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Nicholas R. Goebel replied on Why Liberals Should Support Michigan Governor Rick Snyder :

This is in response to the overwhelming feedback I got from TPC readers through social media and emails.  (Sorry, I had to disable the comments for members.  The spammers were overwhelming.  I'll permit comments again as soon as I add a feature to distinguish between real members and spammers.)

Most of you asked, “Isn’t Snyder a union buster and where is the pragmatism?”  Below is my response. 

“Political rhetoric is one thing. Facts are another.” - Sally Kohn 

The political rhetoric coming from partisan activists like Rachel Maddow is that Rick Snyder is a union busting, far right conservative.  But the facts are different.  Snyder has opposed and stopped overwhelming Republican majorities in both houses of the legislature from moving forward on “Right to Work” legislation and laws challenging the collective bargaining rights of public employees.  That is not union busting. 

In addition, he has met with leaders from more than 15 unions to seek their input and support.  As he likes to say, “This is not Wisconsin.”  Snyder does not employ the scorched earth tactics that his Republican counterpart Governor Scott Walker uses to pass his agenda.  Even union leader David Hecker of the American Federation of Teachers has said “We're going to be able to have a dialogue with this administration.” 

This aversion to confrontation is characteristically Snyder.  Since taking office he has approached each issue with an open minded, consensus seeking attitude.  Most of his policies may seem extremely conservative but in a time of deficits, debt, and austerity he is doing what must be done at this time in Michigan’s history.  That’s pragmatic.  We can definitely argue on how he divided the costs and sacrifice of budget cuts among the poor and wealthy.  But I think that would take another whole essay.

As for pragmatism, Snyder is also known to pick and choose policies across the political spectrum overlooking the partisan and ideological nature of them.  Take for example Snyder’s stance on “out of district students.”  In his education message he said “Resident students in every school district should have the first choice to enroll, but no longer should school districts be allowed to opt out from accepting out-of-district students.” 

It’s hard to imagine even a hard core progressive advocating for local school districts like Birmingham to allow students from Detroit to attend their schools.  This is just one example of Snyder’s pragmatic solutions that defy partisan and ideological labels. 

Furthermore, Snyder is committed to creating smart government.  Nothing defines pragmatism more than smart government. 

Smart government or as Snyder calls it, customer service government, is government that acts like a business relying on metrics; it is lean, effective and efficient.  Its policies are not determined by ideology.  Rather, policies are determined by what is in the best interest of the bottom line, the middle class.  It cuts where we can and invests where we need.  It invests in creating an environment for a vibrant economy and a good quality of life.  Smart government focuses on creating cradle to grave opportunity, not welfare.  It fosters innovation in all aspects of society, from government to the private sector.  It is not an enemy but rather our partner in helping to create businesses, jobs, and a robust middle class.  Smart government is smart.  That’s pragmatism. 

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jmp1024 replied on How do I define myself politically? :
I could not have describe myself any more accurately. I am a loyal Democratic, but I feel that the party is three groups united by a common name. We have the progressives, the conservative democrats and the third way centrist part. This is a way for Democrats like myself to define themselves to other Democrats. It is my goal to work towards a Democratic Party that sees the world the way we do.

Nicholas R. Goebel replied on What is a centrist and what is the centrist ideology? :

How do I define myself politically? http://www.thepragmaticcenter.com/essay/how-do-i-define-myself-politically

Nicholas R. Goebel replied on The Pragmatic Center’s involvement in the Coffee Party schism:
No, those are just generic Google ads. You pick a topic - politics, and that's what we got.

Nicholas R. Goebel replied on Why Marco Rubio will be the Republican Vice Presidential Candidate in 2012:
In addition I failed to mention that Marco Rubio would solidifiy Tea Partiers support around the Republican nominee. That would definitely be essential if the nominee is Romney.

Moreover, the issue of the Hispanic vote would not be so influential if the president was someone other than Obama. That is part of the reason why the Hispanic vote has become more influential earlier than expected. Most presidential elections are between candidates splitting the white vote; therefore, somewhat minimizing the impact of minorities. However, since Obama is the incumbent the equation has changed and the impact of the Hispanic vote is even more significant.

As for Rubio he has all of the advantages that a nominee looks for in a VP pick.
1. From swing state - FL; with a large number of electoral votes
2. Solidifies the party
3. Increases tent - Hispanics

Nicholas R. Goebel replied on 2/3 of American corporations pay no taxes: 2 Videos & Article :

Last week The New York Times revealed that America's largest corporation GE pays no taxes.  To read more on this topic click HERE!

Nicholas R. Goebel replied on Moderates Need Institutional Structure:

Thanks for the comment!

I completely agree with you.  We should focus on political reforms such as primary reform and redistricting reform.  I think those should be our top two priorities. 

There was a great op-ed in POLITICO recently. http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=4EF3D329-AAD4-430E-82A7A18A9940F538

Please keep in touch and let me know how we can collaborate more. 

Thanks.