Would you consider being a "flipflopper" bad when you're a politician?

Question

I don't. I think it's better to truly agree with something and then later admit you're wrong than to refuse to admit you're wrong.

Answer 1

Flip-flopping isn't about admitting your wrong or not admitting your wrong... political flip-flopping is when a candidate changes his or her stance on certain issues based on popular opinion... representative democracy is NOT popular democracy... we the people are supposed to elect political leaders based on whether or not we agree with their point of view, but how can we do this if their stance changes from day to day... the country decides every four years which presidential candidate is in line with the opinions of the American people... some one who is not a "flip-flopper", like Bush, will be popular so long as the public opinion stays the same as it was on election day, if public opinion should shift a "non-flip-flopping" president is likely to be unpopular because he/she does not ( and should not) follow public opinion... the thing about Bush (and other "non-flip-floppers")is: like him or hate him you know what yer gonna get...

Answer 2

People flip flop all the time, however for some reason politicians can't. If we make mistakes and then change that is called learning if a politician does it is a sign of weakness. I think that people should be able to change their minds in a lot of ways it shows better character.

Answer 3

I agree with you! I think if you learn something that changes your view on something that you should be honest about it! It's more important to be doing what you really believe is right, than to be afraid of looking like you were wrong, so you don't admit you changed your mind. I would trust someone who could say they changed their mind after learning more about something, but I wouldn't trust someone who would stick with what is clear to see is wrong, but they still swear it's right, because they are afraid of anyone thinking they may have been wrong! It's more important to do what is best for everyone, not worry more about being right!

Answer 4

I think that's a given. What makes everything confusing, is when people refuse to admit, yet it's tough to prove what they DID say. I hear accusations from both sides about who said what, yet, rarely do I see (or hear) proof that it really happened. I don't believe something just because someone says that it is so.

Answer 5

Yes and no. A good leader can admit their mistakes; but a flip-flopper will attempt to spin their own previous statements into new meanings. It makes them untrustworthy as representatives to the constituency, because we can't rely on how they'll vote.

Answer 6

It depends on how often and how close in time your flipflops are. If you change your mind over important issues every few weeks or months, that means that you haven't really thought it through beforehand. Besides, voters need to know that you won't turn 180 degrees while in office.

Answer 7

Yes unless it was like in the latest cases where in the past, yrs ago they believed one way but over the years changed their thinking. But you don't wait until the last minute in election year to do it. Flip flopping was a major reason Kerry lost.

Answer 8

Flip-flopping is bad. It suggests the politician is trying to come up with a position that will get him/her the most votes.

Answer 9

I think things change as time goes on and for someone to actually admit they are going to change with it is a good thing. I don't want to see some canidate say they are for abortion in one speech and then say they are against it in another...but on certain policies I do believe things change and its nice to see some one say they were wrong and change along with it.

Answer 10

I'd consider it inevitable.

It's also bad, but only in the sense that being a politician in the first place is bad.