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As a politician, when it's the best time to pass controversial laws?

When would you pass controversial legislation?

  • During the national holidays (like Christmas or NYE)

    Votes: 1 11.1%
  • During the main tourist season when people go on holiday (like august)

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Generally during the winter because people are less likely to protest.

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Generally during the summer because people are less likely to protest

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • During periods when the media is focused on a hype train (like TM vs Zimm)

    Votes: 2 22.2%
  • When the opposition party is in the middle of a scandal

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • When the party you are part of is in the middle of a scandal

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Anytime I damn feel like it. I own this &*$%

    Votes: 1 11.1%
  • I'd attach it to positive legislation and make it sound patriotic

    Votes: 6 66.7%
  • Other times/I like to play with kittens

    Votes: 1 11.1%

  • Total voters
    9
  • Poll closed .

Rainman05

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So if you were a politician... not a good politician that cares about your people, but you know, a politician like most are today. Scumbags who hate the people the reportedly represent and think the country is their own playground... when do you aim to pass controversial legislation that would serve to diminish the power of the people, enhance your political or financial status, make your friends rich... and so on and so forth.

This is a poll. Please wait a bit while the poll get actualized.

I voted:
During national holidays and when the media is fully on the hype train about some stupid stuff.
 
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Here in Michigan the Republicans in the legislature passed the very controversial anti-union right to work cheaper laws in a lame duck session after the elections were held and many of them were not returning. No hearings were held - no witnesses testified - they just rammed it through via force of numbers without so much as an excuse me to the public. As Christmas came two weeks later - they seemed to take that into account although the lame duck was the major reason.
 
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The best way to get crap legislation passed is to attach it to a totally unrelated bill that few will dare vote against. If, for example, I want a bridge to nowhere in my district so that my brother in law can make a bundle on a no bid contract, I simply attach it to a bill providing shelter for cute puppies. That way, anyone who votes against my bridge will be lambasted in the next election as a killer of cute puppies.


That's how business is conducted in Washington.
 
Controversial is pretty relative, really. Attach it to other legislation helps. This is a great time to do it. It causes conflict between the ability to support the overall bill and to denounce it because of the amendment. Furthermore, if the larger legislation is related to what you want, it makes sense to attach it.

Sometimes what you also do is make sure to keep it hush hush with your foes. While the gun control talk was circulating about, the NRA and its supporters upped its anti-mental health, anti-mental illness rhetoric to deflect from them. Meanwhile, H.R.628 was being reintroduced. That was why I never mentioned the mental health advocate refocus post-Sandy Hook to some of the very active ND gun rights folks I know that were at least tacitly embracing the rhetoric coming from the NRA. It hasn't gone anywhere, but eh...sometimes the less foes know about your activities, the better.

You can't control what the media or when the media will focus on you. The coordination factor alone with your aides would be ridiculous. I never bought that tripe.
 
So if you were a politician... not a good politician that cares about your people, but you know, a politician like most are today. Scumbags who hate the people the reportedly represent and think the country is their own playground... when do you aim to pass controversial legislation that would serve to diminish the power of the people, enhance your political or financial status, make your friends rich... and so on and so forth.

This is a poll. Please wait a bit while the poll get actualized.

I voted:
During national holidays and when the media is fully on the hype train about some stupid stuff.

Come on now, most Politicians don't hate the people.
If They could find a way to continue to make themselves wealthy and powerful,
that also happened to help the people, they might choose that path.
Unfortunately those two paths don't usually run in parallel.:mrgreen:
 
The best way to get crap legislation passed is to attach it to a totally unrelated bill that few will dare vote against. If, for example, I want a bridge to nowhere in my district so that my brother in law can make a bundle on a no bid contract, I simply attach it to a bill providing shelter for cute puppies. That way, anyone who votes against my bridge will be lambasted in the next election as a killer of cute puppies.


That's how business is conducted in Washington.

This. End thread.
 
Two techniques work best 1) attach it to the budget (must pass legislation) or to a very popular bill (the "moms are good people act") as an amendment and 2) during lame duck sessions immediately after an election (longest time for the voter's memory on the issue to fade). Additionally you can give opportunities to critical members to be both for and against the same legislation, having them vote to pass it (as part of the majorty) and then to later realize that vote was a "mistake" and then vote to repeal it (as part of the minority). ;)
 
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The best way to get crap legislation passed is to attach it to a totally unrelated bill that few will dare vote against. If, for example, I want a bridge to nowhere in my district so that my brother in law can make a bundle on a no bid contract, I simply attach it to a bill providing shelter for cute puppies.
That's how business is conducted in Washington.

Yeah, and good thing too. It's the opposition's job to fight it. If the legislation would not have passed on its own, but wasn't controversial enough to tank the bill, sometimes you have to take that as a good thing.
 
Yeah, and good thing too. It's the opposition's job to fight it. If the legislation would not have passed on its own, but wasn't controversial enough to tank the bill, sometimes you have to take that as a good thing.

Who is going to fight against protecting cute puppies or the moms are good people act?
 
Who is going to fight against protecting cute puppies or the moms are good people act?

Oh in the areas I'm more familiar with, they just don't get acceptance on their own sometimes.
 
So if you were a politician... not a good politician that cares about your people, but you know, a politician like most are today. Scumbags who hate the people the reportedly represent and think the country is their own playground... when do you aim to pass controversial legislation that would serve to diminish the power of the people, enhance your political or financial status, make your friends rich... and so on and so forth.

This is a poll. Please wait a bit while the poll get actualized.

I voted:
During national holidays and when the media is fully on the hype train about some stupid stuff.


I would say at the beginning of their term.The people have a short attention span when it comes to being outraged. So if they pass something controversial at the beginning of their term it gives them plenty of time to recuperate the voter's trust. Another good moment to pass controversial legislation is when the people are focused on stupid non-stories like the Zimerman case, missing pretty white girl of the day story or some other story that doesn't deserve national attention.
 
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