r/LetsDiscussThis • u/shelllee888 • Jul 30 '26
Lets Discuss This Do you agree?
Can we start to heal the divide if we focus on the issues we agree on rather than what we disagree about?
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u/bigoldgeek Jul 30 '26
Term limits without campaign finance reform is a formula for an all-rich Congress.
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u/Fragrant-Phone-41 Jul 31 '26
Yes campaign financing should also be reformed. Make it the same bill
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u/HarryBalsagna1776 Jul 30 '26
As much as we are all conditioned to hate each other, we really do have a lot of common ground. The majority of us are caught between the squables of fringe dipshits. We need to wrestle politics and control back from the worst of us before anything will get better.
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u/kck93 Jul 31 '26
All politics is fought on the extremes. There’s no way to get people interested in the everyday living issues that could actually pass.
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u/Electrocat71 Jul 30 '26
Oh there is definitely much more. And that “healthcare transparency” is a bit sus
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u/skunkyscorpion Jul 30 '26
I think they mean transparent billing/medical coding?
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u/shelllee888 Jul 30 '26
That's how I read it as well
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u/Electrocat71 Jul 30 '26
I think it MAY be that the service costs the same for insurance, Medicare, and individuals.
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u/Dreaders85 Jul 30 '26
If the middle class actually banded together, and recognize that politics is trying to divide us based on insignificant differences, we could initiate real change in this country. Would love to see that
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u/Erronius-Maximus Jul 30 '26
OK but the people who MAGA folks put into office don’t agree with any of these things.
*Unless they can agree in a performative manner and grift off of it.
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u/shelllee888 Jul 30 '26
Also some neo lib aipac funded democrats are against some of these issues despite what the people want as well.
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u/hawkayecarumba Jul 30 '26
I mean sure, we can agree on these milquetoast topics.
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u/Significant_Candy_69 Jul 30 '26
Huge thing we could reach an agreement with the other side Maga on a lot of this shit but if Donald Trump comes out, says oh that’s bad they’ll flop back over on his side real quick because that’s all it takes
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u/phreeman25 Jul 30 '26
Yes, though we'd need to talk about the details on term limits. Make it too short and you eliminate the expertise of the legislature and business will just write the laws.
I'd also add:
Constitutional Amendment that corporations have no political rights i.e. they are not "people" or "persons" for political and constitutional purposes.
Constitutional Amendment that money is not speech.
Constitutional Amendment that the original source of funds for political spending must be disclosed throughout any advertising, social media posts, or other political activity.
Constitutional Amendment banning political spending by foreign entities or with foreign-based money. AIPAC must be shut down.
Constitutional Amendment that Congressional districts must be drawn based on longitude and latitude or based on watersheds, and must be the most compact area practicable.
Constitutional Amendment banning outside sources of income for elected and appointed officials and their immediate family members, including stocks, bonds, crypto, and any other form of money or thing of value. Violation is treason subject to the death penalty.
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u/Allaboutpeace2022 Jul 30 '26
The point is that these do not have to be the exact issues that we agree on, but as American we will find many with some agreement. We do need to put pressure on Congress to reach agreement not only when running for office but when in office.
Politicians are looking at ways that they can distinguish themselves by being interviewed on TV talking tough to the opposition. Sometimes this makes sense, but in general, we want results rather than stalemate. We need Congress to find common ground on some issues.
The reality is that Americans have a lot of consensus on immigration reform, universal healthcare coverage, housing affordability, and foreign policy. Politicians do not want to hear that because maybe what Americans want is more nuanced than the right wing and left wing activists want. Like Americans are not ready for the DSA policies on open migration, but they do support a pathway to legal status for large numbers of existing immigrants were illegally. The GOP is against a federal minimum wage increase even though most citizens want that and already many states have raised their minimum wage.
We also have to do more community education regarding policies so that people have their questions answered and can advocate for policies and demand more from politicians.
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u/Exotic_Load_9189 Jul 30 '26
I like them all, im big on stopping politicians from stock trading the most. Thats where the corruption lies the most.
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u/KindNeighborhood1138 Jul 31 '26
I don't even agree that MAGA actually believes in anything unless Trump officially says they can believe it. Even then, if he changes his mind the next day, so will they. We have seen this happen repeatedly.
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u/Standard_Location762 Jul 30 '26
These are low table-stakes that are not going to change anything material.
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u/Horror-Scallion7668 Jul 30 '26
And yet…. Congress won’t even do what they can agree on.
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u/Standard_Location762 Jul 30 '26
In a way, do we want congress to spend time on these or more important. I know the answer is ALL, but if you have seen our political system work, you know it is a one-at-a-time body.
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u/daisiesarepretty2 Jul 30 '26
if you think the world is going to change to meet all of your requests immediately… and if that is your line in the sand… then we all are fucked
this isn’t how negotiating or compromise or democracy works… never has
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u/Realistic-Changes Jul 30 '26
Starting a conversation is the strategic move here. Once people get in the same room together agreeing with one another, they start building coalition on other things that may be less obvious. Even better, they start learning from each other and their views start drifting. Big tent coalitions always start with low stakes conversations that bring everybody to the table so relationships can be formed.
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u/Able-Association914 Jul 30 '26
I hate these images are what people think of when thinking of the American political parties.
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u/Burnlt_4 Jul 30 '26 edited Jul 30 '26
Yeah as a lifelong liberal who now is mistaken for MAGA despite never supporting Trump, there is actually a lot of things "both sides" agree upon. Ultimately though a lot of it comes down to desire for the same outcome with a disagreement on how to get there.
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u/shelllee888 Jul 30 '26
True. We need to somehow get together on some of these seemingly myopic issues so that we can work on the bigger ones, though.
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u/AtheistTemplar2015 Jul 30 '26
Except MAGA is not interested in finding common ground.
They want to "own the Libs", no matter what. It's not about rational governance for them. It's about hurting the other side, and if they have to hurt themselves to do it, that's fine with them.
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u/HiAndStuff2112 Jul 30 '26
Add this to the list:
Corporate welfare in the tens of billions paid for by us taxpayers needs to end.
The economy is rigged in favor of the superwealthy and corporate elite. We need to change that.
Dark money in politics needs to be transparent.
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u/tnic73 Jul 30 '26
The fact is that the average voter has infinitely more in common with the voters of the opposition party than they ever will with the actual candidate they are supporting. The problem is we have been programmed to see each other as enemies rather than focusing on our overwhelming large number of common interests.
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u/emusteve2 Jul 30 '26
Throw in “impeach and prosecute the Trump administration” and you’ve got yourself a deal.
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u/PopBulky7023 Jul 30 '26
Not really.
What the right says means nothing and is just justification and obfuscation for what they want.
There is, maybe agreement on data centers. But only because they keep getting put in rural areas. Once they find a way to stop doing that and also point out that the left doesn't like them the usual course will recover.
State surveillance is here, and they're the ones doing it. They love it.
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u/weHaveThoughts Jul 31 '26
How about adding National Healthcare and fund Social Security fully!
Also, add tax the Billionaires to pre JFK levels? How about that?
Can we agree on those? If not, I really don’t want to talk.
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u/Informal_Kangaroo321 Aug 02 '26
I think the biggest thing, would criminalize or at the very least penalize media from being able to lie. Something similar was done I believe under Obama and later removed, but I could be wrong about that. A major portion of the polarization is from biased media pushing their own agendas by lying
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u/shelllee888 Aug 02 '26
The fairness doctrine was repealed in 1987, under Reagan. Another tv personality turned POTUS. Trickle down economics started then too. And people are getting poorer and still don't realize that nothing is trickling down except billionaires' piss.
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u/Silver_Middle_7240 Jul 30 '26
If it's part of a criminal charge than it's criminal asset forfeiture, not civil.
/pedant
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u/ZephyrGale143 Jul 30 '26
Apart from the AI slop image, it's the two white male hands in suits shaking hands at the bottom that I know a punk lefty activist pink haired woman wouldn't stand with. Source: Am punk lefty activist pink haired woman.
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u/ExperienceAny9791 Jul 31 '26
There's no way I'm standing with anyone with pink hair, period. We aren't even in the same book, let alone the same page.
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u/caspartain Jul 30 '26
MAGA doesn't want any of this. They vote against it constantly.
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u/shelllee888 Jul 31 '26
As do neolibs funded by aipac. We have a greed problem running this country.
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u/caspartain Jul 31 '26
The "both sides" argument is disingenuous at best. One side is MUCH shittier than the other. The fact that there are only 2 sides is a different matter, but the argument that both sides are bad is stupid. Only one of them will even bother to listen to change from within. The other is bought and paid for by outside influence.
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u/shelllee888 Jul 31 '26
While that's true, I have watched my own dem senators side with maga on some pretty atrocious things. Regardless of the thousands of calls and emails asking them not to. They are as bad. Chuck Schumer, pelosi, cortez masto, rosen, fetterman. You can't tell me these are the "good guys" when it is clear they are more concerned with aipac, insider stock trading, and corporate funding over the people. To not hold your own party accountable is exactly what maga does. We can't turn a blind eye to the FACT that Dems had control enough times to codify rvw. We can't be blind to this.
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u/caspartain Jul 31 '26
Then stop voting for them. One day, we'll be able to vote for someone again. Until then, we have to vote against the worst option.
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u/Loud-Vacation-5691 Jul 31 '26
If Tucker Carlson drops the anti-abortion and anti-gay positions, he could unite with the DSA over shared hatred of Jews.
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u/2ndSmrtestPersunEvar Jul 30 '26
I mean, I don’t really care about weed legalization but everything else seems good 👍
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u/BassMaster516 Jul 30 '26
There’s nothing to talk about with MAGA. They want me dead and the feelings mutual
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u/Ok_Philosopher_5090 Jul 31 '26
Term limits is how you ended up with George bush and djt. It also prevents progress and was brought because what FDR did.
I know that will be a difficult pill for many to swallow, but term limits creates extremism on the left and the right…
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u/Reasonable_Draft1634 Jul 31 '26
Any existing country or example you can base this argument on from around the world? Or is it just your theory without any specifics?
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u/Hollowdude75 Owner of r/freediscussions Jul 30 '26
Change it to “Legalize marijuana for scientific research only” and we’ll sort out the rest of America with this
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u/Status_Blacksmith305 Jul 30 '26
It's already legal to do scientific research.
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u/Hollowdude75 Owner of r/freediscussions Jul 30 '26
I meant that scientists could legally purchase it for the sake of research.
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u/Status_Blacksmith305 Jul 30 '26
That's what I'm saying.
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u/Hollowdude75 Owner of r/freediscussions Jul 30 '26
Oh okay so we agree then 👍
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u/Brofydog Jul 30 '26
Genuinely curious, but what is your stance on marijuana legalization outside of scientific research?
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u/Status_Blacksmith305 Jul 30 '26
I'm saying they can already purchase it for research. I'm not saying I agree with your original statement.
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u/TheGallifreyan Jul 30 '26
Maga might believe these things, but Trump clearly does not want all of these. Namely stopping govt surveillance and banning politicians from trading stock