As we have been discussing, establishment figures in the Democratic party and the media have been preparing to block any nomination of Bernie Sanders, including using the “superdelegates” to hand the nomination to another candidate. The New York Times reported Thursday that the Democratic establishment was preparing for open warfare over blocking Sanders, even if it shatters the unity of the party. If Sanders does not receive the necessary votes, they intend to take away the nomination even if he has the most votes in the first round. The key again are the superdelegates who are not elected in the primaries but given votes as elected officials.
On MSNBC, former Obama adviser Anton J. Gunn was particularly blunt. He declared “The party decides its nominee. The public doesn’t really decide the nominee.”
In 2016, many of us objected to the concerted effect of the Democratic establishment and the Democratic National Committee to rig the primary for Hillary Clinton. Later it was revealed that the Clintons have largely taken over the DNC by taking over its debt and the DNC openly harassed and hampered Sanders at every stage. Despite this effort, Sanders came close to beating Clinton, who has never forgiven him for contesting a primary that she literally bought and paid for with the DNC. The simmering rage was still evident in Clinton’s attack on Sanders and suggestion that she might not support him if he were the nominee (a suggestion that she later took back).
Well the supers are back and Sanders may again find that it is the party elite, not the voters, who determine who will be the next nominee. The irony is that the elite hardly has an inspiring record. In 2016, every poll showed that voters did not want an establishment figure so the establishment rigged the process for the ultimate establishment figure. Clinton lost to the most unpopular Republican candidate in history. I remain convinced that Sanders could have won that election, a position recently suggested by Michael Bloomberg.
Yet, the same people that gave us the Clinton nomination will be working their magic again at the Democratic Convention. What is fascinating is that the establishment would prefer to risk the election by alienating the huge young following of Sanders rather than allow Sanders to be the nominee. If they give the nomination to another establishment figures like Biden or a billionaire like Bloomberg, the establishment would enrage millions of Sanders followers who could well stay home in 2020.
Before the Trump vs. Clinton campaign, two large polling companies reported on the support the different candidates had. Less than 30% of Republicans wanted Trump to be the Republican candidate. Less than 30% of Democrats wanted Clinton to be the Democratic candidate. Trump became President, with less than 30% of 50% of the voters originally wanting him in the Oval Office. 100% of 50% (Democrats) didn’t want him there. In other words, less than 15% of the voters wanted Trump before the election. People end up voting for the least of several evils, not somebody they wholeheartedly believe in.
Yup.
Are the Democrats democratic?
The DNC is not.
That fat slob you call ” President”. Gee Natacha, I don’t think Mr. President talks like that about you.
The import of Natacha’s remarks (especially the gratuitous insults lobbed at Kellyanne Conway and Ivanka) strongly suggest she herself is morbidly obese.
Omarosa Manigault Newman, a former aide to the president, released a tell-all book in August that includes unsubstantiated personal attacks on the president such as what she calls his “mental decline.”
Trump responded with denials and multiple insults of his former protege on “The Apprentice,” calling her “Wacky and Deranged,” “a crazed, crying lowlife” and comparing her to a “dog.”
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Independent Bob,
Trump doesn’t know her. If he did know Natacha, I think he’d probably find words he’d use to describe her.😆
They are not democratic and they are a stain on our Constitutional Republic. they are nothing more than Marxist Leninist Adolfist shoe scrapings.
“The party decides its nominee. The public doesn’t really decide the nominee.”
Now if that isn’t a hands down straight up remark from the fascists of the extreme far left….. The arrogance of that sentence which serves to tell their own members but we knew they would cave but the rest of the country and the world they would decide in a their hokey pokey party is unforgiveable and on it’s face is grounds for kicking out, recalling the scum that made the remark.
Wall Street’s having a sale.
Bernie’s gonna get screwed again.
Did y’all hear Joe Biden’s latest blunder? He said this today at a SC campaign event:
“I’m looking forward to appointing the first African American woman to the United States Senate.”
Hey South Carolina Primary Voters, please put Ol’ Joe out of his (and our) misery. Just vote No to Joe!
Sanders And Trump More Alike Than Most People Realize
Politically Sanders and Trump seem like polar opposites. Yet both have angry personas that galvanize an unusually angry base. I suspect that a high percentage of Sanders supporters are the children Trump’s aging fanatics.
Both Sanders and Trump are native New Yorkers born in the 1940’s. Each is given to yelling with a New York attitude. Followers of both are uncritical admirers. Neither base will tolerate healthy scrutiny.
Sanders, like Trump, claims that only ‘he’ can fix it. Attacking so-called ‘elites’ is a staple of their speeches. Attacking mainstream media is part of that thrust. Bernie Bros, like Trumpers, believe they can only trust the most obscure of news sources.
Both Sanders and Trump are addicted to large, energized crowds. For that reason Bernie was unable to exit the 2016 primaries when his path to victory was closed. Bermie enjoys his ‘rock star’ status and has no desire to leave the stage until his audience is gone.
Sanders, like Trump, is totally unrealistic with regards to fiscal policies. Bernie’s own campaign estimates that his policies would add $50 trillion in new spending over the next 10 years. That’s considerably ‘more’ ridiculous that Trump’s tax cuts for the wealthy. But it reflects that same, ‘I dont have explain it’ attitude.
Therefore Republicans pretending to sympathize with Bernie are essentially falling prey to ‘misery loves company’. The GOP is now totally invested in Trump, an outsider who hijacked their party. So Republicans, like Turley, want the Democrats hijacked as well.
The calculation is that Bernie’s insanity will make Donald Trump appear saner by comparison. For that reason alone I detest Bernie Sanders. I dont want insanity to be the norm in American politics. We dont need radical extremes with a lonely middle caught between.
I agree with Democrats who feel that stopping Bernie is worth possible defeat. Taking ownership of Sanders would be more costly in the long run. Personally I fear that Sanders could unleash a leftist Culture War. Such a movement would become a permanent stain on Democrats.
Seth,
I think there is a strong likelihood that Sanders will be the Democratic nominee.
If that is the case, will you continue to bad- mouth him?😄
Yes.
“Both Sanders and Trump are native New Yorkers born in the 1940’s. ”
Paint Chips’ ideas are not good for human consumption. Once again he disparages an entire group of people, Old New Yorkers in this case. If Bloomberg gets the nomination we might hear something similar with an added descriptor, ‘Old New York Jew’. Paint Chips doesn’t seem to tire insulting large groups of people.
He also insults individuals, one in particular that permits him to play on his blog for free. He insults Turley as a Republican when many times Turley has stated he is a Democrat. Nothing wrong with being a Repbulican but that is the way Peter Paint Chips insults Turley.
Paint Chips’ post is a treasure trove of misconceptions from the losers in the establishment:
(1) “both have angry personas that galvanize an unusually angry base.”
The people are angry with the establishment…and they don’t get it, but they have noticed how weak the support is for their candidates.
(2) “Each is given to yelling with a New York attitude.”
We call it being brash. The establishment doesn’t like it when you call them out. They want people they can control. Those days are over.
(3) “Bernie Bros, like Trumpers, believe they can only trust the most obscure of news sources.”
“Obscure news sources” means non-corporate, independent voices who don’t kowtow to anyone…the establishment hates that. Independent media is crushing the corporate media 🙂
(4) Both “Sanders and Trump are addicted to large, energized crowds.”
Sounds like Mr Chips has penis envy. The establishment candidates can’t fill a bathroom.
(5) “Sanders, like Trump, is totally unrealistic with regards to fiscal policies.”
Where have you been for the past 40 years Mr Chips? That ship sailed a long time ago under the leadership of the establishment. Well done morons.
(6) “I dont want insanity to be the norm in American politics.”
“Insanity” simply means that the establishment is no longer in control.
(7) “Personally I fear that Sanders could unleash a leftist Culture War. Such a movement would become a permanent stain on Democrats.”
That happened under Obama…it’s too late clean up that sht-stain.
Who is this Ivan guy?? He sounds as stupid as as Allen. Is he senile as well??
Alan is not senile, he is just stupid. Age has nothing to do with it
+10
Ivan makes Allan feel smart. He’s Allan’s new blog-friend.
With an unsupported opinion like that is there any reason to NOT vote NO for that entire group of socialist misfits who cleary do not belong in our country?
Political parties are private entities that try to act like democratic organizations to confound their followers. The Bernie dilemma is the result of this confidence game.
The parties would be better served to select a slate of candidates and have their members vote on these candidates. They should set requirements for candidacy such as enrollment in the Party for a predetermined period. It is laughable that a man who is not even a Democrat can be looking at being the Party standard bearer.
ti317 – make that two non-Democrats running for the Democratic nomination.
What world are you living in?
It’s almost like the “Democratic” convention is a misnomer…
In all seriousness, I can understand the difficulty when a party finds the candidate running under their banner does not follow their party platform. In this case, a Socialist is running as a Democrat.
This was, however, inevitable, as the Democrats have kept leaning harder left, and used class warfare as part of their efforts to get elected. To have a socialist candidate was the consequence.
If the DNC forbids Bernie Sanders to run as a Democrat, they will be accused of rigging the election and establishment politics. If they allow Bernie to win the primary, the party leaders have a candidate they don’t want.
This should have been fixed in 2015. If they have certain standards for a candidate, then they need to encode that in the rules to apply to everyone. Just like fundraising rules should have applied to Henry Fu and Mike Bloomberg equally. But they didn’t.
For some definition of “harder left.”