If Americans are smarter than given credit for, than why do they keep electing the same people?

[Ardent15]

Look at the incumbency rate for Congress.

If Americans are sick and tired of Washington politics, than why do they keep electing people who are corrupt and bought and paid for by the lobbyists?

Maybe the problem is with us-the general public-and politics just magnifies the character flaws that are found in all of us.

[JI7]

1. because they think it's ok when their own member gets some funding for some project

in their area.

[ChoralScholar]

6. Pork Barrel Politics succeeds, doesn't it?

[Morning Dew]

2. People tend to like their own representative

and think the rest are corrupt.

[Ardent15]

4. You may be on to something there.

"Oh, all the politicians are awful..but not MY congressman."

[Telly Savalas]

25. Polls tend to back that up.

I'm too lazy to google any links right now, but I've seen polls that support this hypothesis.

[elocs]

18. Exactly, because it is their rep who brings home the goodies.

They think others suck though, but then they cannot vote either for or against them.

[ashling]

3. Who said Americans are smarter than given credit for?

:shrug:

[Ghost in the Machine]

5. If you want to change Congress, you have *got* to change Congressmen.. n/t

[emilyg]

10. I'll do my part.

[cliffordu]

7. advertising.

[NoFace]

8. We are given 'credit' for being imbeciles...so even if we are smarter than that..it's not much? nt

[upi402]

9. there's no opposition party

and even folks here can't get that

corporatism-lite is ok-fine for too many

[WVRICK13]

13. I Get It

We have a party of one. I keep saying this and people look at me like I have a third eye.

[upi402]

24. one of these is in order

:fistbump:
cuz of this
:patriot:

[Ozymanithrax]

11. We have a winner take all system with two parties...well sort of.

The parties must register independently in each of the 50 states. Each state has different laws concerning what it takes to be a "official" political party and what it takes to get people on the ballot. These laws are written to maintain the parties in power and range from difficult to almost impossible (Texas). The parties are set up to recruit talent from within the party, sort of like a farm team, and people who are not approved of by the party find it very very difficult to get on a ballot. Even open primaries are anything but open, as it takes a great deal of money to pay for the petition drive to get enough signatures to get on a ballot. The parties have their favorites in any race (usually an incumbent) who they back with a great deal of money. Incumbents must also collect a great deal of money. They way you get hold of the party records about donors is to be the official party candidate. American's are particularly stupid, but they have less power than most people think concering who runs.

On rare occasions in our history, parties have self destructed only to be replaced by a similar party. The liberal conservative divide has been consistent through most of our history back to the liberal revolution that created the country. Federalists were mostly conservative, in modern terms For instance, up until 1948, the Democratic Party did not allow blacks in the party. Allowing them in forced Strom Thurmond to leave the party and run as an independent segregationist. Up until Nixon and Reagan most of the South was firmly Democratic, and hand been since the Civil War. As the Democratic party became more liberal, and especially after Nixon devised the Southern Strategy, the South switched to Republican. Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, and even Eisenhower certainly had many progressive ideas that make them mostly liberal in todays views. Parties change over time, but the constant is that they have enormous control over who runs.

[Joe the Liberal]

12. +10 n/t

[mmonk]

14. I have a feeling that is going to change.

But with two political parties vying to represent the same multi-national corporate interests, who knows where all this is going to lead? Most likely a failed state.

[Ozymanithrax]

20. Our system will not lead to a failed state...

Actually, consumerism (our real economic system) encourages the reapportionment of wealth from the middle class and poor to the upper class. But it also focuses the energy of most Americans into acquiring goods so they can live like the rich and achieve the America dream (while running up vast amounts of debt). Consumerism other effect is to take focus away from politics or political activity by making buying and owning stuff we don't need, and replacing unneeded stuff with slightly newer unneeded stuff. People obsessed with the newest phone or the popular beer aren't going to go on a national strike.

The only route that leads us to a failed state would be a civil war, which I think is unlikely because most people simply don't care enough.

[Hannah Bell]

15. because whether you vote for the incumbent or the new guy, it's still "the same people"?

[ixion]

16. because they're not smart

and it's not just Americans. Human beings are not very bright, en masse

[Obamanaut]

17. Eddie Murphy told us in one of his movies. We vote for "the name

you know."

We've seen it in play here on DU, with the talk of another Kennedy possibly moving to Mass. to retake "Teddy's seat" so there will be a Kennedy in it again.

I prefer not to vote for an incumbent. If the incumbent weasel doesn't have his pockets filled after one term, bad luck got 'im - let a new weasel up to the feed trough.

[elocs]

19. I don't for a second believe that Americans are smarter than given credit for being.

Nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public.

[Fire1]

22. That's for damn sure! n/t

[Odin2005]

21. People hate pork unless it's THEIR pork.

[old mark]

23. Most Americans are dumber than dog shit.

They thought W. was a wonderful man of god, loved the wars he started, would not criticize him till he had nearly killed the country, now hate the ones who are trying to fix his mess.

Who do you think votes for the republicans in congress and on your kid's schoolboard?


mark