Hellobee Boards

@jennlin821: I am a registered Democrat but am classifying myself more and more as a independent these days. I am very socially liberal and generally align with the democratic platform but am so disgusted by politicians on both sides of the aisle that I feel uncomfortable aligning with anyone. If there was a “burn the house down and start over from scratch Party”. I’d join that. Only half kidding.

I voted other, I am socially liberal and fiscally conservative. I was a registered independent and only changed to republican so I could vote John Kasich in the caucuses (that worked out well :/). I have voted on both sides.
@Madison43: Agreed. In general I hate politics and the divisiveness from both sides. I would love to see a 3rd party take over.

I am officially unaffiliated. It's problematic because I can't vote in primaries, but I really don't feel like either party represents my views.

I have always voted republican until the last presidential election and now I will never vote republican again. They are all complicit.

@Ajsmommy: @josina: Honest question because I think I tend to agree with you that I'm more socially liberal and fiscally conservative, but do you believe that the republican party of today is really fiscally conservative? I think the republican party truly was fiscally conservative years ago, but a large part of me feels like neither party can be labeled as fiscally conservative anymore, they're both just love to spend money willy nilly on different things. What does "fiscally conservative" even mean anymore?

@jennlin821: Maybe I'm using the words incorrectly, but as far as social issues, I lean left... pro-choice, LGBT rights; I am conservative in that I believe in less-government intervention, lower taxes, less regulation on businesses.

This sums it up better,
“Moderates wrestle with, and often reject, what they see as the false either/or ideological choices that define modern politics. They recognize that both sides have a piece of the truth and see flaws in the standard liberal and conservative perspectives.”

@Adira: We are in complete agreement.

@josina: That quote is exactly how I feel. Neither side is perfect.

I'm your fellow Democrat Socialist. I used to identify as being more solidly Democrat, with some conservative leanings on foreign policy. But really as I've gotten older and as the political climate itself has changed I am realizing how strongly I align with the left (and beyond). It's always been really important to me to be informed... I was a poll worker at 17 pre-registered to vote and went to my first political rally (Green Party) when I was 16.
Topics I feel most strongly about are environmental protections (Floridian who has seen devestating effects of corporations/conservative deregulation on our state's environmental health and the pitiful national response to disasters/hurricanes), womens rights (abortion access, health care coverage, maternity leave, violence against women act), labor issues (minimum wage reform, supporting unions), social justice reform (reinstatement of voting rights for prior felons, repeal/release for non-violent drug offenses in cases where their convictions are for acts that are no longer illegal, etc.) and there's more but that comes to mind first and foremost.

I have a lot of friends who are far more politically active than I am (union organizers, community activists, door-to-door candidate/cause volunteers), but I support causes right now primarily by voting and with donations (and conversations in-person).

As mentioned, I'm in the South so I am pretty consistently surrounded by political views that are not my own. I live in a blue bubble in the middle of the state though which helps my sanity and gives me a place I feel good about raising my family on a daily basis. But if you travel 30 miles in any direction you'll be deep in the red. It leads to some interesting conversations, and some frustrating conversations alike.

I’m a fiscally conservative, socially moderate Democrat.

I'm registered as a Republican, mostly for primary purposes. I have voted both sides and don't vote in alignment with party lines. For me, it's the candidate, not the party. I self-identify as socially liberal/moderate, fiscally conservative.

@jennlin821: I don’t even know what to call myself anymore. Not a traditional dem, but liberal on 99% of social issues and 75% of fiscal ones. Mostly libertarian leanings but pro-life. 🤷‍♀️

@LindsayInNY: I also used to register as a republican for primary purposes. Florida has closed primaries and my thinking was that I knew I would likely vote for whoever the democratic nominee was because their views were far more likely to align with mine even with small differences between them. What I wanted to do was pick the opponent I would rather see win against the democratic nominee if that was to be the case - because it's almost always the case here that the state overall votes republican. Kind of choosing the lesser of the evils on the other side if you will (for lack of a better term - I don't think republicans are 'evil'). I moved away from this though because I just wanted to make my own voice heard and support the candidates I believe in.
My husband is registered independent so his primary voting voice is very small in our state.

@lindseykaye: I'm with you on that. I wasn't registered before and then missed out on primaries where I *did* want to vote!

I usually vote Democrat. I agree with most of the liberal ideals.

The only thing that I'm conflicted about is universal healthcare. The premise is amazing and I believe everyone should have a right to good healthcare without worrying if they can put food on the table at the same time.
That being said, I had a medical crisis this past year and I am SO grateful I am in the U.S. My possible diagnosis (a rare heart condition) can be very dangerous and more often than not, the first symptom is death. I've seen so many Drs and specialists in a very short amount of time. Didn't jive with the Dr? Get a new one. Want a 2nd opinion? No problem. I'm still a medical enigma but I have been under aggressive care to be safe.
Some that are apart of groups I'm in online with this medical condition are not so lucky. Particularly in the UK, they wait months for a referral to a specialist. Second opinions appear difficult to come by. Those of us in the US have the option for so many more tests and procedures based on our comfort level. The amount of anxiety I've seen from these people online when they hear about the difference in our options is really scary. They don't want to drop dead (which is a very real possibility) while waiting to be put on a simple medication.

While in general I think our healthcare system sucks, in my current position I'd rather pay for peace of mind. I don't think there's a perfect system...sure wish there was!!

@jennlin821: Oh I totally agree! My opinion is purely selfish. I think for the general population and the overall heath of the country, a universal system is appropriate. I just don't feel like anyone has a perfect system and it's easy to see the benefits of one over the other. Either system is going to fail some people.

@BadgerMom: It's sad that in the US you're one or the other. Like if you're Republican then you must be anti-gay rights and if you're Democrat then you must hate God!

@Madison43: I think everyone can agree on reducing government waste, no matter what side you're on. What you describe sounds more of a libertarian to me.

didn't realize there were so many independent-leaning women here. I'm also socially ultra-liberal but fiscally conservative-ish--however, I don't buy it anymore that republicans are our guys for being thrifty, their waste is just a different flavor. I do strongly believe that creating wealth through well-regulated (and not overly-regulated) capitalism will save us all, I don't believe it's the government's responsibility to correct every fiscal inequality, and socialism, IMO, is a death spiral.

but I'm not a disgusting bigot, so there's really nowhere to turn, is there.