Monday, February 01, 2016

So is Bernie Sanders running against President Obama's record?

As I am sure many of you know David Plouffe was Obama's campaign manager in 2008, so he might be a little oversensitive here.

However I must add that Sanders has made a couple of remarks about the President, including talk about doing away with Obamacare and replacing it with some version of single payer, that have caused me some concern.

After all running against the record of President Obama is the job of the Republican candidates, not the Democratic candidates. 

And I will say this as well, if this race on the Left evolves into a contest between a candidate who embraces and promises to protect the gains made by this President, and a candidate who is underwhelmed and wants to upend the progress made by this President, I think that second candidate is going to find themselves facing quite a lot of backlash.


70 comments:

  1. Anonymous2:04 AM

    Bernie also said yesterday that Hillary's emails are a concern after saying at a debate that he was tired of hearing about them. So, which is it? I'm starting to dislike him more, though if he does win the nomination, I will vote for him.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous4:41 AM

      I, too, am #BernedOut. This after donating to him twice last year. He flip flops all the time. The 4-part deep dive series into Bernie's political history at Shakesville.com was illuminating. Look how Hillary has moved him to change his position on gun manufacturers' liability... [Finally!!!] Gun violence is a "health" issue, too.

      He's been in the House and or Senate for decades. Why hasn't he implemented his ideas there? How would the presidency enable him to enact more legislation in a GOP-controlled House and/or Senate? I'd like to hear him address that.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous5:27 AM

      http://www.shakesville.com/2015/07/looking-for-bernie-part-1-sanders-72.html

      Delete
    3. Anonymous7:12 AM

      He said it was a serious issue. It is. Anyone who doubts that isn't paying attention. Any time a top government official tries to avoid transparency by using a private rather than official email system, and thereby creates an additional security risk, it's a serious matter and cause for concern. Bernie answered the question he was asked about it - period. Yes, it was serious. He then went on to change the subject back to the economic issues confronting the country.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous7:41 AM

      Hillary broke many laws with her stupid email server, more news will be coming forth!

      Delete
    5. Anonymous7:47 AM

      The Obama Administration

      has been “shockingly weak” in holding corporate misconduct accountable, Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts wrote in a 12-page report released Friday morning.

      Warren’s report focused on 20 instances of corporate unlawful conduct she said the White House failed to aggressively pursue. That was true even after the Department of Justice said last September it would more aggressively take on these cases, Warren wrote.

      “Nonetheless, both before and after this DOJ announcement, accountability for corporate crimes is shockingly weak,” she wrote.

      The 20 examples in Warren’s report includes EDMC, a for-profit college that used false claims to obtain $11 billion in federal education funds. EDMC reached a settlement to pay $95 million, or less than 1 percent of that total, Warren noted.

      http://www.boston.com/news/nation/2016/01/29/elizabeth-warren-slams-white-house-for-shockingly-weak-punishment-corporate-crime/85JAr7kyzLn5oPh1Ga1avN/story.html

      Delete
    6. Anonymous10:07 AM

      What are the many laws she broke?

      Delete
    7. Anonymous10:08 AM

      The Shakesville series was eye-openeing and helped me pinpoint some of the things that bother me about Bernie Sanders.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous10:11 AM

      Hillary is the 1% she is the flip flopper. I've been around long enough to know this The corporations just flop that whip and all of a sudden Bernie's bad Well if she has it sewn up why worry about us and Bernie simple.

      Delete
    9. Anonymous12:52 PM

      Bernie has flipped and flopped a bit himself.

      Delete
    10. Anonymous4:35 PM

      She broke how many laws? Why isn't she in jail with all the other secretaries of State? Condi Rice did the same thing and no one batted an eyelash.

      Delete
  2. I think it's a mistake for Bernie to say he'll do away with it. Improve it is a better strategy. Because that is what is going to have to happen on the slow road to single payer.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous7:39 AM

      Please quote Bernie on this (he would do away with ACA), not a quote from Hillary, I want to see what Sanders actually says!

      Delete
    2. Anonymous9:10 AM

      62% of bankruptcies come from medical expenses, 72% of which had medical insurance

      Delete
  3. Anonymous2:19 AM

    Wow, if this is true, it is very disturbing. But I am not voting for Bernie Sanders anyway.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous7:15 AM

      It is not true. Just more Hillary Clinton lying campaign bullshit. I'm surprised Gryphen can't see through the typical Clinton distortions.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous7:50 AM

      I am surprised how Gryphon can not see the similarities to Granny Grifter. Last week Chelsea was begging for wall street money for her grizzled mom.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous8:38 AM

      7:50 what the hell? Sarah Palin is "mama Grizzly" not Hillary! Wake up & keep your pop culture allusions on track.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous12:53 PM

      Holy shit! An adult child trying to raise money for her parents' campaign!

      I am in shock!!

      Delete
  4. Anonymous2:49 AM

    he lost my vote with his dissing of Planned Parenthood. Sorry buddy, but you dis what saved my life you get a big f u.
    His ideas are pie int he sky for this country at this point in history and we cannot afford to hand over the white house to the GOP which is exactly what WILL happen if this clown wins.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous4:42 AM

      Me, too,

      Delete
    2. Anonymous4:45 AM

      Sorry - meant to write that his dis of PP sealed it for me. And I was a Bernie donor last year.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous5:26 AM

      I had forgotten about his PP diss. What a jerk! And so many of his ideas are exactly pie in the sky type concepts, for the immediate future, at least. Screw him, he was my distant second choice to Hillary from the get go, now even more so. Thanks for your post, 2:49.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous7:54 AM

      Can you show where Bernie dissed PP, or are talking about his response to their leaders backing Hillary???

      Quite different to disagree with a single action of PP's leaders than ask that they be defunded.

      1-800 Waaaa

      Delete
    5. Anonymous8:40 AM

      7:54 - why don't you Google it, Bernie Bro? It was on the Rachel Maddow Show, January 2016.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous9:10 AM

      62% of bankruptcies come from medical expenses, 72% of which had medical insurance

      Delete
    7. Anonymous9:12 AM

      Anon 8:40 AM

      Your stereotyping me with bernibro makes you look quite immature.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous10:09 AM

      He completely threw Planned Parenthood under the bus.

      Delete
    9. Anonymous10:10 AM

      He called Planned Parenthood part of the establishment. Sanders is beloved for being "anti-establishment." What does that tell you about how Sanders feels about Planned Parenthood?

      Delete
  5. Anonymous3:12 AM

    I, for one, remain unconvinced of Bernie Sander's very recent "conversion" to the Democratic Party. It smacks a little too much of a conversion of "convenience."
    Beaglemom

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous4:53 AM

      Totally agree, Beaglemom. We Democrats were never good enough for him before. Sigh.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous5:14 AM

      Reading this 4-part series on Bernie (after his '70's "rape fantasy" creative writing was re-discovered) was instructive for me. Here's Part One: http://www.shakesville.com/2015/07/looking-for-bernie-part-1-sanders-72.html

      Delete
    3. Anonymous8:08 AM

      Sanders is a liberal and always has been, are the Dems not the liberals party????

      Or are they just the other corporate party????

      Hillary loves wall streets lobbyists.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous8:42 AM

      8:08 - Bernie is a socialist and always has been. There's some overlap with being a progressive, but not exactly, (You seem uninformed? Go look up the history of Sanders' Liberty Union.)

      Delete
    5. Anonymous9:16 AM

      Your post smacks of McCarthyism, r u a rethuglican???

      Was FDR a Socialist??

      U r also very uninformed, and quite disingenuous too!

      Delete
  6. Caroll Thompson3:17 AM

    In my ongoing flip flop between Bernie and Hill, your post has brought me back to Hill again. But I guarantee before my primary vote is cast, I will change my mind at least 10 more times.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous3:21 AM

    I've never liked Cornel West, and I think bandying about the term "buyer's remorse" in relation to Barack Obama and progressives is the biggest pile of bullshit of 2016.

    I say feed those fuckers to the Republicans.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous7:57 AM


      Elizabeth Warren slams White House for ‘shockingly weak’ punishment of corporate crime
      “Corporate criminals routinely escape meaningful prosecution for their misconduct.”

      “The lesson is clear: Personnel is policy,” Warren wrote in the op-ed. “Legislative agendas matter, but voters should also ask which presidential candidates they trust with the extraordinary power to choose who will fight on the front lines to enforce the laws.”

      http://www.boston.com/news/nation/2016/01/29/elizabeth-warren-slams-white-house-for-shockingly-weak-punishment-corporate-crime/85JAr7kyzLn5oPh1Ga1avN/story.html

      Delete
    2. Anonymous8:31 AM


      Poll Update
      2016 Iowa Democratic Presidential Caucus - Sanders 49%, Clinton 46% (Quinnipiac 1/25-1/31)

      http://elections.huffingtonpost.com/pollster/polls/quinnipiac-23642

      Delete
  8. See, this is what Hillary Clinton is talking about! You can't hope for pie-in-the-sky when reality is what it is. Happy dreams v. experiential evidence, what's it gonna be. You decide. Damn this guy.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous8:12 AM

      Change does not come about by defending the status quo.

      Pie in Hilay's face is more like it, she took the millions from healthcare the says I think we can't change healthcare, BS

      Delete
    2. Anonymous8:43 AM

      8:12 - ^^BS signed above, I just realized those are Bernie's initials.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous9:18 AM

      Go Sanders!

      Go away Hillary Honies!

      Delete
  9. A Superfan In Atlanta4:05 AM

    Agreed! Especially if he is getting advice from Cornell West -- one of the biggest Obamabashers of all.

    My hope is that he does not undo Obamacare and build upon it as I believe it is a transition to single payer. But to think it will never, ever happen is utter BS!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous8:14 AM

      If the ACA is undone Hillary will be in the White House. Bernie has fought for heathcare for all his entire political career!

      Delete
    2. Anonymous8:44 AM

      8:14 - as any good socialist should!

      Delete
  10. Boscoe4:31 AM

    I'm finding this whole Obamacare/single-payer argument to be disingenuous at best. I'm not comprehending this idea that somehow in order to get single payer, we FIRST have to "destroy Obamacare".

    Any SANE president would protect Obamacare while chipping away at single payer on the side. Hillary wants to frame this issue as a variation on the GOP "repeal and then maybe think of what to replace it with", which is exactly how NO sane president would approach it.

    Can Sanders make single payer come to pass in eight years or less? Probably not, but the surest way to NEVER get there is to not even try. We need someone who is willing to fight for the best possible future. Sometimes that means it may take awhile to wear down the resistance. Maybe it takes a few generations to get there, which makes it even more important to START NOW.

    ...Or we can just give up and accept the concept of being forced by the government to buy a commercial product whose profit margin is determined by how little they can get away with providing the service you're paying them for. We can just accept that America is the place where even with insurance you can lose everything you have to co-pays, deductibles and whatever isn't covered just because you got sick like EVERYONE eventually does.

    Fuck that. Conflict of interest is not a good business model for healthcare and we can do better. How about we try?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous5:24 AM

      I think that Hillary Clinton's very pragmatic and realistic statements about single payor healthcare in the US were important for all of us to hear, including the uber-progressives who want it all immediately. I also believe that Clinton would prefer a single payor system but she is honest enough to recognize that it is an unrealistic goal for the immediate future.

      Tidal wave changes in how Americans think would have to happen first. All Americans would have to be willing to pay higher taxes and we know how that would play in the hands of the GOP and the conservative media. All Americans would have to rid themselves of the myth of "choosing my own doctor" because it has always been a myth. All Americans would have to accept that all other Americans, despite their ethnicity, education or income, truly deserve the same quality and level of medical care. These are huge steps to take and will be achieved only after many years of honing and refining the ACA.
      Beaglemom

      Delete
    2. Anonymous7:26 AM

      Oh the fun we will have, with all of the lies Hillary will spew out during her campaign to become our president.

      Delete
    3. Anonymous7:36 AM

      As the cost of cancer treatment bankrupts so many Americans. It just make sense that we can have something better than the ACA.

      Can anyone quote Sanders as saying he would take away the ACA, while upgrading Americans to Medicare for all. No because Hillary Swift Boated him with one of her many lies!

      Delete
    4. Anonymous8:47 AM

      Poor Bernie! He's been in the House and Senate for decades AND still hasn't gotten this done. How will the Presidency help him push it through? Seriously?? Look at the GOP obstruction President Obama has had to face. That will still be there for Bernie, AND there'd be one less progressive Senator in the Senate!

      Delete
    5. Anonymous9:24 AM

      The second possibility for Sanders's revolution, which he hints at without going into detail: that public support for his agenda will be so overwhelming that GOP Republicans, fearing for their political careers and helpless in the face of political reality, will have no choice but to get behind it.

      Delete
    6. Anonymous12:54 PM

      That seems highly unlikely, 9:24.

      Delete
  11. Anonymous5:39 AM

    Gryphen,
    Here's an article for you about pastors and domestic violence. It's about the pastor who was recently freed from Iran. http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/the-strange-case-of-the-pastor-released-from-iran-and-his-wife%E2%80%99s-abuse-allegations/ar-BBoXQkf?li=BBnb7Kz

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous6:37 AM

    Bernie is relying on Wall Street cash to trash his opponent. If he is truly as pure as the driven snow, why is he letting Karl Rove run ads against Hillary with no push back from him?

    He's a typical low life politician. Don't be fooled.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous7:30 AM

      Wall Street money is the best thing that has happened in politics, thank God for citizens united!

      Go Honey, you can do it Hillary!



      Delete
    2. Anonymous9:22 AM

      George Soros pumps $6 million into Clinton super PAC.

      Go Citizens United!

      Hillary is the one!

      Delete
  13. I supported Geo. McGovern when he ran against to "Party" we saw how well that worked. So if I had any thoughts about Bernie I got over them very fast. Supported Jimmy Carter another outsider and as good as he is not much got done.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous8:48 AM

      They sell Bernie as an "outsider," but he's been in DC for decades as a Congressman & Senator!

      Delete
  14. Anonymous8:51 AM

    Would Hillary get anything done with the Republicans, with all of the hate for her, I seriously doubt it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous10:13 AM

      And how exactly will Sanders get anything done? Is he the sweetheart of the Republicans?

      Delete
    2. Anonymous11:59 AM

      Sanders does have a history with working with Reps.

      ie - Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) said some very nice things to the Washington Examiner about Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT).

      Said McCain: “I obviously am in strong disagreement with him on his basic philosophy of the role of government, but as far as an honest individual, to work with, to reach agreement, I respect Bernie Sanders.”

      He added: “I will also say to anyone who will ask, Bernie Sanders is an honest man. He’s an honest man and his word is good. Once we reached an agreement, that agreement stuck.

      https://politicalwire.com/2015/12/08/john-mccain-praises-bernie-sanders/

      Delete
    3. Anonymous12:00 PM

      A quote from Sanders:

      "I am probably the most progressive member of the U.S. Senate. But I have over the years not only in the Senate, but in the House — worked with Republicans when there was common ground." Sanders said. "When I was in the House in a number of years, I got more amendments passed on the floor of the House working with Republicans than anyone else.

      http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/sanders-dismisses-gridlock-talk-touts-ability-to-work-with-gop/article/2581427

      Delete
    4. Anonymous12:55 PM

      So, you think it will all be smile and handshakes and Sanders will get what he wants?

      Delete
  15. Anonymous9:23 AM

    2016 New Hampshire Democratic Presidential Primary - Sanders 61%, Clinton 30% (UMass Lowell/7 News 1/29-1/31)

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous9:46 AM

    Link to Iowa caucus, the caucus starts at 7pm central and runs to 8:30pm.

    http://data.desmoinesregister.com/iowa-caucus/results/index.php

    Go berniebros!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Anonymous10:04 AM

    In the fall of 2007 - 75% of Americans polled said they wanted the government to take over medical insurance, obviously that number included Republicans.
    It's Democrats responsibility to redo their own social programs so they serve the population better and eliminate cost waste.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anonymous10:09 AM

    Soros, born in Hungary and the founder of what was once one of the world’s largest hedge funds, is the 26th wealthiest person in the world with a net worth of $24.4 billion, according to Bloomberg.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous12:56 PM

      That's very interesting, and off topic.

      Delete
  19. Anonymous4:36 PM

    I'm sick and tired of hearing about Bernie's flip flops. Does he wear them with socks on? Just askin'

    ReplyDelete

Don't feed the trolls!
It just goes directly to their thighs.