Thread... One of the most difficult things to stomach about politics in the US right now is the fundamental breakdown in the Voter/Representative relationship, and making everyone understand that this break threatens us all. 1/10
If you need a reason to stop supporting Republicans, this is the simplest and most basic truth: THEY. AREN'T. DOING. THEIR. JOBS. You elect someone to represent you and your wishes at the federal level, so they work for you. FULL STOP. 2/10
Yet many GOP reps flat-out ignore their constituents. You see news stories and statistics about the hundred of thousands of people calling their representatives, marching, signing petitions, protesting, showing up at Town Halls, sending postcards and letters to their reps, 3/10
and yet the GOP reps consistently ignore their constituents' directives, sometimes going so far as to leave their voicemail inboxes full and directing staffers not to tally or report on the feedback from phone calls they receive. 4/10
You have to ask yourself why, and the answer goes to the basic fundamental compact between voter and representative. You tell your rep how to vote, you see the wave of popular opinion inundate their office, and you get pushback from the rep telling you why you're wrong. 5/10
Why? Because voting for their constituents goes against the GOP party line. This doesn't get talked about nearly enough. One more time: VOTING FOR THE INTERESTS OF THEIR CONSTITUENTS GOES AGAINST THE GOP PARTY LINE. 6/10
There are two possible reasons for this (@CynthiaNixon said it best):
1: They are corrupt (beholden to other interests in exchange for money or power, donors or worse)
2: They are incompetent and unable to understand the basic compact between voter and representative. 7/10
1: They are corrupt (beholden to other interests in exchange for money or power, donors or worse)
2: They are incompetent and unable to understand the basic compact between voter and representative. 7/10
This is an underutilized argument because it's personal to every voter. And as we have seen, Trump supporters and apathetic voters have been coming over to the left in droves when policies and issues touch them personally. 8/10
And it's something we on the left should be talking about a lot more: if there is a basic truth in the US, it's that you define yourself by your work. And it's an accepted truth that if you don't do your job, you don't get to keep your job. 9/10
These reps who refuse to accurately represent their constituents need to lose their jobs. If we were so derelict in our professional duties, we would be fired and walked straight out of the building. That's what we need to do to these failing representatives, too. 10/10
@threadreaderapp unroll pls
