Why do you support your candidate?

[hellofromreddit]

In an effort to start a non-negative discussion...

Without attacking anyone else (including supporters) either blatantly or by insinuation, what are the positive reasons you can assert to tell others that your candidate will be beneficial to them?

[RobertEarl]

1. Real democracy

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

2. Because he's (gasp!) a socialist.

Like this silly guy.

[MisterP]

3. to me, Sanders isn't just offering XYZ genuinely (rather than as a sporadic voter incentive)

but is highlighting how every aspect of the political system has been set up to profit from denying us XYZ, even as we die for lack of it

also his foreign policy is not predicated on regime change as a positive good, a thing commonsensical in both parties

[casperthegm]

4. I support Bernie

Opposes Citizens United

Doesn't give speeches to Wall Street for hundreds of thousands of dollars each

Voted against Iraq War, as it would lead to instability in the region, ie the rise of ISIS. And he was right.

1% and corporations pay their fair share

Marriage equality from the beginning

For Glass Steagall

No outside contributors

Sincere about the environment; opposed Keystone from the start and is against fracking

Sincere about income inequality

Supports healthcare coverage for everyone, expanding upon the ACA

Supports free college for all, as an educated society benefits all

Thank you for asking for people to list their candidate and why. I hope everyone lists the actual issues. I'd be curious to see what the results are.

[onecaliberal]

5. He's honest and authentic. He has spent his entire life fighting for rights

For the least of us.

[RufusTFirefly]

6. My candidate has shown courage and remarkable foresight

He opposed the Iraq War Resolution in no uncertain terms.

He voted against that mockery of the Constitution, the PATRIOT (sic) Act.

He put his body on the line in the fight for civil rights when he was young and risked political capital when he was older by being one of the few white politicians to publicly endorse Jesse Jackson for President.

He has long supported same-sex marriage and equal rights for LGTBQ Americans and publicly rebuked a Congressional colleague for his homophobic remarks.

He strongly opposes the death penalty, as do I.

He has long recognized the threat that so-called "free trade agreements" pose to American workers and American industry.

He has correctly identified growing income inequality and the undue influence of corporations as fundamental threats to our democracy.

[H2O Man]

7. Great question.

Values. It's as simple as that.

Recommended.

[RufusTFirefly]

8. Seven unique posters (including the OP) and yet only three recs??

Come on, people!

Thoughtful threads may not be sexy, but they should be rewarded.

"An educated citizenry is a vital requisite for our survival as a free people." -- Thomas Jefferson

Thanks for posting, hellofromreddit!

[hellofromreddit]

12. Thanks!

[RufusTFirefly]

13. Thank YOU for raising the level of discourse!

And welcome to DU!

[thesquanderer]

9. Staying non-negative can be tricky...

...when simply stating your candidate's positives often implies a negative on the other side.

But giving it a shot anyway:

Move toward single payer. (ACA was step in right direction, but it forces many people to buy policies that they generally can't afford to use, since the most affordable policies have high deductibles.)

Against patriot act. (Will it personally affect me? I don't know... but it still says something about the kind of country I want to live in. I guess the same can be said about most of these points.)

Less aggressive/interventionist in foreign policy.

More believable in the goal of reducing the influence of money in politics. Someone needs to put the brakes on the move toward oligarchy.

Against fracking.

Integrity. The sense that he has deep convictions, and no ulterior motives when speaking about something. You don't have to parse his statements to see if he's left wiggle room, or if he actually means what he is implying. Consistent in his perspectives, which happen to almost entirely coincide with mine. This paragraph is the most subjective, but arguably the most important.

Can he really make things better than his opponent? I don't know. But it's worth a shot. It certainly won't be any worse.

ETA: whoops, forgot one, anti death penalty.

[KT2000]

10. I want someone who works for the people

not the 1%. The oligarchs must be stopped and that will take change.
I support a president who will work to prevent wars - and not send the sons and daughters of the working class to war.
I support someone who appeals to the better nature in all of us adn treats racism and hate as horrible things.

[think]

11. An honest person fighting to make sure the average American can earn a living wage and have a decent

life.

[rocktivity]

14. I'm backing the Dem candidate who seems less of a corporatist, but will support the nominee.

Just like eight years ago.


rocktivity

[Xyzse]

15. As I Am A Patron of Lost Causes

At the beginning of the primaries, I was happy with pretty much all the candidates as they were far and away better than any of the Republican options. Still I went with O'Malley, easily due to the following reasons:

- He is from my Home State, as such I know him and his effectiveness
- His pet issues are very similar to mine, particularly in regards to education
- He speaks very well in regards to issues in a way that can be easily partaken by others. Meaning, even when representing his opinion, he is able to do so in a way that can be palatable to opposition.

He was a great third option between Clinton and Sanders as he is able to address and call another candidate to task if they say something false or misspeak per se.

If there was no Martin O'Malley, the candidate I support now would have had me immediately since the message of Infrastructure building resonates with me, and is something that I have pushed and argued for with others.

Now that he is gone, I have shifted my support to Sanders for the following reasons:
-As mentioned Infrastructure building is important. It is not the sexiest of issues, but it is critical. It is something that also needs to be paid for, and I do not mind paying higher taxes at all for it. What is important however, is for the government to show in a simpler manner where funds go. With it going towards National Defense Spending without accountability, it is just a big sinkhole without a clear measurable goal other than spending without end. To me, that is what Republicans stand for... They spend without thinking, borrow without clear goals, and saddle it on the middle and lower class while rewarding those that gamble and put us in to trouble to begin with.

-He is clear on health care, and even if I do not think his plan would go through, he shows what should be and fights for it. Unlike Obama who took away the possibility of Universal Health Care, before even fighting for it, allowing whatever positives the ACA could have had to be whittled away by the negatives. Essentially, they argued down and lessened expectations amongst themselves without getting any Republican votes any way. I thought that was quite ridiculous. It is still better than what we have had, but there are quite stark negatives about it which I can enumerate, but that would make this post in to a book, especially as to how it was implemented.

-He has worked under the radar in regards to many of the infrastructure issues, and has done so without making it some photo-op. I know he is not cast-able, and to many, just not interesting enough to be shown. So good deeds go unseen, and he seems fine with that. I quite like that actually.

-His tax plan makes sense to me. It does not affect most people until they hit a certain tax bracket. It does not even hit investment spending till it hits a certain value either. I think that is important. I know that investing is important and it keeps the economy running, however, it has been too long used as the primary economy rather than actual industry. Instead of investing merely on an "idea" those that make that much needs to invest it in actual "industry" as in companies that actually make stuff and as such put it through the greater economy rather than bloating up a balance sheet.

I could probably go on and on, but I am out of time, so I'll leave it with these for now.

[Scuba]

16. Integrity and policies, in that order.

[Blue_In_AK]

17. Bernie Sanders' positions on just about everything are completely in line

with positions that I've held for almost 50 years. Supporting him for me is a no-brainier.

[jwirr]

18. All or most of the above ^^^^. Plus I want my FDR party

back.

[NCTraveler]

19. A more progressive tax code.

A more aggressive justice dept.

[lumberjack_jeff]

20. Because he's better than his opponent.

To ask this question and expect answers that are not described in comparative terms is silly.

The person who is paid hundreds of thousands to speak to Wall Street is a suboptimal candidate to reform them.
The person who voted for war in Iraq and helped cause the current unrest and diaspora in Syria, is a suboptimal candidate to avoid the next war.
The person who depends on her undemocratic network of influence ('vast right-wing conspiracy'? Hah!) to get the nomination has no standing to correct the corrosive influence of money in politics.
The person whose entire career has been marked by a belief that the rules are for others, is not the ideal candidate to create transparency in government.

To all those issues; Bernie is.

[CharlotteVale]

21. He's on my side. The only one who is.

[liberal_at_heart]

22. Because he cares about every single person in this country, not just the rich ones.

[BernieforPres2016]

23. While I like many positions of Bernie's

Overturning Citizen's United and implementing campaign finance reform to get corporate money and SuperPacs out of politics is the #1 issue for me. Congress is incapable of looking at any important issue in an honest way on behalf of of the U.S. citizenry until the current system of legalized bribery is made illegal. If the next President accomplished nothing but that in the next 4 years I would consider it a successful Presidency.

Beyond that, a single payer healthcare system, reform of the criminal justice system, a much higher minimum wage (I could live with less than $15 in lower cost of living areas), rebuilding the national infrastructure (and creating millions of jobs in the process) and free tuition at public universities would be the most important issues to me, even though only the first of those would have much impact on me personally.

[agracie]

24. It's not about him. It's about us. He is not a hawk. He is a good and honest man.