I've been registered as a Dem for 26 years...

[Buddyblazon]

And have always been a fan of Sanders (and so have the vast majority of DUers in the 12 years I've been here...so quickly you all forget). He may have been technically an Ind. But I've always viewed him as just too much of a Democrat for even the Democratic Party. They just weren't enough Liberal for him. He's ALWAYS voted with the Dems.

I know we're ready for a woman at President. But give me a liberal like Warren. I know Senator Warren, my fellow DUers. And Hillary is no Elizabeth Warren.

So really your argument about him not being a registered dem...I could give two shits. He's just a true liberal. The ones making the argument he isn't...aren't real liberals. They may be registered Democrats. But they aren't Liberals. There is a difference.

[Ferd Berfel]

1. And now, THIS

No Matter How Many Times You Post it: We don't care WHY he ran as a Dem. We are just GLAD he did!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/12511497125

[cosmicone]

2. Except that he will never be president

Even if nominated, the republicans will shred him and there will be nothing left.

Oh ... and don't cite those meaningless polls matching Sanders against Trump. Hillary has treated Bernie kindly and with kid gloves. Trump will do a first round KO.

[Buddyblazon]

4. Hillary has treated Bernie with kid gloves?

M'kay.

[Buddyblazon]

6. I can argue that she will never garner a republicans

vote. Never ever ever ever.

Bernie is beginning to garner support from traditional Republicans. You remember Reagan Democrats? Be prepared for Sanders Republicans.

[cosmicone]

8. They are only voting for him

to weaken Hillary.

Republicans will never vote for a socialist who praised Fidel Castro and spent years in a communist kibbutz in Israel.

[Buddyblazon]

12. I'm a part of another board that has nothing to do...

With politics and is pretty conservative in their views. I think if you'd get out of your echo chambers, you'd be pleasantly surprised as to how many self described traditional conservatives refuse to vote for the current batch of R candidates and are not only considering Bernie, but are straight up stating they will vote for him. They like his consistency and honesty and anti establishment stances.

This comes from about 50 or so conservative posters.

Not a single one of them will vote for Hillary and have stated as much when they admit their support for Bernie.

We are 100% positive republicans won't vote for Hillary. Hard to say that about Bernie. They don't have the viceral hatred for him that they have for her.

[cosmicone]

13. ROFLMAO

[Buddyblazon]

17. You're kind of disrespectful.

Is that on purpose or just who you are?

In before the alert.

[dana_b]

20. They always do that

post a bunch of ROFL, make little snarky remarks, but don't back up their remarks.

When I see this, it kind of makes it easier for me because then I know which ones to put on the ignore list.

[Hortensis]

35. Well, but: "too much of a Democrat for even the Democratic Party?"

You have to admit that's begging for it. Bernie is a worthy guy, but he despises Democrats and liberals. He is neither. If I were you guys, I'd be proud of that. I'd trumpet it, not try to pretend that there's something wrong with not being liberal or a Democrat and, worse, that Bernie doesn't know what he's talking about.

I mean -- for heavens' sakes, cut the man a break and give him some respect. Or is he destined to be tossed under the bus if he loses? Is that what this disrespect is about?

[liberalnarb]

80. The most Liberal senator in the country despises Liberals?

What are you talking about? We are talking about Bernie Sanders not Ted Cruz?

[Hortensis]

85. Liberal is a real thing, not a badge pinned on.

Bernie's not the most liberal senator in the country. I know that because he does not think like a liberal, sound like a liberal, or act like a liberal. Go read about liberal personality to see what I mean -- from that comes liberalism, the establishment of our nation on liberal principles, and liberal political stances at various points in history. But it all starts with that a liberal is, and is not.

I'm afraid far less research has been done on far left personality than the far right. It doesn't even have a good defining name. Which has to be part of the problem Bernie and his far left followers face, of course.

Otoh, people don't even remember that liberalism arose from the Enlightenment, much less are able to explain what it is or its guiding principles. A third of the nation firmly believes God founded America with paranormal goals. So the far left is hardly alone in all this confusion and inadequate definition.

[cosmicone]

21. So now laughing after reading a post is disrespectful and worthy of an alert?

[Buddyblazon]

23. I'm not going to alert on you.

On the contrary. I figured you as an alerter for pointing out how disrespectful you are.

[zigby]

31. I wouldn't take anything too seriously....

From someone with some pretty cheesy-ass low rent and decidedly not funny cartoons in their sig line. But that's just me.

[A Simple Game]

48. Hey be nice to that poor poster. Every morning in the Hillary group they draw straws

to see who has to go outside and brave the elements. This poor poster obviously drew the short straw today and isn't handling it well.

Gosh I wish I wasn't banned from the Hillary group, it would be just like shooting fish in a barrel to be able to post there.

[cherokeeprogressive]

59. I think your dead bird with the fork sticking out of its chest is the most tasteless and childish...

graphic I've ever seen anywhere.

I had to call my Wife to the computer just to verify I was seeing what I was seeing. How the fuck you get away with that is miles beyond my ken and impossible to grok.

And to think... people acted like indignant children because of a fucking bug running around in circles.

Wow.

[cosmicone]

64. I didn't invent the euphemism

"stick a fork in him, he is done."

[cherokeeprogressive]

66. Yeah OK Vin. Or is it Vinnie? Vincent?

You can say whatever you want... and not wash the sliminess of it away.

[liberalnarb]

79. You guys are a lot like school yard bullies.

Laughter that masks a deep insecurity.

[DrDan]

28. your board has nothing to do with politics - yet you know how 50 or so are (1) conservative,

will not vote for Hillary, and (3) absolutely hate her.

Interesting non-political conversation.

[Buddyblazon]

30. Everything is discussed on that board.

This just currently is one of the hotter topics.

And many Rs respect Bernie. Not so for Hillary. Their disgust for her had been overt for a couple decades.

[liberalnarb]

81. What board is it?

[cosmicone]

41. Good catch

[Buddyblazon]

50. Way to ignore my statement

That everything is talked about on that board.

Everything includes politics as well.

[Buddyblazon]

46. And, DrDan...

are you telling me you haven't noticed the rights hatred for Hillary over the last 20 plus years? How does one go that long without recognize something that conservatives have been so over the top vocal about for so long? You'd have to know zero conservatives and watch/listen to zero forms of media for two decades.

If you are indeed a Dr, I find your lack of awareness on this a bit naive...if not for the fact that I believe you're feigning ignorance for the sake of your argument.

[DrDan]

57. you missed the point of my post - the poster claimed a lot of political knowledge

from a forum he also claimed was non-political. Seems to be a lot of sharing of political preferences on a non-political forum. I am also a part of several non-political forums - NO politics discussed, intentionally.

I agree - there is a lot of hatred toward the Clintons - not denying that - they have been the target for 20+ years and stronger for it

and yes - I hold a Ph.D.

[Buddyblazon]

60. Again...it's an everything board.

It's not a political board because any subject is allowed. Politics are welcome to be discussed. I enjoy it because posters from all political spectrums voice their opinion.

We also talk about food, movies, cars, tell jokes, current affairs. Hopefully for a final time I can say it's an everything board and that finally makes sense to you and others. No topic is banned. You can start a thread on anything you like.

And if you know of the Rs viceral hatred for Hillary, then from that alone it's easy to extrapolate that Bernie will garner more republican votes than Hillary. That doesn't take into account the other variables. That's only on their seething hatred.

It is indeed anecdotal. But are we to believe after
20 some odd years, conservatives will magically forget their hatred for this woman? I suppose it's possible. Just highly unlikely.

[DrDan]

65. my choice is whom I think will make the best president - can't help the hatred of the right . . .

or the left

[Buddyblazon]

70. What does your vote have to...

with the price of tea in China, DrDan?

You and I were discussing Rs votes in relationship to our potential nominees.

I'm glad that we can count on your vote in November, though.

[DrDan]

71. you seem to be suggesting one should not vote for Hillary due to RW hatred

that is why I mentioned my vote - I will not be swayed by their irrational hatred

[Buddyblazon]

72. No...

If Trump wins the nomination, I would hope everyone votes for whomever his opponent is.

I'm just pointing out that Hillary will garner close
to none of the Republican vote. It won't be difficult for any other candidate to outperform that. Does it matter? I don't know. We'll find out when the votes for GE are counted.

[DrDan]

73. ok - sorry - misinterpreted you

I think there is equal dislike for trump so that may translate into a lot of non-voters

[Buddyblazon]

62. AND...

as a note...the reason any topic is allowed and any opinion tolerated....


Because the posters on that forum welcome the inevitable shit storm. It's entertaining to us and that's why we stick around.

Makes every other forum seem G-rated and basic.

Though I'll always love DU.

[JDPriestly]

40. Yes. They will. Because he opposes the trade agreements.

The trade agreements are what people are going to vote on, not Castro. Maybe some of the Cuban exiles (who are Republicans anyway) will vote their hate for Castro, but not the working people in the rest of America.

The threat today is not Communism but rather the exporting of our industry to Communist countries like China -- and next will be Cuba.

Those who control the capital in our country preach anti-communism for working people but make fortunes using the cheap labor in Communist countries and other dictatorship.

The two-facedness of that meme is just exasperating.

I'm certainly not a Communist, but the trade agreements are anti-democratic and will ruin our country before Communism will. We are not likely to be under any threat from Communists unless they are our Chinese trading partners.

This is a ridiculous meme.

I remember the day that Castro brought his troops into Havana.

Do you know anything about the Batista regime?

Batista initially rose to power as part of the 1933 Revolt of the Sergeants that overthrew the authoritarian rule of Gerardo Machado. Batista then appointed himself chief of the armed forces, with the rank of colonel, and effectively controlled the five-member Presidency. He maintained this control through a string of puppet presidents until 1940, when he was himself elected President of Cuba on a populist platform.[2][3] He then instated the 1940 Constitution of Cuba, considered progressive for its time,[4] and served until 1944. After finishing his term he lived in the United States, returning to Cuba to run for president in 1952. Facing certain electoral defeat, he led a military coup that preempted the election.

Back in power, Batista suspended the 1940 Constitution and revoked most political liberties, including the right to strike. He then aligned with the wealthiest landowners who owned the largest sugar plantations, and presided over a stagnating economy that widened the gap between rich and poor Cubans.[5] Batista's increasingly corrupt and repressive government then began to systematically profit from the exploitation of Cuba's commercial interests, by negotiating lucrative relationships with the American mafia, who controlled the drug, gambling, and prostitution businesses in Havana, and with large US-based multinationals who were awarded lucrative contracts.[5][6] To quell the growing discontent amongst the populace—which was subsequently displayed through frequent student riots and demonstrations—Batista established tighter censorship of the media, while also utilizing his Bureau for the Repression of Communist Activities to carry out wide-scale violence, torture and public executions; ultimately killing anywhere from 1,000 to 20,000 people.[7][8][9] For several years until 1959, the Batista government received financial, military, and logistical support from the United States.[10]

Catalyzing the resistance to such tactics, for two years (December 1956 – December 1958) Fidel Castro's July 26 Movement and other nationalist rebelling elements led an urban and rural-based guerrilla uprising against Batista's government, which culminated in his eventual defeat by rebels under the command of Che Guevara at the Battle of Santa Clara on New Year's Day 1959. Batista immediately fled the island with an amassed personal fortune to the Dominican Republic, where strongman and previous military ally Rafael Trujillo held power. Batista eventually found political asylum in Oliveira Salazar's Portugal, where he lived until dying of a heart attack on August 6, 1973, near Marbella, Spain.[11]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fulgencio_Batista

I have known Cuban exiles who tell horrendous stories about Castro's dictatorship. But what preceded it, Batista, was not much better if at all better.

Hopefully, Cuba will become a true democracy. I wish the Cuban people the very best.

But many people supported Castro as being hopefully someone who would be more fair and treat the Cuban people with more justice than Batista did.

That hope was not fulfilled. Maybe now it will be.

Oversimplifying the choices made in history is cheap. It is the solace of the ignorant.

Bernie is a moral man. People can judge for themselves as to whether they think he is a potential dictator.

I think Hillary is more likely to resort to dictatorial measures than Bernie. And I think you will agree that she is not very likely to go that direction.

[cosmicone]

42. Castro so good, Bernie so pure ... check n/t

[JDPriestly]

47. Please read my post and consider fairly what I say.

We tend to judge history from the viewpoint of the present.

That is unfair to those who had to make decisions based on the knowledge that existed at the given point in the past.

I'm sure that if Hillary had to do it over, she would not have said that she is proud that Kissinger approved of her conduct in the office of Secretary of State.

For the many of us who remember Pinochet and Pol Pot, Kissinger is not the kind of influence we want on our president.

We must try to understand history and learn from its mistakes by realistically and honestly understanding the motivations of the people who made it.

If we don't do that, we risk repeating the mistakes of history.

The Republicans are doing that right now with Trump. They do not know why Germans accepted Hitler or why Italians accepted and embraced Mussolini. And now they are making similar mistakes.

Castro was a horrible dictator. He had no respect for human rights. But we need to understand what was motivating him if we are to avoid making the mistakes he made.

Bernie has a far greater understanding of the mistakes that have been made by Castro and others in the past than Hillary does.

She really has shown extremely poor judgment in her votes on foreign affairs and her actions in certain situations as Secretary of State. She has proved to be, in my opinion, a bit of a fanatic in some respects. And fanatics make big mistakes -- as she did in her vote for the IWR and in her conduct toward Libya and Syria.

[JDPriestly]

56. I'm 72.

Imagine a choice between a dictator well known for his Mafia ties and a young Harvard graduate.

Imagine a country in which the people had been oppressed for many, many years by dictators and injustice.

Imagine that country today producing doctors and having one of the highest literacy rates in the world. Now, imagine knowing that the country that produces so many wonderful doctors and has such an extremely high literacy rate and has solve many environmental problems -- also has a horrible record on human rights.

Human rights issues as anyone who has read my posts on DU will know rate extremely high on my list of values, but I cannot judge everything that has happened in Cuba as evil.

There is the good and the condemnably bad.

Oversimplification is the solace of the stupid. I know you are not stupid, so I'm sure you will understand what I am saying.

Obama has opened up relations with Cuba for a reason. Castro is very elderly. There is great hope for a better future for that tiny country. I have had friends who were Cuban exiles. They have told me of their personal suffering because of Castro's activities, but I still hope for a better future for Cuba.

Kissinger, Hillary's mentor in foreign affairs, opened the way to "free" trade with Communist China way, way back when. But Obama is only now opening the way to "free" trade with Cuba.

I think that is crazy and shows a very strange application of values.

[Buddyblazon]

63. Cosmicone...

Deliberately simple....check.

[obamneycare]

43. Actually, Republicans have supported, and continue to support Sanders:

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/07/bernie-sanders-is-a-loud-stubborn-socialist-republicans-like-him-anyway/450597/

http://www.alternet.org/election-2016/why-bernie-sanders-starting-attract-conservative-voters

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2015/09/18/bernie_sanders_i_got_25_of_the_republican_vote_in_vermont.html


...and more importantly, Independents (who now constitute a plurality of the general electorate) overwhelmingly support Sanders:

http://ivn.us/2016/03/15/independent-voters-defining-2016/

http://www.publicpolicypolling.com/main/2016/03/midwestern-states-a-toss-up-tuesday-clinton-still-strong-in-south.html

[green917]

58. i have 4 lifelong republican friends

Who would beg to differ with you. They are all moderate republicans and either active duty af or vets and they are all voting for bernie because their own choices are too insane but, to a man, they will never support Hillary Clinton (they will stay home if she's our nominee)!

[Jitter65]

67. BAM!!! nt

[SheilaT]

7. And of course if Hillary is the nominee,

Trump will become the consummate gentleman and never say a single unkind thing about her.

And if telling out and out lies about Bernie is treating him with kid gloves, I kind of hate to know what it would take for you to think she's doing otherwise.

Can I have some of what you're smoking?

[Buddyblazon]

9. They have decades...

of her shenanigans to fling at her.

You can throw what you want at Bernie, when he's been consistent for nearly 30 years, he's got nothing to hide and no shenanigans to fling.

[cosmicone]

39. It is easy to be consistent when one is stuck in 1960s socialist ideology

and just one issue

[JDPriestly]

44. The only people who think Bernie only has one issue are the people who have never listened

to his speeches.

I suppose that Hillary's paid representatives avoid listening to Bernie's speeches lest they become Bernie supporters and lose their jobs.

Outside of those few, I cannot imagine anyone who listens to Bernie's speeches and somehow thinks he is a one-issue candidate.

Justice reform, reform of police departments, ending excessive surveillance of the communications of ordinary citizens, environmental protection, education reform, paid family leave, raising the minimum wage, negotiating peace before resorting to war, and on and on. Bernie is no one-issue candidate.

That meme is just ridiculous.

Personally, I don't think that Bernie's policy proposals are nearly as "socialist" as were FDRs.

But then a lot of people don't know all the stuff that FDR put in place, like the Works Progress Administration for starts.

For your information:

The Works Progress Administration (renamed in 1939 as the Work Projects Administration; WPA) was the largest and most ambitious American New Deal agency, employing millions of unemployed people (mostly unskilled men) to carry out public works projects,[1] including the construction of public buildings and roads. In a much smaller but more famous project, Federal Project Number One, the WPA employed musicians, artists, writers, actors and directors in large arts, drama, media, and literacy projects.[1]

. . . .

Headed by Harry Hopkins, the WPA provided jobs and income to the unemployed during the Great Depression in the United States. At its peak in 1938, it provided paid jobs for three million unemployed men and women, as well as youth in a separate division, the National Youth Administration. Between 1935 and 1943, when the agency was disbanded, the WPA employed 8.5 million people.[3] Most people who needed a job were eligible for employment in some capacity.[4] Hourly wages were typically set to the prevailing wages in each area.[5] 0 Full employment, which was reached in 1942 and emerged as a long-term national goal around 1944, was not the goal of the WPA; rather, it tried to provide one paid job for all families in which the breadwinner suffered long-term unemployment.[6]:64, 184
. . . .

The WPA was a national program that operated its own projects in cooperation with state and local governments, which provided 10–30% of the costs. Usually the local sponsor provided land and often trucks and supplies, with the WPA responsible for wages (and for the salaries of supervisors, who were not on relief). WPA sometimes took over state and local relief programs that had originated in the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) or Federal Emergency Relief Administration programs.[6]:63

It was liquidated on June 30, 1943, as a result of low unemployment due to the worker shortage of World War II. The WPA had provided millions of Americans with jobs for eight years.[6] 1

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Works_Progress_Administration

FDR's legacy. Here in Los Angeles, I often see buildings and bridges that state in cement or on a plaque that they were built by the FDR administration.

And under Eisenhower, we built much of our freeway system.

Americans do not realize that when our economy was coming out of the Great Depression and we were developing our modern society, we had the most of what some would call "socialism."

Economic policy needs to be flexible. When we have full employment and the private sector is paying people well, we don't need government programs of that sort. Right now, especially in the African-American community, we need them.

After WWII when the "boys" came home, we had the GI bill. VA loans paid for housing and "goosed" the housing industry. That was a sort of "socialist" government program. The VA bill paid for the education of a generation of former soldiers. We made enormous progress as poor kids who previously could not afford education were given a chance to attend colleges and universities.

I'm for a flexibility about economic programs. I favor Bernie's viewpoint. In fact, I think his view on the economy has evolved a great deal over the years. His work in Burlington, Vermont and the affection the Vermont voters have for him are the proof that his balance between government programs and private initiatives works.

Bernie is more flexible on economic issues in my view than is Hillary. She is rigid on many issues, the economy being one of them.

[JDPriestly]

49. It's hard to be consistent when you just want to win and care relatively little about social moralit

or the purposes of a democracy.

This election is in great part about getting bit money out of campaign financing.

And on that account, Hillary fails and Bernie wins.

[ms liberty]

76. Your comments in this thread have been absolutely stellar

Wow. First you gave a concise summary of 20th century Cuban history, and then an overview of the WPA. Love it. I grew up in Florida, so I have noticed a lot of people over the years who know nothing about Cuba except that Casto is a communist dictator. And I'm fascinated with all of FDR'S New Deal projects. The person you were trying to talk to may not have appreciated your posts, but I did! Thanks, JD!

[JDPriestly]

77. Thank you. I am not a historian. I just love history. I lived in Europe for years

and actually knew people who had been NAZIs. Pretty scary. But they were like the Trump supporters. Angry and left adrift by liberal leadership that could not manage the economy well.

I do not think that Hillary understands economics or economic history at all. I don't think she has that sixth sense that a good business person has to have.

I'm very sad. I actually think that Bernie would be the best president for our economy at this time.

We still have the West Coast states, but we shall see.

[The Traveler]

54. You don't actually read very much, do you?

Seriously. The way you respond to commentary reads much like a computer program pulling from a database of talking points. Yer not passing the Turing test here.

Trav

[cosmicone]

11. Hillary and Bill will destroy Trump

First of all, for a man, attacking a woman is not as easy as attacking a man -- it is just bad optics and turns people off.

Secondly, the Clinton machine knows where Trump has buried the bodies. They will land the first blows on Trump from which he will limp .. if he ever gets up at all.

[dana_b]

22. " First of all, for a man, attacking a woman is not as easy as attacking a man"

wow, blatant reverse sexism on display.

"the Clinton machine knows where Trump has buried the bodies" - of course they do. They share the same land.

[cosmicone]

27. I was not trying to be sexist

It is something told over and over .... to doctors who have difficult female patients, to lawyers who are cross examining a female witness etc.

A man attacking or being hostile to a woman is always bad optics.

[Buddyblazon]

32. We'll let Trump supporters...

Last edited Tue Mar 15, 2016, 08:27 PM - Edit history (1)

know that they need to be nice to Hillary because she's a woman.

I'm sure they'll totally follow your advice.

[awoke_in_2003]

68. You may have not been trying, but you sure pulled it off. nt

[Buddyblazon]

86. So apparently Trump now has a commercial...

Of Hillary barking like a dog.

It took less than 24hrs for your idea that Trump
will have to treat her different because she's a woman to be blown out of the water.

Anymore enlightenment you'd like to lay on us?

[SheilaT]

25. Have you not noticed how Trump constantly attacks women?

And in the most vile, sexist language possible. So he won't hold back at all. None of his supporters seem to be the least bit bothered by the many women he's already attacked. You have noticed that he's done that, right?

And if they really do "know where Trump has buried the bodies" why are they not talking about those things already? Especially since Hillary is sure to get the nomination, why is she wasting any of her precious time lying about Bernie, lying about the Reagans and AIDS, lying about being under fire in Bosnia, when instead she could be giving us all the dirt on Trump?

[JDPriestly]

45. Nonsense. Trump gladly and with delight attacks women.

He has done it over and over.

And how will Hillary respond?

She will get huffy and arrogant and defensive and handle it very poorly. That's who she is and how she handles attacks.

Hillary is a weak candidate. She has admitted it herself.

Bernie won 86% of the vote in Vermont in the Democratic Primary this year.

That is an incredibly high measure of support.

He has, as an Independent and with very little money, been elected and re-elected - over and over and over.

Bernie is a strong candidate. He will handle Trump by focusing on the issues. His biography and donor based don't offer much material for criticism.

As for the socialist name. Doesn't seem to hurt our trade with China that the real name is People's Republic of China and that China is blatantly Communist.

[G_j]

15. not at all impressed

by anyone who proclaims to unequivocally know the future, and laughs (with emoticons) at people who question them. FAIL

[rhett o rick]

16. Again you guys under estimate the power of the truth. Not surprised really. But

Clinton has tried her best to tear him down and it's not working. Bring on the bullies from the other Party and he will stand his ground and destroy them with the truth. Trump wouldn't stand a chance against Sanders. Those that would listen to the Trump lies would never vote for a Democrat anywayz. And the rest will reject the Trump lies.

But if H. Clinton would run in the General, I think the first comment from the Republicons would be, "We want to express our dearest thanks for you acknowledgment that the Republicons were correct to invade Iraq. When the chips were down you recognized that the Republicons Bush and Lord Cheney knew what was best for the country." They continue, "But why would you ask voters to vote for a Conservative Democrat when they can vote for a Republicon?" "Oh yes let's not forget we thank you for your support of corporate deregulation, free trade, keeping the min wage down, being tough on medical marijuana users, keeping our Prisons For Profits in business, fracking for profits, etc."

[cosmicone]

19. His own supporters tore him down

Attacking John Lewis, Dolores Huerta, Gloria Steinem, Howard Dean, Debbie WS, President Obama, POC and anyone who did not genuflect in front of St. Bernie.

Hillary never attacked Bernie except calling him a single issue candidate. Which. He. Is.

It is always a subject, a verb and one of the 1%, plutocrat, oligarch, billionaire, banker or wall street. It didn't take a lot of genius to figure out that it sounded like a broken record.

[rhett o rick]

26. He is a single issue candidate. The issue is to help the lower classes. Those that Clinton

talks down to. If Sanders is a single issue candidate, Clinton is a zero issues candidate. Oh and I have gone to her website. Sad. Her help to those students facing bankruptcy from college debts, she offers $2,500 tax break to their parents. Goldman-Sachs and the Ruling Class won't invest a dime. She also would tell the states they should try to keep tuitions down. And if they don't she would be very mad. What's her current stand on fracking? TPP? The use of medical marijuana?

[Bluenorthwest]

29. You know your list is super ironic because both Huerta and Steinem attacked Obama and his supporters

with the same exact set of slams they are now using against Bernie. Same things. Steinem slammed younger women for supporting Obama as she recently did again to younger women supporting Bernie. Dolores spent lots of 2008 doing the 'I never saw him' materials about Obama 'We Latinos call Hillary 'Hilaria' but we call Obama 'what's his name'. And 'I was at all the events, Obama was not there, I never saw him, I don't know him, he is not courageous, he is not wise, he took money to dump nuclear waste on poor Latinos....'

So the thing is for them to be right about Bernie they have to have been right about Obama, it's the same fucking set of complaints. Many other Hillary supporters do this, Joan Walsh, Paul Krugman, the list goes on. 'The Obama supporters are hateful fratboys' yadda yadda yadda.

They should have gotten new material or at least new people to read it.

[SheilaT]

38. Which single issue? Please help me out here.

1. Universal health care. Sanders backs a single-payer, “Medicare-for-all” system, saying that “America must join the rest of the industrialized world and provide health care for all."

2. Federal intervention in Flint, Mich. Sanders condemns the water contamination crisis, saying it is stunting children's development. He calls for the resignation of Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder (R) and says: “If the local government cannot protect those children, if the state government cannot protect those children, then the federal government better get in.”

3. Minimum wage. Sanders calls the current federal rate of $7.25 “a starvation wage” and says it should be raised to $15 an hour.

4. Wealth inequality. Sanders decries the disparity between families like the Waltons, who own Walmart, and most Americans. He has offered several changes to the tax code to address the gap.

5. Jail population. Sanders noted that the United States has the largest incarcerated population in the world and says that will no longer be the case if he is president.

6. Planned Parenthood funding. While Republicans want to “defund” the women’s health organization, which has been caught up in a controversy over abortion services, Sanders wants to expand its funding.

7. Same-sex marriage. Sanders pledges to protect new rights in all 50 states for gay couples to marry.

8. Paid family and medical leave. Sanders wants to guarantee three months of paid leave after the birth of a child.

9. Federal jobs program. Sanders wants to spend $1 trillion to create 13 million jobs to “rebuild our crumbling infrastructure.”

10. Child care. Sanders wants to invest more money to create a “world-class” child-care system.

11. Trade policy. Sanders cites his past opposition to NAFTA and other “disastrous” deals and vows to fight the pending Trans-Pacific Partnership being championed by President Obama.

12. Prosecute Wall Street offenders. Sanders bemoans how financial giants like Goldman Sachs could pay a $5 billion settlement for fraudulent behavior without any of its executives going to jail.

13. Marijuana policy. Sanders wants to remove marijuana from the federal government’s list of dangerous drugs and allow states to decide whether to legalize possession without intervention by Washington.

14. Voting rights. Sanders opposes efforts by Republican governors to impose additional barriers to voting, says those who do should “get another job.”
Sanders hopes Obama brings forth a strong Supreme Court nominee
Play Video0:53

15. Supreme Court appointment. With a vacancy created by the unexpected death of Justice Antonin Scalia, Sanders urges Republicans to “obey the Constitution” and consider for confirmation any nominee put forward by President Obama.

16. Campaign finance reform. Sanders wants the Supreme Court to overturn the Citizens United decision, which allows unlimited campaign contributions. He says that would be a litmus test for any new justice he appoints.

17. Free college tuition. Sanders calls for making tuition free at public universities and colleges and says lower interest rates should be available for those who currently have debt for “the crime of getting a college education.”

18. Tax on Wall Street speculation. Sanders proposes a tax on Wall Street trades, saying it’s the financial sector’s turn to help out the middle class after being bailed out by taxpayers after the 2008 meltdown.

19. Climate change. Sanders says policymakers have a “moral obligation” to curb emissions contributing to the warming of the planet.

20. Iraq war. Sanders argues that the U.S. invasion destabilized the Middle East and says his 2002 vote against it shows his judgment on foreign policy. He also argues that if the country can spend so much on the war, it can invest in other priorities at home.

[kath]

78. Good list. You forgot one - unarmed people, usually minorities, getting killed or badly beaten while

being apprehended by police or when in jail, then the police getting off scot-free. Bernie has proposed that all such killings by police should be subject to a DoJ investigation.

Bernie typically speaks about fifteen or more of these issues during his rallies.

" Single-issue candidate" my ass.

[arcane1]

18. Then you need not waste one more precious second of your life posting about him.

You will never get that time back.

Since he won't ever win anyway, none of your efforts will have any effect on the outcome.

So why waste your time?

[MillennialDem]

24. You can't really believe this

Bernie absolutely has a better chance in the GE than Hillary.

I think either will win, mind you. Hillary would win close but Bernie would blow conservatives out of the water.

[Duval]

36. Say what? Kid gloves?

Oh, I get it. You're joking again!

[PatrynXX]

55. Bernie will shred anyone easy

because it's on facts. and this is not the year of the Negative. Put hillary up against what many consider her clown Donald. Donald winds hands down

[damonm]

74. OK...

"Hillary has treated Bernie kindly and with kid gloves"...

As Barney Frank once said, "On what planet do you spend most of your time?"

If there's a Democrat who Trump hits with a first-round KO, it's Hillary.
Her weaknesses play directly to Trump's strengths. He will dredge up The Rose Law Firm, Whitewater, Travelgate, Vince Foster, Benghazi, E-mails...and that's before getting to REAL stuff. He'll drag it into the tabloids, where he lives.
And once you get a Democrat off the issues, they LOSE.

What has he got to hit Bernie with? Socialism? Please do!
He paints Bernie as Lenin, Bernie counters with FDR, and points out the awful things Democratic Socialism has done:
-Social Security
-Minimum Wage
-Medicare
AKA...
ISSUES!
Trump attacking Bernie puts the campaign right in Bernie's wheelhouse.

[Hiraeth]

82. PULL OFF THOSE LADYLIKE GLOVES, HILLARY!! BRING IT!!

[cyberswede]

3. ...and it wouldn NOT have benefited HRC if he had run as an IND from the start

Well, the primary would be easier for her, but scads of people would vote for SBS over HRC in the general - giving us a Republican president.

This is right on:

I've always viewed him as just too much of a Democrat for even the Democratic Party.

[Buddyblazon]

5. Absolutely...

And he's stated as much that he didn't want to divide the vote.

[tularetom]

10. He's too much of a Democrat for THIS Democrat party

[Vinca]

14. That's pretty much what it boils down to.

He's more of an FDR Democrat than a Third Way Democrat.

[Duval]

37. Absolutely correct!

And that is the difference!

[Fearless]

34. The party forgets we decide what they are.

It's time to make them remember!

[Dem2]

33. I agree with you however

I kind of have an issue when you say that you don't like people saying that Bernie isn't a real Democrat while you are saying that people that criticize him aren't real liberals. It seems hypocritical to me

[OnionPatch]

51. I agree with you.

I've been a registered Democrat for 40 years.

I couldn't care less that Bernie hasn't been registered as a Democrat. He holds the same values the party has *traditionally* held. Unfortunately the Powers that Be have been trying to take the party right. I'm voting for Bernie to bring it back left where it should be because we don't need a Republican Party and a Republican Lite party.

[Jopin Klobe]

52. Ultimate truths ...

... uncontrolled radiation is really, really icky ...

... ice cream has no bones ...

... Hillary is no Elizabeth Warren ...

[Phil1934]

88. Even this one?

[QUOTE] "Ice cream has no bones." [/QUOTE]

[amborin]

53. it's about democratic values & princples, not whether some has a "D" next to their name

[jcgoldie]

61. I support Hillary but I agree

I don't give a damn about Sanders' party affiliation. His ideology is liberal progressive and above reproach.

[blm]

69. I think majority of DU will remain fans of Sanders. It has been distressing to see barbs

tossed at him after all these years of this board supporting him - as long as I've been coming here. I first heard of him when he was mayor of Burlington.

It's also been rough to see RW propaganda being used by both groups to smear the 'other' camp. Sometimes done carelessly, but, I also suspect deliberately calculating.

[alarimer]

75. Sick of DINOs.

I only registered Democratic because we have closed primaries, but will quit after that. I may not even vote at all. Well, maybe for Donna Edwards, a bright spot compared to all the other DINOS on offer, including that milquetoast van Hollen, just another in along line of boring middle of the road nobodies.

[MadDAsHell]

83. Being "ready for a woman at President" is completely irrelevant...that kind of thinking...

voting for someone based on what's between their legs, is extremely troubling.

I agree with you, give me a liberal/progressive, and if that person happens to be a woman, GREAT.

The people that are choosing their votes based on how "historical" it is have hijacked the process.

[Betty Karlson]

84. K&R for truth!

[Pantagruelsmember]

87. We all love Bernie

and his ideals but the "system" only gives us two choices, a horrible GOP candidate and usually a Dem who's forced to stay within certain parameters to effect any change at all. SCOTUS choice is classic example. I'd have loved a flaming Lib justice but BO needs to get his choice confirmed.
Staying home in Nov. might assuage your sense of self righteousness but if Trump gets elected in a low turnout race, you will deserve to feel the guilt. We refused to get excited about Gore and the result was the Bush trainwreck, remember that lesson.

[Lorien]

89. Hillary is a Liberal like Velveeta is cheese. nt

[Jenny_92808]

91. Point well taken

Bernie is the real cheese and Hillary is the fake cheese-velveeta. I choose the real deal.

[disillusioned73]

90. k&r..

I'm considering going Ind after the PA primary myself - just to send a message to the DNC (not that they'll hear it).. I think I may be too liberal for the current D party..

[vintx]

92. 30 years for me, but this is my last year.

I'll go to the convention as a delegate for Bernie.

Then I'm done.

[TumbleAndJumble]

93. I am a liberal and Bernie is the Democratic candidate for me and I will support him as along as he

is in the race, with what little cash I can and in June with my vote.

I can't make a promise about voting for Hillary Clinton even if Trump is the other candidate.