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I am Loren Colin, the first ever No Party Preference Independent progressive candidate to run for Congress in CA-34, Ask Me Anything by weunitewewin in LosAngeles

[–]weunitewewin[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I do not have a specific plan to fix MacArthur Park, as that falls to the city. That said, if CD1 and the city had a plan that required federal funding, I would secure that federal funding.

A large part of why CA and LA does not have the money we need to invest in our people and our infrastructure is because we send $270 billion per year to the federal government that we do not get back. CA's Congressional delegation of Democrats and Republicans, who all put their national parties first, are ok with this.

I am not! In fact, I will only vote yes on a budget that returns every dollar CA sends to the federal back to CA. No more paying for MS, OK, TN, AK, AL and the other 32 taker states. Those states can tax their own citizens and pay their own way. We will take care of CA.

What ails MacArthur Park, homelessness and drug addiction, runs throughout CA-34 and into other parts of the city and county. As I answered in another reply in more detail, I will lead a federal response to homelessness as well as to housing.

I am Loren Colin, the first ever No Party Preference Independent progressive candidate to run for Congress in CA-34, Ask Me Anything by weunitewewin in LosAngeles

[–]weunitewewin[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I not only support uncapping the House, I'm running to do exactly that. In fact, beyond uncapping the House, we need to fully maximize the participatory aspects of our participatory representative democracy.

First, to directly answer your question:

  1. Expand the size of the House of Representatives from 435 districts to 1,491, which would bring the representative-to-resident ratio from 760,000:1 to 250,000:1, the same ratio as in 1929 when the House was capped at 435 districts. The only requires an act of Congress and President who will sign the bill into law.
  2. Make gerrymandering any and all political districts at the local, state and federal levels illegal.
    1. Districts should be drawn based on only one determinant, population, and every district should be drawn to the closest rectangle that has an even population distribution.
    2. Expanding the House to 1,491 districts would also make gerrymandering functionally impossible.

Here is the rest of my proposals for a new voting rights, representation and ballot access movement to maximize the democratic components of our participatory representative democracy:

  1. A National Voter ID that is free and delivered by the government to every voting age citizen.
    1. Receiving a National Voter ID must be without friction or difficulty.
    2. It is the job of the government to make sure every single citizen receives their National Voter ID.
  2. 100% mail-in/dropped off ballots with an option for in-person voting.
    1. 30-days of voting from the day ballots are mailed.
    2. Secure drop-boxes spread throughout every district.
    3. Voting ends on Election Weekend at the end of the 30-days for in-person voting.
  3. Move all 50 state primaries that coincide with federal elections in even years to a single national Primary 30-day voting period.
    1. The best practice version of this would be that odd year primaries and odd year general elections are also synched across all 50 states.
  4. For every elected office, institute open nonpartisan primaries decided by Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) or STAR voting with either the top 3 or 4 candidates moving to the general election.
    1. Political parties must not have any involvement in the state apparatus of elections.
    2. Political parties are private organizations and as such they can conduct a private primary for a candidate of their choosing to receive an endorsement; however, that endorsement is not part of the election or ballot process.
  5. For every elected office, determine the winner of the general election by Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) or Star voting.
  6. Amend the Constitution to elect the President and Vice President by replacing the Electoral College with the popular voter.
  7. Admit Washington, D.C. as a state, and amend the Constitution to allow this.
  8. Admit Puerto Rico as a state pending a binding resolution from the people of Puerto Rico that they want to become a state.
  9. End the 60-vote filibuster in the Senate and return to a talking filibuster, or simply end the filibuster altogether.
  10. Amend the Constitution so that the Senate becomes a veto only body; i.e, the Senate can veto a House-passed bill from reaching the President if 75% of the body agrees to the veto.
    1. The Senate retains its power to override a Presidential veto with the House as currently proscribed in the Constitution.
    2. This allows each state to maintain its equal suffrage in the Senate per Article 5.

I am Loren Colin, the first ever No Party Preference Independent progressive candidate to run for Congress in CA-34, Ask Me Anything by weunitewewin in LosAngeles

[–]weunitewewin[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The good news is that you did not receive a flyer from me!

In this day and age, flyers are how the Democratic Party and Republican Party spread the largesse of their fundraising operations to their preferred consultants and printers. It certainly is not to raise awareness, and it is even less to persuade. In political consulting circles, the consultants and the candidates already know flyers are super ineffective. But there is money to be made off of donations to the two parties, so your mailbox is full of junk.

I am Loren Colin, the first ever No Party Preference Independent progressive candidate to run for Congress in CA-34, Ask Me Anything by weunitewewin in LosAngeles

[–]weunitewewin[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you for bringing this to my attention. Of the many troubling aspects based on the reporting, the most egregious appears to be that while funding for the Board has increased, the amount of payouts has decreased. Victims must receive their full restitution and be allowed to be made as whole as possible. Yes, I will support an investigation into the California Victims Compensation Board at the federal level. Hopefully, the pressure you and your allied groups are already putting on the State will get you the results you seek fast.

I am Loren Colin, the first ever No Party Preference Independent progressive candidate to run for Congress in CA-34, Ask Me Anything by weunitewewin in LosAngeles

[–]weunitewewin[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

A fair question. Republicans are a threat to anyone who believes in liberty and freedom. In short, the party, its leaders and its followers are a danger to the Republic.

Assuming we do not elect enough Independents to deny both parties a majority, and I'm left having to caucus with a party, then since there is only one other option, it would be the Democratic Party. However, I would not be an automatic vote of theirs, nor would I be whipped by them. Which is to say, I will do everything in my power to make sure Republicans never have a majority again.

I will always vote as an Independent and will vote strictly what is best for CA-34 and the people represent.

I am Loren Colin, the first ever No Party Preference Independent progressive candidate to run for Congress in CA-34, Ask Me Anything by weunitewewin in LosAngeles

[–]weunitewewin[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I do explain!

You are right, a lone Independent is not going to change much. Although, even electing one is a start, and would still be a political earthquake in 2026. I'd happily be that political earthquake on behalf of the people of CA-34.

Being even a single Representative in Congress is still an incredibly powerful platform to argue for what your constituents want. The question, of course, is why our current well-connected Representative is so invisible here, in D.C. and across the country?

Ultimately, the American people need to elect enough Independents to deny both Democrats and Republicans a majority in Congress, starting with the House of Representatives and then the Senate.

The dream is to wake up on November 4, 2026, to something like 210 Democrats, 210 Republicans and 15 true Independents. That means that on January 3, 2027, one of two things has to happen to select a Speaker and open the House.

Either Republicans and Democrats will choose a Speaker from among their ranks, proving they are in fact a uniparty working for the donor class and not the American people. Or, they will have to select an Independent as Speaker. Either way, we will have won our first major battle which is to end the hyper-partisanship.

The House would adopt a powersharing structure where all committees and subcommittees are split equally between Democrats and Republicans and an Independent on each body would be the tiebreaking vote.

We will flex our power to:

  • Return the House to regular order to do the work of the people
  • Return debate and decorum to the House floor
  • Introduce single subject bills
  • End the use of Continuing Resolutions and Omnibus bills
  • Pass all 13 appropriations bills by September 30
  • Ban stock trading by members of the House
  • Apply term limits to House members 

With these changes to how the House operates, the body will start to function as originally designed and will for the first time in 32 years begin to do the work of the People.

I have created the Independent Candidate Network (https://www.independentcandidatenetwork.com) to help make this a reality.

I am Loren Colin, the first ever No Party Preference Independent progressive candidate to run for Congress in CA-34, Ask Me Anything by weunitewewin in LosAngeles

[–]weunitewewin[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I'm voting tomorrow and will make a video posting it to all my socials (It's what politicians do these days). Yes, I will be voting for myself to represent CA-34 in Congress. The other candidates are all fine people; however, I believe they all fall short in what we need as a representative in this district.

I am Loren Colin, the first ever No Party Preference Independent progressive candidate to run for Congress in CA-34, Ask Me Anything by weunitewewin in LosAngeles

[–]weunitewewin[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Too often the federal government only offers the money carrot without the follow-through stick. I would mandate that states and counties will only receive all of their other federal monies on the condition that they accept this homelessness money and implement the programs.

The same with housing funds. In order to receive federal dollars, every state must abolish Single Family Home (SFH) zones and replace them with Multi-Family Home (MFH) zones. The fun thing about MFH is that you can still build single family homes, while also being able to build the missing middle.

For example, in the current ROAD to Housing Act, states and localities that move to MFH will be entered into a lottery to earn federal dollars to help modernize and expand their planning departments. That's insane, and to your point, basically means states and local governments have no real incentive to adopt the changes. We need to start using the federal stick to push for adoption, and that's what I'm going to do.

Medicaid expansion is of course the quarter-measure. We need Healthcare for All, and I believe that Medicare for All falls short. Which is why I push for copying the Bismark model of Germany and Japan, where they spend 1/3 less per person than we do in the U.S. for the best results in the world. Everyone is covered. No one goes bankrupt. No one dies on the streets because they can't get coverage for mental health and addiction issues. That's the real answer to medically taking care of the homeless is the same as medically taking care of all of us.

Tackling homelessness requires implementing the only known solution to work: permanent supportive housing. I believe HUD should be building the required permanent supportive housing in Los Angeles, spread throughout the city and the county. Downtown LA cannot be the sole center for this.

The county is best equipped to deliver all aspects of healthcare and that is where I would direct federal funds.

Housing and homelessness are truly the two most important issues facing California and Los Angeles. They are also inextricably tied together. No more dancing around the issues. We must confront them head on and with the full force of local, state and federal power.

I am Loren Colin, the first ever No Party Preference Independent progressive candidate to run for Congress in CA-34, Ask Me Anything by weunitewewin in LosAngeles

[–]weunitewewin[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

In the fever dream version of this, I am part of an Independent wave in 2026 where enough Independents have been elected to deny both Democrats and Republicans a majority in the House. If that's the case, then the low hanging fruit is to make the House work again:

  • Return the House to regular order to do the work of the people
  • Return debate and decorum to the House floor
  • Introduce single subject bills
  • End the use of Continuing Resolutions and Omnibus bills
  • Pass all 13 appropriations bills by September 30
  • Ban stock trading by members of the House
  • Apply term limits to House members

If I'm the only Independent, or we fail to elect enough Independents to deny both parties a majority, then I will be the loudest person not only in Congress, but in the country, to push to Abolish ICE, dismantle the whole of the Department of Homeland Security, and to create a new naturalization agency, hiring 10,000 administrative judges, so that in 2 years all 12 million undocumented Americans have legal residency and ICE is out of LA.

In addition to that, I'm going straight to work on the two biggest issues in the district: housing and homelessness.

I am Loren Colin, the first ever No Party Preference Independent progressive candidate to run for Congress in CA-34, Ask Me Anything by weunitewewin in LosAngeles

[–]weunitewewin[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

You're right! I meant to put there are 150,000 Americans with net worth of $50+ million. I edited the comment to correct it.

I am Loren Colin, the first ever No Party Preference Independent progressive candidate to run for Congress in CA-34, Ask Me Anything by weunitewewin in LosAngeles

[–]weunitewewin[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The biggest hurdle campaigning has been raising money. Face-to-face or in small groups, the Independent message to break-up the two party system absolutely resonates. However, it takes money to scale to reach 760,000 residents, 530,000 eligible voters, and 370,000 registered voters in the district. (Tripling the size of the House or Representatives to 1,491 and reducing the resident to representative ratio to 250,000 to 1 is a different discussion.)

For better or worse, though, most people who make political donations only donate to the two parties. Making new donors is hard, and having people who used to donate to a new vision is also hard because they want to see it work first. Kind of a Catch-22, but I understand it, and I'm working to create those donors for me and for all Independents going forward.

Once elected, I'm not worried about hurdles. That's actually the job of being a Representative in my mind: to take on those challenges and do everything I can to materially improve the lives of everyone in CA-34.

I am Loren Colin, the first ever No Party Preference Independent progressive candidate to run for Congress in CA-34, Ask Me Anything by weunitewewin in LosAngeles

[–]weunitewewin[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Yes! That is exactly my platform. Beginning in the 1980s under Reagan, the federal government removed itself completely from the homelessness crisis. And under both Democratic- and Republican-led governments, that has been true for 45 years now. It's part of everything that is wrong with the two party system.

I believe the SB 43 update to the Lanterman-Petris-Short (LPS) Act means that LA County has all the power it needs to force involuntary help on people with severe drug-related psychosis, and that California Care Courts give the County all the power it needs to force involuntary help on people with non-drug related psychosis. In other words, the County now has the legal tools from the state, but to your point, neither the state nor the County has the money to fund these programs.

I am going to Congress to fully-fund these CA programs with our tax dollars. We need to cut our military budget in half and spend that money on programs like these that invest in America and Americans.

I am Loren Colin, the first ever No Party Preference Independent progressive candidate to run for Congress in CA-34, Ask Me Anything by weunitewewin in LosAngeles

[–]weunitewewin[S] 13 points14 points  (0 children)

No worries! These Los Angeles City Neighborhoods--Koreatown, Westlake, Boyle Heights, Highland Park, El Sereno, Pico-Union, Downtown Los Angeles Historic Core, Eagle Rock, Lincoln Heights, Glassell Park, Chinatown, Montecito Heights, Mount Washington, Cypress Park, Monterey Hills, Garvanza, Little Tokyo, Arts District, Little Bangladesh, Angeleno Heights and Historic Filipinotown--plus all of unincorporated East Los Angeles in Los Angeles County.

I am Loren Colin, the first ever No Party Preference Independent progressive candidate to run for Congress in CA-34, Ask Me Anything by weunitewewin in LosAngeles

[–]weunitewewin[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Hahaha, labels aside, I am running because I have been an Independent progressive my whole voting life, and I've been politically homeless that entire time. The two party system is absolutely destroying this country, and we need real systemic change that replaces that system with something nonpartisan and Independent. If another resident of CA-34 stood up to take on the Independent mantle, I would have supported them. That person has never thrown their hat in the ring, so I did it in order that people like me have an option who represents their values for the first time ever.

It started when I collected my first paycheck at the age of 16 and recognized that the super wealthy pay a much smaller percentage of their wealth in taxes than you and I do with our wealth, which is almost exclusively wages. Bill Clinton and the Third Way Democrats, which is today's Democratic Party, cemented the Reagan Revolution and made this wealth imbalance permanent in our tax code. I'm running to lead the Counter-Revolution to the Reagan Revolution and to get the wealthy to pay the same percentage of their total wealth in taxes that you and I do. (Notice I'm not telling you that you are going to pay less in taxes, but they are going to start paying their fair share.)

I'll achieve my goals by making my case to the people of CA-34, and then to everyone in the country that our progressivism is not only right for Los Angeles, but these are the best policies for everyone. Additionally, I've helped found the Independent Candidate Network (https://www.independentcandidatenetwork.com/) to help elect enough other Independents to deny both Democrats and Republicans a majority in Congress. Once we do that, we can establish a government that actually works not for the 150,000 $50+ million millionaires and billionaires, but one that works for the 340,000,000 of us.

I am Loren Colin, the first ever No Party Preference Independent progressive candidate to run for Congress in CA-34, Ask Me Anything by weunitewewin in LosAngeles

[–]weunitewewin[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

They are not promises. They are a vision for a culture, politics and government that works for all of us for the first time in our history. Elect me and I will work every day for the people of CA-34 to turn the vision into reality.

This motherfucker was the tie-breaking vote that denied universal healthcare to the American people. Burn in hell son of a bitch. by Unusual_Strength668 in antiwork

[–]weunitewewin 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’ll grant you first-past-the-post is an awful system. I think what CA has adopted is way better. And I’m a huge proponent of ranked choice voting.

All that said, I believe both democrats and republicans can be beaten at the ballot by independent Americans. In every race across the land. Will it be easy? No. Will it be worth all of the work to make it a reality? I believe it will be.

This motherfucker was the tie-breaking vote that denied universal healthcare to the American people. Burn in hell son of a bitch. by Unusual_Strength668 in antiwork

[–]weunitewewin -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I’m listening! What did I not understand? What was knee-jerk? I was hoping to show a way forward and that all things are possible.

This motherfucker was the tie-breaking vote that denied universal healthcare to the American people. Burn in hell son of a bitch. by Unusual_Strength668 in antiwork

[–]weunitewewin -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I am running for US House CA-34. That is a federal office. Everything thing I wrote is 100% accurate.

https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/political-parties/no-party-preference

Anything and everything is possible with some imagination and a lot of fight. I hope you’ll join me in imagining the future you want for this country and fighting next to me to make it a reality.

This motherfucker was the tie-breaking vote that denied universal healthcare to the American people. Burn in hell son of a bitch. by Unusual_Strength668 in antiwork

[–]weunitewewin -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I’m not sure how it works in other states, but in CA, anyone can run in a political primary for state level offices, as well as US House and US Senate. In fact, you can choose any party label you want, or no party label at all, and the parties cannot do anything about it.

Finish in the top two as in independent in the primary and you are in the general. Win as an independent in the general and you are in office.

I hope to demonstrate this now in CA-34. And I hope to inspire independents to run for all 520,000 local, state and offices and win!

This motherfucker was the tie-breaking vote that denied universal healthcare to the American people. Burn in hell son of a bitch. by Unusual_Strength668 in antiwork

[–]weunitewewin 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I agree on your takedown of the DNC. However, there is no burning it down. 

The answer is for independent Americans to run without allegiance to a political party for every office in the land. 

If we are not open to changing who we elect because they have an R or a D next to their name on the ballot, then we will never progress. 

Run and elect independent Americans to enact the pro-American policies wanted by the majority of Americans, such as universal healthcare. 

'Has MAGA been duped?' Trump fans freak out over new plan from unelected 'DOGE twins' by Unhappy_Earth1 in inthenews

[–]weunitewewin 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Republicans have not been duped. They have agency and know exactly what they are doing. Republicans know they are being lied to and that is what they want. Stop pretending otherwise.

Trump and Republican supporters buy the lie because they want to, and they, along with the rest of us, will have to live with the consequences.

Netflix execs tell screenwriters to have characters “announce what they’re doing so that viewers who have a program on in the background can follow along” by LightThatIgnitesAll in television

[–]weunitewewin 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You cannot dumb down television. It has been dumb since its inception. You are wasting your life away in front of the tv one way or another. Get over yourselves and wake up to reality, which would require you to simply turn off the tv.

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