Shelenn Ayres on Nostr: Jonathan Mesiano-Crookston🌬️☀ What someone voted for only applies to ...

Jonathan Mesiano-Crookston🌬️☀ (npub1why…mgnt) What someone voted for only applies to incumbents and often those votes are political barter or cast in the interest of gains of political capital when their vote doesn't matter due to strong support regardless. There is a lot more to political office than voting on bills.

As for research, I personally do not find research using the above resources an issue most of the time - but then I've been politically active since my teen years. Now, I open endorsement lists, webpages, or sheets etc, do quick finds for words or terms or names, and scan the result of searches.

For articles, Media Matters is good on the big stuff overseeing fake news sources. Fact checking sites do a good job as well and are useful. Most articles do not influence my vote at all. There are a few issues that are deal breakers like human rights if reported in an article - but those are generally covered by orgs and people who issue endorsements.

Before every election day, I get a copy of our sample ballot from the election website then spend no more than an hour noting who or what I plan to vote for I pass this info to my wife who tends to vote the same as I do. Where I am not already sure, I check endorsements and local party websites. I used to be an independent who tended to vote Democrat but declared as a Democrat when Obama was elected after seeing the rise of KKK/Neo-Nazi power within the GOP.
Endorsements are also extremely helpful when I don't have time to do research. I am a pragmatic progressive and a lesbian. I stand for LGBTQ rights. Any politician who stands for LGBTQ rights also likely stands for women's rights, economic justice, climate change action, social justice, food security, and more. An endorsement from HRC (Human Rights Campaign) is a strong guide in that sense.

Activists and politicians who continue full-time engagement often endorse candidates. I am a huge supporter of Hillary therefore anyone she endorses generally gets my support.

For candidates on the ballot in local races that don't have big endorsements, there are local level endorsements from the Democratic party, Emily's list etc. which tend to get my support after reading summaries they provide regarding campaign stances.

History teaches when learned. The KKK/Neo-Nazis have been in the GOP since Goldwater and the Civil Rights movement of the 60s shifted party views and the "southern swing" later consolidated the racists within the GOP ranks.

It is not generally know at the time but Reagan was also a Make America Great puppet with Putin's right hand in the US: Manafort. Putin was a rising star in the KGB at the time. Manafort was in the background of every GOP POTUS campaign since.

Despite these influences, moderates like McCain dismissed support from racists (that Putin was using) thus keeping their votes down in number - minimizing their influence. But the sexists continued to rise in power along with strong bigotry with the GOP political ranks. Not until a bi-racial POTUS were they empowered to rise up as the MAGA far right. In 2015. Many do not know these voters actually see Putin as the savior of the white "race". I was raised in the South with many KKK and Neo-nazis in my own community - so I speak from direct knowledge of their beliefs contrary to my own.

In 2015, the Trump family paid evangelical leaders, many of whom were racist, sexist, and bigoted, to join the campaign violating laws that have prevented church involvement in politics. It is now known that Putin and his oligarchs were behind the increase in voters who are racist, sexist, and bigots.

Putin said years ago he would destroy the US from within without firing a shot. Our voting population and political parties were gullible in 2016. We defeated his efforts in the US in 2020. Time will tell if we defeat Putin in the US and abroad in 2024. He is the power player behind the political polarization of the US we see today.

Racist, sexist, and bigoted people in positions of power and wealth in the US, including evangelical con artists, only care about their own power and wealth. Trump is simply a useful idiot (puppet) for Putin who controls the money spigot. They are all threats to democracy.

The US is a Republic, a representative democracy guided by its Constitution. Politically, the top two parties represent the power of the people. The party in the majority controls what bills get to the floor to be voted on. What that means is, not voting for one of the top two parties in any general election is a vote for the opposition. Much progress has been made since the 60's and that progress is owed to Democratic parties and its coalition of minor parties and progressive activists.

Putin's GOP under Trump wants to remove the power of the people because they can't win otherwise without cheating in elections. The GOP will continue to exploit voters by dumbing-down and disenfranchising voters. Putin and other allies of Putin will continue to influence elections with money and technology to promote their interests as enemies of the US. Putin has the GOP and its voters by the short-hairs. They know GOP voters fall in line while Democrat voters fall in love or don't vote.

It is up to the people of the US to stand against the GOP. Regardless of which democratic coalition faction you most identify with, the only way to defeat the GOP is to vote Democrat. There are no protest votes in general elections. If you don't have time to do research, let endorsements guide you.