I Sided with the Democrats

Tweet

Politics can often be a funny and misunderstood thing. For example, for many it comes down to party. For me, as I have said repeatedly, it comes down to policy. It is all that matters. Sure. Positions people have can change. But when it comes to core positions, they rarely do. For example, my position on abortion. It is an unwavering and unwaverable position for me. Let's take the border issue. My position is that illegal immigration laws should be strictly enforced, that we should have a legal process for entry into the United States and that our border should be protected and secure, and anyone here illegally should be considered for deportation until they can go through a legal process for entry. That is a Republican issue, right? Well, kinda sorta. It's a Republican issue NOW. It is a position the Republican party ADOPTED due to Trump making it a core issue of the party. The issue of border security and building walls and fences to protect it is actually a Democrat position and has been for decades. Until Trump made it a Republican issue. When he did that, the Democrats CHANGED their position. I bring this up because all too often one's political position is questioned not on the basis of one's complete belief in something being right, but on the basis of which party they happen to support. On the issue of the border, my position has always been what it has been and agreed with the Democrats and DISAGREED with the Republicans. I can go back and find many old writings slamming Republicans for not taking border issues more seriously and gave all sorts of credit to the Democrats for having the RIGHT IDEAS about border security. When Bill Clinton said we needed fences, I supported that. When Barack Obama said illegal immigrants do not belong here, I supported his position. When Hillary Clinton said that we cannot have a country without borders, I AGREED. I disagreed with the Republicans, and vehemently so, on this issue. The point is that my position on core issues are not related to which party holds the position, but rather they are related to what I think is RIGHT. I am pro-life because I think that is right. I am pro-capital punishment because I think it is right. I am pro-smaller government because I think it is right. I am pro-lower taxes because I think it is right. And I am pro-border security for the same reason. Because I think it is RIGHT. It is not a Republican or Democrat issue. Like so many issues aren't. It is a matter of doing what's right and avoiding doing wrong things. My alignment with the Republican party is not absolute. It is not automatic that THEIR positions become MY positions any more than it is absolute nor automatic that Democrats' positions are ones that I can't agree with. At the end of the day, I have only one desire. That the country succeeds. I don't care WHO accomplishes that. For me it is not "may MY party win," it is, "may whoever has the majority of policy issues that align with my positions win." America first is not just a slogan. It's a motto. It's a value. It is what allows me to separate my party affiliations from any question and be able to honestly evaluate the answer and adopt the right position. If I close my mind to understanding things because of a D or an R, it closes my mind to potentially good ideas that can actually serve America better. I want to support things that WORK. I want to support what's RIGHT. No single party will have all the right or wrong answers. It is the job and should be the INTEREST of the American people to put party aside and take each individual issue to task on the merits of the solutions our politicians offer, based on our core values and beliefs. Based on what works. Based on what's the right thing to do. And to remove party from the equation at least when we make our evaluations. The question of the border if you are a Democrat is this. Did you support border security when they did? And if you don't support it now, is it a position you only hold because it's now the position of your party to be against it? My position never changed, and I didn't change my position just because, at the time, border security was not a serious issue for my party. I am not FOR border security now because my party is. I am for it because I was ALWAYS for it. The title is a bit of a misnomer. I never actually sided with the Democrats. I sided with my position which was formed on the basis of what I thought was right. When I speak here, even though I may mention party, it's really the POLICY that I am arguing for or against. Does it happen to be that I side more heavily with Republicans? Yes. But again, it is not BECAUSE they are Republican positions. It is because they are MY positions.