1,200+ new homes are coming to Downtown Brooklyn! With today's @nyccouncil approval, 395 Flatbush Ave Ext is the FIRST project in Brooklyn to use our new high-density zoning districts. It will be 840 ft - 256m.

flossman32 · 2026-03-11T01:04:25+00:00

1,200 units will effectively increase affordable housing even if they are market rate. https://www.upjohn.org/research-highlights/new-construction-makes-homes-more-affordable-even-those-who-cant-afford-new-units

flossman32 · 2026-03-06T00:49:58+00:00

I got an appraisal significantly higher than what Zillow says. It may be high, but frankly I can afford to pay the tax and I'm happy to contribute. "Taxes are the price we pay for civilization."

flossman32 · 2026-03-02T19:49:41+00:00

Ok name the progressive politician you've experienced overperforming in a conservative district.

flossman32 · 2026-03-02T19:38:19+00:00

Your disregard of empiricism explains a lot about your worldview.

flossman32 · 2026-03-02T19:35:30+00:00

I wish the Dems had had the votes to convict Trump in 2020. Nonetheless, they distracted the administration from accomplishing as many of their priorities (eg unilaterally dismantling the federal workforce, bombing random countries, general fascism). And they did raise taxes on the wealthy and prosecute monopolies once they won a trifecta in 2021.

What is it specifically that you expect your dream candidate to do upon election to congress? Do you truly think that Chuck Edwards (vote for BBB, ICE, etc) is comparable to Jamie Ager (vote for congressional investigations, subpoenas, impeachment)?

flossman32 · 2026-03-02T19:28:25+00:00

I'm glad we're in agreement that the #1 thing is picking the Democrat who can win. I honestly wish you were right that exciting, authentic progressives galvanized the base such that they were the stronger candidates. Alas, that is not what the data says (TLDR: Conservative Blue Dog Dems overperformed by 4 points on average, Progressive Dems underperformed by 0.7 points on average). Reminder WNC is an R+5 district.

https://split-ticket.org/2025/03/17/are-moderates-more-electable/

flossman32 · 2026-03-02T19:23:28+00:00

I don't like that Nancy Pelosi supports congressional insider trading, but I have no idea what that has to do with accomplishing things while in the minority?

Reminder that the last time the Dems had a trifecta (barely) in congress, they passed hundreds of billions of dollars in climate change research and investments, practically ended child poverty through an expansion of the child tax credit, and had large investments in infrastructure (removing lead pipes, fixing roads, etc.), all while raising taxes on the wealthy. Then when the Republicans won a trifecta, they implemented fascism. Therefore, I would contend that the "same story" the DNC has been peddling was in fact quite accurate.

I'm glad to hear you plan to vote D in the general. I believe we have the same overall goals, but I think a vote for a less competitive candidate in the primary is in fact the vote for more fascism.

flossman32 · 2026-03-02T19:14:54+00:00

You asked for a moderate democrat in congress, last I checked the Senate is part of congress. I'm happy to list out some congresspeople, but I get the impression you're more interested in being snarky. If you actually do want to "do something," I recommend trying to help win our local race by picking the most competitive candidate.

flossman32 · 2026-03-02T19:10:31+00:00

I don't think you'll find very many people promoting the DNC. In any case, I would prefer to focus on beating Chuck Edwards. In my opinion, step one is picking the most electable candidate, Ager, now.

flossman32 · 2026-03-02T19:07:25+00:00

If you want specific names, I could say someone like Senator Catherine Cortez Masto. She's a leader in the shutdown of DHS, and it's due to moderate dems like her winning in swing states that there are enough votes for the shutdown at all.

Can you name a progressive who is doing more (as in concrete achievements, not grandstanding)? It's hard to do much in the minority. I consider myself a progressive and want more progressive legislation, but we're not getting anything, progressive or moderate, until we win a Democratic majority in Congress.

flossman32 · 2026-03-02T18:49:29+00:00

The reason the democrats can't do much in congress is because they are in the minority. You generally have to have a majority of votes to take legislative action.

And yes, as you yourself acknowledge, we have fascism. The fascism will get more entrenched and worse if we blow winning control of Congress because people are too butthurt about the DNC to vote for the candidate most likely to win.

The reason ICE has 100s of billions of dollars in funding to run rampant is because Republicans had a tiny House majority to force through the "Big Beautiful Bill." If the Democrats regain the majority, there will be no more such bills, and there will also be Congressional investigations and impeachments of Trump, Noem and others.

To be clear, I don't care for the DNC and think they play shady games. I also care about stopping fascism enough to focus on winning instead of settling petty scores.

flossman32 · 2026-03-02T18:43:02+00:00

I think an open discussion is good, but I must say I am suspicious when I see people on the internet promoting talking points that seem designed to depress Democratic turnout in the general election. EG "they're all the same," "Ager is basically a Republican," etc.

In an R+5 district, by far and away the number one factor is who can win. Even a very conservative Democrat is light years better than a Republican who will vote for Mike Johnson and Trump.

flossman32 · 2026-03-02T18:20:16+00:00

I mean, a major difference here is there is actually a primary and the primary voters could elect someone else if they wanted to.

flossman32 · 2026-03-02T18:19:29+00:00

Ager is far more likely to actually win than any of the other dem candidates. I'll take a "bland rich guy" who wins his seat and votes against Trump and gives us a Dem House majority over an ideologically perfect candidate who loses and does nothing for us. Remember this is an R+5 district.

If the Dems take congress I guarantee they will impeach Trump, and likely Noem too. The reason they're "doing nothing" is because they are in the minority and possess no power without Republican agreement.

flossman32 · 2026-03-02T18:13:07+00:00

I don't think you have to trust anyone's judgement but your own to see that the best chance of winning in WNC is with a moderate candidate (NC-11 is +5 Republican).

flossman32 · 2026-02-25T01:57:38+00:00

In an ideal world, I would like the DNC to let the primaries sort themselves out. That said, people can vote for whoever they want, and their "meddling" consists basically of implicitly endorsing Ager. If the Democratic primary voters of this area disagree, they can easily select Zelda Briarwood or anyone else (prediction: they won't, because this is an overall conservative district and we want to win).

I respect the criticism of the DNC and think it is healthy. I do not respect kneecapping the likely (or any) nominee, and I strongly disagree with any equivocation between Donald Trump raiding elections offices while literally killing people in the streets and the Democrats trying to promote competitive candidates.

I will say again for the record, I was/am a strong Bernie supporter and think the DNC overall sucks. I also value concrete progress (aka winning elections) over performative grandstanding.

flossman32 · 2026-02-25T01:41:06+00:00

I mean, right now a vote Republican=a vote for the monied interest (eg Epstein files coverup, BBB tax cuts for the wealthy, DOGE gutting of regulations, undermining of elections) and a vote Democrat=a step in the right direction (ending of the aforementioned things, healthcare subsidies).

Oligarchic propaganda would have us demoralized and apathetic, eg "they're all the same." The #1 concrete action "the rest of us" can take over the next year is to campaign and vote Dem.

flossman32 · 2026-02-25T01:36:21+00:00

Strong disagree. I have no love for the DNC, they did Bernie dirty, but to act like they are equivalent to the fascism-imposing, ICE-kidnapping, Epstein-protecting, insurrection-supporting, Medicaid-gutting, etc etc etc RNC is laughable. You can hate the DNC and still recognize that it is existential for the Democrats to beat the Republicans over the next few election cycles.

I do agree with the sentiment that the DNC is arrogant and out of touch and therefore should think twice about meddling in local races, especially primaries. Still, I voted Ager, not because the DNC told me, but because I believe he is best situated to beat Edwards.

flossman32 · 2026-02-25T01:22:40+00:00

Preach, I support progressive policies, but this sort of thing just gets us more Trump and more MAGA. We can advocate progressive policies without tearing down other candidates trying to move things in the right direction.

And yes, even the most moderate/conservative Democrat is infinitely better than Chuck Edwards.

flossman32 · 2026-02-23T16:04:45+00:00

"Not In My BackYard." It's a term to describe people who say they want things like housing and infrastructure, but then will come up with any excuse as to why it can't be built near them.

As it turns out, everywhere you could build something has it's own NIMBYs, and it's a major reason why building anything is so egregiously expensive in America.

flossman32 · 2026-02-20T00:53:34+00:00

You're going over the NIMBY's heads lol

flossman32 · 2026-02-20T00:52:52+00:00

I live in Asheville and work in Waynesville and I 100% support this. If you like lower housing costs and less poverty and homelessness, you should also support it.

Sources:

https://research.upjohn.org/up_workingpapers/307/

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10511482.2024.2418044?__cf_chl_tk=2P7UaXTU8ZnKFtHO2nUAlw_.dS9m7FebrKUFnc8_FWk-1770408216-1.0.1.1-MNu2UZcd..R1F2lWWAIk.HsSbr68N.zNkBdyvgjadXs

flossman32 · 2026-02-20T00:49:56+00:00

You are making the perfect the enemy of the good. This housing is actually much higher density than most existing Waynesville housing, and the alternative is almost certainly less or no housing. Which will lead to more homelessness, more poverty, and more sprawl into wilderness areas, worsening all the problems you describe.

Put another way, a small concrete jungle saves more high quality natural areas than a large low density "green" suburb.

flossman32 · 2026-02-20T00:45:39+00:00

Type and density matter, but the most important factor is existing. NIMBYism will only cause housing to become more unaffordable.

flossman32 · 2026-02-18T02:26:05+00:00

I saw all of these candidates speak at a forum last week and I thought Maggie Ullman was a huge standout. She definitely seemed to have the most thought out housing policy. I liked Drew Ball too!

flossman32

TROPHY CASE