A lot of Bernie's supporters have only had Obama as president.

[Yavin4]

If you're 28 years old or younger, you've only had Obama as president since you've been an adult. Sure, you were alive when Bush II was president, but you were under the care of your parents. You're only real experience has been with Obama.

You have no memory of the Dems losing 5 out of 6 presidential elections from 1968 to 1988. You have no memory of 12 years of Reagan/Bush. No memory of Reagan's 49 state sweep in 1984. No memory of Mike Dukakis' miserable campaign in 1988. No memory of Bill Clinton running for president when Bush I had a 91% approval rating after the Gulf War. No real memory of the 2000 Florida recount.

In sum, you have no memory of what the Dems have had to overcome just to get us to this point, and now they can't understand why the Dems aren't further left. The successes of Obama aren't enough for them or is seen as a pittance because they have not lived through the pain.

[IamMab]

1. And the biggest example of "radical" activity they've seen was the Tea Party.

And they learned all the wrong lessons from it.

[Cha]

2. And, they only have bernie telling them how "disappointing" Presdient Obama is when he's

not trying to suck up to him on other occasions.

[metroins]

3. I disagree

I'm 31 and I remember Bush Sr. and Desert Storm. I also clearly remember the Clinton administration as well as GW Bush. The recount was a huge deal.

I'm a Hillary supporter, but I don't agree with your post.

Back then I had no idea about Senators, but we talked a lot about politics. My parents supported Nader and Perot.

[brush]

6. The OP said 28 or younger. You said you are 31.

[metroins]

7. 3 years away

I think me stating I remember presidential affairs from the late 80s and the 90s can be compared to a 28 year old and younger remembering the 90s and 2000s.

I don't agree that people younger than me only remember Obama.

If anything, they've likely heard how bad Reagan was.

[kjones]

14. I'm 26, and I think it's a little critical of age.

I've noted young age before too, but I think it has less to do
with "you weren't there" or "you don't remember" or whatever...
and more to do with young people being drawn to a crowd, or
to outsiders (real or invented).

I still remember plenty of GWB era stuff that I was aware of
in a critical manner. I remember how disturbed I was watching
live feeds of the strikes on Baghdad in social studies the day
it happened...particularly the responses and attitude from
others. I think after 9/11...a lot of people who are currently
in the 25-30 (5/6th graders back then) got an abnormally
early introduction to world news, foreign policy, global politics...
whatever. From then on, I was aware of those things, at least
certainly much more than you'd expect of a 12 y/o kid. I mean,
pretty much in our formative years, smack dab in the middle of
childhood, our lives were turned upside down. Not the event,
sure, that was huge, but because of what it brought. My cohort
lived out the first half of our childhood in that pre-2001 world,
and the last half was a mix of metal detectors and guards walking
the school hallways with sniffer dogs. Given how much of a
kids life is spent in school, school is your life....we're your friends
are, where you socialize...so that was my lived experience, and
honestly, it was kind of a police state inside a clear backpack
clad educational Alcatraz.
That's kind of a digression, but yeah, we lived in the same world
as you did, and even though we viewed a different portion of it,
we were certainly aware of the turmoil in the country, and the
world as a whole.

...And of course, regarding the "pain" of the Bush years...well,
it's still here. Anyone who is alive right now is currently "living
with the pain." Those that care to learn about the world around
them recognize it, though I guess, some people lie to themselves
about it.

Long story short, I view criticizing the age of Bernie's supporter
base about as favorably as I view criticizing the age of Hillary's
supporter base. It's just not all that great an angle...especially
in the face of all the REALLY lame things going on over in that
campaign that could be hammered on.

[brush]

24. Was the OP really criticizing them or making an observation that Obama is the only President . . .

they've known of voting age, and have no have no other president to really gauge whether attacks against him, from the right as well as left, are valid or not?

[Chichiri]

8. I'm 37 and I remember Reagan's sweep.

I agree with the OP.

[Iliyah]

4. I wasn't old enough to vote for Gore, but did vote for Kerry.

Ya think they would know about the bush years wherein 750 thousand of people were losing their jobs a month. Pres O came in and basically derailed a depression.

[SunSeeker]

5. Oh God, yes, it explains a lot. But it does not explain Sanders himself. nt

[Yavin4]

9. Sanders, BTW, stayed in the background when all of that was going down.

He was in public life throughout that period and didn't lift a finger to help anyone.

[SunSeeker]

13. He was too busy bashing the Democratic Party. nt

[Cha]

16. Like he was laying in wait for after President Obama was leaving office.. thought he would

not be popular. Poor berni.. Obama is strong @ 53%.

'Course I can't read his mind.. just going by his yelling and his actions.

[uponit7771]

19. Amen, If Sanders had any results from revolution before even on a small scale HRC wouldn't have ran

[Cha]

15. Where was the "revolution" during the bush years? What was BS doing then?

It took Barack Obama to start the revolution and it's taking Hillary, who will carry it on starting in 2017..

sanders is too late. President Obama started it on truth.. his is real.

[Haveadream]

10. Any Dem who believes Obama is a bad President is missing context

Ive often found myself trying to explain history to millennials who have a very distorted view of the facts. It is actually pretty disturbing and Bernie is responsible for creating most of those lies for his own self righteous benefit.

Obama has done a phenomenal job of turning things around under horrible circumstances. He's made breakthrough legislation even with an obstructionist RW pushing back against him. I think a large portion of Sander's true believers had to be somehow insulated from awareness of all the bad years in the past. It has been surreal to watch all the victim blaming going on. Obama, the Dems and Hillary being prime targets. It is very frustrating.

[Cha]

17. Thank you for that, Haveadream.. President Obama has been a brilliant President.. and I'm

so happy things worked out so well between him and Hillary.. and, that he wants her to be #45.



http://m.dailykos.com/story/2016/2/11/1483209/-Feel-the-Fraud

[Haveadream]

21. Thank you, Cha!

And for the fantastic chart and the on point meme, too!



Here is just a partial record of Obama's many accomplishments. Hillary is going back to the White House to keep it going and we are never going to give up making things better!

Huge credit to FrenchieCat and the DU AAGroup for the awesome list!





http://www.democraticunderground.com/118738790

1) Passed Health Care Reform (Affordable Care Act)
More than 19 percent of African Americans did not have health care. When the highly debated health care reform bill was signed into law in March of 2010, millions of African Americans benefited. The ACA is Reducing Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities: The Affordable Care Act moves toward eliminating disparities that African Americans currently face both in their health and in their health care by investing in data collection and research about health disparities. The law also promotes increased racial and ethnic diversity of health care professionals and strengthens cultural competency training among health care providers. Building upon these provisions in the Affordable Care Act, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) launched two strategic plans aimed at reducing health disparities


2) Expanded Funding For HBCUs
President Obama signed an executive order increasing funding for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to $850 million over the next 10 years. The funding is being administered through the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities that was, ironically, started by the late Ronald Reagan.


3) Awarded $1.2 Billion To Black Farmers
President Obama’s administration oversaw the $1.2 billion settlement awarded to Black farmers who have been denied loans and assistance by the Agricultural Dept. for decades.

4) Signed The Crack Cocaine Bill (Fair Sentencing Act)
Crack users are disproportionately sentenced to longer jail terms than those who use powder. This unfair sentencing practice punished African Americans more severely than their white counterparts. With the signing of the Fair Sentencing Act, though, President Obama narrowed that disparity significantly.


5) Created The Civil Rights Division Of The Justice Department
The U.S. Justice Department is leading one of the most aggressive defenses of civil rights in recent memory. Whether it is clamping down on Arizona for its bias against Latinos or fighting unjust state voter ID laws, this Justice Department has been fully engaged in fighting for the rights of all minorities. When President Obama chose Eric Holder to lead the department, he picked a true champion of civil rights. For a rundown of how powerful the Civil Rights Division has become.


6) Set up "My Brother's Keeper", an organization that seeks to promote and help implement a coherent cradle-to-college-and-career strategy for improving the life outcomes of all young people to ensure that they can reach their full potential, regardless of who they are, where they come from, or the circumstances into which they are born.


7) Introduced the Modification loan program, that helped millions of African-Americans save their home during the Housing Crash.


8) Reduced unemployment by creating millions of jobs all over America. In addition, wages have increased in many sectors of all job areas.


9) Saved the Auto Industry in Detroit, Michigan, thereby again saving thousand if not millions of jobs in the industry and all of those directly connected to it. An industry know to employ large numbers of African Americans.


10) Appointed a large number of African-American to Judicial posts throughout the United States. Named two Black Attorney Generals of the United States, back to back.


11) Via Executive Order, established a White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans.
Providing a complete and competitive education for all Americans – from cradle to career – a top priority. The White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans works across Federal agencies and with partners and communities nationwide to produce a more effective continuum of education programs for African American students. The Initiative aims to ensure that all African American students receive an education that fully prepares them for high school graduation, college completion, and productive careers.

12) Help lower Gas prices, which has a direct impact on all Americans, including African-Americans

13) Provided Tax Relief for African American Families: In December 2010, the President signed a bipartisan tax cut agreement that not only secured vital tax relief and investments for our workers, but is also creating jobs and accelerating economic growth. Building off the Recovery Act, the tax agreement extended key expansions of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and the Child Tax Credit (CTC) that are benefiting an estimated 2.2 million African American families.

14) Expanded Access to Federal Contracting for Minority-Owned Businesses: More than 20 Cabinet and Senate-confirmed Obama Administration officials have participated in 19 small business matchmaking events around the country, which has helped more than 10,000 small, minority- and women-owned businesses by promoting access to capital and access to Federal government contracting opportunities. These efforts are part of the President’s broader agenda to support small businesses, including his signing of 17 small business tax cuts into law and taking action to expand access to credit.

15) Established the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and in so doing, protected Families from Financial Abuses, Hidden Fees, and Deceptive Practices: Too many responsible African Americans have paid the price for an outdated regulatory system that has left families without adequate protections against financial abuses and deceptive practices. That’s why President Obama fought to overcome a furious lobbying campaign by big banks to pass the most far reaching Wall Street reform in history which created the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), to prevent mortgage companies, credit card lenders, and payday loan companies from exploiting consumers with hidden fees and other deceptive practices.

16) Improved the Quality of Education and Expanding Access to College: President Obama has improved the quality of education – particularly in our lowest-performing schools – and has expanded access to college because every child deserves an education that equips them with the skills to find a good-paying job and succeed in the workforce.

17) Fixing Our Lowest-Performing Schools: The Obama Administration has dedicated to challenge states and districts to transform the lowest-performing schools in America. School Improvement Grants have provided millions per school for 1,000 schools to change them into safe environments where students can learn.


18) Helped Students Pay For College: By re-directing subsidies from private lenders to students, the Administration has already raised the maximum Pell Grant awards and increased the number of Pell Grant recipients . Also, for families struggling with the cost of college, we have created the American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC)—a partially refundable tax credit worth up to $10,000 over four years of college.

19) Strengthening Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs) and Community Colleges: The student loan reform bill signed by President Obama provided $2 billion for community colleges and other eligible institutions of higher education to improve education and career training programs.

20) Transformed Distressed areas through Choice Neighborhoods: The Choice Neighborhoods program provided $126 million to 22 communities to plan and implement the transformation of high-poverty areas where distressed HUD-assisted housing is . The Recovery Act provided $7 billion in funding to communities to manage the vacant and foreclosed residential properties that are creating blight and bringing down local home values.

21) Ensuring Access to Healthy Food: The Administration is committed to ensuring families have access to healthy food through the Healthy Food Financing Initiative. Several food retailers have agreed to build or expand over 1,500 grocery stores in underserved communities.


22) Combated Racial Discrimination: The Department of Justice (DOJ) is vigorously enforcing the law to combat racial discrimination in schools, housing, and the workplace. President Obama provided two years of double-digit budget increases to the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, which was previously hamstrung by drastic budget cuts. DOJ has also reached three multi-million dollar settlements, including the largest rental discrimination and fair lending settlements in its history.

23) Proposed to provide two years of free community-college tuition to students who maintain good grades.

24) Deal with Iran counts, since nukes do not discriminate about where they land

25) Climate change pledge in Paris, because again, if the general population is positively affected, then the Black Population is affected 10X fold, as we know.

26) Restrictions on distribution of military-style equipment to police, banning local police departments from receiving a range of military-style equipment from the federal government -- from grenade launchers to bayonets to certain armored vehicles -- as he implements the recommendations of a panel that examined the controversial gear giveaways in the wake of the Ferguson riots.

[Cha]

22. Ah yes, I remember that thread.. thank you! President Obama and Team have done

so much for our country. It's extraordinary.. if only he had a Dem Congress for more than the short amount of time he did.

We need to work on the Dem Congress or we're never going to over turn Citizens United.

AlGiordano ??@AlGiordano
Protesting Hollywood money is so lame. Without it we wouldn't have same sex marriage, marijuana reform or President Obama.
6:13 AM - 17 Apr 2016
29 29 Retweets 55 55 likes


Dan Merica
✔ ??@danmericaCNN
Here's what Clooney said after his riff on Sanders & campaign finance. MTP notably didn't release it last night:
3:22 AM - 17 Apr 2016
453 453 Retweets 458 458 likes

https://theobamadiary.com/2016/04/17/early-morning-bird/#comments

[SharonClark]

23. Awesome post and chart

Appreciate your sharing.

[betsuni]

11. Such a good joke in the 1991 movie "The Naked Gun 2 1/2."

There's a bar for really depressed people, The Blue Note, and on the walls we see photos of The Great San Francisco Fire of 1906, then the Hindenburg disaster, the Titanic, and finally a photo of Mike Dukakis (the man sitting at the table underneath Dukakis' picture looks more miserable than the other patrons, head in hands).

Republicans used to seem invincible, overwhelmingly powerful. The Bush Jr. years were as scary as going up against organized crime, except no set rules or honor among thieves. You knew Dick Cheney learned from the past not to leave witnesses. Getting away with everything. And suddenly Obama and Democrats and Hillary Clinton are to blame for America's problems? Massive stupidity. I'm getting angry again and have to stop thinking about it.

[Hekate]

12. +10001

[Cha]

18. Brilliant, betsuni.. Mahalo!

That's what emoprogs do.. check out the definition..

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Emo%20Progressive

[betsuni]

29. Thanks, Cha! Exactly right.

I hadn't heard of puritopian. I'm going to start using emoprog and puritopian. I wonder if the delicate blossoms alert on those ... what am thinking, of course they do. How dare anyone disrespect them!

[pandr32]

20. Excellent points!

All they know has been filtered through a dirty campaign and an anti-democrat media.

[R B Garr]

25. Absolutely correct! And the age of the self-important selfie and Tweet means

Last edited Sun Apr 17, 2016, 06:46 PM - Edit history (1)

their every move is some giant revelation of cosmic proportions about their importance to the political process. You are absolutely correct that they don't have much of a frame of reference to the reality of losing elections.

Excellent thread, Yavin!

[griffi94]

26. They also don't seem to grasp

that the majority of Democrats who prefer Hillary
aren't going to vote against their own choice just because they scream real loud.

Bernie would be a disaster.

[nini]

27. I worked the Bobby Kennedy campaign - only 11 at the time

I remember all of what you're talking about. I have tried to help during every election.

"In sum, you have no memory of what the Dems have had to overcome just to get us to this point, and now they can't understand why the Dems aren't further left. " EXACTLY we'd all like to be much farther to the left but we understand it doesn't happen in one jump - we must keep pulling the country back. It took the republicans 40 years to get the country to follow their garbage leaving us where were at. We're on our way back but it certainly isn't going to happen quickly. Such a naive view of how politics works.

[liberal N proud]

28. Thought maybe all the BS ers were under 8