Courtesy of a Bernie Sanders op-ed in the Washington Post:
As we head toward the Democratic National Convention, I often hear the question, “What does Bernie want?” Wrong question. The right question is what the 12 million Americans who voted for a political revolution want.
And the answer is: They want real change in this country, they want it now and they are prepared to take on the political cowardice and powerful special interests which have prevented that change from happening.
For the record Hillary Clinton is representing just under 16 million American voters, substantially more than Bernie, who are perfectly happy to trust that SHE will do what is right for America.
The rest of Sanders' op-ed lists out a number of bullet points that unsurprisingly fall well within the Democratic party wheelhouse.
Work to make the economy work for all Americans, not just for the top 1%. Check.
Fix the broken criminal justice system? Check.
Move the country toward more renewable energy sources. Check. (What in the hell does he think President Obama has been doing for the last seven and a half years?)
Do away with Citizens United and do something about campaign finance in this country. Well no shit!
How could that not be a priority for Hillary since the damn Citizens United case was directed at her in the first place?
So yes dammit, check!
However ALL of these require that the Democratic nominee win the election. After all if Trump wins the White House you can kiss all of those progressive policy ideas goodbye.
So how are the Sanders supporters going to help accomplish that?
Funny you should ask.
Courtesy of Bloomberg:
A June 14th Bloomberg Politics national poll of likely voters in November’s election found that barely half of those who favored Sanders — 55 percent — plan to vote for Clinton. Instead, 22 percent say they’ll vote for Trump, while 18 percent favor Libertarian Gary Johnson. “I’m a registered Democrat, but I cannot bring myself to vote for another establishment politician like Hillary,” says Laura Armes, a 43-year-old homemaker from Beeville, Texas, who participated in the Bloomberg poll and plans to vote for Trump. “I don’t agree with a lot of what Trump says. But he won’t owe anybody. What you see is what you get.”
Well gee that's helpful.
Oh, and there's also this, courtesy of CNN:
The progressive political movement emboldened by Bernie Sanders' insurgent campaign is preparing to "crash" next month's Democratic National Convention, demanding the party establishment take steps to reject corporate influence and reform its nominating process.
"If the Democratic Party wants to put on a $50 million infomercial saying, 'Hey vote for us,' without committing to make this the last corrupt, billionaire-nominated voter suppression-marred election, then we're going to crash the party," said Kai Newkirk, director of Democracy Spring, a nonpartisan activist coalition dedicated to "mass nonviolent action" against big money in politics.
But don't forget, if I say anything that damages the Sanders' supporter's little feelings I am somehow the problem, and am personally helping to drive them away from Hillary.
I mean it's not like they are actually anarchists in Democrat clothing who are more interested in blowing the whole system up rather than working to make it better. Right?
Yep, clearly my blog is the problem here.
The so-called Bernie supporters who now claim they will vote for Trump are definitely not Democrats; they are malcontents who glommed onto Bernie because he too is a malcontent. Since their hero has failed to get the nomination, they are all butt hurt. That is all. They were never Democrats. Most probably won't even vote in Novemeber.
ReplyDeleteIMO free college was the only thing that got them out of bed.
DeleteThey won't get out of bed to vote for Trump.
Legal weed is why most of them glommed on o Bernie that thinks weed will be free and apparently delivered like meals on wheels.
Delete3:37
DeleteThat's my thought as well.
Free college, really? The Democrats already give people subsidized healthcare, lots of welfare and food stamps, WIC and free shots for infants and want to allow every illegal in this country to just hang out and have an automatic path to citizenship.
DeleteFree college is the deal breaker, when they are already giving away the bank?
Really, 7:09?
DeleteJust what is it that you want your federal government to spend the tax dollars that they collect from you on?
All of the programs that you mention, and I guess these are programs that you resent paying for, are essential to the health and well-being of our nation.
Do you want to be a member of an illness prone society, where massive epidemics are allowed to run rampant through the population because no one can afford even basic health care?
Do you want to be protected by military forces made up of poorly educated, ill-fed maroons?
Do you want to live in a country where the elderly and disabled are turned out into the street, or have their lights and heat turned off for lack of a few dollars?
And free college...of course free college is an investment in our nation's future. I think college should be free to anyone who wants to attend.
The bank belongs to the people. It should be spent on the people.
In an earlier post about Bernie Sanders today, a commenter complained about the "old white women" who frequent this site. Well, I'll take the bait. I'm white, old with all the requisite aches and pains and I've had a lot of political experience in my lifetime. Bernie Sanders could have done a much more effective job as a presidential candidate. Instead of addressing issues with doable policies and with a spirit of all Democrats working together, he roused up the young with promises of ending "income inequality," making college education "free," and legalizing marijuana. He knew he would capture lots of attention and I don't think he ever bothered considering how all of this was supposed to happen.
ReplyDeleteHe never talked about how hard the Democratic Party has worked since early in the 20th century to bring rights to workers through unions, to create societal nets to protect the weak and poor and sick, to bring about lasting civil rights reforms, and to improve educational opportunities for everyone. The other "old women" who read this blog and I had parents who lived through the Great Depression, who greatly admired FDR and who fought in world wars. Thee other "old women" and I stood up for stopping the war in Vietnam and for civil rights. We know the history of the twentieth century in ways that Bernie's young supporters will never grasp.
Personally I don't think that Bernie Sanders has any right to make demands of the Democratic Party or of Hillary Clinton. He did his best to make things even more difficult in this crucial election year. To think that young people would waste their votes on odd party candidates, writeins, or (God forbid) Donald Trump because they DID NOT GET THEIR WAY is anathema to me.
Beaglemom
"because they DID NOT GET THEIR WAY"
Delete-----------
Like petulant children, and I'm speaking of both sides.
+1 Beaglemom
DeleteWell said!
DeleteAnother Old Woman
I join you as an old white woman who did many of the same things as you, beaglemom. I was raised by parents who endured the Depression and who hailed FDR as the man who saved the US.
DeletePerhaps millennials should take a civics class. Much of what he was promising cannot be done except through Congress,and Lord knows they aren't to do anything for the betterment of this country's citizens. Vote the rats out!
Delete"He never talked about how hard the Democratic Party has worked since early in the 20th century to bring rights to workers through unions, to create societal nets to protect the weak and poor and sick, to bring about lasting civil rights reforms, and to improve educational opportunities for everyone."
DeleteYou can only make that claim if Never listened to even one of his speeches. He talked about these issues in Every Speech he gave. These very issues: workers' rights, civil rights, gay rights, women's rights, public education were exactly the examples he gave in every speech for how fundamental change happens when people stand up and say "Enough". He mentioned every one of them every time he spoke. You're sickening.
3:19 All talk, NO ACTION!
DeleteNaming 2 post offices? PLEASE..
broken record..
I like old women of any color and I hope to be one one day. I think it's wonderful that Seniors are on the net commenting on political blogs.
DeleteIt wasn't only LOD that got misty-eyed over the House Democrats at their sit-in singing 'We Shall Overcome'. The sixties was before my time but I understood the significance of what happened last night.
I also understand the debt of gratitude that young woman owe to the "old women" who fought long and hard- and suffered- for every single thing that young women take for granted in 2016.
3:19
DeleteAnd if elected was he just going to wave a magic wand and create utopia?
lus 1,000,000
DeletePoor Andrew, he only likes wimmens that are afraid of him.
My priorities are very much in line with Bernies. However, his constant bitching about the party he joined only for his own purposes totally turned me off.
DeleteYou're not just an old white woman. You're an old white woman who dug in her heels and refused to listen. Nothing you said could be further from the truth, if you had listened you'd know that.
DeleteBut what can I expect from someone who comes to a gossip blog for their politics.
@anon 2:45[pm
DeleteOne side got their way so the only whiners are on one side.
@anon 4:38pm
DeleteHow dare we women not listen to you, Andrew Prutsok. Sorry Andrew, I don't need you, nor does any other woman to make up their own minds pertaining to politics or anything else.
4:38 - Yet here you are every hour. Sad.
Delete3:19-He mentions the accomplishments, but always says it was 'the people." Without the Democratic Party pushing, without LBJ and FDR nothing would have changed...look at todays' Congress...the freakin' GOP can't even admit we are selling AK-killing machines to mentally incompetent, depressed, ready to die Americans. Beagle mom is right on.
DeleteI'm a bit younger than you and was still in diapers during the civil rights era, but I have tremendous respect for those who worked to gain rights for women and people of color. I agree with many of the goals that Bernie Sanders has set, but realize that there are long and difficult (and often frustratingly slow) processes necessary for accomplishing them.
DeleteAs I read your post, I thought of Congressman John Lewis who led the sit-in last night. I've admired him but didn't know much about him so I checked out his history. Now I have even more admiration for the man who put his life on the line for years to work for the rights of others. Bernie has had decades on the government payroll and has few concrete accomplishments to show for it. Talk is cheap.
Here's someone who put his words into action:
https://johnlewis.house.gov/john-lewis/biography
Anonymous3:19 PM,
DeleteTry reading the statement again. He talks about those things but never about how the Democratic party was the only one fight for those things. He acts like he invented them and nobody else has ever tried to accomplish those things.
Well said!
DeleteSigned,
Old White Woman in Training
I'm a very old white woman and I've never allied with any political party. Bernie had some good things to say, but alas he won't be the Dem candidate but he still deserves some recognition via support and perhaps a write-in.
DeleteYou will make a great old lady someday, 3:43.
DeleteThis old lady likes you already!
March On, Democrats!
The claim that the Democratic Party made those things happen on their own is absurd. It wasn't until workers stood up and demanded better working conditions that Democratic Congresses passed legislation to help protect workers. It was only afer women stood up and demanded the vote that Democratic legislatures passed the 19th amendment. It was only after people stood up and demanded civil rights for blacks that a Democratic Congress passed the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act.
DeleteThe idea that the Democratic Party came up with these on their own demonstrates a deplorable lack of knowledge of our history.
"But don't forget, if I say anything that damages the Sanders' supporter's little feelings I am somehow the problem, and am personally helping to drive them away from Hillary."
ReplyDeleteDid it ever occur to you that everyday new revelations come out about Hillary's unsecure hombrew server/emails that in fact were hacked and Hillary backers who blindly believed her are now in fact saying:
What The Fuck?
It's real and not a "right wing talking point"...
Yeah, right. That's why no one else is worried: not the President, VP, Sen. Warren, Sen. Franken, Sen. Brown, etc. They are all a LOT smarter than you, and have done so much more to make the world a better place than you ever will.
Delete2:22 PM What the fuck do you want, troll?
Delete@3:04
Delete"This blog is dedicated to finding the truth, exposing the lies, and holding our politicians and leaders accountable when they fall far short of the promises that they have made to both my fellow Alaskans and the American people."
That's what.
Hillary has been bullshittin' us about the server/emails.
james Comey won't miss this time...
YOU post this shit so frequently because you're trying to make something out of a big nothing.
DeleteGo back to the pond, they believe anything there.
3:25 - James Comey is under fire right now. #Orlando. Are you and your rightwing friends really this entrenched up your own butts? It's smelly up there.
Deletend yet you don't even admit that Bernie was a deadbeat Dad. Sorry, the MAJORITY made our choice and it just isn't Bernie, we aren't that into him and his misogynistic ways.
Delete@3:35
DeleteI am far from "rightwing" and you are on a fool's errand if you believe the WHOLE FBI is working on the Orlando massacre.
Day-um...
Shit troll is in the building!
DeleteE-mail servers? Really? WHO GIVES A FUCK?! Is that the best you've got? It means nothing, you robotic parrot, nothing.
Delete4:05 - any day you say the exact same things that Trump does, you are a right-winger. Maybe you used to be left wing, but you have changed. Everything you post here in Right Wing. Maybe you try to post Left Wing on your own blog?
Deleteso worried about hackers when Bernie's campaign employees hacked Hillary's account at the DNC and stole her mailing/email list?
DeleteAny "registered Democrat" who says s/he is going to vote for Trump is either ratfucking or suffering from a severe cognitive deficit.
ReplyDeleteI'd say there ain't no such animal as a registered Democrat voting for Trump.
DeleteThere are plenty of registered Sarah Palin fans posing as Democrats, though. ;)
And plenty of people supporting Bernie who are not and never will be, Democrats, yet they want to ride the DNC coattails, have the DNC worship at his feet, and not do a damn thing to elect the people who might have the power to implement some of his ideas.
Delete"Yep, clearly my blog is the problem here."
ReplyDeleteCareful, Gryphen. Those idiots don't understand sarcasm and may start posting in THEIR groups that YOU agree with them!
I think this about stupid hillbots.
Delete"stupid hillbots" - That denigration shows such a high level of intellectualism.
Delete@anon 2:53 pm
DeleteIs that you Andrew? Sorry, but we women have had the right to vote for decades. So have minorities, so run around and pull out what little gray hair you have left.
I love when the clueless woman says she will vote for Trump because he won't owe anyone anything. I swear I thought republicans were the dumbest assholes there were in the world. Oops---I was wrong.
ReplyDeleteSo she is only a little disturbed that Trump is a racist, misogynistic, xenophobic 1% who thinks Michelle Bachmann is a sane person. (I suppose her only being one of the hated group suits her fine) GOSH---- But he won't owe anyone anything. Moron.
Fuck that noise.
That is Celia, who wouldn't have any readers if Gryphen didn't have her on his blog roll.
DeleteYou're right, 4:05!! I recognized her yesterday when she was posting that crap about Anonymous that she's been running on her Justice blog. Can't stand the anarchists!!
DeleteExcept that she is wrong - he WILL owe people a lot - he just won't pay up.
DeleteA woman is a reflection of the man she dates. If you think she's a bitch, look at how she's treated. That is the key. No woman wants to be negative but a real woman stands up for herself.
ReplyDeleteTotally disagree.
DeleteI think you might be lost...
DeleteHi Bristol...who are you dating this week?
DeleteLost...I guess that's one way of putting it.
Delete"Anonymous2:54 PM A woman is a reflection of the man she dates... If you think she's a bitch, look at how she's treated."
Delete---------------------
No. A woman is a person with good and bad qualities.
She is not a "reflection" of somebody else. If you want a reflection, get a mirror.
If she is a bitch, it is because she has chosen to be one. She chooses her response to being mistreated, whether it is a healthy choice or not.
Plenty of people are mistreated every day, and their choice is to never treat others as they have been treated.
Try again with your insane Bristol worship.
As someone who has been Bernie supporter here's my take on it. Doesn't make me right, just my two cents for how I see it...
ReplyDeleteI support dramatic change for our country. For the record, I'm well aware that the snappy retort might be - no shit Sherlock who doesn't? It's amazing our president has been able to accomplish as much as he has but I don't think any of us believe there couldn't have been more were it not for a nearly dormant republican led congress. Even Pres. Obama stated in speeches that things won't get done without the people demanding change. The filibuster and sit in have been the most noise I've seen from our congress beyond talking points on TV. As tragic as Orlando's mass shooting is it finally lit a fire under people, but there should have been an inferno after Sandy Hook.
I feel that Bernie's run, as unlikely as it should have been, lit a fire on behalf of vocal protest for change. Maybe it's the old hippie in those of us who grew up in the 60's, maybe it's the sheer astonishment from the younger generation that our government is stagnant that we want to show up on Bernie's side. There's no doubt that HRC is more than qualified and they agree on a numerous policies. I think, however, that Bernie staying in this race has forced her to tack to the left, and that's to our favor. The longer he stays in, the larger and louder his supporters get looking for our democratic candidate to stay to the left. I believe he does her a favor by keeping us Bernie supporters engaged and not letting the enthusiasm cool off in this waaaaaay too long contest. I think technology, as great as it is, has made young people impatient. Hell, I think we're all sick of this crap by now. I believe there must be focus to keep our eyes on the prize because it's still a long way away. I don't mind being reminded what's at stake hearing Bernie speak. Hillary was inevitable, we need voters who won't be complacent. I honestly don't think it hurts that even the Hillary supporters like yourself are pissed. You're still engaged in the discussion! Think about the alternative. I see boredom. There's only so many stump speeches you can listen to before your realize politicians are saying the same thing each time, only so much enthusiasm.
As for the fringe that claim they won't vote for Hillary, I remember in 2008, PUMA - party unity my ass. The Hillary supporters then were saying loudly and clearly they would stay home, but more than enough came back around. I think the same will happen here. There's no doubt in my mind because Bernie made me believe we can activate for meaningful change!
I don't completely agree with you but I SO APPRECIATE your thoughtful reflections. Thank you for sharing them and I look forward to more of your ideas and analysis here, hyacinth.
Delete@hyacinth 3:04 PM
DeleteThank you for your post.
Oy... I meant motivate not activate.
Delete@3:28 ACTIVATE = STARTING something "real" actually to get something done. I think that was the right word to begin with for society.
DeleteBut>Bernie>well
MOTIVATE =Others must do something? YEA RIGHT? That is wishing it would happen. This (action) only time will tell this coming November.
Study and seek the truth. GO HRC!
And yet Bernie hid in Vermont during the Democratic fillibuster last week. Sorry, I want someone who walks the talk.
DeleteThumbs up.
DeleteWell stated, hyacinth, I was in junior high during the 60s and remember it all quite well.
Delete
DeleteShush, you're breaking Grift's stereotype and giving credit where credit is due.
Thanks for saying that so succinctly and intelligently.
DeleteWell Hycasinth, as one old hippy to another I read Bernie Sanders musogynistic articles the first time around and figured out who he was. Also, as a minority woman Bernie has discounted my gender and race blatantly during his campaign. That said, you, as an American citizen have the right to vote and support whom you want as do I. I would have just liked to exercise my opinion and vote without ageist, racist, and gender biased remarks being thrown at me.
Delete4:56pm
DeleteHe let those BLM interrupters take over his speech in Seattle when he should have had security escort them to the door.
What more do you want?
Nice post, hyacinth. We need more of that. We don't need to sling the mud all the time.
DeleteAnonymous 4:56 - I so agree with you. As soon as I began to look at Bernie's background, I told my husband he was a misogynist, deadbeat dad and not a good person. Many of us older women have seen his type so many times before - lots of promises and no action - and it is never his fault. He's like the guy who has several girlfriends so he always has a place to stay. And, unfortunately the DNC was the clueless young woman who didn't want to say 'no' the the freeloading. Politics takes more than opinion - it takes hard, slogging, boring work, paying attention to rules and procedures, and working to change without burning down the village. The best politics IMHO means looking out for how the least of us will fare, or how those who are 'othered' will do if our proposals come to pass. Much of what I see from Bernie's supporters is a mostly white sense of entitlement, a callousness for others, and a desire to 'burn down the house' without any idea of how folks will live or how to replace the buildings. If I've learned nothing else in my 60 years, much of it spend in on the street political activism, it is the necessity for planning, pragmatism, hard work, and kindness. I see none of this from the Bernie camp. As you said, Anonymous 4:56, it is hard to hear what they claim to be saying when one is bombarded with "ageist, racist, and gender biased remarks."
DeleteIn the wheelhouse ≠ In the party platform
ReplyDeleteSanders and his supporters want these things incorporated into the 2016 platform.
The party platform does not really matter in the grand scheme of things. The Democrats always have a great platform. But no one runs around the country "enforcing" it. Party Platform = pyrrhic victory.
Delete.... while they threaten to vote for Donald Trump?
DeleteWell he isn't going to get them. Bernie should have studied the party structure and realized that any changes are 4 yrs in the making and voted upon. We are not a communist organization that just does what one person wants. And certainly not a person that still lists themselves as an Indy.
DeleteReal Time from Sanders in NY:
ReplyDelete"Workers stood up all over this country and told employers it was wrong to have children working on equipment losing fingers. Workers stood up and demanded better working conditions and formed trade unions. Think about how many workers went to jail. Think about the civil rights movement. Think of the people we'll never know their names who were beaten and killed. They stood up and they fought and they fought and they fought. Think about those people who struggled for decades when you think you're tired. Think about the women's movement. this is what political revolution is about. 100 eyars ago women could not vote. But women didn't accept taht, they determined to define their own rights, they stood up and they fought back. People who stood up for gay rights were ridiculed but they stood up and fought for their rights"
Proof the statement by Beaglemom above is total nonsense.
So? He copied someone else's speech. All we have heard from Bernie are that women's healthcare right sare not important, soda taxes are horrid, and big coal is wonderful. Oh, and weed should be legalized. And many of us voters disagree with him on every point.
DeleteNo. Her point was that Sanders didn't mention the Democratic party's role in accelerating these changes, yet still he has the audacity to make demands.
DeleteWhy didn't Bernie Sanders fight against the NRA when he voted no to the bill making gun manufacturers not able to be sued?He said if he had voted yes he would not have gotten elected. Actually, he ran and was defeated when he was anti NRA so he just changed so he could get elected. He told that story many, many times on "Lunch with Bernie" on Thom Hartmann's radio show. Something always bugged me about Bernie on those programs and I finally figured out it was that he always identified many problems but never offered any solutions or ways to solve the problems.
DeleteAnyone who believes Sanders thinks women's rights are unimportant is willfully ignoring his record.
DeleteI voted for Bernie in the primary. I WILL be voting for Hillary in November. Donald Trump cannot become POTUS. But if we do not elect a Dem Senate - at a minimum - the GOP will continue their obstructionist nonsense. They clearly cannot govern.
ReplyDeleteYES, Deni!
DeleteYou're right, it's all YOUR fault some "housewife" in Texas will vote for Trump if Bernie doesn't get his list met. Afterall, he and Trump share so many of the same policies. *that was what's called "sarcasm" or "tongue in cheek".
ReplyDelete:) Well, as a Texan housewife ( that also happens to be a business owner) I don't need either Bernie or my husband to choose how to vote. Though he did tell me long before I made up my mind not to vote for that misogynistic asshole Bernie Sanders.
DeleteFuck Bernie Sanders and his hag Jane.
DeleteAnonymous4:13 PM,
DeleteCan you stop with the misogynistic insults. You're as bad as Trump.
The smart votes are going Libertarian this year. Don't be left behind!
DeleteAnonymous7:19 PM,
Deletesmart libertarians - now there's an oxymoron
Anyone who pivots from Bernie to Trump in petulance is, at the very least, naive.
ReplyDeletePer Bernie's speech right now (theater holds 1,495 people):
ReplyDelete"45 minutes into Senator Sanders' NY Town Hall speech and 4,507 viewers are watching it. Number has not been higher at any moment." - Al Giordano on Twitter
Update: "The senator's Town Hall rally's (capacity 1,495) highest viewership was 7.668 online, a fraction of the 100,000 who watched his podcast." - Al Giordano on Twitter
Deletewhole 4,507 viewers! Maybe in his next almost consension speech he'll get a few more.
DeleteWouldn't packing seven times the amount the theater holds be met with a call from the fire marshal?
DeleteHousewife in Beeville, TX...what an ignorant response.
ReplyDeleteYES SPORTS FAN, THIS IS ONE OF THE REASONS WHY BERNIE WON'T CONCEDE.
ReplyDeleteSoooo Bernie Sanders is using taxpayers money to pay for his personal security a rally to promote a 70 year old Bernie Wannabe congressional candidate?
Yes folks this is why Bernie won't give up his $38,000 A Day Secret Service detail.
Why can't Bernie hold a campaign rally for a 70 year old guy who may not finish his first term because of his old age without the use of our United States of America Secret Service that we are paying for?
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
BUZZFEED:
Bernie Sanders Will Put On One Of His Rallies, But For Someone Else
His campaign will organize an event for a New York congressional candidate on Friday — renting the space, building the crowd, and promoting the rally.
Bernie Sanders has all but conceded the nomination. But on Friday, he’ll return to the campaign trail to put on one of his signature “A Future To Believe In” rallies.
The event will be held in support of New York congressional candidate Eric Kingson. Sanders himself, however, will be effectively headlining — and his staff will be building the rally, covering the bulk of the costs, and assembling the crowd.
The campaign announced the rally as an official “Bernie Sanders A Future To Believe In” event, “featuring Congressional Candidate Eric Kingson.”...
https://www.buzzfeed.com/rubycramer/bernie-sanders-will-put-on-one-of-his-rallies-but-for-someon
So now Bernie's a rally host but not a candidate? Cool. #brandbuilding
Delete"And while we're at it, we may as well transform the entire Democratic Party."
ReplyDelete- Crybaby Loser Bernie Sanders
June 23, 2016 New York
Bernie you are a Socialist Independent? Why not spend what's left of your life to strengthen your Independent Party?
No kidding! But you know it's much easier for him to crticize and tear down something somone else built than to actually build something himself.
DeleteSo many of us actual Independents were very disappointed when he got into bed with the Establishment.
DeleteWe still have Indie options in November but unfortunately Bernie sold out to the machine so he's not an option.
You unique little snowflake, feeling so superior about being "independent". What exactly have indepenents built or accomplished, except giving us GWB?
DeleteI think the point is that if the Democratic Party were to be more inclusive we wouldn't need an Independent party. The DNC has become very weak and needs an injection of youth and progressiveness. Stronger Together should be the motto.
DeleteI hope everybody understands that Bernie Sanders is not supporting down ticket Democratic candidates.
ReplyDeleteBernie Sanders is using his influence and fundraisers to find progressive Socialists like himself to run for Democratic Congressional seats.
It's not about helping Democrats retain their seats or promoting strong candidates with Democratic values.
Bernie Sanders wants to find others who holds his values. That's how Sanders will change the Democratic Party.
"And while we're at it, we may as well transform the entire Democratic Party."
-Bernie Sanders
Bingo!
DeleteYes, that's what he's doing. You make it sound like the Democratic Party is a private club open only to a select few. It is the "Democratic" party after all.
DeleteJane Sanders is one of Bernie Sanders paid campaign advisors. Jane must have made lots of dollars by now to live comfortably once Bernie concedes.
ReplyDeleteYou lie! Anyone can check the campaign's filings at FEC.gov and learn the Sanders campaign has paid $0 to Jane Sanders.
DeleteYou're either lazy or you don't care that you're spreading a smear.
It's so funny to see people writing about how much money the Sanders are raking in. Do you know where they live? Do you not see a disparity between complaining about the huge amounts of money you think they will have and the obscene amounts that Hillary commands?
DeleteDON'T BELIEVE ME?
ReplyDeleteRead my lips. Sanders is a domestic Independent Socialist terrorist infiltrating the Democratic Party
Sanders is creating Bernie Cells within the Democratic Party
Bernie Sanders sounds like the ISIS terrorist group who is looking for domestic terrorists except Sanders is looking for progressives in the United States to change the Democratic Party from within.
Sanders is recruiting people with his ideology to run for political positions who will follow his ways and change the the Democratic Party and the United States of America.
A little Democratic Socialism could be a good thing.
DeleteExactly - now you're getting it.
DeleteSANDERS WILL NOT CONCEDE OR GIVE UP HIS DAILY $38K SECRET SERVICE DETAIL FOR PERSONAL REASONS
ReplyDeleteSen. Bernie Sanders vowed Thursday to continue his fight to transform the Democratic Party and the nation, saying political campaigns come and go, but “political and social revolutions continue.”
“Our goal from day one has been transform this nation,” the Vermont senator said in a speech at The Town Hall performance venue in New York City.
“And that is the fight we are going to continue.”
http://www.wgrz.com/mb/news/nation-now/bernie-sanders-to-give-where-we-go-from-here-speech-in-new-york/253951813
I don't know why anyone really cares. Life goes on, regardless of who is POTUS.
ReplyDeleteYou seem smart.
DeleteThen why are you on a political blogs presidential election post?
DeleteMeghan, I just like to come here and watch all you ninnies crying that the "sky is falling" and getting all huffy with the Bernie Bros, that's it. Entertainment, nothing more.
DeleteLike watching you all talk about the Palin's someday being "taken down". It's all really fucking hilarious.
9:20 - what's "really fucking hilarious" is how you flaunt your stupidity. You're just a baby without a clue.
Delete9:20 - it is pretty funny. I don't even know why I come here anymore - habit I guess. I really ought to find another venue, but it is fun to get them worked up. What's funnier is when nobody else is replying and they are all just agreeing with each other's vitriol.
DeleteTo add some of my own perspective to this post, I would like to add this quote from Bill Moyers and Company blog regarding opposing sides within the Democratic Party, “Conventions are where we come together, but you don’t really come together if you avoid differences”. “You start by understanding that it takes two wings to fly. If you have two strong wings — a wing that has won and a wing that has lost — you don’t deny the differences; you recognize them. You debate, find common ground, find ways to start working together for immediate goals — the next election — and for long-term goals that can mean as much to the nation as to the party.”
ReplyDelete"The prospect of aligning with Clinton supporters, especially progressive members of Congress and labor activists who will attend the convention as superdelegates, creates even greater openings for platform fights. Prospective nominees tend to favor weaker platforms; Harry Truman would have preferred milder civil-rights commitments than were made in his party’s 1948 platform, and it took steady pressure from unions, liberals and Ted Kennedy to get Jimmy Carter to finally embrace spending on jobs programs. It will take similar pressure to get Clinton and her inner circle to accept a Democratic platform that Sanders says must include “a $15-an-hour minimum wage, an end to our disastrous trade policies, a Medicare-for-all health-care system, breaking up Wall Street financial institutions, ending fracking in our country, making public colleges and universities tuition-free, and passing a carbon tax so we can effectively address the planetary crisis of climate change.” Clinton stalwarts may want to keep things vague, but look for the Sanders team to demand specifics, such as an explicit endorsement of a national $15 minimum wage instead of the $12 proposal that Clinton initially offered, and an unequivocal rejection of the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal that President Obama supports and that Clinton once championed but now criticizes."
"Sanders backers want to win these platforms fights — not to make a point about their campaign, but to make a deeper point about what the Democratic Party must stand for in order to win the 2016 election and the future. “The convention can amplify what this campaign made visible — that there are millions of Americans who are hurting — and say that the Democratic Party has to respond to that pain with bigger and bolder policies,” says Working Families Party national director Dan Cantor, a veteran of the 1988 Jackson campaign who is now a Sanders backer. “Democrats who want to win a big majority in November, to take back the Congress and to move forward in the states, know that the party has to stand for something that excites young people, that excites working people. No matter who the nominee is, the party has to take a big-vision stand.”
I will reluctantly vote for Hillary but I stand with Bernie to put a voice to the 13 million voters he received and hope the Democratic Party Platform will listen.
Sorry, but you don't really come together if you and your supporters persist in direspecting and insulting the winner. Does persisting in calling the winner "Shillary", "corrupt" "wall street shill", "corporate shill", "bought and sold" (and these are just the mild ones) make a good basis for coming together? Does the loser carry more weight? Does the winner have to make all the concessions? Does the loser make ANY concessions other than acknowledging the loss? Do the 23 million votes for Hillary get a say?
DeleteBernie has repeated emphasized that he is not a Democrat, but an Independent Democratic Socialist. This is fine. He should stay out of the Democratic Party and run on the platform that pleases him the most. Unless he wants to attempt to destroy the Democratic Party, he has no reason to become a part of it. Oh wait....
Delete9:29 Please reference when Bernie Sanders called Hillary any of those things. Just like 2008, there were Clinton supporters who would not vote for Obama. The point NOW is to unite the party AND make changes. Slinging mud on both sides won't help. Both sides should get a say. Let's defeat Donald Trump.
DeleteYou guys don't really care about trying to fix what is happening in our society today. If you did, you would hear what Bernie has to say and agree with it. How can you not? Unless you are selfish and just care about yourself, which is something I thought was a Republican trait. I was always under the impression that the Democratic Party was concerned with "the people" - apparently not anymore. If you don't believe that Mrs. Clinton is "bought and sold" you've got your head in the sand. There is plenty of evidence if you care to open your eyes to it. It just stands to reason that if there is as much money as there is floating around the Clintons, that there also a lot of buying and selling of influence. Bernie is trying to root that out and it's about time. To dispute that just makes you look ignorant.
DeleteI'm confused. Didn't Sanders lose?
ReplyDeleteSince when does the loser tell the winner what to do? He has no regard. If Hillary was a man; it would be a different story.
ReplyDelete45% of the pledged delegates, 13+ million votes, won 22 states - Sanders is entitled to input into the platform.
ReplyDeleteClinton supporters want to see Sanders humiliated like Clinton was in 2008. Sanders has the luxury of staying in until the convention or until he gets what he wants because he has nothing to lose if he displeases the party establishment.
6:03 Like Clinton was humiliated in 2008? That's not how I recall 2008 and I supported her then. She ended her campaign with grace, she threw her support wholeheartedly to Obama, and despite the PUMAs, all the Dems I knew did the same. I happily voted for our President (both times) and I was proud when she accepted the post of Secretary, but not as proud as I was watching how she excelled at it. No one wants Sanders humiliated. We just want him to either play by our rules or quit the game. Instead, he took advantage of our Party to finance his campaign while all the time insisting he was not a Democrat and now wants to change our Party! That's a load of crap, no matter what his policies are.
ReplyDeleteDemocratic Party primary isn't a winner-take-all process. It's a certainty the voters who gave Sanders 45% of the pledged delegates, 13 million votes and 22 states are going to get a voice in the platform and the future direction of the party. The idea that those Sanders voters should sit down, shut up and be dictated to by a slim majority is not only ludicrous, it's undemocratic in every way. Those calling for it should be ashamed of treating their fellow Democrats and fellow Americans that way. Clinton isn't calling for it. Obama isn't calling for it, probably because what Bernie wants is everything Obama hoped to achieve.
ReplyDeleteAll of these people who keep harping on the security detail thing remind me of all those winy ass bitches who are conservative and republicans.
ReplyDeleteMaybe you need to come out of the closet.