I am observing the biggest leftward cultural shift since 2008

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am not seeing this OP. Be cautious you are not in an echo chamber and missing a silent majority.

FWIW I would vote for anyone moderate.

+1 I think most would.

DP. No they wouldn’t. That’s how Trump keeps winning.

Biden campaigned as a moderate but governed as a far-left progressive. In 2024, nobody trusted the Democrats any more when they claimed to be moderate as it was obviously a lie.

How did he govern as a far left progressive? He barely did anything despite claiming he would do progressive things like universal pre-K etc. He did very, very little at all.

These people claiming that Biden was any kind of progressive are quite insane. He ruled firmed for the center while giving republicans pretty much whatever that wanted. At best we didn’t move either left or right.

Biden was off the chart progressive on the second most important issue to US voters in 2024

Biden and Democrats Priorities

And yet it is the democrats that expand immigration which allows companies to stomp on workers , and they wonder why they lose Elections . Focus on US workers first and never lose.

1.Biden refuses to mandate e-verify. there is no reason to require corporations to hire US workers. -https://www.governing.com/work/e-verify-creates-loophole-for-undocumented-workers-employers.html

2.Biden helps US companies replace US workers with cheap foreign labor by expanding H1B - https://www.axios.com/2022/01/12/h1b-visa-approval-rate-tech-biden-immigration

3.Biden expanded OPT to new job categories, this helps companies replace US workers with cheap foreign indentured servants - https://www.fragomen.com/insights/united-states-white-house-announces-expansion-of-stem-opt-program-and-other-initiatives-to-attract-stem-talent.html

F1 - Legal system requires F-1 students to remain with employer for approximately 7-12 years

4.Biden proposes to create brand new W-1 visa with unlimited Green Cards, because we mythically don't have enough workers in the US, we devalued a master with H1B, and now we will devalue PhDs with W-1 visas - https://www.forbes.com/sites/stuartanderson/2022/01/27/house-adds-game-changing-visas-for-immigrant-startups-and-phds/?sh=500faa1810be

5. Biden allowed millions of illegal aliens to flood the country. Pelosi and Schumer were in cahoots on this plan .

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am not seeing this OP. Be cautious you are not in an echo chamber and missing a silent majority.

FWIW I would vote for anyone moderate.

+1 I think most would.

DP. No they wouldn’t. That’s how Trump keeps winning.

Biden campaigned as a moderate but governed as a far-left progressive. In 2024, nobody trusted the Democrats any more when they claimed to be moderate as it was obviously a lie.

How did he govern as a far left progressive? He barely did anything despite claiming he would do progressive things like universal pre-K etc. He did very, very little at all.

These people claiming that Biden was any kind of progressive are quite insane. He ruled firmed for the center while giving republicans pretty much whatever that wanted. At best we didn’t move either left or right.

Biden was off the chart progressive on the second most important issue to US voters in 2024

Biden and Democrats Priorities

And yet it is the democrats that expand immigration which allows companies to stomp on workers , and they wonder why they lose Elections . Focus on US workers first and never lose.

1.Biden refuses to mandate e-verify. there is no reason to require corporations to hire US workers. -https://www.governing.com/work/e-verify-creates-loophole-for-undocumented-workers-employers.html

2.Biden helps US companies replace US workers with cheap foreign labor by expanding H1B - https://www.axios.com/2022/01/12/h1b-visa-approval-rate-tech-biden-immigration

3.Biden expanded OPT to new job categories, this helps companies replace US workers with cheap foreign indentured servants - https://www.fragomen.com/insights/united-states-white-house-announces-expansion-of-stem-opt-program-and-other-initiatives-to-attract-stem-talent.html

F1 - Legal system requires F-1 students to remain with employer for approximately 7-12 years

4.Biden proposes to create brand new W-1 visa with unlimited Green Cards, because we mythically don't have enough workers in the US, we devalued a master with H1B, and now we will devalue PhDs with W-1 visas - https://www.forbes.com/sites/stuartanderson/2022/01/27/house-adds-game-changing-visas-for-immigrant-startups-and-phds/?sh=500faa1810be

5. Biden allowed millions of illegal aliens to flood the country. Pelosi and Schumer were in cahoots on this plan .

Ah so you don’t know what progressive is. All of this benefits big business by supplying cheap labor. There is nothing remotely progressive about anything you listed. Also Schumer and Pelosi are not progressives!

[Anonymous]

all I really have to say is that after far as I can see- the government has done NOTHING for 98% of Americans since they passed the ADA in the 1990s. id really like someone to defend this legislative record - nothing has been done that really alleviated and problem solved for any group of us for 30 yers. not little bandaids and 1/2 a$$ thing like the ACA but an actual solution to an ongoing problem. our problems have just gotten worse, life for most american families IS worse and I'm going to take gay marriage out of the equation b/c while that DID actually solve a problem, it was a solution from the SC. Congress needs to be replaced completely- of someone is an incumbent of either party they should be voted out and the new person put in- I don't even care at this point of the new person is batshit crazy like Ilhan Omar. everyone form tom cotton to AOC- they all need to lose their elections.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The problem that Dem moderates are running into is that they don't seem to stand for anything. I am barely hearing anything from D leadership on any of the major issues today. Maybe they are saying or posting something but it's not penetrating and I say this as someone who is pretty engaged.

Agree with a PP who said the party (maybe both) have lost the trust of voters. This is why left wing or progressive candidates can generate more enthusiasm, because they seem more authentic and like the believe in something versus parroting the most "popular" or palatable consultant-vetted position.

I agree Dems will need someone who seems like an outsider like Obama initially did. Otherwise it's hard to break the cycle.

The moderates have been driven out of the Democratic Party. That’s why you don’t hear from them.

No tf they haven’t. David Hogg threatened to primary moderates and now he’s the one that is gone. Schumer, Jeffries, Gilibrand, Fetterman are moderates and still around. Murphy has become more prominent also a moderate. You basically never hear anything about that phony Muslim Omar anymore. Who are the moderates that have been forced out?

But everyone hates them now for being useless.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP. I am one of the rare Democrats who correctly predicted Trump’s win in spring of 2016 and again in 2024.

What OP is getting at is directionally correct (the disillusionment with the status quo, for rise of populism) but where I think she is wrong is that as of yet, I don’t see that somewhat leftward populist shift reflecting in national election outcomes. The critical voters that Democrats need in swing states do not trust the Democratic Party at all, and certainly don’t see Democrats as any sort of “good guy.”

Democrats have an enormous trust hole to dig themselves out of before they can win national elections again. The voters they need see them as liars right now.

I am watching a few Democratic candidates around the country who show promise, although I think a party that relies on the lightning in a bottle that was Obama is ultimately doomed. But the situation isn’t entirely hopeless. Someone who can capitalize on what OP is observing without being tainted by the deep trust issues the party has would have a good shot.

I’m not as pessimistic. To be cynical, there are only two national parties, and always will be. Even if people distrust Democrats (and I’m not sure that’s true), they’ll still vote blue in order to to kick out the vastly more unpopular Trump.

PP here. Why on earth do you think Trump is more unpopular than the Democrats? There is no polling that shows that now. Polls now show Trump is unpopular but the Democratic Party is even more unpopular.

And I don’t know how you can’t see how distrusted the Democrats are at this point, but this is the same smug complacency that lost the presidency in 2024. I find it incredibly frustrating, because if you’d just open your eyes (where you refers to Democrats more generally), maybe we’d have a shot at winning again.

Trump isn't running against "Democrats" - he will be running against a specific person. I don't give a damn what polls say about political parties. Polls have always shown that parties are unpopular but individual candidates still win.

As far as Democrats "learning lessons", I'm sick of apologizing for our beliefs, which are communal, tolerant, and progressive. If basic competence and decency is too much for voters, especially when compared to the Republic clown show, then screw them. Democrats need to grow a backbone, not grovel to a bunch of people who are scared of trans people.

But the Democratic leaders are not any of the bolded and neither are their beliefs. Not since Obama and even then, only in his first term. That’s why people like Trump can and do win: because voters simply don’t perceive Democratic candidates this way. The Democratic self-perception gap is just so gaping.

Really. Our President is separating toddlers from their mothers at the border and threatening to deport US citizens. Silencing academics and scientists. Deporting Afghan allies who will certainly be tortured and killed once returned to Afghanistan. Covering up for rape and pedophillia. Tearing down democracy.

And it’s the Democrats who are the bad guys in this scenario? Democrats who are untrustworthy and evil?

Bullsht. All of this handwringing is just Republicans quaking in their boots, seeing a blue tsunami coming in November 2026. Democrats have outperformed in every election this year and look to sweep in Virginia in November. Letting Biden run in 2024 was a mistake, but one that pales in comparison with Trump’s mismanagement, and polling reflects that. Again, voters won’t be voting for the Democratic Party. They’ll be voting to kick out Trump.

Nobody here thinks the Republicans are good or anything other than evil. But what you don’t get is that outside the DCUM bubble, people think you are no different than the Republicans.

I do not think DC-based wealthy Democrats understand just how despised they are outside of their own tight circles, and how evil people think they are.

Ahhh here's that weird notion that we here on DCUM are all some kind of ultra wealthy out-of-touch cabal yanking the levers of power from the backs of our limousines.

Nothing's tighter than the little bubble inside your own head.

Exactly. DC is full of Americans. Patriots too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am not seeing this OP. Be cautious you are not in an echo chamber and missing a silent majority.

FWIW I would vote for anyone moderate.

+1 I think most would.

DP. No they wouldn’t. That’s how Trump keeps winning.

Biden campaigned as a moderate but governed as a far-left progressive. In 2024, nobody trusted the Democrats any more when they claimed to be moderate as it was obviously a lie.

How did he govern as a far left progressive? He barely did anything despite claiming he would do progressive things like universal pre-K etc. He did very, very little at all.

These people claiming that Biden was any kind of progressive are quite insane. He ruled firmed for the center while giving republicans pretty much whatever that wanted. At best we didn’t move either left or right.

Biden was off the chart progressive on the second most important issue to US voters in 2024

Biden and Democrats Priorities

And yet it is the democrats that expand immigration which allows companies to stomp on workers , and they wonder why they lose Elections . Focus on US workers first and never lose.

1.Biden refuses to mandate e-verify. there is no reason to require corporations to hire US workers. -https://www.governing.com/work/e-verify-creates-loophole-for-undocumented-workers-employers.html

2.Biden helps US companies replace US workers with cheap foreign labor by expanding H1B - https://www.axios.com/2022/01/12/h1b-visa-approval-rate-tech-biden-immigration

3.Biden expanded OPT to new job categories, this helps companies replace US workers with cheap foreign indentured servants - https://www.fragomen.com/insights/united-states-white-house-announces-expansion-of-stem-opt-program-and-other-initiatives-to-attract-stem-talent.html

F1 - Legal system requires F-1 students to remain with employer for approximately 7-12 years

4.Biden proposes to create brand new W-1 visa with unlimited Green Cards, because we mythically don't have enough workers in the US, we devalued a master with H1B, and now we will devalue PhDs with W-1 visas - https://www.forbes.com/sites/stuartanderson/2022/01/27/house-adds-game-changing-visas-for-immigrant-startups-and-phds/?sh=500faa1810be

5. Biden allowed millions of illegal aliens to flood the country. Pelosi and Schumer were in cahoots on this plan .

Ah so you don’t know what progressive is. All of this benefits big business by supplying cheap labor. There is nothing remotely progressive about anything you listed. Also Schumer and Pelosi are not progressives!

That PP is ridiculous. I don’t want to hear another MAGA talk about e-verify ever again! Did they bury their heads when it was found a small fraction of the felon’s properties used e-verify and after that expose came out he quietly dismantled the program. MAGA is delusional.

The felon has used illegal immigrants his entire career and does not want it to go away, nor do his friends after their recent ballyhooing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The problem that Dem moderates are running into is that they don't seem to stand for anything. I am barely hearing anything from D leadership on any of the major issues today. Maybe they are saying or posting something but it's not penetrating and I say this as someone who is pretty engaged.

Agree with a PP who said the party (maybe both) have lost the trust of voters. This is why left wing or progressive candidates can generate more enthusiasm, because they seem more authentic and like the believe in something versus parroting the most "popular" or palatable consultant-vetted position.

I agree Dems will need someone who seems like an outsider like Obama initially did. Otherwise it's hard to break the cycle.

The moderates have been driven out of the Democratic Party. That’s why you don’t hear from them.

No tf they haven’t. David Hogg threatened to primary moderates and now he’s the one that is gone. Schumer, Jeffries, Gilibrand, Fetterman are moderates and still around. Murphy has become more prominent also a moderate. You basically never hear anything about that phony Muslim Omar anymore. Who are the moderates that have been forced out?

But everyone hates them now for being useless.

Completely agree. But the dems seem to be taking the message that they need someone moderate to combat Trump. Yet all the moderates are despised and people like Mandami are getting way more support.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP. I am one of the rare Democrats who correctly predicted Trump’s win in spring of 2016 and again in 2024.

What OP is getting at is directionally correct (the disillusionment with the status quo, for rise of populism) but where I think she is wrong is that as of yet, I don’t see that somewhat leftward populist shift reflecting in national election outcomes. The critical voters that Democrats need in swing states do not trust the Democratic Party at all, and certainly don’t see Democrats as any sort of “good guy.”

Democrats have an enormous trust hole to dig themselves out of before they can win national elections again. The voters they need see them as liars right now.

I am watching a few Democratic candidates around the country who show promise, although I think a party that relies on the lightning in a bottle that was Obama is ultimately doomed. But the situation isn’t entirely hopeless. Someone who can capitalize on what OP is observing without being tainted by the deep trust issues the party has would have a good shot.

I’m not as pessimistic. To be cynical, there are only two national parties, and always will be. Even if people distrust Democrats (and I’m not sure that’s true), they’ll still vote blue in order to to kick out the vastly more unpopular Trump.

PP here. Why on earth do you think Trump is more unpopular than the Democrats? There is no polling that shows that now. Polls now show Trump is unpopular but the Democratic Party is even more unpopular.

And I don’t know how you can’t see how distrusted the Democrats are at this point, but this is the same smug complacency that lost the presidency in 2024. I find it incredibly frustrating, because if you’d just open your eyes (where you refers to Democrats more generally), maybe we’d have a shot at winning again.

Trump is losing all demographics in polling right now except gen x. And he keeps digging himself in a bigger hole everyday with his crazy, erratic tweets, alienating us further from our allies, implementing very unpopular policies, etc, etc!

Do not see that helping Rs in the mid terms and beyond.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am not seeing this OP. Be cautious you are not in an echo chamber and missing a silent majority.

FWIW I would vote for anyone moderate.

+1 I think most would.

DP. No they wouldn’t. That’s how Trump keeps winning.

Biden campaigned as a moderate but governed as a far-left progressive. In 2024, nobody trusted the Democrats any more when they claimed to be moderate as it was obviously a lie.

How did he govern as a far left progressive? He barely did anything despite claiming he would do progressive things like universal pre-K etc. He did very, very little at all.

These people claiming that Biden was any kind of progressive are quite insane. He ruled firmed for the center while giving republicans pretty much whatever that wanted. At best we didn’t move either left or right.

Biden was off the chart progressive on the second most important issue to US voters in 2024

Biden and Democrats Priorities

And yet it is the democrats that expand immigration which allows companies to stomp on workers , and they wonder why they lose Elections . Focus on US workers first and never lose.

1.Biden refuses to mandate e-verify. there is no reason to require corporations to hire US workers. -https://www.governing.com/work/e-verify-creates-loophole-for-undocumented-workers-employers.html

2.Biden helps US companies replace US workers with cheap foreign labor by expanding H1B - https://www.axios.com/2022/01/12/h1b-visa-approval-rate-tech-biden-immigration

3.Biden expanded OPT to new job categories, this helps companies replace US workers with cheap foreign indentured servants - https://www.fragomen.com/insights/united-states-white-house-announces-expansion-of-stem-opt-program-and-other-initiatives-to-attract-stem-talent.html

F1 - Legal system requires F-1 students to remain with employer for approximately 7-12 years

4.Biden proposes to create brand new W-1 visa with unlimited Green Cards, because we mythically don't have enough workers in the US, we devalued a master with H1B, and now we will devalue PhDs with W-1 visas - https://www.forbes.com/sites/stuartanderson/2022/01/27/house-adds-game-changing-visas-for-immigrant-startups-and-phds/?sh=500faa1810be

5. Biden allowed millions of illegal aliens to flood the country. Pelosi and Schumer were in cahoots on this plan .

Ah so you don’t know what progressive is. All of this benefits big business by supplying cheap labor. There is nothing remotely progressive about anything you listed. Also Schumer and Pelosi are not progressives!

That PP is ridiculous. I don’t want to hear another MAGA talk about e-verify ever again! Did they bury their heads when it was found a small fraction of the felon’s properties used e-verify and after that expose came out he quietly dismantled the program. MAGA is delusional.

The felon has used illegal immigrants his entire career and does not want it to go away, nor do his friends after their recent ballyhooing.

Democrats need to become the party of labor again.

Why is this so hard for urban elites to understand?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am not seeing this OP. Be cautious you are not in an echo chamber and missing a silent majority.

FWIW I would vote for anyone moderate.

+1 I think most would.

DP. No they wouldn’t. That’s how Trump keeps winning.

Biden campaigned as a moderate but governed as a far-left progressive. In 2024, nobody trusted the Democrats any more when they claimed to be moderate as it was obviously a lie.

How did he govern as a far left progressive? He barely did anything despite claiming he would do progressive things like universal pre-K etc. He did very, very little at all.

These people claiming that Biden was any kind of progressive are quite insane. He ruled firmed for the center while giving republicans pretty much whatever that wanted. At best we didn’t move either left or right.

Biden was off the chart progressive on the second most important issue to US voters in 2024

Biden and Democrats Priorities

And yet it is the democrats that expand immigration which allows companies to stomp on workers , and they wonder why they lose Elections . Focus on US workers first and never lose.

1.Biden refuses to mandate e-verify. there is no reason to require corporations to hire US workers. -https://www.governing.com/work/e-verify-creates-loophole-for-undocumented-workers-employers.html

2.Biden helps US companies replace US workers with cheap foreign labor by expanding H1B - https://www.axios.com/2022/01/12/h1b-visa-approval-rate-tech-biden-immigration

3.Biden expanded OPT to new job categories, this helps companies replace US workers with cheap foreign indentured servants - https://www.fragomen.com/insights/united-states-white-house-announces-expansion-of-stem-opt-program-and-other-initiatives-to-attract-stem-talent.html

F1 - Legal system requires F-1 students to remain with employer for approximately 7-12 years

4.Biden proposes to create brand new W-1 visa with unlimited Green Cards, because we mythically don't have enough workers in the US, we devalued a master with H1B, and now we will devalue PhDs with W-1 visas - https://www.forbes.com/sites/stuartanderson/2022/01/27/house-adds-game-changing-visas-for-immigrant-startups-and-phds/?sh=500faa1810be

5. Biden allowed millions of illegal aliens to flood the country. Pelosi and Schumer were in cahoots on this plan .

Ah so you don’t know what progressive is. All of this benefits big business by supplying cheap labor. There is nothing remotely progressive about anything you listed. Also Schumer and Pelosi are not progressives!

That PP is ridiculous. I don’t want to hear another MAGA talk about e-verify ever again! Did they bury their heads when it was found a small fraction of the felon’s properties used e-verify and after that expose came out he quietly dismantled the program. MAGA is delusional.

The felon has used illegal immigrants his entire career and does not want it to go away, nor do his friends after their recent ballyhooing.

Democrats need to become the party of labor again.

Why is this so hard for urban elites to understand?

Just because you’re not listening doesn’t make it so. They are pro-union. FFS MAGA/GOP just voted down a federal minimum wage increase in April, what more do you want?!?!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am not seeing this OP. Be cautious you are not in an echo chamber and missing a silent majority.

FWIW I would vote for anyone moderate.

+1 I think most would.

DP. No they wouldn’t. That’s how Trump keeps winning.

Biden campaigned as a moderate but governed as a far-left progressive. In 2024, nobody trusted the Democrats any more when they claimed to be moderate as it was obviously a lie.

How did he govern as a far left progressive? He barely did anything despite claiming he would do progressive things like universal pre-K etc. He did very, very little at all.

These people claiming that Biden was any kind of progressive are quite insane. He ruled firmed for the center while giving republicans pretty much whatever that wanted. At best we didn’t move either left or right.

Biden was off the chart progressive on the second most important issue to US voters in 2024

Biden and Democrats Priorities

And yet it is the democrats that expand immigration which allows companies to stomp on workers , and they wonder why they lose Elections . Focus on US workers first and never lose.

1.Biden refuses to mandate e-verify. there is no reason to require corporations to hire US workers. -https://www.governing.com/work/e-verify-creates-loophole-for-undocumented-workers-employers.html

2.Biden helps US companies replace US workers with cheap foreign labor by expanding H1B - https://www.axios.com/2022/01/12/h1b-visa-approval-rate-tech-biden-immigration

3.Biden expanded OPT to new job categories, this helps companies replace US workers with cheap foreign indentured servants - https://www.fragomen.com/insights/united-states-white-house-announces-expansion-of-stem-opt-program-and-other-initiatives-to-attract-stem-talent.html

F1 - Legal system requires F-1 students to remain with employer for approximately 7-12 years

4.Biden proposes to create brand new W-1 visa with unlimited Green Cards, because we mythically don't have enough workers in the US, we devalued a master with H1B, and now we will devalue PhDs with W-1 visas - https://www.forbes.com/sites/stuartanderson/2022/01/27/house-adds-game-changing-visas-for-immigrant-startups-and-phds/?sh=500faa1810be

5. Biden allowed millions of illegal aliens to flood the country. Pelosi and Schumer were in cahoots on this plan .

DO. As usual, Maga talking points are not based on fact. I fact checked your claims by running them through AI and this was the response.

1. Biden refuses to mandate E-Verify, no reason to require corporations to hire US workers
- Evaluation: Partially true but misleading. Biden has not mandated E-Verify nationwide, but some states require it. The claim oversimplifies, as E-Verify’s loopholes (e.g., identity fraud) don’t inherently mean corporations are free to ignore US workers. Economic incentives, not policy, often drive hiring decisions.

2. Biden expands H1B to replace US workers with cheap foreign labor
- Evaluation: Misleading. Biden’s H-1B modernization rule (effective Jan 17, 2025) streamlines processes and increases oversight but doesn’t expand the visa cap (85,000 annually). Studies show H-1B workers complement, not replace, US workers, driving innovation and job creation.

3. Biden expanded OPT to new job categories, replacing US workers with cheap foreign labor
- Evaluation: Partially true. Biden expanded STEM OPT categories in 2022 to attract talent, but OPT is temporary (12–36 months) and not indentured servitude. No evidence supports widespread replacement of US workers; OPT fills skill gaps. The F-1 claim (7–12 years) is false—F-1 students aren’t tied to employers long-term.

4. Biden proposes W-1 visa with unlimited green cards to devalue PhDs
- Evaluation: Unsubstantiated. No credible evidence or policy proposal supports a “W-1 visa” with unlimited green cards. The Forbes article doesn’t mention this. Biden’s policies focus on H-1B modernization and STEM talent retention, not new visa categories.

5. Biden allowed millions of illegal aliens, with Pelosi and Schumer in cahoots
- Evaluation: Exaggerated and conspiratorial. Border crossings increased under Biden, but “millions” is inflated, and no evidence supports a coordinated “plan” with Pelosi and Schumer. Policy shifts (e.g., reversing Trump’s restrictions) aimed at humane immigration but faced enforcement challenges.

BTW, Trump himself hires foreigners on work visas—Trump said in an interview with The New York Post that he's "a believer in H-1B," referring to the visas granted to thousands of foreign workers who immigrate to the US to fill specialized jobs.

"I've always liked the visas, I have always been in favor of the visas. That's why we have them," Trump told The New York Post on Saturday. "I have many H-1B visas on my properties. I've been a believer in H-1B. I have used it many times. It's a great program," he added.

In addition, Melania Trump was on an H1 B1 visa for years. She obtained an H-1B work visa on October 18, 1996. This H-1B visa category authorizes employment as a model in the United States. She was consistently issued H-1B visas, a total of five, between October 1996 and 2001.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is to be expected. For the last several decades we've seen the middle class falling apart, we've seen stagnation of wages, while housing, groceries, energy and other costs keep creeping up. We see people go bankrupt over medical debt. We see people no longer afford to be able to buy a home as was so easy for previous generations. And we also see insane excesses of wealth at the top held by lunatics like Musk We see health insurance companies and big pharma ripping off the sick. And now we see Republicans attacking all kinds of programs that people depend on just so that the rich can get even bigger tax breaks they don't need while adding even more debt.

People are pissed off. Something needs to change, NOW.

Biden was able to have medical debt removed from credit reports. Trump administration sued and a Trump appointed Texas judge said it was unconstitutional and all medical debt should appear on a credit reporting.

Forget about a policy that erases medical debt. We need a policy to lower healthcare costs. Erasing medical debt is a band aid that helps support the insurance companies.

It was a start, but now that’s gone. Back to zero.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm 95% sure the House will flip in 2026.

I'm 50-50 on the Senate, but it's possible if Susan Collins retires and Roy Cooper runs for Tom Tillis's seat in NC.

Susan has finally been awarded her dream job as head of the appropriations committee. She had already said she’s running for another term. Maine doesn’t even have a challenger to go against her.

I think North Carolina flips to Democratic, but what happens in Michigan and Georgia. Do those two stay in the democratic seat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP. I am one of the rare Democrats who correctly predicted Trump’s win in spring of 2016 and again in 2024.

What OP is getting at is directionally correct (the disillusionment with the status quo, for rise of populism) but where I think she is wrong is that as of yet, I don’t see that somewhat leftward populist shift reflecting in national election outcomes. The critical voters that Democrats need in swing states do not trust the Democratic Party at all, and certainly don’t see Democrats as any sort of “good guy.”

Democrats have an enormous trust hole to dig themselves out of before they can win national elections again. The voters they need see them as liars right now.

I am watching a few Democratic candidates around the country who show promise, although I think a party that relies on the lightning in a bottle that was Obama is ultimately doomed. But the situation isn’t entirely hopeless. Someone who can capitalize on what OP is observing without being tainted by the deep trust issues the party has would have a good shot.

I’m not as pessimistic. To be cynical, there are only two national parties, and always will be. Even if people distrust Democrats (and I’m not sure that’s true), they’ll still vote blue in order to to kick out the vastly more unpopular Trump.

PP here. Why on earth do you think Trump is more unpopular than the Democrats? There is no polling that shows that now. Polls now show Trump is unpopular but the Democratic Party is even more unpopular.

And I don’t know how you can’t see how distrusted the Democrats are at this point, but this is the same smug complacency that lost the presidency in 2024. I find it incredibly frustrating, because if you’d just open your eyes (where you refers to Democrats more generally), maybe we’d have a shot at winning again.

Trump isn't running against "Democrats" - he will be running against a specific person. I don't give a damn what polls say about political parties. Polls have always shown that parties are unpopular but individual candidates still win.

As far as Democrats "learning lessons", I'm sick of apologizing for our beliefs, which are communal, tolerant, and progressive. If basic competence and decency is too much for voters, especially when compared to the Republic clown show, then screw them. Democrats need to grow a backbone, not grovel to a bunch of people who are scared of trans people.

But the Democratic leaders are not any of the bolded and neither are their beliefs. Not since Obama and even then, only in his first term. That’s why people like Trump can and do win: because voters simply don’t perceive Democratic candidates this way. The Democratic self-perception gap is just so gaping.

+1 do Jaffries, Schumer or Gilibrand seem "communal, tolerant and progressive" in their reaction to Mamdani's election?

On CSPAN I heard Jeffries commenting on Mamdani saying Democrats need to learn and listen more rather than just whining and complaining about Mamdani because Mamdani tapped into really powerful themes of economic populism. That sounds pretty communal, tolerant and progressive to me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm 95% sure the House will flip in 2026.

I'm 50-50 on the Senate, but it's possible if Susan Collins retires and Roy Cooper runs for Tom Tillis's seat in NC.

Susan has finally been awarded her dream job as head of the appropriations committee. She had already said she’s running for another term. Maine doesn’t even have a challenger to go against her.

I think North Carolina flips to Democratic, but what happens in Michigan and Georgia. Do those two stay in the democratic seat.

Collins SUCKS. Maine needs to wake up and ditch her already.