A lot of people have asked over the last five to ten years of this platform being around how I could possibly still be a registered Democrat, and how I can consider myself somewhat of a moderate when looking at all my positions. I thought I would take this time to explain where I stand, and hear from you about what you think I really am at this constantly evolving stage of my beliefs.
I have been a registered Democrat for 59 years. I was convinced by my grandfather—an undersheriff and warden who helped raise me—that the Democrats represented the working man and looked out for people who could not help themselves and needed a hand. However, Republicans took over that mantle about ten years ago and effectively converted those voters under President Trump. Just as the Democrats historically had ties to the Ku Klux Klan and now position themselves as the defenders of minorities, things have shifted dramatically. I kept hoping the Democratic Party would become more moderate, but it clearly has not. I have accepted that reality, largely because promoting socialism and communism simply is not going to work.
We are going to have our hands full dealing with radical Islamic influences in our country; that is where the real extremism originates, not from Bernie Sanders. Those ideologies would not have gained traction in recent elections without significant infiltration.
Fiscally, I consider myself a conservative Democrat. I favor smaller government, and I oppose corruption, waste, and bureaucratic overreach at every level. At the same time, I support higher taxes—specifically on those earning over $10 million a year.
I would support a 10% alternative tax structure. By that, I mean an alternative credit system: instead of sending that money straight to the government, billionaires could receive direct tax credits for actively funding and resolving major public failures, such as the war on poverty and homelessness. It could also help make healthcare better and more affordable, allowing the 77% to keep what works for them while covering the remaining 23%.
A fully nationalized healthcare system has never functioned effectively in a country of our size. Rather than having tax dollars taken, misused, or wasted, wouldn't you rather see that capital deployed directly into solutions? Under this proposal, billionaires would only qualify for a tax credit through active participation, not passive donations. It cannot just mean writing a check. To earn the credit, they must take direct operational responsibility, apply outside-the-box business principles, and produce measurable results without relying on more government spending. We need better management backed by the private sector—the only sector that actually knows how to run a balance sheet without burning taxpayer cash like kindling.
If a tech billionaire wants to write off tens of millions, fine. But they cannot simply hand a check to an administrative black hole where 80 cents of every dollar goes toward salaries and cocktail galas. Go build the housing. Run the logistics. Manage the shelters. Put your own skin in the game, measure outcomes with rigorous metrics, and if the needle does not move on clearing the streets, getting people sober, and providing job training, you lose future tax credits. It is as simple as that: real accountability.
Socially, people say I sound like a conservative, but they rarely call me a RINO because I view my positions as basic common sense. You cannot build a strong working class while ignoring national security, open borders, and foreign ideologies that reject Western constitutional values. That is not hate; that is defending the foundation that allows working people to achieve a decent standard of living in the first place. The party once understood that national sovereignty and the protection of domestic labor went hand-in-hand. Today, anyone who questions the party line gets labeled, marginalized, or dismissed as out of touch.
The thing I despise most is war and anyone who profits from it. Changing the Name from the Defense Department to the Department of War, Was a ego Induced Pete Hegseth convincing himself, and it would help Macho our troops, and convinced President TRUMP ?
Bad idea we went from the defenders of the World to the aggressors. Take the hit and change it back, it will be a positive move, take the OOPs I think even the Soldiers would even like it. (Go on to) Exchanging human Ect.
Exchanging human lives for financial gain is fundamentally wrong. I fully support maintaining a strong military to defend ourselves and our allies, but reorienting our posture from defense to continuous overseas intervention has been a grave mistake. We shifted from being defenders of the free world to perceived aggressors. It was the wrong move, and leadership should have the courage to acknowledge that and correct course.
So where does that leave me?
Republicans talk a good game about the blue-collar worker, winning many over by speaking their language, yet behind closed doors they still cater to massive corporate handouts. Meanwhile, establishment Democrats have traded the factory floor for cultural purity tests and ideological crusades that completely alienate middle America.
I am staying registered because I refuse to be driven out of the party I have spent nearly six decades supporting and challenging. Someone needs to stay in the room and remind them what a pragmatic, working-class, fiscally disciplined platform looks like—even if it feels like shouting into the wind these days.
Call me an old-school conservative Democrat who wants his party back, an independent trapped in a two-party cage, or completely out of step with both sides. I have laid out where I stand. Now I want to hear from you—in plain English, what do you actually call a voter like me today?
