Observing politics today is disconcerting
It is interesting and very disconcerting to me to observe what has happened in politics over the last ten years or so and what is happening this year. I used to call myself a conservative Republican, and even voted on the Conservative line often to reflect that leaning. But in this political cycle I find myself to the left of nearly all the Republican candidates. I don’t think I have changed much, but in my perception, they have moved decidedly right, becoming more isolationist, out of touch with the poor and more libertarian.
Where am I
I’m still pro-life and pro-traditional family. I distrust bigger government and prefer conservative constitutional interpretation, all of which are traditional Republican positions.
But I am also pro-immigrant, pro prison reform, pro traditional progressive income tax, pro-minimum wage increase, and concerned about racial justice. I also supported increasing those included in health care but along with many feel that the result has been disappointing. Today these kind of positions are more often found among Democrats.
Currently, I believe I am somewhere in the middle of the American political spectrum and the current divide between very leftist Democrats and extreme right Republicans is leaving me and many others in the middle without a good political home.
To compound the matter, the poll-leading Republican candidates (Trump, Cruz, and Carson) are my least favorite candidates of the bunch. Trump is so scary that I would vote for Hillary or Sanders before him.
What is needed
What is needed this year is a bridge-the-gap, common-sense party. Neither Democrats nor Republicans seem qualified for that right now.
