The bipartisan floor crossing

It takes awhile, because only rarely to proposals pop up that are functionally similar, but proposed by different parties. So, you don't get a terrific number of datapoints. It's why I started the thread, so that we could look at ideas that really should cross the floor.

5 of 6 of Trump's proposals are reasonable. The first is a bit of a red herring. Ostensibly, they can be part of the proposal of fixing things.
 
It takes awhile, because only rarely to proposals pop up that are functionally similar, but proposed by different parties. So, you don't get a terrific number of datapoints. It's why I started the thread, so that we could look at ideas that really should cross the floor.

5 of 6 of Trump's proposals are reasonable. The first is a bit of a red herring. Ostensibly, they can be part of the proposal of fixing things.

On some level pretty much all ideas should cross the floor.

Look at health care reform. Literally everyone knew it was needed. Anyone who didn't could be convinced pretty easily by simple math and a 'this is where medicare is headed' argument. So health care reform, in some fashion, should have been a bipartisan objective. But when the Democratic party president made getting it done a campaign promise Republican party leadership set about convincing their rank and file that it wasn't necessary and that the ACA was a plot by the evil Demoncrats. Now, maybe there are component ideas that should be isolated out and considered as to whether they indicate a partisan view in themselves, but in the overall environment as created by the Republicans that conversation is just going to fall flat.
 
Eh, the last three about lobbyists are fine, and I'm actually a yuge fan of #4 (5-year ban on lobbying by ex-members of Congress). The hiring freeze is a bad idea for a number of reasons, and while I'm sure there needs to be regulatory overhaul and simplification, creating a rigid rule like "remove two regulations for every new one imposed" is probably not a good way to get there and will likely lead to the selective gutting of systemically important regulations, e.g. post-2008 financial regulations.

On other things, I'm a fan of detente with Russia, ceasing to expand NATO, and pressuring other NATO countries to increase military spending up to the agreed 2% of GDP level, although I'd certainly not go so far as to not defend states based on how much they've paid. I also oppose US support of regime change for ostensibly pro-democracy reasons, but any war we ended up in anyway should not involve torture or resource plundering. I oppose the TPP and other free-trade agreements that actually have little to do with free trade, which is a position Trump would agree with, but wouldn't support starting trade wars with major trading partners.

So there's a little bit of agreement there, but not much. Where I agree with Trump, it's usually on his points of disagreement with the "mainstream" Republican party. The Republicans in general have gone insane, and there's not much I can find to support there even though I'm generally good at finding points of agreement with people who have different ideologies.

If a left-wing or centrist populist candidate appeared, I'd consider voting for them if I agreed with their economic policies even if they also appealed to nativists and bigots, depending on exactly how bigoted their appeals were and whether they are targeted to specific audiences (Trump fails on both counts). This is probably a difference between me and most other CFC people.
 
Ban on lobbying by ex-members of congress.

That's one of those things that sounds great, but when you get past page one line one almost always falls apart. I am dead certain that Dingbat Don hasn't given thought one to how such a ban could be put in effect, but even people who have thought seriously about it have (AFAIK) come up empty.

A former congressman goes to work for a law firm. Being licensed by the bar that certainly seems reasonable. That law firm has clients they represent. Their new guy is banned from representing those clients if they have an interest in pending legislation? The entire firm is required to drop those clients? Rapidly we get to "one term in congress and you are benched from your profession.

Congressman spends six years in Washington. His son attends a private high school preferred by upper end government folks for the first couple years and goes off to college. About the time dad gets ousted from office son marries his high school sweetheart. Her father is a senator. How do we make sure no "lobbying" goes on at the wedding?

Golfing buddies can't golf together? If they cross paths in an airport does one have to face the wall as the other passes?

Lobbying is such a ubiquitous but nebulous reality that there is no practical way to ban it.

<just a second, I need to go feed the dogs...my girlfriend is lobbying on their behalf>
 
Well, perfect can be the enemy of better. Even putting up barriers can really help. Look at Canada. We've got a loss less money in politics. So, while any one specific thing might not be enough, it's still okay to support legislation that is insufficient to completely fix the problem.
 
Sometimes. Sometimes you put a metal detector on the front door and the security staff hangs out there staring at it and thinking what a great idea it was while someone is rolling a tank in through the garage. I've seen too many "let's fix this, here's an easy bandaid" things happen in similar circumstances.
 
Sometimes. Sometimes you put a metal detector on the front door and the security staff hangs out there staring at it and thinking what a great idea it was while someone is rolling a tank in through the garage. I've seen too many "let's fix this, here's an easy bandaid" things happen in similar circumstances.

AKA environmental regulation. I'm still scratching my head at how companies get away with half the bs they pull. Like you know, my old spice body spray contains isobutane which is a toxic substance on New Jersey's right to know list. Apparently I'm supposed to seek medical attention if it gets on my skin.

I suppose that would be my answer - if a politician from the Republican party, no matter how odious, proposed an adequate bill dealing with the human health crisises reckless industry practices create, I would be all for it. Hell, I might even write to my representative in Congress to vote for it.
 
Last edited:
As someone who plays with chemicals for fun, I can let you know that (whatever NJ thinks of it) isobutane is not dangerous at all except for its high flammability. It is just a hydrocarbon that is a gas at room temperature, like regular butane. Most commercial "butane" is actually a mix of propane, butane, and isobutane, designed to boil around -15 C. In the case of spray deodorant, it's just in there as a propellant. In the past they'd probably have used a CFC, which is not toxic or even flammable but for some reason people wanted there to still be an ozone layer. ;)
 
Top Bottom