When I was 11, my grade had a mock election. We learned about each candidate (George Bush and John Kerry), voted, and waited for the teachers to announce the results by the end of the day.
By 2 pm recess, things had really gone downhill; tempers are running high. The two groups met on the playground for a rock fight (which is exactly what it sounds like, we fought each other with rocks). The George Bush group won; those pint-sized Republicans, myself included, could really throw. But, those little liberals were no slouches – let me tell ya! As I sat against the wall, icing my shoulder, one thing became very clear – Politics is a contact sport.
But lately, something has changed.
The 2020 election featured unprecedented voter turnout. President-Elect Joe Biden received more votes than any presidential nominee in history; the runner up for that record was Donald Trump. Unprecedented turnout also brought unprecedented division. I’ve witnessed hate and animosity in today’s politics that I haven’t experienced before. Our two-party system leaves voters with a choice between extremes, pulling us farther and farther away from the middle, from a common ground, from each other. Suddenly, every issue is life or death. The stakes are high and the outrage is real. Who someone votes for says what they believe and if they believe something you think is so offensive, how can you keep them in your life?
So we segregate; we move, we make new friends, and one day we look up one day and we’ve surrounded ourselves with people that think just like us.
Us.
Them.
Winning
Losing.
It’s all zero-sum.
Fear is gripping our nation in a way that I’ve never felt before. The result? Our country is dangerously divided. It didn’t use to be this way, right? Maybe it did. All I know is it doesn’t have to be this way. I don’t want to choose between extremes. How can that be what is best for the country? America is a nation built on diversity of opinion and extremists have taken that away from us! I want to take it back.
So, I Started Moderate Party.
A place to talk about the news, politics, and big ideas without being weighed down by party affiliation. I want to hear from everyone. I want to work together to figure out the best solution for everybody. I want to fight for the center. Give a voice to Moderates. The Center can’t hold if we don’t hold it.
WHAT THIS PODCAST IS:
- This podcast is a community to promote bipartisanship, compromise, and problem-solving in politics.
- It is a place to take an honest look at policy ideas and how they can help and hurt the United States.
- It’s a safe place to have challenging conversations about the issues that divide us knowing that both sides of an argument will be treated with sincerity and given the benefit of the doubt.
- It’s a platform that prioritizes a complex solution to a complex problem. Even if that takes a little bit longer, incremental progress is still progress.
- It is a community that believes in problem-solving and consensus building,
- It is a place for Moderates.
WHAT THIS PODCAST ISN’T:
- It’s not something that you use to validate the opinions you already have.
- It’s not a place to dunk on the president, whoever that may be.
- It’s not a blind endorsement of either party.
- It’s not a boxing ring or we beat the shit out of people that disagree with us.
So that’s it, guys. That’s the pitch. That’s what I’m here to do. That’s what I’m looking to build. And with that, I’d like to welcome you to moderate party, a political podcast for moderates centrists and independence. I’m your host, Hillari Lombard. Let’s get started.
