was once considered a raving conservative is now defined as far left by some. Silencing the voices of the true left allows this to continue. With no real examples of a liberal ever seen or heard by the public, it makes it easy to paint centrists and moderates as 'the far left.'

I think we have about 2 true left wing politicians in office at the national level. We can add about 40 left of center in my estimation. From there it moves off to the right with some real centrists and then off to the right of center who call themselves centrists and on it goes all the way to the bat shit crazy right wing Republicans.

[skeptical cynic]

8. I agree that you far-Right relative is wrong

The far left has been marginalized by the Democratic Party. I reject the Left-Right paradigm as simple-minded, but those who would usually be classified as far left are probably Green. Check out the 2004 Green Party Platform. You'll find it is a lot like the pre-Clinton/Obama/Neoliberal free market platform of the New Democratic Party.

Short answer: No self-respecting far-left candidate would be given the time of day by the New Democrats. Look at the Clintons; look at Obama. Anything about them say far-left to you?

Feel free to join us on the rocky road away from the status quo.

[provis99]

9. your far-right relative probably thinks Evan Bayh and Ben Nelson are far-left.

Its all relative. Members of my extended family think that Glenn Beck is a liberal, and Obama is a communist. They also think Newt Gingrich is a liberal.

[KonaKane]

10. The "Left" in America is a myth

Whenever I hear some moron decrying the "far left" in America I have to laugh. There is no far left in America. Hell, there is barely a left at all. There is "left of center", which anywhere else in the world would be considered pretty middle of the road.

And yes, I have been around the world to know.

[Birthmark]

11. I'm here!

I am the moderate left in America.

I saw the far left guy at Denny's a few weeks back, eating a Grand Slam with the fucking Judean Peoples' Frong.

Fuckin' splitters!

[CLANG]

12. I'm getting the distinct impression we may be the odd-man out.

[galileoreloaded]

13. Makes me laugh. Ron Paul is so far right, he came all the way around to the left.

Surreal.

[John N Morgan]

14. Being ignored...just say'n

You might try looking into your own various districts to see who's out there you don't know about.
I'm running against a fundamentalist, and couldn't get the time of day, till the Jupiter Police decided to confront me.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x8125803

I have the entire Democratic Party Credo posted on my website. Like you, I agree with every part of it.

[Echo In Light]

15. There's many of us, scattershot, but no organization aside from Greens

[unblock]

16. why, we're posting on du, of course!

:hi:

[donheld]

17. Somewhere under a bus.

[troubledamerican]

18. Where's the "Far Left" on DU? Getting dungeoned with Kucinich, Evo Morales, Palast & Naomi K.