Dems span all the way from Sinema to AOC. GOP goes from Collins to Taylor Greene.
People can express their individuality in the primary process fairly well, especially for national elections with lots of candidates.
But at the end of the day, every election is between the #1 and #2 candidates, and those candidates are going to be a hard compromise for lots of people.
Sure, Collins is vastly different from MTG in style/demeanor, but are their voting records really that different?
That’s the mistake people keep making about Collins: she says things that sound reasonable and sensible, but at the end of the day, she votes with the rest of the party almost all the time.
Lisa Murkowski has been more independent and she may well lose her seat because of it.
> Lisa Murkowski has been more independent and she may well lose her seat because of it.
Luckily, Alaska passed a ranked choice voting / open primary proposition in the last election cycle so it won't be possible to primary her out of the election (as was done in the past, forcing her to run and win a write-in campaign.) Still, We will have to see how much the administration drags it's heels on implementation...
Ironically, Lisa has been one of the better state representatives from Alaska (many others have been very corrupt). This is despite her father literally giving her his senate seat when he was elected governor.
It is naïve in the extreme to pretend that Susan Collins is any kind of moderate. She never takes a stand for her supposed principles and never casts a vote that makes a difference. The GOP allows her to occasionally vote with the Dems on symbolic gestures, or in cases where her vote would not be decisive anyway, so she can better present a façade of comity, moderation, and political independence to her constituents despite years of shattered promises. In practice, she takes marching orders from Mitch McConnell and always falls into line when it matters.
The only single time within my memory that she was part of a 1-vote margin against the GOP was when John McCain faked out McConnell and at the last minute rejected the ACA repeal in 2017. Collins had been told she was allowed to vote against because her vote would not matter, she did so, and McCain’s No vote came afterward.
I think you'll find both sides are aligned on about 60 or 70 percent of things. This is due mostly to them all belonging to the same class and seeking to advance class goals.
Pick a few wedge issues for either side and voila: you have a 'representative' democracy.
That’s because the vast majority of things have a clear correct answer. Even in multiparty nations, many legislative acts passed with the overwhelming majority of mps
The conservatives are the party of letting the poor starve and die with their constant demands of eliminating social programs and fighting against universal health care.
I wasn't singling a specific party out here. Merely pointing out that the ruling class is largely (neo)liberal.
Also, I hate to break it to you, but even if GOP opposition to social programs disappeared overnight, I would wager money that we still wouldn't get basic social necessities like UHC or UBI or housing rights. Liberal ideology is just as good at letting the poor die and starve as are the conservatives. The dog and pony show where they pretend their hands are tied cause of opposition is almost completely BS.
See how we still haven't gotten any student debt relief even though the executive could immediately provide it. See how these two liberals are still blocking the filibuster.
