Thought for the Day

I don't think I've previously put my finger on why Bernie Sanders is so bad for Democrats. He is not harmful to Democrats simply because he has aspirations without plans to achieve them. He is harmful because he wants to be able to lead without building a consensus. While I may agree with a lot of the things he wants, such as free college, single payer healthcare, and a more progressive tax code, he is not someone who accepts the broad range of views that are still progressive.

When Jon Ossoff ran for Congress in the 6th district, he had a range of views that would qualify him as a centrist for someone on the left. He believes climate change is a problem, he supports women's reproductive rights, but he also wanted to help stimulate business in his district and turn it into a technological hub. Somehow this did not get him Bernie's stamp of approval and Bernie was completely silent while this election was taking place.

Another example of Bernie Sanders rigid, self-serving attitude was on display when Trump was abusive to civil rights hero and Congressman John Lewis. John Lewis was a Hillary supporter and said that while Bernie may have been involved in the civil rights movement he did not know him. Apparently this upset Bernie Sanders enough that he would not stand up for Lewis when he received wanton abuse from Trump. One wonders if one of the reasons Sanders did not support Ossoff is because John Lewis endorsed him and Ossoff had the great honor of having interned for Representative Lewis.

Either way, Sanders is not a consensus builder, he's a man who thinks of himself as a hero. It was not surprising to me that he was reluctant to step down from the primaries for some time even after it became clear he had a zero percent chance of winning. Someone who cannot show support for a Democrat running for Congress because that Democrat does not have orthodox views really has nothing to offer the party.

It turns out Bernie has now endorsed Ossoff in the runoff, after Ossoff failed to reach a majority in the first round. He also apparently says he does not know if Ossoff is a progressive. Fool.

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Originally Posted by broncofan

I don't think I've previously put my finger on why Bernie Sanders is so bad for Democrats. He is not harmful to Democrats simply because he has aspirations without plans to achieve them. He is harmful because he wants to be able to lead without building a consensus. While I may agree with a lot of the things he wants, such as free college, single payer healthcare, and a more progressive tax code, he is not someone who accepts the broad range of views that are still progressive.

When Jon Ossoff ran for Congress in the 6th district, he had a range of views that would qualify him as a centrist for someone on the left. He believes climate change is a problem, he supports women's reproductive rights, but he also wanted to help stimulate business in his district and turn it into a technological hub. Somehow this did not get him Bernie's stamp of approval and Bernie was completely silent while this election was taking place.

Another example of Bernie Sanders rigid, self-serving attitude was on display when Trump was abusive to civil rights hero and Congressman John Lewis. John Lewis was a Hillary supporter and said that while Bernie may have been involved in the civil rights movement he did not know him. Apparently this upset Bernie Sanders enough that he would not stand up for Lewis when he received wanton abuse from Trump. One wonders if one of the reasons Sanders did not support Ossoff is because John Lewis endorsed him and Ossoff had the great honor of having interned for Representative Lewis.

Either way, Sanders is not a consensus builder, he's a man who thinks of himself as a hero. It was not surprising to me that he was reluctant to step down from the primaries for some time even after it became clear he had a zero percent chance of winning. Someone who cannot show support for a Democrat running for Congress because that Democrat does not have orthodox views really has nothing to offer the party.

It turns out Bernie has now endorsed Ossoff in the runoff, after Ossoff failed to reach a majority in the first round. He also apparently says he does not know if Ossoff is a progressive. Fool.

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i've read a lot of stupid shit on this board, but this certainly has the running to top them all. are you retarded or do you just like to pretend like you are sir?

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Originally Posted by bluesoul

i've read a lot of stupid shit on this board, but this certainly has the running to top them all. are you retarded or do you just like to pretend like you are sir?

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What did I say that you think is so stupid? And what exactly does someone else like about you calling me retarded?

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Originally Posted by broncofan

What did I say that you think is so stupid?

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everything. and i don't care what anyone else thinks about what i called you. be a man and stop looking to someone else to aid you. are you a fucking retard?

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Originally Posted by bluesoul

be a man and stop looking to someone else to aid you. are you a fucking retard?

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I post on the politics forum because I rarely see this kind of trolling over here and it's nice to be able to discuss real issues. If you have no interest in politics, why come over here to make up bizarre quotes for Jill Stein and call people names? Even this section has lost some of its appeal as a lot of discussions rarely get going but whatever momentum we can get is destroyed by comments like yours. I suppose there was a part of me that hoped other viewers would think your comment was cheap and pointless, but I'm happy to just go back to discussing politics.

yeah cool story bro

While we are 3 years away from the 2020 presidential election, the Democrats still haven't had a viable candidate they could nominate step forward yet. Between that and 67% of the country saying that the party is out of touch, they're in a heap of trouble. What makes it worse is that I get the feeling they don't think there is anything wrong. They're still clinging to the argument that Hillary won the popular vote. So their thinking is that it wasn't the message that was the problem, it was the messenger.

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Originally Posted by blackchubby38

While we are 3 years away from the 2020 presidential election, the Democrats still haven't had a viable candidate they could nominate step forward yet. Between that and 67% of the country saying that the party is out of touch, they're in a heap of trouble. What makes it worse is that I get the feeling they don't think there is anything wrong. They're still clinging to the argument that Hillary won the popular vote. So their thinking is that it wasn't the message that was the problem, it was the messenger.

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Sadly for democracy in the USA, your argument is right.
My view from the UK and therefore flawed, is that the Democrat challenger Jon Ossof has acquired a lot of positive attention, though he still has to win the House seat in Georgia, I guess just winning an election is a major step forward. I have heard of two brothers, named Castro but can't say much about them and I don't think Bernie Sanders, who is not a Democrat, is helping the 'opposition'. And three years is not a long time and may only be two if potential candidates make themselves known a year before the selection process begins. I suspect there is a problem across the liberal democracies where a disaffection with long-established political systems is alienating people from politics in general, but the alternatives on offer are scary by comparison, so one hopes good people will come forward.

Two names I will throw out there. Cory Booker and Adam Schiff. I have no idea how either man will poll but Booker impressed a lot of people at the Democratic National Convention with his speech and Schiff has been building his profile. It's not easy to find a charismatic politician who can withstand tough attacks on his/her candidacy. But there are probably a lot of other people we haven't thought of. I would mention Elizabeth Warren but I wonder whether she would want to run and/or whether she comes across as a bit wooden in the mold of a John Kerry.

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Originally Posted by broncofan

Two names I will throw out there. Cory Booker and Adam Schiff. I have no idea how either man will poll but Booker impressed a lot of people at the Democratic National Convention with his speech and Schiff has been building his profile. It's not easy to find a charismatic politician who can withstand tough attacks on his/her candidacy. But there are probably a lot of other people we haven't thought of. I would mention Elizabeth Warren but I wonder whether she would want to run and/or whether she comes across as a bit wooden in the mold of a John Kerry.

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Thanks for the tips. Maybe the question is Where will the next Democrat President come from? Since the election of Woodrow Wilson over 100 years ago, only three Presidents have moved from Congress to the White House -Warren Harding, JF Kennedy, and Barack Obama, the rest were either Vice-President or state Governors -or had been, in the case of Ronald Reagan. Given the present situation, either this experience will be unique and not repeated, or the Democrats will be having 'deep talks' with George Clooney, assuming Sean Penn is not interested. But on the evidence, the Governor's mansion appears to be the most common source in recent times.