Reply #60: Neither

[GMFORD]

You are probably a libertarian. That said, can you explain why you hold that position on free trade? It seems so obvious to me that unrestricted trade is harmful to this country.

As to the minimum wage not being the best way, what do you think is the best way to improve the lives of the working poor? Are there jobs that you feel are worth less than a living wage? Over time, what do you think the impact is on crime?

And as to corporations and lobbyists, I think you misunderstand the democrats position -- we don't think they are evil. Corporations are money-making entities - they have no other function and any attempt by officers of corporations to take action which negatively impacts the bottom line will be quashed by the board of directors. It's up to people (collectively termed government in a democracy) to place restrictions on what corporations may and may not do in pursuit of profits and what contribution they must make to the common good.
Lobbyists are (generally) employees of corporations whose job it is to push back against government (people). On their best behavior, lobbyists will explain a corporation's position on an issue to members of congress, showing why a certain action (or non-action) on behalf of corporations would benefit the common good. But lobbyists are not restricted by the corporations to that type of activity -- if government does not restrict their activities they will (and have) expand(ed) them to include bribing members of our government to take action (or inaction) that benefits ONLY the corporation with no regard for the common good.

At its best, government is the entire country's union (collective bargainer). At it's worst, it bargains only for the few privileged individuals in the inner circle.