“What’s going to happen in this next election? I’m terrified about what could possibly happen, because our leaders matter. Who we select, who speaks for us, who holds that bully pulpit, it affects us in ways sometimes I think people take for granted,” Obama told Jay Shetty on his podcast “On Purpose.”
“The fact that people think that government — ‘eh, does it really even do anything?’ — and I’m like ‘Oh my God, does government do everything for us, and we cannot take this democracy for granted.’ And I worry sometimes that we do. Those are the things that keep me up,” she said.
“The bars are different for people in life. That I’ve learned,” she said.
Without naming Trump, she continued: “Other people can be indicted a bunch of times and still run for office. Black men can’t. You just learn to be good. And in the end, you benefit from that extra resilience.”
Me too and I’m not even American, dissolution of NATO, serving Ukaine on a platter to Russia, possibility of more war in Europe with Putin getting bolder.
No pressure Americans but your elections are kind of important for the future of the world.
There was a rider attached to one of the latest appropriations bills (which is now law) that restricts how future Presidents can pull the US out of NATO. It can’t happen now unless Congress passes an act authorizing the President to do so, or with a 2/3 vote of the Senate (the same mechanism as ratifying a treaty).
So at least on this issue, we’ve put in some safeguards in case we elect an idiot again.
Because rules and laws stopped him before
Yes, they did. He’s not in office right now because of those rules and laws
They stopped some of his bullshit, but they also failed to stop a lot of it. If he’s allowed to run for president again, that will be a huge example of rules not stopping him.
This is where states rights are again shown to be fucked. States rights to include insurrectionists on the ballot this time.
I may argue he’s not in office because the coup attempt didn’t succeed.
Though maybe that’s just me.
He did a lot of illegal things that got overturned. But the problem is while it’s being overturned it can still do a lot of damage.
Huh? How is that why he’s not in office? I would say that, in spite of all those things, he still received the second highest vote count in presidential election history.
He just happened to lose to the person who got the highest.
Yeah but a bunch of white college kids who don’t even know what Mer7aba means have decided that the way to serve the Palestinian cause is to let the guy who handed Jerusalem and the Golan Heights to Netenyahu back into office to teach the establishment a lesson so we’re fucked.
I’m starting to think they’re actually just right wingers who know that saying what they ACTUALLY want will get them dumped by all their cool allies club friends. Probably why they keep insisting on dumb fuck takes like “bErNiE wOuLd Be A cEnTrIsT iN pOlAnD!” and “AmErIcA hAs No LeFt!!!”
I agree with most of what you said, but they’re not wrong when they say America has no left. Our “left” wing party is still right of center. The handful of actually left wing politicians are drown out by the rest of the party.
I hate that the Democrats aren’t actually a left wing party, but I’m pragmatic enough to understand that it’s the best use of my vote that has any chance of actually winning / not helping TFG get back in office.
There’s no economically left wing party, but it is pretty left wing about a lot of social things. Gay marriage and marijuana legalization happened in some states before much of the rest of the world for example.
Ok but really objectively consider that statement though.
Policy by policy the Dems flank left of most of Europe’s old guard of social democratic and socialist parties. Dems tend to be more in favor of new and expanded welfare programs compared to their European counterparts, they’re less likely than said counterparts to adopt right wing policy and talking points to try and appease alt-rightified voters, and on social issues there is no contest, just say the word “Roma” and watch Europeans range from saying that pulling that card isn’t fair because “that’s different” to saying that what the fascists did wrong was lose before they finished the job on the Roma.
The metric by which America has no left is one by which the western world at large has no left, and at that point what value is gained at all by insisting on it?
In what bizzaro world!!? We don’t have basic singles payer health care like all other major western nations. Not to mention millions of other things.
Not even. They’ve passed maybe one thing in nearly the last century that approached it. As flawed as it was. And on top of that. Large amounts of Dems have happily voted for eligibility exclusion on even pre existing social welfare programs. Making them more and more useless.
Hello, last 40 years? Hello, third way Democrats? Hello, bipartisanship over principles. Even to this day Biden still waxes poetically about how we need Republicans and how they are good.
There are multiple groups who would elicit similar reactions throughout the United States. Including black, Muslims, trans, gays, and even Democrats. Oh and by the way those fascists and Nazis you were talking about. They got their start by checks notes oh, they literally got their start by emulating the United States. Not only that, around topics of which the United States still hasn’t resolved properly yet to this day. You’re batting 0 here.
You seem to have mastered the art of using many words to not say a thing, except maybe for how little you understand European politics compared to American other than “but their actual fascist parties that have elected seats have healthcare.”
You seem to have mastered the arts of deflection and not being able to address a single point made. I’ll take my skills over yours any day.
Make this argument in the other direction to prove your sincerity.
The value gained in there not being a fascist for president because white college kids decided not to vote strike?
yeah, shame on them for opposing an active genocide.
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So you all lost the 2016 general election all on your own then?
The absurdity of your perspective is that you believe there is a large group of voters who didn’t show up for HRC while also apparently believing not one of them is sharing their reasons why in anonymous forums.
The absurdity of yours is that you’re pretty obviously one of those people who thinks a millions of votes lead in the primary race is “the DNC establishment shoving her down our throats” and not “we have to be dragged kicking and screaming to even vote for the guy we supposedly support!”
I mean it’s either that or “a bunch of selfish pieces of shit voted for Biden specifically to fuck over progressive or leftist efforts”. You sound like the kind of person who would do just that.
If America pulls out of NATO, I wonder if NATO would disband and if the EU militarizes.
You made me wonder if Trump would pull out of NATO and ask a few NATO members to move to Russia-US alliance instead.
I think this is coming. Trump and Putin will invite the world to a Friendship Union. We can call it “FU World”…
I’ll be voting, and getting as many people as I know to vote. If there was ever a time to vote, it’s this one (at least since the civil war era).
You’re spending too much time on Reddit and Lemmy. Republicans will always support Ukraine (they hate Russia too!). The issue isn’t about support, it’s about limits. We have to have checks and balances when financing a war, this isn’t a free for all. The Republicans are just making sure the money is being spent how it’s supposed too. All of a sudden, they’re called “traitors” and “ass-kissers.” Which is just ridiculous. How soon we forget Ukraine was once considered one of the most corrupt countries on Earth.
That’s not what Trump’s actions suggested the last time in office, I have no doubt republicans hate Russia, maybe even more than Democrats, it’s Trump specifically I’m worried about.
Trump won’t pull support for Ukraine, that’s just a scare tactic from the Left. The entire government is united on the issue of stopping Russia, Trump alone can’t do much about that. If anything, he’ll just crack down harder on how/where the money is spent. Again, I hate this “just give them what they want!” mentality coming from the Left. There should always be questions, concerns, limits…etc…when giving billions of dollars to any country.
US meddling on the rest of the world only goes well if its white europeans. I’m not thrilled about the US being “strong”.
Of course, cuz black Europeans are immune to bombs and bullets
I dunno how it is in europe, but if its anything like the places I know you wouldn’t get as much attention thats for sure.
Imagine the worst outcome you can think of on the issue that’s most important to you, and that’s probably likely no matter who we elect. Both parties rule as conservatives, and conservatism in recent memory has meant a slow-burn of lost liberty.
Don’t worry though. No matter who we elect they’ll still run us further into debt in order to fund the wars in Gaza and Ukraine, because it’s making our legislators and their backers obscenely wealthy. War is one of the shitty things for which there’s always bipartisanship.
You’re part of the problem.
There is no ‘both sides are bad take’ here.
There’s Biden who at worse maintains the status quo and then there is Trump who will become a literal dictator.
No I’m not exaggerating. You fucking centrist morons can’t see you’ll be on a train for the gas chambers if he is elected again and will be shocked when it happens.
LOL
I’m a Green.
Though you’re partly right. It is the centrists who truly paved the way for fascism in this country. 40 years of lesser evils really added up.
Then I hope you’re voting for Biden if you are eligible to.
Centrists will be the death of all of us.
They’re not the centrist though. They want someone to the left of Biden. You want someone to the left of Trump.
You’re the centerist here. And yes you will be the death of the Democrat party and probably the entire country along with it.
I can’t vote for the American president.
But if I could I would still have to vote for Biden because of first past the post voting. Third way candidates are a wasted vote.
Would I want to vote for Biden? Of course not.
Do you live in the U.S.?
Did any of the 2 sides really pushed for actual healthcare? Or did anything substantial about any of the pervasive cost of living problems? Or yknow, stopped bombing other people around the planet? Or did anything about the growing nazi problem?
Its a good cop bad cop shtick, both sides are pretty bad. Not only in the US, mind you.