Do we really need Republicans when DU is happy to tear down their own

[Pisces]

Candidates?? I come to this site and often mistake it for Freeperville. Both candidates belong
To our party. I know that there are some trolls that try and stir shit up, but why are so many
Taking the bait?? Not one of their candidates is acceptable, let's pick our candidate but not
Annihilate the other one. When the Republicans need to do opposition research all they have to do is come to DU. We've done all the work for them.

[onecaliberal]

1. That's rich when one of the candidates is employing every dirty trick in the rove

Playbook against her oponent. You cannot blame suffering people for saying NO to more suffering because you think you know better what they need.

[Hortensis]

21. If we got rid of the extreme right and

the extreme left, the world would be a far better place, with far less war, far greater fairness, far less electoral nastiness. So, yes, we "need" good, sensible Republican people, and we need not to have those who can't play well with others.

Like that's going to happen.

[roguevalley]

23. I agree, onecaliberal. Also, critiquing and discussing

candidates is a democratic attribute

[Kip Humphrey]

2. I thought it was called "vetting".

That's the word I hear from Fortress Hillary all the time.

[HumanityExperiment]

3. Let the candidate speak for herself...

[berni_mccoy]

4. Shhhh... We're vetting the candidates.

[TCJ70]

5. Welcome to primary season...

...pick a side, argue for that side, hopefully you win. That's how it goes this time of the political cycle. It probably wouldn't be as noticeable this time around if the candidates weren't so vastly far apart in so many regards.

[PJMcK]

6. Agreed

Passion is tremendously important because it stirs people to action. But we need a Democrat in the White House and hopefully that candidate will have long coattails on Election Day.

I'm also reminded of something I learned when raising my son: it takes two to argue.

[auntpurl]

7. People love primary season on DU

I leave this place feeling sick, but I still come back, so what does that say about me? I'm not gleeful about it, though, and I'm always civil, and that is not the case for many here. The attacks I see on both candidates are terrible. People love to get all riled up on the internet and scream at their opponents. If that weren't true, GDP wouldn't be the most popular (by far) forum on DU in primary season. It's a cesspit of negativity and vitriol. It's horrible. I hate it. Why am I still here?

I don't know.

[renate]

14. I feel the same way

"It's horrible. I hate it." Yes. I always think of DU as this wonderful, supportive community, but you've described perfectly what it's like right now. I don't remember it being this bad in 2008 (I could be wrong) and it just makes me so sad now.

I don't know why I keep coming back these days. Muscle memory when I sit at the keyboard, I guess.

[auntpurl]

15. 2008 was awful, but I think 2016 is worse so far.

It will be better once we have a nominee. I support Hillary, but I will happily support either candidate, and honestly I just want it over now. I'm so tired of watching people who are probably great people tear each other down all day long. There are also some nasty assholes who get off on the negativity, and I really must start using the ignore feature (this goes for supporters on both sides).

[auntpurl]

18. PS. It could also be that 2008 felt terrible because it was such a shock to the system.

For 7 years on DU, we'd all been united in the horror of the long national nightmare of the Bush administration. Then in 2008, it seemed like we were going to take the White House back, and a group of people happily formed around Hillary, thinking we would break that final glass ceiling and put a good Dem into office. Another group happily formed around Obama, thinking we would finally break that racial divide and put a good Dem into office. And then the two groups looked at each other like, "WHAT?" DU had never experienced that kind of schism before.

I've been here since 2002 (under another name) and 2008 was a horrible shock. But 2016 has been so utterly vile, that I think it's actually bad for my emotional health to spend any significant time here. I'm going to have to look at my priorities.

[renate]

20. I think you're right

It's an interesting dynamic, isn't it, when a group has long been united against something and has trouble making the switch to being united in a positive way. It worked after 2008 and it was nice here for a long time; I think and hope it'll be nice here again eventually.

In the meantime (and I just noticed your sig line!--I love it!) maybe we can ask Skinner to create a new forum on DU called "Smile Politely." Kidding, of course, but it would be so restful.

[auntpurl]

22. Yes!

I would love to see more friendly threads in GDP. I suppose we could all go to the Lounge, but I want to be able to discuss POLITICS in a friendly way.

I'd like to be able to say I don't think Hillary is a great campaigner without it being used as a weapon to tear down my candidate. I'd like to be able to say I think Bernie is too focused on economic issues to the detriment of other issues that are important to me and discuss that civilly. I'd like EVERYONE to stop posting lies (Hillary did NOT try to get Bernie off the ballot in DC, Bernie did NOT cause the Nevada snafu, Hillary is NOT a Republican, Bernie is NOT a communist) and I wish we all knew more about each other than which candidate is in our avatars. I love dogs, but prefer cats! I knit and crochet! I live in the UK, but I'm from Pennsylvania! I'm a complete human being, and I know everyone else on here is too (maybe not some paid operatives on both sides, but anyway).

I am 100% in favour of the "Politeness First" forum.

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

8. That's not how I see it.

There has been a concerted effort at the Dem establishment media, DU admin and troll level to promote one candidate above another with complete disregard for openess, fairness and tact.

That can be seen in how the DNC has stifled debates, 6 vs 25 in 2008, how the media has ignored one Democratic candidate over their choice, how the admins here promoted their choice over the other candidate, how the trolls have thrown all sorts of slander at one candidate in particular and then, after many if them were suspended for 5 hides, are given the chance to do it all over again with a reprive from the admins whi are in the tank for their candidate.

This is only my humble opinion, of course, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see the obvious.

[Dem2]

9. The assassins call it "vetting"

...they think we're morons.

[Sky Masterson]

10. I don't see it as tearing down

I see it as a boxing match.
Also,many here have been following these two candidates for well over a decade and each have shown us different things about themselves. How they vote when its hard. Who they court and how they feel/vote at times when certain things were unpopular (Like Gay Marriage,voting against the Iraq Invasion. etc).
Were they on the right side of history when it wasn't popular to be at the time?
One candidate was and another wasn't in many many cases.
Some feel that one candidate is more electable than the other and so we fight.
In the end the people who take this board for more than an echo chamber of similar minds shouting frustrations then they are giving this place too much credit.

[Autumn]

11. Of course we do, Who else can our elected democrtas work with to improve the lives

of all elected politicians? They need each other to keep the little people inline.

[anotherproletariat]

12. I'm a victim...came here undecided looking for educated views on the candidates, and

after a little over a month - I'm a strong Hillary supporter who would never vote for Bernie. At this point I would honestly vote for any repub over the Burnt henchmen's candidate.

[liberal_at_heart]

24. Message boards are not exactly the best place to get information. First of all you don't

know if what you are reading is true or not plus you are going to get a lot of opinion mixed in. That's just the way message boards work. When I'm doing research for voting, I look up voting records on govtrack.us or ontheissues.org or votesmart.org. I come here to express my opinion and listen to opinions of those whom I agree with. I will listen to opinions of those who disagree with me if they are civil but most of the time it just ends up getting nasty so I end up putting a lot of people on ignore. I am supporting Bernie, but hey if you want to vote for Hillary I'm not going to tell you not to.

[ibegurpard]

13. I'd be solidly behind Democrats

Who fight tooth and nail for the interests of the working class and labor. Unfortunately many of them abandoned those people and issues.

[laruemtt]

16. She's really not

one of our own.

[HughLefty1]

29. There were so many great potential Dem candidates

But the corporatists and DNC pre-selected HRC as our nominee. That's how I honestly see it. Now that her coronation is not going as smoothly as projected it's our fault for doing the research and backing the other candidate. How dare us! We still have months until the convention and the GE. I see no problem with vetting and discourse at this point. Hilarians might be better off to grow a thicker skin if she does become the nominee.

[firebrand80]

17. This is a slap fight compared to the GOP nuclear arms race nt

[liberal_at_heart]

25. Sorry, but I'm an Independent. I do not owe my loyalty to the Democratic Party.

I will vote for the candidate that works for middle class, the working poor, the homeless, and the disabled. WIC, food stamps, SSI are all on the cutting block and instead of fighting to stop spending money on war and raise taxes, Democrats like Hillary just cave to cuts to social services. I will not support that.

[0rganism]

26. "Do we really need Republicans?"

fixed it for you ༼ つ ◕_◕ ༽つ

[SoLeftIAmRight]

27. dino's are not "our own" -

many need to learn this

[Hiraeth]

28. Its called the primaries. Get used to it.