Philosophy vs Practicality. Would you compromise?

The more and more I think about some of the things that have become talking points in politics, the more I realize that the GOP position is almost always on the wrong side of the aisle from a public perception standpoint. It almost seems to me that we should just concede certain points so we can move on to the bigger picture.

To do this, I'd imagine you have to identify issues where GOP support is marginal and projected to get worse. For instance, with more and more Greatest Generation and Baby Boomers leaving the earth, support for things like gay rights will only swing the pendulum even further in the libs direction.

So why not identify the losing battles? Take a long, hard look in the mirror and say, "This battle is over. We can't win it. Let's focus on the battles we CAN win."

Healthcare, for instance. Let's just f'ing embrace single-payer of some sort that reduces costs. If demographics dictate that voters are going to demand universal healthcare (which it has), we might as well come out and say, "Fine - but we're going to make this the most efficient system possible. We'll mimic Canada or Australia or whoever, but we're also going to mimic their costs."



Because I don't care so much about the philosophical consequences of such a move. I care that we reduce our spending 35%.

Spending goes down. Hopefully we'd be taxed less, no? That seems like an opportunity for compromise. But is it something that you guys would support? Essentially, would you be willing to go along with a single-payer system or something else that reduced costs if it meant lower taxes? Never having to hear the debate about healthcare again?

Obviously, the same argument can be had for tons of social issues (abortion, gay rights, war on drugs, etc). Just identify the losing battles and using them as bargaining chips towards cementing a winnable platform...sounds like a winning proposition. Bitter pill, but practical.

But that's just me and I'm only recently getting into politics over the past few years. And I can see the arguments that if we "give an inch, they'll take a mile." I can see the arguments that we should never compromise on important issues. But is it practical? Is it a winning strategy?