I am 73 years old. For most of my adult life I have considered myself an independent. I voted for whomever I felt was the best candidate for the country, for my state, for my county, for my city.
I first voted for president in the Nixon-McGovern election. I would have voted for Nixon but feared he would get too much mandate for voted for McGovern. Over the years I tended to lean toward Republicans. The age-old creed was that Democrats just wanted to spend more money. I have never been against spending money, just not for wasting it.
I have two kids. One graduated high school in 2002 and one in 2004. They tended totally liberal as did all of their college friends. So naturally I liked to get into politics with them, especially my son. Mostly it was just sort of fun.
About 10 years ago my son and I were arguing about politics and my son said “Dad, the Republicans are all bad, how can you even think about voting for any of them.” I told him yes, I agreed that some bad Republican but not all. I had voted for John McCain in 2008 vs. Obama. That was the last time I voted for a Republican.
My son said that Citizens United was changing politics for the worse and that billionaires and big companies would essentially be buying important elections going forward and would do their best to stack to the Supreme Court to cater to their whims. I told him that was an awfully cynical view to have and I sincerely hoped and believed he was wrong. He wasn’t.
After Citizens United, the Republican party began morphing into what it has become today. There is no Republican party, only the MAGA Trump party. Everyone knows what Trump has done and what more he is capable of. The so-called Republican party has had many many opportunities to take back their party from Trump’s cult. But every time they cower again to the big loser and his base that so frightens them.
We know what he is but it so disturbing what his party has become. When all but a handful of House Republicans vote to impeach the Homeland Security Director with no impeachable offenses, when most vote to impeach Joe Biden because the Donald wants them to, when they fail to even vote on funding for Ukraine or fail to vote or for a border protection deal that they wanted but were told by the Donald to not vote for anything as it would take away the only thing he can run on. We must never forget the names of any of these cowards and make sure they are all voted out of office at our earliest opportunities.
I believe President Biden’s polling numbers will improve a lot once he officially becomes the nominee. Donald Trump has been the worst in the history of the U.S. His lack of leadership in the COVID crisis probably cost 300,000 American lives…100 times more than Bin Laden. He is even admitting he would become a total dictator if reelected.
Maybe, just maybe, if the Republican Party moved on from the Donald and became an honest party that would work for the good of America I might actually find a Republican I could vote for before I die!
— By William Oliver
Author William Oliver lives in Edmonds
My first vote after turning 18 was in the 2000 primary, and it was for John McCain. My how things have changed. I don’t always agree with Democrats, but I am terrified that we will lose our democracy if Trump wins another four years. Don’t take my word for it, but rather the many Republicans who served under Trump who have since alerted the nation to how unfit he was to serve. Regardless of one’s views on certain issues, there is a clear choice to be made this November between continuing this experiment in Democracy or going the way of Putin’s Russia.
I am an independent centrist and that is a lonely place to be politically. While I would never want to hold office myself, others with similar views do not seem to be electable. My last Republican vote was Reagan but I too could have voted for John McCain had it not been for Sarah Palin. John McCain was old enough that you did have to take a serious look at his running mate and she was just too unstable for me. The left has gone too far for me, embracing socialism by any other name and the right has simply gone off the charts, verging on fascism. I just cannot believe that I am faced for the third time in a row, voting for my lesser of evils. I am no Biden fan but he and even Kamala Harris (who I like even less) don’t scare me as much as Trump. I am a first, last and always an anyone but Trump voter – and I do mean anyone!
Ditto to points made. Used to lean Republican but we will never be Trumpers…such a lack of honesty and integrity. It’s a shame that we don’t have more candidates with integrity that aim to support a moderate perspective versus an extreme left or right. Keep us safe, keep us humble, keep us prosperous, and keep our democracy.
Then you get more far left govt. period. Enjoy.
I am a lifelong Democrat, but completely agree it would be good for our democracy and our country if today’s Republican Party was not a monolith of spineless, conspiracy-chasing, power-thirsty acolytes willing to bend the knee to a lying, cheating, con man with no redeeming ethical or moral qualities.
Look no further than the GOP’s ill-advised and purposely deceptive campaign to smear President Biden and family, based almost solely on the word of an admitted Russian agent who lied and is now in jail, to see the depths to which they have sunk.
I think Hunter Biden should sue Fox News and Sean Hannity personally for defamation!
Just to be clear, the author of this letter and respondents are all democrats , which is evident because they are all “emotional voters”. More concerned with mean tweets and bombastic rhetoric than actual policy. Policy like closing our southern border to what has become under Biden, an historic invasion of illegal migrants who have no right to be here ( 7 million since Biden took office ) . Policy like becoming energy independent so working folks can afford to drive to work and the cost of food and all other consumer goods are at reasonable prices. Policy like encouraging cities promote law and order to keep criminal anarchy at bay. Policy like dealing with our enemies rather than bowing to them to prevent the world from catching fire as it currently is. Policy like putting America first and not spending hundreds of billions of dollars to defend a socialist country’s border while ignoring our own national sovereignty. Finally, America is not a “democracy” she is a “Constitutional Republic” If we can keep it, and there is nothing worse than those who will not take their own side in a fight.
A good rule in life is don’t make assumptions and classify people based on your own perceptions and agenda.
Yes humans have emotions. It sounds like you do as well.
This is not a fight Frank, it is an election. Call it what you want but it is a right to put into office those who will make policy that each voter aligns with. From what I can tell the ugly truth is neither party has given us a choice that most Americans 100% agree with.
William makes some good truthful points in his editorial that obviously commenters agree with as well as your own points concerning policy, which indeed have merit of their own.
It’s all clear as mud Frank!
Thank you for your comments, Frank. Saves me from having to write them. Well done!
Mr Demm I was a Republican. I would have voted for Nixon and I did vote for Ford, Reagan, Bush 1, Bush 2, Dole and McCain I used to get signed Christmas cards for George and Laura Bush, It was difficult for me to vote for Hillary Clinton but I knew what Trump was. Never thought he would be quite so bad but expected some bad. I would agree with anyone that said the City of Seattle went to far to the left with socialists on the city council. My agrument is with Donald Trump and how so many Republicans continue to enable him. Can we get the Republican party back on track after Trump? We’ll see.
I would posit that the reason that many vote democratic is the unending line of cranks that republicans keep bringing forward, and the unending spate of cultural wars, evangelical religion, corrupt office holders and book barnings that seem to be the everyday meal served up by GOP elected officials.
I would like to be able to vote for a Republican – when they come up with another candidate I can truly respect. In the mean time, Dems may not be perfect, but they intend to help, and they are rarely as crazy as so many republicans we have seen.
And yes, I know Seattle has produced some doozies on the whacko-liberal side.
Most politicians are liars. Republicans have Master Degrees in lying; Democrats have PhD’s. Trump’s personality has many flaws. Voters should be voting for the candidate who is better at getting the job done and not who is the more likeable. Trump has demonstrated that he was a better President than Biden is.
Well said Mr. Demme
Please let there be multiple political parties in the U.S. , ranked voting, no electoral college, the possibility of votes of no confidence, term limits for the Supreme Court justices, and at least 51% females in the Senate and House before I die.
Boy we are really good at telling each other what we are and how we should and would think, if we weren’t brainwashed by one ideology or another. There is very little original, open minded, and independent thought in modern America. Mostly we just follow one herd or another and there isn’t much real leadership to be found. About 300 years ago some of our forefathers went to war to get rid of the concept of the divine right of Kings and now lots of us want to bring back the concept to save us from ourselves in modern times. I think the last really good president was George Washington who knew that Kings and political parties were just bad news and something to be avoided.
Dear My Edmonds News,
I wish the comment section had the ability to let people give a thumbs up or respect on previous comments like the Seattle times has.
It would save folks the necessity of having to write another comment and still be able to voice their opinion.
Thank you.
At the risk of inciting the wrath of Mr Demme and others who chose to demonize all who fail to adhere to the extreme positions that today’s Republican Party support, I think that Mr Oliver has struck a nerve with his observation that much of our current political dysfunction can be traced to the Citizens United decision and the corrupting influence of corporate money and the ultra rich in our political system. However there is another major factor that I think is also important and that is the loss of nuance. We are overwhelmed with sound bites and memes and social media posts that distill complex problems down into simple, hyper-partisan statements which are, at best, selective in their use of facts and more often employ so-called alternate facts. This is compounded by a social media and mainstream media environment in which we only consume perspectives that align with our own and the massive gerrymandering that allows politicians at both state and federal levels to pick their voters instead of us picking them, and the result is that room for compromise and consensus based on nuanced understanding of problems and solutions has vanished from our political discourse.
If we wish to solve problems we need to reclaim nuance and rehabilitate compromise and consensus.
Lots of half truth and outright “baloney” being spewed by both sides here but the real truth is that Trump has lost twice in the popular vote and barely won once in the Electoral College. He had lots of unintended help from James Comey in order to do that. Probably almost anyone but Hillary would have handily beat him when he did win. Hillary and Trump are two of the most hated and polarizing people ever known in this country. Trump has virtually no chance of winning again in any fair election. His win was a total fluke, the first time around. As flawed as he is, Biden will clean his clock, even if he (Trump) is or isn’t convicted of a crime. The Supreme Court bias and the end of Roe V. Wade will bring him down in the end. The majority of American women will vote against him; especially outside of rural America where there just aren’t enough women to give Trump the win in the Electoral College. Dem.s have won every special election since the Dobbs decision which is a telling and predictive fact.
I am even older than this commentator and was a lifelong Democrat, ala Magnuson and the likes. Now after a lifetime of struggle to right the wrongs we saw in our country, I now see it was mostly a fools errand. After 60 years of Democrats in power, both local and national, I cannot think of a single societal problem that has been resolved, only made worse. By some estimates we’ve spent four trillion dollars to eradicate poverty and we have more people living below or at the poverty level. Need I mention homelessness, that didn’t even exist until recent decades. Meanwhile, Democrats have embraced a far leftist, socialist agenda and spend precious time fighting about issues these people have decided we should address. No, the globalists have made it clear, and the democratic party is agreeing, the American standard of living is too high and must be leveled. If you agree with that, just keep voting for democrats. One last thought, anyone who believes that Trump is a threat to democracy is swallowing all the mainstream media frenzied coverage. I always start with a question when I want to understand a subject and the question here is why has there been a total absolute requirement to crush Trump, instead of beating him fairly at the polls?
Karen you nailed it. Bravo kid.
Karen, I disagree that Trump is not a threat to our country and democracy. He stole highly classified materials when he left office, hid them in his home, struggled to find a way to keep them and lied about having them. He aligns himself with brutal dictators and offends our allies. He is a racist thug, just listen to his own words. Not sound bites, his speeches. He has lied and cheated his entire adult life and it’s his own big mouth and actions that have gotten him into significant legal trouble. I do want the legal system to crush him for all the scams, cheating and lying he has done to further his own net worth. Trump University, failed casinos, bankruptcies . . . the list goes on and on. And it will be sweet to see him beaten at the polls again although we all know he will lie about being fairly beaten again.
I am troubled by your description of Trump because you are relying on the words of the part of this country using every means possible to destroy him. Personally, I wouldn’t spend one moment associating with the type of character Trump represents, which is a archetype of the New York business world. Everything you’ve stated about this man can be laid at the feet of our politicians today, beginning with Biden who was found to be guilty by an independent investigator of misconduct in his handling of classified documents. Yet, it was concluded he was unfit for a trial. And you want him for another term? I will reiterate, this country has been torn apart, morally and legally over my lifetime. Republicans in the true conservative party have abandoned their principles and gone along with reckless spending. There is only one political party advocating expanding the Supreme court to push their agenda and it’s not the Republicans. The corrupt politicians are the majority today and reflect our citizenry. If you believe in the socialist agenda, then you are free to vote democratic, but the price is already being paid by everyone.
Thank you Frank Demme. The Puget Sound area is a Bastian of Democrat voters who only see one place to mark on a ballot even if the “Big Guy” is demented.
Well said William Oliver! Thank you!!!
Some perspective: The last republican mayor of Seattle was James Braman who served from 1964-69 . The last republican Governor of Washington State was John Spellman who served from 1981-85.
So, for roughly the past half century, there has been no conservative leadership in this state or its largest city. Seattle is a mess and Washington has some of the highest taxes and most onerous regulations in the nation and most of the voters are not interested to find out if some conservative thought / practices might bear even slightly tastier fruit.
It’s fallacy that democratic party members are not conservative, republican party members are conservative. And you have a right to blast your preferences and biases, but an emphasis on criticisms, sarcastic cheap shots and name-calling won’t lead to improved government. When Darroll Haug’s idea of creating defined parking spaces in Edmonds actually increased the number of parking spaces and the number of parked cars, he didn’t begin his idea with “ok where are the democrat business and where’s the republicans businesses” … we need to think and do better with our neighbors. The American way is to vote your conscience, so do that. It’s also American to not vilify each other for differences of opinion.
When advertisers sell politicians they sell people and personalities and emotion. If you find yourself writing articles full of emotion and low on facts and ignore policy you probably got sold. This is a majority blue area, it’s got its good and it’s bad. If you are truly an independent minded policy first voter then you don’t write silly articles demeaning millions of fellow citizens. Stop trying to make your wants and needs and ideas more important than the next person. Lastly this is my first time seeing one party be willing to cheat by using Lawfare and attempting to influence our elections with criminal or civil charges. If you allow this then you won’t need to worry about your vote or your precious party affiliation. Experiment over. Say her Name Laken Riley. Her life matters.
I am originally from Manhattan, NYC. I’ve followed Trump and his conduct , publicly and privately, for 45 YEARS. Starting with his parading his mistresses on Page 6 of the New York Post ( now owned by Rupert Murdoch of Fox News) in front of his wife and young children. It’s been all downhill since . If you want to discuss him with me — I have 45 YEARS of video, photographic and audio documentation. Do you have, not hours, but WEEKS??? THANK YOU, William Oliver, Well Said.
Wow, there is a lot of passion and emotion going on here. I think the best thing we can all do is take away the emotion and just look at the facts and accomplishments of the candidates. Politicians should not not be elected based on emotion. Also, remember that much of the news today, is opinion and commentary, no facts. It’s a TV show host’s opinion and spin of the facts, not necessarily truth.
And on that note, I’m closing the comments here. Thanks for the discussion everyone.
It is hard for me to think seriously about Donald Trump. I became aware of him as he showed up in several R. Crumb comic books many, many years ago. Crumb definitely identified him very early as a man without a moral compass that was shaped and reinforced at a very early age . From Trump Water to ( most recently) Golden Tennis shoes, he is (in my opinion) a quintessential cartoon character and a dangerous one. Forgive him, he knows not what he does (unless it gets him public face time and sales). Yes, please someone, recapture the Republican Party.