MANY GOOD WORDS ON THE COASTAL “ELITE” LIBERALS

THESE ARE ALL GREAT ANSWERS IN MY VIEW ON THE TWO PARTIES, THOUGH THE VERY LAST ONE IS BEST. PS: WE NEED AT LEAST ONE OTHER PARTY FOR PROGRESSIVE INDEPENDENTS.
LUCY WARNER
JUNE 1, 2018


https://www.quora.com/What-would-Coastal-Liberals-like-to-hear-from-the-Republican-Party-that-would-earn-their-vote
What would "Coastal Liberals" like to hear from the Republican Party that would earn their vote?

41 Answers

Blake Wondrasch
Blake Wondrasch, Worked as a Political Organizer, avid student of history.

Updated Dec 31, 2017 · Author has 148 answers and 269.7k answer views

Actions speak louder than words. There is very little the Republican Party could SAY that would ever earn many liberal's votes because, through their actions, Republican politicians have proven their commitment to:

Racism. A large fraction of Republican policies since the “Great Flip” under LBJ (where Democrats became the party of Civil Rights and lost the South, while Republicans became the party of Racism— effectively abandoning Lincoln's legacy- and lost the North) have been specifically targeted at slowing the progress of African Americans towards true political and economic equality. Republican politicians such as Nixon and Reagan have also engaged in “dogwhistle politics”— where they use commonly understood codewords and euphemisms to covertly rile up racist sentiments…

Sexism. The Republican policies of the past 50 years have been designed to hold women back just as much as they have African Americans. Nobody who truly cares about gender equality is going to want to vote for the party that demonized the Equal Rights Amendment under Phylis Schlafly's disgustingly hypocritical leadership (as, ironically, her involvement in politics went against everything she claimed to stand for about women belonging in the home and not in politics or the workforce) or nominated Barry Goldwater (who wanted to keep women in the home). Further, the Republican Party CONTINUES to battle against Women's Rights with its attempts to control access to birth control (through health insurance laws) and abortion. The hypocrisy of a party that fights to keep women down even as it gleefully exploits the popularity or influence of women like Sarah Palin and Kellyanne Conway is disgusting.

Tribalism. One name: Donald Trump. Enough said. The Republican Party has proven its willingness to line up behind ANYONE so long as they can deliver the party an electoral victory. And they don't play fair either. Speaking of which…

Cheating. You read that right- cheating. The Republican Party has proven its willingness to outright cheat in elections wherever possible: whether through spreading dirty, underhanded lies about John Kerry's war heroism and then PAYING a group of military veterans (most of whom, ironically, never even met Kerry in Vietnam) to lie to back up those falsehoods, or through Voter Suppression- essentially a form of blatant cheating where you make opposing voters play by a different set of rules than your own supporters by changing the polling station hours where they live and ensuring they have to travel much further to vote, under-staffing and under-equipping their polling places so there are frequent delays and opposing voters have to wait in LONG lines to vote (when you have to take time off from work to vote, or you have a small child at home, this stops many people from voting at all), and racist voter ID laws- which are often disproportionately enforced on voters in districts supporting opposing candidates (especially minorities) and are combined with cutting back government office hours near where opposing voters live so they have a very difficult time obtaining a voter ID in the first place… (I still remember when I lived in a town in rural Illinois which was mostly liberal and had many minorities, but was controlled by a corrupt Republican County Clerk, the RMV was only open once a month and you had to travel more than 30 minutes by car just to get to the monthly office location- which was actually in a different town some distance away. Meanwhile more conservative, mostly white towns in the area had RMV's open normal business hours, 5 days a week for their residents…) Finally, Gerrymandering also deserves a (dis)honorable mention- though used by both parties, and providing some benefit through the “packed” districts- allowing, for instance, Black congressmen from the South, Gerrymandering is a dishonest tactic that is primarily used by the Republican Party to prevent liberals from winning as many seats in red states and to steal national majorities… A party that steals citizens’ right to equal access to the ballot based on the color of their skin or socioeconomic status (poor and minority areas are the main targets of Republican voter suppression and Gerrymandering efforts) is a despicable party of cheaters- and deserves to be ejected from office (and preferably, thrown in jail for what SHOULD be illegal acts of Voter Suppression) at the first opportunity. I say all this as a white, college-educated male from a Middle Class town (though I grew up house-poor), by the way: but I've SEEN the injustice in poor/minority communities firsthand.

Excessive Militarism. I was raised in a family with a long tradition of military service, and I was part of Army ROTC in college myself- and wanted to serve as an Army Officer for 4 years (in a medical or intel field). So I take the need to defend this country seriously. But when you go about sending our men and women in the armed forces to countless shitholes around the globe just to protect our “precious” access to foreign oil supplies, you gamble with the lives of our most selfless citizens simply for personal profit. That is NOT acceptable in my book- or that of many other liberals. Military force should ALWAYS be the option of last resort, and it's disgusting to see war-hawk conservatives biting at the bit to send US troops to every conflict zone around the world where there are natural resources to be gained. Instead, politicians should be leading us towards sustainability and reducing waste like liberal politicians aim to do. Electric Cars, not wars, are the answer to our addiction to oil (and electricity is produced mainly from burning coal instead of oil…) Recycling and innovation are the answer to our demand for foreign minerals and timber- not sending Special Forces all over Africa…

The Republican Party has a decades-long tradition of disgusting policy positions at this point, and actions to back those positions up.

There is nothing they can SAY that will win over liberal voters- there would have to be a complete turnover of their leadership (INCLUDING the removal from office of Donald Trump— for whom there are already more than sufficient grounds for Impeachment) and a complete 180 on many policy positions by the new leadership for most liberals to seriously consider voting for Republicans.

Republicans may be able to peel off a few Working Class moderates in Swing States who feel abandoned by the foolhardy Democratic leadership that can't seem to understand that policies that help and protect the Working Class on an economic level are their only real path to electoral victory (I stand with groups like The Justice Democrats and Bernie Sanders’ Our Revolution here- what the Democratic Party needs are real PROGRESSIVE politics- not more token diversity and bowing to special interests), but Republicans will NEVER seriously chip away at the liberal Democratic base so long as they continue with their disgusting politics- and they will CONTINUE to lose the Popular Vote in elections even if they pick up seats in Congress and win the Electoral College thanks to Gerrymandering, Voter Suppression, and efforts to convince liberal voters in “red” states that their votes don't matter… (they do- and *should* matter even more. What we BADLY need in this country is a National Popular Vote for the presidency and a switch to a parliamentary system for Congress that gives seats to the minority parties based on their proportion of the popular vote in a state…)

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Kelly Kinkade
Kelly Kinkade, voted in every election since 1988, except the one I missed because my son was in the hospital

Answered Dec 15, 2017 · Author has 7.7k answers and 38.3m answer views
I’m a “third coast” liberal, and the things that I need to hear from a Republican before I will consider voting for him or her are:

Full support for equality under law in every respect for religious minorities, LGBT persons, persons of color, and women. This includes, without limitation, a solidly pro-choice position on abortion.

Acceptance that human activity impacts the global ecology and the need for humans to take action to mitigate the damage human activity causes to the global ecology.

A recognition that any solution to the undocumented immigrant problem is going to require allowing the vast bulk of undocumented immigrants to normalize their status in a manner that affords most them a reasonable path to citizenship and which does not require them to depart the United States.

An agreement to continue to support family reunification as a principal purpose of immigration policy (which means a rejection of the widespread call for an end to so-called “chain migration”).

A clear rejection of taxation policies that shift any significant portion of the tax burden any further onto the working poor or the middle class.

A clear absence of jingoistic or tribalistic behavior.

A balanced attitude toward law enforcement, including a recognition that law enforcement needs to be constantly held accountable for their behavior as well as their effectiveness, while at the same time not trying to use law enforcement or the criminal justice system to solve problems that are more readily solved through community support programs such as health care, education, or social services. Any hint of a “tough on crime” mentality is a dealbreaker for me.

An absolute rejection of privatization of intrinsically governmental functions, especially law enforcement, fire protection, and correctional facilities.

There must be no whiff whatsoever of any interest, desire, or plan to use ballot access as a means to manipulate election outcomes. Must not support voter ID in any shape, form, or measure, or any other scheme intended to make it more difficult for citizens to vote.

Must not support any change to the long-established doctrine of unlimited birthright citizenship.

Must not support laws intended to “bust” unions. Must support the right of workers to bargain collectively. Must not support laws that force unions to accept freeloaders.

I don’t expect to get many takers. I haven’t voted for a Republican in a long time.

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Bruce Epstein
Bruce Epstein, Born in the US, lived 20 years in another country
Answered Nov 16, 2017 · Author has 389 answers and 585.6k answer views

I am an Independent progressive (meaning that I don’t align with either of the two main political parties — and wondering why everyone assumes that political positions equal political party allegiance). When I was younger, I found myself 50% in agreement with each party’s positions; today it’s 50% for one and 0% for the other.

What has changed? Well, back then we all agreed on the basic issues: how to make the economy strong; providing for everyone’s well-being, education, and security; and ensuring that everyone had equal opportunity to do so. The two parties agreed on the questions, but had different solutions: government or private sector. (Neither one alone can do the entire job.)

Today, we have one party literally questioning whether we are still entitled to equal opportunity, based on superficial criteria that I thought had been settled long ago.

So, my answer to the question, which may echo several others already in this thread, is when the GOP drops the dog-whistle messages to white Christian cis straight men and embraces the other 75% of the country as well, then maybe I’ll listen again.

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+9

Jerry Cupat
Jerry Cupat, voted in US elections since 2016

Updated Dec 12, 2017 · Author has 217 answers and 78.5k answer views
Original question: What would "Coastal Liberals" like to hear from the Republican Party that would earn their vote?

I can’t speak for the East Coast, so I’ll leave that to other Quorans. However, the West Coast Republicans should be following what I’m calling the “Faulconer Plan”, named after the Mayor of San Diego, Kevin Faulconer, who is the nation’s only big-city Republican mayor.

Here are some points that Faulconer suggested for the California Republican Party:

Embrace ethnic and religious minorities and the LGBTQ community
Encourage legal immigration
Build stronger ties with Mexico
Combat climate change

Let’s be real. Trumpists will never win us over, ever. Faulconer is not a Trumpist and has occasionally criticized Trump’s policies from the withdrawal from the Paris Agreement to the travel ban. The distance that he maintains from the national Republican Party and the Trumpists earns him a small nod from me.

My problem with the Republican Party is that there are these so-called purity tests. You have to be loyal to Donald Trump. As I said, if you’re a Trump loyalist, you’re not going to win elections in San Diego or Seattle. If you are a liberal Republican and not a Trumpist, there is a decent chance of victory for you.

Faulconer lays out vision for 'New California Republicans'

California Republicans ‘shouldn’t be a carbon copy’ of national GOP, San Diego mayor says

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Michael Feely
Michael Feely, Lived in the United States most of my life, know some of its history.

Answered Oct 31, 2017 · Author has 3.2k answers and 1.8m answer views

Acknowledgement of things which are true, and repudiation of things that are false.

Trickle-down economics has had little or no beneficial effect in the post-Cold War economy. Tax cuts do not axiomatically create job growth.

Manufacturing jobs are being lost for many reasons, including offshoring, improved efficiency and automation. China and Mexico did not “steal” any jobs, though.

Throwing more money at the Pentagon doesn’t inherently make the military better, more efficient or more effective, any more than throwing more money at the schools makes kids inherently become better educated.

Anthropogenic global warming is real. Pizzagate is not real.

Obama is not a Kenyan Muslim anti-colonialst socialist. Trump is not a successful, charitable Christian businessman.

Bernard Baruch, in 1950, said, "Every man has a right to his own opinion, but no man has a right to be wrong in his facts." The Republican Party has been trying to prove that isn’t so ever since, and Kellyanne Conway’s “alternative facts” only became such a meme because it so perfectly encapsulated this particular aversion to inconvenient truths.

I might agree or disagree with Republican Party policies grounded in an understanding of facts. But I repudiate entirely a Republican Party that considers facts things to be ignored, suppressed, circumvented, or weaponized, in the service of ideological narrative.

Original question:

What would "Coastal Liberals" like to hear from the Republican party that would earn their vote?

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Liam Quinn II
Liam Quinn II, studies Cognitive Science & Biology at University of Georgia (2021)
Answered Nov 15, 2017 · Author has 220 answers and 757.4k answer views
The Republican party could win the votes of a decent amount of liberals if they centered their party around Libertarian Values.

The socially liberal aspect would bring in a variety of liberals that are more focused on social equality than fiscal policy.

This could potentially be a change we see in the near future being that atheism and doubting the existence of god are becoming more prevalent in our society.


It’s hard to find specific graphs that illustrate the trend, but the reality is that the republican party does significantly well with white, married, christians.

All three being categories that are decreasing over time.

Based on this trend the Republican party will be forced to accept more socially liberal positions in the future that will ultimately lead to a complete change in the political landscape.

There are Liberals that support more fiscal conservatism but that simply cannot support the Republican parties outlook on social issues such as marriage equality, abortion rights, and gender equality,

Stage a Republican party that truly supports the freedom and liberty of all people, that moves away from the religious dogmatism, and you’ve got a republican party that can win over Liberal voters.

Now I’m not saying this is the majority of liberals, not at all, but this is the Republican parties best chance of winning over Liberals. Aside from that there isn’t a chance in hell that Liberals would ever come to support socially conservative and fiscally conservative politicians. It just goes entirely against their world view.

As time goes on more and more Americans are identifying as socially Liberal. The Republican party could potentially catch on to this and win over new voters.

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Sandra Sidney
Sandra Sidney, 30 years as an engaged citizen of the US.

Answered Dec 11, 2017 · Author has 122 answers and 57.1k answer views
I’m an east coaster and a liberal.

Most of my life I was “unenrolled” (independent). Finally I had to acknowledge that Republicans were not headed in any direction I wanted. However there were good things there a long time ago. So if Republicans wanted people like me back, they would have to:

Reverse policy on issues of global climate change, commit to re-joining the Paris accords at least, and propose/implement a serious, well-rounded, and long term plan to create sustainable and non-polluting energy sources. I think we would all like people to continue to live well on this planet and in this country.

Reverse policy on approving exploitation of public lands and on reducing or selling off federal lands held in trust for the public.

Go ahead and review or streamline environmental regulations, but with a huge emphasis on health and environmental aspects. Do not abrogate our public laws and protections!

Downsize from our out of control global military engagement; focus our military spending on domestic defense. Not saying don’t spend money, I am saying 3x every other country should be enough.

Fully embrace separation of church and state.

Return to Republican fundamentals on good government and public fiscal responsibility.

“Do it” or move aside on areas where we needed a new legislative framework decades ago: Immigration, SS/Medicare/Medicaid, Deficit reduction

Support sensible gun-control

Stop overloading business with things that should be a public responsibility (medical insurance and coverage, retirement savings) and support single payer. Let business do what business does better!

Fully fund for the long term a basic economic “safety net” AND fully fund public education/college/voc ed.

If they did all that I’d be all in.

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Marc Ross
Marc Ross, former Finance Manager at WestRock

Answered Dec 29, 2017 · Author has 621 answers and 310.2k answer views
First, my answer is independent of Trump. I have problems with some of Trumps words that are independent of the GOP. Of course, I have several issues with the GOP, but the first thing that I would need is that every issue isn’t a discrete binary outcome.

When you speak to republicans, they love to call Obama a socialist. Ask the details and they point out that Obama wanted to raise taxes. In actuality, Obama wanted to let tax cuts on people making over $250K expire as scheduled. That would have raised the top tax rate from 35% to 39.6%. I personally think the difference between capitalism and communism is more than a 4.5% difference in taxes. On the issue of abortion, there are those on the right who often like to paint their opponents as pro-abortion. There are no people in favor of compulsory abortion anytime during the entire pregnancy. The Democrats are trying to raise the national minimum wage to $15. Most rural places in the country can’t support a minimum wage that high. However, the loudest voices on the right aren’t arguing against a raise or for a smaller raise. The loudest voices are arguing for abolishing the minimum wage. If I want a minimum wage of $9 per hour, I’m closer to $15 than I am to $0. I am not a big fan of the individual mandate in healthcare. The GOP has been promising a better replacement for the last 6 years.

I know that on most issues, most Republicans don’t take those hard line positions on every issue. However, it seems like in many ways Republicanism is about who is the furthest to the right on most issues. John McCain is now considered a moderate because he wanted Obamacare to be both repealed and replaced. It’s better to be tough with a nuclear armed Iran today than to have Iran without the bomb at least until the 2030’s. The GOP is supposedly color blind, but will stand by a senate candidate wistful for slavery rather than risk tax cuts for the president. It’s that fight at all costs attitude that needs to go to win my support.

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Simon Kinahan
Simon Kinahan, Product Engineering Group Director at Cadence Design Systems (2011-present)
Answered Dec 16, 2017 · Author has 2.5k answers and 3m answer views

The Republican Party as as tone-deaf when it comes to people who live in big cities on the coast as the Democrats are to people who live in rural Appalachia. If Republicans actually want Pacific and North Eastern (and Upper Mid-Western, for the most part) voters to take an interest in them, they need to have policies for those people.

Lots of the answers here are unrealistic because they want the nativist and religious fundamentalist parts of the Republican Party to shut up and go away. While that would be nice, that’s about as realistic as expecting the public sector unions and black nationalists to do the same. Lets lower our sights, the Republicans could try actually having policies for the urban population. For example:

Healthcare reform. Republican healthcare policy right now is limited to “lets just screw with that because our voters don’t actually care”. Healthcare reform is for mid-income people in expensive areas. There’s lots of things the Republican Party could do that would make ideological sense for them - they don’t have to endorse Obamacare, let alone universal healthcare. But right now, they have a key constituency (relatively rich people in cheap areas) who just hate Obamacare and another (racists and other assholes) who just hate anything Obama did.

Taxes. Big cities need high taxes, because they need lots of services. Heavily urbanized states often collect those taxes at a state level. Right now those heavily urbanized states also contribute more in federal taxes and that gets transferred to rural areas. And what is Republican tax policy? Cut taxes and make up most of the shortfall by removing deductions that apply mostly in high income areas.

Gun control. Yes, okay, we get it. Some of us anyway. Lots of people like guns. People like hunting. Hell, I would probably like hunting. The outdoors and meat - what’s not to like? Some people genuinely need guns for self defense. But in cities guns are a problem. The possibility of getting shot doesn’t help anyone with anything, least of all help reduce crime. The idea that, for example, public schools should not be gun free, just sounds insane. So can we let cities set their own gun policy, please?

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Alan Lapp
Alan Lapp, 20+ years in political advertising

Answered Nov 14, 2017 · Author has 727 answers and 316.6k answer views
I was raised by midwestern conservatives that grew up during the Great Depression & went to university during WWII. I think it’s fair to call them Eisenhower Republicans.

Basically, I was raised to be financially conservative and socially progressive, as was the case with the Republican party in the mid-20th century. The funny thing is that my beliefs now are further left than the current position of the Democrats!

The Republican party machine has many moving parts. There are official organizations such as the RNC; there is functionally one centralized media outlet, Fox News; and there is a constellation of social media outlets.

There are aspects of the political system which, IMHO, Republicans exploit to a greater degree than Dems: there are corporate-funded think-tanks who produce research which is biased to the right, then used to support right-wing legislation; there are PACs which act as monetary hubs which concentrate individual donations into large parcels of money, which they use to promote their specific agenda to , and there are big-money donors, both corporate and private.

And of course… the base.

So, just limiting the change to the party is kind of unrealistic. All of the above would need to be examined.

First, I’d need a public acknowledgement that the GOP has been lying about tax and economic policy for decades, and a sincere pledge to quit lying to the base.

I’d need to actually witness at least 2 presidential campaigns of changed behavior before I’d fully trust the GOP.

Second, the racism HAS to go. Non-negotiable. Since the Southern Strategy, the GOP has made racism its stock in trade.

Third, the GOP would absolutely have to commit to substantial, non-partisan, patriotic (meaning putting the well-being of the country first) campaign finance reform. That entails: overturning Citizens United; making PACs unable to aggregate campaign donations; and capping donation amounts (as a good start).

Fourth, quit appealing to the basest, lowest, most vulgar aspects of the base. Quit fear-mongering. Quit telling the base what to think. Encourage the base to broaden it’s media consumption with neutral sources. Encourage the base to fact-check it’s politicians. Encourage the base to question authority.

Fifth, bring all the policies in line with the values. I am utterly sick and tired of the cognitive dissonance and hypocritical bullshit coming out of the GOP.

There are SO many examples: being pro-life while cutting school funding. Being “christian” while bombing brown people. Transgender bathroom laws while defending pedo Roy Moore — apparently, it’s worse for kids to see a penis in a dress than it is for kids to be statutory rape victims.

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Sean Miner
Sean Miner, From conservative to leftist without much changing opinions

Answered Nov 16, 2017 · Author has 417 answers and 87.7k answer views
I imagine the GOP could win over quite a few if it:

returned to the party’s mid-20th-century ideal of keeping a balanced budget — by means of spending cuts where necessary, and tax increases when necessary — rather than its current twin values of obsessively cutting taxes/removing regulations on the wealthiest individuals and businesses, and increasing military spending;

stopped pushing policies that most negatively impact already-disadvantaged people, such as mass incarceration and privatized prisons (though, note, this has big Democrat support as well), and their current tax plan;
stopped promoting the fallacy that “Christian values” (which hardly ever line up with the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth anyway) should be enshrined in law; and

return to spending money on (secular) public education and public infrastructure works as the country did in the early to mid 20th century.

I don’t see how these can happen, however, given that the Democrats have largely taken up these positions as they’ve become the nation’s centrist party.

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Lauren Goddard
Lauren Goddard, Entrepreneur

Answered Nov 14, 2017
Right now the most popular Governor in the USA is a Republican from the East Coast liberal state of Massachusetts, Charlie Baker. Massachusetts has had five Republican Governors out of the last six, although the State House always retains a Democratic majority. The voters are for the most part highly educated and involved and they realize that a pocketbook check on the State House is in our best interest.

Governor Baker is not a defender of Donald Trump. He is, to his credit, opposed to most of Trump's actions and views. He has no problem stating so. He is pro-choice and pro human rights. He is ethical and fair and reacts quickly in getting issues fixed after the facts are vetted.

Meanwhile in Massachusetts, the economy is thriving, there is very low unemployment, healthcare access isn't an issue, construction is booming statewide. Many retailers must pay a starting rate above the State minimum wage ($11) to attract workers. Higher education continues to thrive and the public schools are rated best in the nation. US News & World Report voted Massachusetts the best state to live in the USA.

If a Republican is trying to win over Democrats then Charlie is the man they should emulate, not merely in words but in honest actions.

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Manuel Lombardero
Manuel Lombardero, M.S. Statistics (1990)

Answered Nov 21, 2017
At first, this seems impossible considering that traditionally the Republican Party has represented everything I’m against: protecting the rich, oppressing the poor and immigrants, etc.

And I want to stay realistic as I attempt a serious answer to this question. I.e., it is not like suddenly the Republican Party is going to reverse it’s platform 100%.

So, within the confines of what a Republican Party might be willing to do, even if it is a ‘just maybe’, perhaps follow-up on the fake populism that Trump has brought with his presidency, but this time make it less fake and more real, and still keep it consistent with Republican values…so maybe:

“America First”: solidify the repudiation of the trade treaties designed to benefit the big corporate players (NAFTA, WTO, etc). This would benefit workers at large, regardless of race.

Abolish minimum wage and most social programs, and replace them with UBI, short of Unconditional Basic Income, which pays every human being a stipend just for being a human being in a modern developed society. The Republican appeal would be in the reduction of the size of government bureaucracy that runs these programs. The stipend would have to be in the order of 15K to 20K a year, depending on the state, city, etc.

Another “America First”: help small and medium-sized business by enacting single-payer health care system. This would also play on another Republican theme, that of “freedom”, whereby workers would be free to change jobs without fear of losing their coverage.

These ideas are bold, extremely helpful to most voters, and best of all, it is not likely that the Democrats will champion them as the Democratic Party is totally corporate controlled these days, and corporate America would not benefit from any of the above.

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Joshua Eric Turcotte
Joshua Eric Turcotte, studied Computer Science at University of Maine
Answered Oct 30, 2017 · Author has 815 answers and 243k answer views

To win over a social liberal (not to be confused with classical or neo liberals who are their opposites) today, you’d have to do a lot of things:

Fight/advocate for wiser consumerism that is less wasteful, doesn’t rely on slave/abused labor, isn’t produced in toxic ways, is well tested to be safe for consumers, et cetera.

Fight/advocate for equal pay and equal opportunity and equal respect for all genders, all ethnicities, all religions, all wage levels, and all languages. People are people are people are people and all deserve the same chances and the same forgivenesses that white people take for granted.

Fight/advocate for life in general, understanding that the paper-thin ecosystem that made us is being unmade by us, and that we probably can’t survive without it… that it’s our responsibility to not wreck the place.

Be willing to make mistakes AND own up to them and forgive others their mistakes in return

Be willing to speak your mind AND then listen to someone else speak theirs

Be willing to study complex situations long enough to understand how they play out…

Oh god, there’s so many things… but I think you might find a trend in there that’s fairly easy to understand. Liberals want people to treat each other well and adopt equal parts liberties AND responsibilities. Libs, like any flawed human being, will shut you out if you attack them… but if you actually open up and talk TO them, you’ll find they’re good listeners and aim to please. They may be frustrated as all hell with you, if you’re a conservative, but they still want you to have all the best things… they just also want you to realize… you can’t expect any more for yourself than you would deny to others.

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Clifton Brown
Clifton Brown, Registered Nurse - ICU and Emergency

Answered Dec 15, 2017
Political parties are merely entities that exist to build consensus and get candidates elected. They really don’t stand for much of anything. The major positions of both parties have evolved considerably over the years.

It is impossible to imagine the Republican Party producing a man such as Teddy Roosevelt nowadays. Likewise, the Democratic Party, which today prides itself on standing for civil rights, was the home of a large number of avowed racists through the first half of the twentieth century.

The last 40–50 years has seen a rightward pull on all of American politics to the point where there really isn’t a true “left” anymore. Many American Democrats would be considered center or even center-right if they were in Europe.

As it stands today, we currently have the choice between a centrist party and an off-the-rails extreme right wing party. I had been a lifelong Republican until 2010. Nowadays, it would be difficult for me to imagine voting for a Republican under any circumstances.

So to answer your question, for me to vote Republican would require a nearly complete transformation of the GOP. That is certainly possible if we are talking about a time frame of 20+ years. Under the current circumstances however, the GOP is miles away from where I stand on a great many issues and it is impossible to see myself voting Republican again anytime soon.

A good start would be to disavow the bullshitters on FOX, Breitbart, Drudge, etc. It would be nice to hear them forcefully denounce the racists and religious fundamentalists that currently make up a good chunk of their base. But honestly, until they start losing elections regularly and they are forced to reconstruct the party, that’s not going to happen.

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Anne Agard
Anne Agard, community college teacher

Updated Dec 3, 2017 · Author has 3.6k answers and 1.4m answer views
It’s hard to imagine what could accomplish this.

For most of my lifetime, the Republican party has existed solely for the enrichment of the rich. They have persuaded the working poor of middle America that they represent their interests through a truly impressive feat of political propaganda that I really can’t quite fathom. Phony hayseed accents, a hypocritical alliance with evangelical Christianity—apparently that is all it took.

They would have to resume their 19th century reform party role. They would have to uphold Roe vs. Wade and work to reverse Citizens United. They would have to support a single payer health care system. They would have to protect unions. They would have to admit that nearly everything they have done since Eisenhower left office was a big mistake.

And they would have to admit that they obstructed Obama at every turn because he is black, deliberately cashed in on Russian rumor mill garbage about Hillary Clinton, and stole the last election through that tactic, through gerrymandering, and by obstructing the voting rights of poor and minorities.

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Al Nelson
Al Nelson, Voting since the '70's

Answered Oct 30, 2017 · Author has 4.6k answers and 6.8m answer views
12 or 15 years of really good and reasonable, fact-based policy suggestions (to undo 20 years of craziness and lies). Long term, conservative conservation of environment, economy, infrastructure, education. Surprising good, new ideas, instead of the same old retreads for the last century. A break from Tea Party idiots, hateful fascists, gender craziness and religion. A willingness to return to a tax table that pays our bills.

Not going to happen, is it?

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David W. Budd
David W. Budd, Member, Vast Right Wing Conspiracy

Answered Nov 14, 2017 · Author has 1.6k answers and 1.1m answer views
Let’s be perfectly honest - the answer is the obverse of “what would rural conservatives like to hear from the Democratic Party that would earn their vote?”

It’s essentially to abandon their core policies and views and adopt those that are held by the Democrats.

If we set to the side ad hominem (that the GOP are racist or hate women or want to get rid of immigrants), and look at the answers others give, a pattern emerges.

They want the GOP to embrace:

more open borders - that is, to bring in even more than the million or so immigrants to the US that are already allowed in (the US has now historically high levels of its population that were born outside its borders, even after the country has allegedly “moved to the extreme right.”) A large, large number of the newcomers have limited skills, low levels of education, and are arriving just as automation is really starting to eliminate the low-skill jobs that they are seeking.

Why? Because the newcomers overwhelmingly vote Democrat. It is a simple matter of fact that without the virtual transformation of America since 1965, the Democrats would not have anywhere near the level of political power that they do now. Demographic shifts all by themselves have made California perhaps the most reliably Democratic state in the country.

Why on earth would the Republicans accelerate Democratic control of the country?

Oh, because the donor class love the downward pressure that this situation puts on wages. So, despite the rhetoric of the GOP (and it is ugly - the only native-born American in my household is my son, so I get it), they are very much not “anti-immigrant.” This is theatre.

A larger social welfare state. I agree that tax cuts are not a panacea, and that right now, it’s nothing short of idiotic that the Republicans and Donald Trump - following the own-goal debacle of health care “reform,” have turned to tax cuts as their next item. Something no one really thinks is important now, aside from the corporations.

But do we really need more spending? On schools? We spend more on education than almost any OECD nation, with very poor results. I am with the liberals that it’s ridiculous that we spend so much on health care with such poor results - the same principle applies to our schools. We need to find out what is really wrong and fix that, not just pour more money into the trash.

Reduced military spending and aggression? Amen, but the one idea that Trump floated that made sense, to stop wasting money on NATO, was met with immediate opposition from the Democrats. The Democrats want us to cut back on the military, but at the same time maintain our commitments in Europe and Asia.

It doesn’t work that way. I’m a right-winger, living in California, and I would *love* to hear that the US is going to close its huge bases in Germany, Japan, and Korea, bring the soldiers home and discharge many of them. I don’t see that happening. We are not going to hear any more stories about soldiers being killed in Niger, because they are not going to be there.

Given that the coastal liberals already have a party that pushes their ideas, why would we want two parties that are more or less carbon copies?

I am assuredly not a Republican, mainly because (as others point out) they are largely confused and obtuse (at best) or dishonest and hypocritical (at worst). But I am not about to vote for the Democrats, and I would not want the Democrats to become Republicans.

What we really need is two parties offering opposing, honest views. Right now, we’ve got zero.

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George Alvarez
George Alvarez, works at PricewaterhouseCoopers
Answered Oct 30, 2017 · Author has 1.1k answers and 219.4k answer views
Earn.

Boy, you said that perfectly. See, that’s the thing. So many liberals feel that taxes should be high, but not on them. For example, today’s per capita Federal spending is about $14,500 per person. For a family of 4, it means they should be paying Federal taxes of about $58,000 per year, and on average, maybe state taxes of about another $20,000 or so, conservatively. So that’s $78,000 per year that they should be paying today.

Consider that these people want even more government services, not less. So, for the sake of argument, let’s call that 20% more government spending. That’s about $96,000 of annual government spending for each liberal family of four. Let’s round that up to $100K to make the math easy.

I don’t know how many of our liberal Quoran friends already pay that kind of money, or are prepared to pay that kind of money for what they want, but I’m willing to bet the number is very few. I’m willing to bet that most can’t afford to come near paying that kind of money. I’d be willing to bet that most liberal Democrats don’t even earn that kind of money.

What’s the alternative? To spend other people’s money, of course.

So, how does the Republican party EARN their votes? By giving them more free public services than the Democrats will, and by making other people pay for it.

That’s the only way to get it done, and that’s why it will never happen. There’s already a party that will pander to these people without making them face the truth. If it was up to me, the amount of money that people are short, this year and lifetime, would be an item on their tax returns that they would have to initial every year when they file. Why? Because as smart as most liberals claim to be, I’m also willing to bet that they have no idea about this statistic.

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Adam Boyd
Adam Boyd
Answered Dec 10, 2017

Nothing. The voices of the last few remaining Republicans that put bipartisan politics over their own self interest (who might have a chance at my vote) are being washed out by an extreme, Neoconservative movement that has been weaponized by Bannon, Trump, Conway and all of their corrupt cronies. They are systematically dismantling any credibility our country might have regained after the failures and miscalculations of the previous Republican Administration. Hell, I can even somewhat reconcile the Counter-Terrorism rabbit hole that the Bush Administration threw us into. What I can’t reconcile is publicly standing behind an ACCUSED CHILD MOLESTER. And the fact that the Republican party, as a whole, doesn’t have the backbone to fight this abhorrent position means that they have crossed a line that they can never return from.

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Rebecca Romano
Rebecca Romano, a casual follower of politics

Answered Nov 13, 2017 · Author has 1k answers and 725.8k answer views
If the party had changed enough that Bernie Sanders might decide to run as a republican than I might decide to vote republican. I find most republican polices to be terrible, being mostly they just care about using the government to control you all the while saying they don’t want the government to control anyone, like they want to ban abortion, refuse to legalize drugs, want to punish women for having sex, want to keep poor people poor and so on and so on. The only time they want government out of things is when some business can profit off it. So as you can see I’m not a fan of the republican party or their policies. So get new polices and I might vote for them.

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Douglas Dea
Douglas Dea
Answered Oct 30, 2017 · Author has 5.1k answers and 4.4m answer views
Original question: “What would "Coastal Liberals" like to hear from the Republican party that would earn their vote?”

Nothing.

The Republican party is now an extremist party. They’ve moved so far rightward they are in libertarian/alt-right territory. There’s virtually no way they will earn my vote in my lifetime. If they work really hard they might be able to move back toward being a center-right party, like Eisenhower in the 50s. If they did they might earn my grudging respect (but not my vote.) But I very much doubt they will even be able to do that in the next 30 years.

Die-hard conservatives of the recent past such as William F. Buckley Jr. and Ronald Reagan would be ashamed of what the current Republican party has become.

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David Savage
David Savage, unapologetic coastal progressive

Answered Nov 9, 2017
“We understand and appreciate that you are the engines of economic growth and subsidize most of the rest of the country with your tax dollars.”

“We recognize that you are patriots, in some ways more patriotic than those who simply wrap themselves in the flag”

“You’ve been right on this whole climate change thing for years, and we’ll work to address the threat”

And lastly, most importantly, a sincere “We’re sorry” would do a lot to generate goodwill.

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Gregory Walz-Chojnacki
Gregory Walz-Chojnacki, former Former Alderman (2012-2016)
Answered Oct 30, 2017
I’m a “mid-coaster” and I’d say the three most important things I’d need to hear are:

The market doesn’t solve all problems, not everything — including government — should be run like a business

government is more responsive to the public than corporations, and has a responsibility to check the worst impulses of capitalism; too big to fail is too big to be left unregulated.

We don’t have all the answers. We won’t operate in the same scorched earth way that Mitch McConnell (for example) has operated but will listen to and cooperate with the elected officials who represent the other roughly half of the citizenry.

Of course, I’d have to to more than hear this. I’d have to see it, too.

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Robert Taylor
Robert Taylor, I am only "progressive" if your Overton window is way too far to the right.
Answered Dec 18, 2017 · Author has 1.2k answers and 267.7k answer views
Policies that are based on math, history, science, fact, logic, and reason.

Policies designed for the long-term benefit of everyone rather than the short-term benefit of a few.

A repudiation of hate, racism, sexism, and bigotry.

Empathy for the poor that yields action, not just lip service.

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Bruce Killingsworth
Bruce Killingsworth

Answered Dec 17, 2017 · Author has 347 answers and 31.3k answer views
In general, I’d like to hear that genuine compromise is acceptable (and I don’t mean compromise between moderate Republicans and Tea Party Republicans, but compromise with actual liberal philosophy) and that disagreement with conservative policies and politicians is not unpatriotic. In specific, I’d like to hear that universal healthcare is worth a try since so many other nations and governments have had some degree of success with it, I’d like to hear that a plan for education involves free tuition at college levels - for the same reason as healthcare. And I think what Republicans need to address more seriously for me to take them seriously is the on-going and impending consequences of climate change; and that these three things - healthcare, education, and the environment, when balanced on a scale against capitalist profits and property rights, are most important to leaving a sound living space for future generations.

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Jerry Mc Kenna
Jerry Mc Kenna, I have voted in the US since 1972
Answered Nov 14, 2017 · Author has 5.8k answers and 1.7m answer views
As long as the Republicans consider themselves as ‘conservatives’ first, they will not get the vote of coastal liberals, or any liberals for that matter.

When I first voted, I voted for East Coast Republicans like William Cahill. When Reagan ran the center of gravity of the party moved South and West. There used to be a phrase ‘Rockefeller Republican’, that was mostly used to others to criticize moderate Republicans. The idea that there must be a single conservative ideology in the GOP has created a winning alliance but it is not an idea that creates good government.

The conservative movement has destroyed the Republican party that existed when I started voting. So, I vote Democratic, if the GOP could move back to the center it would get my vote.

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Jack Noel
Jack Noel, Retired executive
Answered Oct 31, 2017 · Author has 6.8k answers and 4.3m answer views
The question is, What would "Coastal Liberals" like to hear from the Republican party that would earn their vote?

It appears there are still many people who don’t understand what the current “conservative / liberal” divide is actually about.

The situation: is one where both sides are absolutely committed to their respective beliefs. Furthermore, there are two distinctly different personality types opposing each other.

No one declared that should be so, it’s a natural division in every society but in the United States both parties have “helped” because both parties work hard to attract “their type” of supporter and of course the two personality types self-sort from there.

There is nothing either party can say to any supporter of the other party that will “make things all better” except for one thing. That is: a thorough and relentless return to joining together as human beings and as Americans. That will have to be done over the heads of both parties. In fact, both parties should be disbanded. Something new, human and American must take their place.

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Harry Hache
Harry Hache, studied Mathematics & Music at San Diego State University

Answered Oct 30, 2017 · Author has 1.6k answers and 1.3m answer views
Now I’m a “Coastal Liberal” - I thought I was a progressive neo-fascist liberal. It’s a new day, I guess!

What would *I* like to hear from the GOP to change my mind about them?

Stop being the party only of the rich and ignorant
Start being the party of science and reason
Stop celebrating greed and military violence like they are virtues
Start including people who aren’t Caucasian, Christian or Jewish.
Stop encouraging Fox to lie to the American people.
And the day THOSE things happen…

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Michael Coburn
Michael Coburn, I've made significant contributions to wikipedia articles on representation
Answered Oct 30, 2017 · Author has 1.2k answers and 247.2k answer views

The Republican Party encompasses a lot of people. Among that many people, surely there are some who are intelligent while not being social Darwinists and pathological liars. The party as a whole, however, is incapable of truthfulness. So it matters not what they might say, and there is virtually nothing that I would hear from them that would earn my vote.

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Don Daniels
Don Daniels, former independent writer

Answered Nov 29, 2017 · Author has 1.7k answers and 512.9k answer views
I would like to hear that they are becoming pragmatic and abandoning themes that are proved to not work, such as trickle down and supply side economics.

I would like to hear that they are acknowledging that conservative principles don’t always work. For some things, liberal and progressive policies are better, and for others such as building and maintaining public infrastructure, socialism is the only thing that works.

I would like to see them acknowledge that health care has evolved from a privilege into a right. If life is indisputably acknowledged to be a right, and depriving people of access to healthcare jeopardizes that right, then access to health care must also be deemed a right,

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Herb Santos
Herb Santos
Updated Nov 9, 2017 · Author has 488 answers and 578.7k answer views

You’d be surprised how many Republicans have served public office in these “coastal liberal” States. Mitt Romney was Governor of MA. We’ve had Pataki in NY and Guiliani as mayor in NYC. Schwarzenegger was elected governor of CA in a recall election.

It’s not the “R” or the “D” that the people in those States look at, it’s the record. We don’t go for those social conservatives who care only about abortion and gay marriage. We want people who we know can do the job.

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Alan Browning
Alan Browning
Answered Nov 22, 2017 · Author has 144 answers and 31.3k answer views

All politicians lie, so hearing something would be meaningless. But if they would show some spine and impeach Trump that would win me over. A few Republicans have mentioned Trump’s unfitness for office, but most of them are afraid to say anything about him. Absolute cowards.

So if they could demonstrate a shred of independence and integrity they would win me over. The Democrats aren't great paragons of virtue in that area, so this is a real opportunity for Republicans to show what they're made of and grab some Democrat voters.

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Matt Baney
Matt Baney, Lifelong republican until the 2nd Bush Administration, moving left ever since.

Answered Nov 11, 2017 · Author has 1.5k answers and 818.8k answer views
Admittance that Climate Change is happening and that we must make changes to address Climate Change, including ending subsidies for the coal and oil industries.

Recognition of the Black Lives Matter movement and admitting that there are racial and discrimination problems in this country.

Recognize that women deserve to be paid as much as men for the same work, and that women have the right to decide for themselves what is best for their body and their family.

Recognition that gun violence and gun accidents are a problem in this country and we need to do serious research into real ways to reduce that violence.

Recognition that the ultra wealthy and giant corporations are out of control, and must be reined in and controlled and regulated to protect the citizens of this country because uncontrolled growth for the top 0.5% at the expense of the bottom 90% is unsustainable.

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Linda Cason
Linda Cason, former Retired nurse 37 years work experiencied (1969-2008)

Answered Nov 15, 2017 · Author has 921 answers and 220k answer views
Nothing at all. Here’s the thing— I voted republican for years. Every campaign they talked about a lot of great things they were going to do. After the election they did the opposite of everything they promised and passed laws that took away the rights of average people. They passed laws according to the wishes of big businesses and billionaires and started wars. When Bush II sent the country into severe recession and I lost nearly all of my 401 k I decided to vote according to what they did, and not what they said. I won’t vote Republican again unless they start passing legislation that does not take from poor people and does not send rich people laughing all the way to their offshore banks.

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Brian Donovan
Brian Donovan, Chief Scientist at McVan Aerospace. (2004-present)

Answered Dec 16, 2017 · Author has 3.1k answers and 644k answer views
What would "Coastal Liberals" like to hear from the Republican party that would earn their vote?

Nothing they could say would make me vote for them. They have lied then destroyed the USA when they got elected. They would have to DO something.

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Marcus Lester
Marcus Lester, Carpenter in Oregon, experience starts when you begin.

Answered Dec 29, 2017 · Author has 2.8k answers and 196.4k answer views
As a “Costal Liberal,” I would like to hear from the Republicans a reasoned argument whether there is some point at which the accumulation of wealth and power in a few hands becomes so great that the wealthy and powerful destabilize the democratic processes and democratic institutions of our Republic.

Matter of fact — I’d like to hear that conversation from any politician.

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Fred Cox
Fred Cox, Electrical project director , P.E., LEED AP

Answered Oct 30, 2017
Phoenix is distant from the west coast and I’m not all that liberal, but I’ll presume to answer anyway. I would happily engage with any politician who committed to fair and honest practices and personal openness to scrutiny. If a Republican, so much the better.

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Ted Bush
Ted Bush
Answered Oct 30, 2017 · Author has 1k answers and 443.9k answer views

“We were just kidding about cutting taxes without paying for them, and we’re seriously looking at reducing some of our defense spending to go along with closing loopholes in various corporate tax laws.”

“We are so totally small government that we really don’t care what sex you choose to love, and whatever you want to do with your body is totally your own business, not ours.”

“We also decided that as part of our new commitment to fiscal conservatism we’re ending the tax break for religious entities.”

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Ashwin Dollar
Ashwin Dollar, Supported candidates in both parties, voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016
Answered Nov 14, 2017 · Author has 4.8k answers and 1.4m answer views

I don’t identify particularly strongly as a “liberal” but by 2017 Republican Party standards I definitely am. I voted for many down ballot Republicans in 2016 and voted straight Democrat in 2016. Depending on the level of government we’re talking about I have very different answers. I don’t particularly care what a mayor or County sheriff thinks about national issues that aren’t relevant to their job.

I’d want to know how a mayor will approach new development in my town and how my sheriff approaches policing issues. I would want to know how my governor would balance my state’s budget, improve education, and improve the economy. I care a bit more about what a governor thinks about national issues, as governors provide valuable endorsements in primaries. I would not have voted for Chris Christie if I’d known he would endorse Donald Trump for example. Governors can also decide how to implement federal policies like Medicaid or how infrastructure spending is allocated within the state so I do want to known their opinions on those types of policies.

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Jim Odden
Jim Odden, B.A. Philosophy & Spanish, University of Minnesota, Morris (2008)
Answered Oct 30, 2017 · Author has 113 answers and 8.7k answer views

What would they like to hear that might earn a vote? Possibly something like this:

“You were right, we’ve been self-absorbed asses. We’re making a 180 on most of our positions because we’ve found them to be baseless. We will now be answering questions.”

That might do it..,

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