That's interesting. Thanks for sharing. Where do you see yourself politically now? Do you still work in politics? I take it that you'll cast another #nevertrump protest vote in 2020, but do you see yourself re-joining the GOP someday, joining whatever new moderate faction coalesces post-2020, or voting for centrist candidates in either party?
Anytime. My hope is that sharing my political evolution may encourage other Republicans to take a step back and do the same (or at least question their beliefs).
I consider myself a radical centrist today (still lean slightly right). I want to keep taxes as low as possible because I think on the aggregate - consumers and companies generally do a better job of allocating resources than the government. However, I have no issue with raising taxes/revenue to pay down debt, pay for legitimate expenditures, control for unintended costs the market can’t control and mitigate the dangers of income inequality.
Same goes for foreign policy...I default to interventionism (via trade, military and diplomacy) in an effort to further our goals, protect our national security and encourage the adoption of liberal democratic values (small l and d). That being said, this needs to be done cautiously and prudently so I definitely do not condone the US intervening in every conflict that arises.
Basically, I support looking at issues in the context of the timeframe we’re in and the challenges we face. Sometimes you pull the tax cut lever, sometimes you pull the government spending lever, other times you pull the tax raising lever. We shouldn’t be handcuffing ourselves by signing pledges (fuck you Grover Norquist) or subscribing to ideological purity tests.
Politically, unless the Democrats begin conspiring with foreign adversaries to interfere in American elections, I don’t think I will ever vote for another Republican at the federal level. It would have to be someone in the mold of McCain, Romney or Charlie Baker for me to even consider it. And even if a moderate R returns to the top of the presidential ticket, I don’t think the GOP deserves to have any power in Washington until they take a time out for a long long time. The party needs to be destroyed before it can be rebuilt. I voted straight D in ‘18 (except for Baker) and plan to do the same (or vote for indies) in ‘20 and beyond.
I no longer work in politics but have had an itch to get back in since this recent fiasco.
Sorry for the long-winded answer. It’s margarita night (rocks and salt...not frozen) in the NED batcave and the words are flowing.