Why Bernie Sanders isn't going to be President in two words.

[Uncle Joe]

It's inconceivable!

[Scootaloo]

1. You keep using that word...

[Uncle Joe]

3. Are you suggesting it doesn't mean what I think it means?

[Gothmog]

2. How about these two words

"Socialist" and "Socialism" .
From Pew http://www.pewresearch.org/daily-number/little-change-in-publics-response-to-capitalism-socialism/

The word ‘socialism’ triggers a negative reaction for most Americans, but certainly not for all. Six-in-ten (60%) people say they have a negative reaction to the word, while just 31% have a positive reaction. Those numbers are little changed from April 2010....

By contrast, socialism is a far more divisive word, with wide differences of opinion along racial, generational, socioeconomic and political lines. Fully nine-in-ten conservative Republicans (90%) view socialism negatively, while nearly six-in-ten liberal Democrats (59%) react positively. Low-income Americans are twice as likely as higher-income Americans to offer a positive assessment of socialism (43% among those with incomes under $30,000, 22% among those earning $75,000 or more).

From Gallop http://www.gallup.com/poll/125645/Socialism-Viewed-Positively-Americans.aspx

PRINCETON, NJ -- More than one-third of Americans (36%) have a positive image of "socialism," while 58% have a negative image. Views differ by party and ideology, with a majority of Democrats and liberals saying they have a positive view of socialism, compared to a minority of Republicans and conservatives.



....Socialism

Socialism had the lowest percentage positive rating and the highest negative rating of any term tested. Still, more than a third of Americans say they have a positive image of socialism.

Exactly how Americans define "socialism" or what exactly they think of when they hear the word is not known. The research simply measures Americans' reactions when a survey interviewer reads the word to them -- an exercise that helps shed light on connotations associated with this frequently used term.

There are significant differences in reactions to "socialism" across ideological and partisan groups:

A majority of 53% of Democrats have a positive image of socialism, compared to 17% of Republicans.
Sixty-one percent of liberals say their image of socialism is positive, compared to 39% of moderates and 20% of conservatives

[Uncle Joe]

5. How about these words.

Democracy must be built through open societies that share information. When there is information, there is enlightenment. When there is debate, there are solutions. When there is no sharing of power, no rule of law, no accountability, there is abuse, corruption, subjugation and indignation.

Atifete Jahjaga


Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/atifetejah506715.html#DsdQMyq03epDMU0V.99

[Gothmog]

7. That is more than two words

If you really believe that Sanders will be the nominee, you can get some great odds with the betting markets or the Irish bookies. http://www.predictwise.com/politics/2016president

I have yet to see a good explanation as to how Sanders will be a viable general election candidate. Have fun at the debates

[Uncle Joe]

13. I never said that post was only two words.

As to how Bernie will win, like this.

http://www.truthdig.com/avbooth/item/evangelical_leader_jesus_would_vote_for_bernie_sanders_video_20150918

After the progressive presidential candidate Bernie Sanders spoke to 12,000 students, faculty and administrators at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va., a stronghold of political and religious conservatism, a man who calls himself an alumnus of the school and an evangelical leader told listeners that the candidate’s campaign and domestic economic policies are an embodiment of Christian values.

Drawing on the New Testament theme of justice, the speaker, who says he worked for the George W. Bush campaign in 2004 and identifies himself as Jim, likens the university regents to the corrupt religious leaders of the Old Testament. And Sanders, a “hoarse-voiced, wild-haired Jew” who appears before the masses to deliver the “good news” of a way for mercy and justice for the poor and underserved, is like John the Baptist and even Jesus Christ himself.

Listen to “Jim” endorse Sen. Bernie Sanders for president here.

Addressing his fellow envangelicals, Jim said Sanders was “convicting us, and calling us out” for “siding with the powerful and the rich and the masters of this world”—politically conservative, neoliberal politicians and leaders—and “being complicit in the abandonment of those who suffer.”

It’s a remarkable testimony. And since, as Jim explains, students at Liberty University are not free to openly support progressive candidates without facing the threat of expulsion, it is sure to give some evangelicals who already sympathize with progressive politics the courage they need to continue entertaining thoughts considered heretical by their peers and elders.

(snip)

and this

Saritha Prabhu (Photo: File / The Tennessean)

But a significant portion of the Democratic base — which I’m a part of — loves him. This base is disenchanted with Hillary Clinton for a long and obvious laundry list of reasons.

Meanwhile, the media, in general, give Sanders relative short shrift — they don’t take him seriously because they think his “socialist” label dooms his candidacy before he gets to first base with voters.

(snip)

If you follow the figures, large percentages of Americans agree with many of these positions.

(snip)

“I think (democratic socialism),” he has said “means the government has got to play a very important role in making sure that as a right of citizenship all of our people have health care; that as a right, all of our kids, regardless of income, have quality child care, are able to go to college without going deeply into debt; that it means we do not allow large corporations and moneyed interests to destroy our environment; that we create a government in which it is not dominated by big money interest. I mean, to me, it means democracy, frankly. That’s all it means.”

The big difference between Sanders and Clinton is that elusive quality: authenticity, which in my definition, is when what you say and what you do and how you’ve lived your life are congruent.

http://www.tennessean.com/story/opinion/columnists/2015/10/10/democrats-bernie-sanders-one-watch/73611888/

[Ino]

15. Oh, I'd place that bet!

If I knew how!

[Gothmog]

79. Go to predictwise or the Irish bookies

I miss the old Intrade market which was in effect an Irish commodity exchange that was violating US law.

[Ino]

83. OK, found one...

Question: Let's say I place a bet now at 4/1 odds. But when the election takes place, the odds are 2/1. Do I get paid at 4/1 or 2/1?

[JDPriestly]

43. How many voters have you talked to about it?

Here in my area of California, Bernie is extremely popular.

I'm campaigning and amazed at how much people like him.

I've campaigned a lot, and it has never been easier.

Just amazed at how many know about Bernie and want to vote for him.

[Gothmog]

78. In Texas, Sanders is not that popular nor are the terms socialism or socialist

I have a friend who was attacked by a local paper for merely attending a Sanders event to see who was there. See http://www.democraticunderground.com/107827740 As a state party official, my friend is neutral on the primary race but attended the event to see who was there and the composition of the crowd. In my state, the terms "socialism" and "socialist" are not popular and if Sanders was the nominee, he would kill a ton of down ballot candidates.

You are welcome to support the candidate of your choice but you live in California where things are very very different than in my part of the country. We are working hard to turn Texas blue and I feel that Sanders would set these efforts back a great deal if he was the nominee

[JDPriestly]

81. When was the last time that Texas voted for a Democrat for president?

[Gothmog]

82. I and a large number of other voters are working hard to turn Texas blue

It is only a matter of time before Texas turns blue. Trump's and Jeb's comments on anchor babies and immigration may be the key to motivating Texas Hispanic voters to turn out and vote. If Texas Latino voters voted in the same percentage as Latino voters in your state, Texas would be blue

California used to be a reddish state until Pete Wilson pushed his anti-immigrant policies. Can you tell any functional difference from this Pete Wilson ad and the policies being pushed by Trump and the GOP? http://www.salon.com/2015/08/20/donald_trump_is_the_harbinger_of_gop_doom_the_devastating_history_lesson_that_republicans_are_completely_ignoring/

There were obviously many factors that contributed to California’s evolution into the deep-blue state it is today, from demographics to the culture war. But none of those things come close to the damage that then-Governor Pete Wilson did to the longterm interest of the California Republican Party in 1994, when he scapegoated Latino immigrants as the cause of all the state’s woes.

Wilson was running for re-election, and as part of his campaign to distract from the economic failure of his first term and increase turnout among his base, he ran on a platform promising to crack down on undocumented workers, and enthusiastically supported the infamous Prop 187, which set up a statewide system designed to deny any kind of benefits to undocumented workers, including K-12 education and all forms of health care.

(He also supported a constitutional amendment to repeal birthright citizenship, currently guaranteed by the 14th Amendment.)

Here’s the famous “they keep coming” ad the Wilson campaign ran that year:

.....Wilson’s California Republicans are now a rump party of angry, white Tea Partyers and a handful professional operatives. It’s a very sad motley group compared to the political juggernaut that produced Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan.

There used to be an old saying “As California goes, so goes the nation” meaning that California was the modern, forward thinking laboratory of democracy which started the trends that everyone else would soon follow. If that holds true in this case of this Latino bashing, the Republicans are in for a long road back from the debacle of 2016.

I am not willing to give up on a ton of work that I and others have done to turn Texas blue.

[daleanime]

76. Two word limit?

.........





Not going there

[Flying Shoe]

97. Agree, but..

Then why are there six debates this year instead of twenty-six in 2008? Because the debate head of the DNC is Hillary's old campaign manager, and still is running her Florida campaign in 2016. That is not democracy.

[sabrina 1]

10. Is that why Obama, the 'Socialist' won in a landslide! Lol! Omg seriously, they STILL call Obama

a 'Socialist'.

He won twice.

So much for that attempt to use the Red Card. Didn't you see what happened to David 'blinded by the money' Brock when HE tried to use the Red Card? He helped raise over one million dollars for the SOCIALIST!

7 of 10 young people WANT a Democratic Socialist Govt because they know what it means!

It's shameful though that anyone on the Left would use that historically despicable, sad, era meme to try to attack someone like Sanders.

But go ahead, so far all it has done is raise money for his campaign.

[Gothmog]

12. President Obama never claimed to be a socialist

Calling any democrat a socialist is a standard GOP tactic that has been used in a number of races. The GOP knows the loaded meaning of these terms and have seen the same polling that I have seen. That is why the GOP attempted to use these terms against President Obama but such attempt failed in that President Obama is not a socialist and never described himself as a socialist. President Obama did the smart thing and ignored the GOP's use of these term and the public did not pay attention to this line of attack.

Sanders on the other hand is a self described socialist and can not run for this term. Swing voters will have a hard time ignoring these attacks because Sanders has repeatedly described himself as a socialist. Sanders will not be able to ignore these attacks and the terms "socialist" and "socialism" will be radioactive after several hundred million dollars of negative ads. It would take a ton of money to counter these attacks and Sanders will not have the finanical resources to negate these negative ads.

[Uncle Joe]

16. You can either be a slave to Republican definitions or you can define yourself, the former

operates from fear, and the latter is courageous and in turn an enlightening conviction.

http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/img-thing?.out=jpg&size=l&tid=89089332

By having the courage of his convictions, Bernie is removing Republican propagandist power over that word, day by day it diminishes and the Internet most assuredly is working on Bernie's behalf in this endeavor by enlightening the people as to what democratic socialist means.

[Gothmog]

42. Or you can support a viable candidate who can win in the general election

There is too much at state to nominate a candidate who has no chance of winning the general election. I live in a state where we are suffering due to the gutting of the Voting Rights Act and if the GOP wins in 2016, we will lose the SCOTUS for a generation. Rick Perry may be an idiot but he raised this issue a while back and all GOP operatives are aware of this issue and will be pushing it http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/perry-identifies-the-top-issue-the-2016-race

But over at Bloomberg Politics, Sahil Kapur reported over the weekend on a South Carolina event, where former Gov. Rick Perry (R) highlighted a central national issue that doesn’t generally get as much attention.

“Something I want you all to think about is that the next president of the United States, whoever that individual may be, could choose up to three, maybe even four members of the Supreme Court,” he said. “Now this isn’t about who’s going to be the president of the United States for just the next four years. This could be about individuals who have an impact on you, your children, and even our grandchildren. That’s the weight of what this election is really about.”

“That, I will suggest to you, is the real question we need to be asking ourselves,” he continued. “What would those justices look like if, let’s be theoretical here and say, if it were Hillary Clinton versus Rick Perry? And if that won’t make you go work, if I do decide to get into the race, then I don’t know what will.”

Whatever one might think of Perry or his skills as a potential president, that’s actually an excellent summary of an underappreciated issue. ThinkProgress’ Ian Millhiser, whom I wouldn’t describe as a Perry proponent, said the Texas Republican made “last week’s single most incisive statement about the 2016 election.”

This chart makes clear why control of the SCOTUS is ups for grabs

?itok=RU4tfAN1

We are in the primary process and you are free to support the candidate of your choice for whatever reason that you deem appropriate. I do not think that it is prudent to nominate a candidate who is not viable in the general election.

[Uncle Joe]

45. That's a main reason, other than his message which resonates with the people and his authenticity as

to why I support Bernie Sanders.

I'm convinced he stands the best chance of winning the General Election.

[Gothmog]

52. How can he win?

Sanders is hurting himself by not laying out a clear path for being viable in a general election contest. Sanders does not appear to be viable in a contest where the Kochs will be spending $887 million and the likely GOP nominee will be able to raise another billion dollars. This article had a very interesting quote about the role of super pacs in the upcoming election http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/jul/03/bernie-sanders-grassroots-movement-gains-clinton-machine

Harvard University professor Lawrence Lessig, who founded a Super Pac to end Super Pacs, said Sanders’ renouncing Super Pacs is tantamount to “bringing a knife to a gunfight”.

“I regret the fact the Bernie Sanders has embraced the idea that he’s going to live life like the Vermont snow, as pure as he possibly can, while he runs for president, because it weakens his chances – and he’s an enormously important progressive voice,” Lessig said.

President Obama was against super pacs in 2012 but had to use one to keep the race close. I do not like super pacs but any Democratic candidate who wants to be viable has to use a super pac, The super pacs associated with Clinton raised $24 million for the second quarter. Fundraising numbers for super pacs have not been released yet for the thrid quarter

[JDPriestly]

47. I do not think that either Hillary or Joe Biden can win a general election.

Bernie is drawing voters who never voted.

I talked to a guy 30 years old -- never voted -- voting for Bernie and backing Bernie.

That is what is happening in this election.

[Gothmog]

61. You are free to support the candidate of your choice for any reason you deem appropriate

I am basing my support on different considerations and I have different opinion as to viability

[artislife]

50. Viable.

Even her supporters can't be bothered with a passionate choice.


I will have beige, taupe and maybe some ecru.

[hopemountain]

53. gothmog - at least allow

people to vote their voice & their conscience for the primary. if bernie wins the primary are you worried he won't win against a republican clown?

[Gothmog]

60. We are in the primary process and you are free to vote for who you want for any reason you want

I was responding to a rather obvious opening when the OP talked about two words describing the Sanders chances of being the nominee. According to that online poll, Sanders is closer to my position than Hillary Clinton but I live in the real world and I am basing my support on viability in the general election.

This is the primary process and people need to support the candidate of their choice for whatever reason that they deem appropriate and other people get to do the same

[frylock]

56. Remember how viable Kerry was?

[Gothmog]

59. Kerry came within a couple of percentage points of winning the electoral college

I knew some attorneys who were in Ohio and if the GOP had not suppressed the vote, Kerry could have won. In addition. Kerry was hurt by bin Ladin's endorsment of Bush just before the elecition https://consortiumnews.com/2006/070306.html

On Oct. 29, 2004, just four days before the U.S. presidential election, al-Qaeda leader Osama bin-Laden released a videotape denouncing George W. Bush. Some Bush supporters quickly spun the diatribe as “Osama’s endorsement of John Kerry.” But behind the walls of the CIA, analysts had concluded the opposite: that bin-Laden was trying to help Bush gain a second term.

This stunning CIA disclosure is tucked away in a brief passage near the end of Ron Suskind’s The One Percent Doctrine, which draws heavily from CIA insiders. Suskind wrote that the CIA analysts based their troubling assessment on classified information, but the analysts still puzzled over exactly why bin-Laden wanted Bush to stay in office.

According to Suskind’s book, CIA analysts had spent years “parsing each expressed word of the al-Qaeda leader and his deputy, [Ayman] Zawahiri. What they’d learned over nearly a decade is that bin-Laden speaks only for strategic reasons. …

“Their [the CIA’s] assessments, at day’s end, are a distillate of the kind of secret, internal conversations that the American public [was] not sanctioned to hear: strategic analysis. Today’s conclusion: bin-Laden’s message was clearly designed to assist the President’s reelection.

“At the five o’clock meeting, [deputy CIA director] John McLaughlin opened the issue with the consensus view: ‘Bin-Laden certainly did a nice favor today for the President.’”

I remember this tape because I heard about while I was at early voting before heading to Florida to work on the Kerry Edwards voter protection team. The polling showed that Kerry was surging until that tape came out. Getting that close to a sitting war time president was pretty good.

[Honeylies]

85. Bernie beats, ties, or is close to beating GOP candidates in polls, some more so than Hillary

At this point I feel Sanders is definitely viable in the GE, and may even be the safer choice of the two based on the recent polls. Polls also show most Hillary supporters will vote for him in the general if he is the nominee, and vice versa. Independents like him.

I think the real key here, that polls don't really reflect, is his campaign has the energy to drive turnout to the polls, which is how democrats really win. Turnout. But if his supporters can't be bothered to vote in the primary, my point will admittedly be negated, now won't it?

But in terms of the GE, the "Sanders isn't viable" narrative is getting a bit stale IMHO a because a I don't think Hillary necessarily has a better shot in the GE anymore.

[Gothmog]

86. But he will lack the financial resources to run a competitive campaign

I keep asking how Sanders will be able to mount a viable campaign in the general election where the Koch brothers will be spending $887 million and the RNC candidate may spend another billion dollars. I would love to see an explanation how Sanders will be able to compete against these resources.

[Honeylies]

87. Bernie nearly matched Hillary's fundraising in the 3rd quarter

And you don't think the money won't come flying in if he's the nominee?

[Uncle Joe]

90. Not to mention Bernie spent less.

[Honeylies]

91. So true!

Bernie's "bern" rate in campaign funds is much lower than Hillary with her private planes and whatnot.

[Gothmog]

93. Yes, if you do not run a traditional campaign with a ground game and polling, you spend less

[Uncle Joe]

94. That's correct not to mention TV ads, Bernie has been frugal with the peoples' money.

Among many other things, I admire that about him.

[Gothmog]

95. Support the candidate of your choice

I simply do not believe that Sanders is viable in a general election contest. Heck, if you read all of the article from Sanders' campaign manager, it is clear that he does not think that Sanders will be the nominee (the best that he can hope for if everything works is to be a serious candidate who might get close to being the nominee http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/10/12/bernie-sanders-s-strategist-this-is-how-we-win.html
if you read the last three paragraphs of this article, Sanders campaign manager does not outline a path to the nomination but a path to be a "serious" candidate.

If all goes according to plan, Sanders will have won enough delegates by mid-March to be a serious contender for the nomination. That would signal a shift for Sanders; it would be time to court the establishment. “Then we have to offer fundamental assurances to party leaders who say he’s a socialist. He’s been in the Congress 25 years and his program is not to replace the current system with socialism, it’s to revive the middle class.”

Sanders’s outsider campaign has been likened to Jesse Jackson’s insurgent campaign in 1988—it wasn’t until the Wisconsin primary in April that Michael Dukakis defeated Jackson. But Devine thinks the more apt analogy to today’s politics is 1984 when the combination of Gary Hart’s insurgency and Jackson’s coalition of minority voters together almost beat Walter Mondale. “Jackson never received support from the institutional party, but he demanded respect. If we register, as Jesse Jackson did, millions of people, that would be a huge lift for the party in Senate races.” And for whichever Democrat reaches the magic number of delegates next year to secure the nomination.

The idea that Sanders is good for the Democratic Party is a hard lesson for Clinton to appreciate in the heat of battle. But he’s got voters fired up and ready to go, and Democrats need that energy.

The apparent goal of this campaign is not for Sanders to be the nominee but to be considered a serious candidate who might almost beat Hillary Clinton.

I was amused that this article was discussed as being positive for Sanders http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1251&pid=667157 I read the entire article including the last three paragraphs. It appears that thee best that Sanders' campaign manager is hoping for is to duplicate Jessee Jackson's 1984 feat of getting close to keeping Mondale from the being the nominee. My problem is that I like most Clinton supporters like Sanders and already respect him on a personal level. I am not sure what more Sanders will get by being a serious contender.

This article is silent on what Sanders intend to do in a general election contest in that it appears that Sanders campaign manager does not expect that Sanders will be the nominee.

Again, support the candidate of your choice and I will support the candidate who I think is most viable. I have a great deal of personal respect for Sanders and I have no problem with giving Sanders a great deal of respect at the Democratic National Convention for being a serious contender.

[Gothmog]

92. Read post 52 on this thread

The super pacs supporting Hillary Clinton have not yet reported how much they raised yet. Sanders will lack the financial resources to fight the Kochs and the RNC candidate. Without adequate finanical resources, Sanders will be bringing a knife to a gunfight

[Major Hogwash]

70. Interesting choice of words.

In a reply to a comment about President Obama.

[Uncle Joe]

73. It wasn't just a comment about President Obama.

Calling any democrat a socialist is a standard GOP tactic that has been used in a number of races. The GOP knows the loaded meaning of these terms and have seen the same polling that I have seen. That is why the GOP attempted to use these terms against President Obama but such attempt failed in that President Obama is not a socialist and never described himself as a socialist. President Obama did the smart thing and ignored the GOP's use of these term and the public did not pay attention to this line of attack.

[cpompilo]

14. I used to think DUers were better informed and thoughtful such that they could easily distinguish

between Democratic Socialism (e.g., Norway, Sweden) and Socialism (e.g., Venezuela). As far as living one's life relying on what Gallup says, I refer you to my direct experience of 17 years living and working in Houston Texas garnered from neighbors, co-workers, and, yes, some family members as well - most being conservatives and/or Teapartiers. I refer you to my post:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1280&pid=60944

[PosterChild]

55. Don't worry so much about DU'ers....

.... they pretty much don't count. Worry about your fellow Americans. They do count, in great numbers. And they aren't voting force a socialist .

[magical thyme]

27. those studies were in 2010 and 2011. by April 2015 those numbers had changed

and that was when Bernie had just entered the race. Nearly 70% of the millenials -- where Bernie has generated a lot of enthusiasm -- are open to it. The 74% of GOP who would not vote for a socialist won't vote for a democrat anyway.

Nearly Half Of Americans Would Vote For A Socialist For President
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/06/22/socialist-president-poll_n_7638400.html

Not quite half of Americans -- 47 percent-- say they would consider voting for a socialist for president, if the person were well-qualified and nominated by the voter's party, according to a new Gallup survey.

Democrats offer the most support for socialism with 59 percent saying they would vote for a socialist candidate. Independents are split down the middle, and Republicans are the least supportive with just 26 percent saying they'd vote for a socialist.

Americans ages 18 to 29 are most open to the idea of a socialist with nearly 7 in 10 stating they'd vote for one. Older generations are less inclined to do so.

[Gothmog]

72. The Washington Post disagrees with your analysis on these polls

The Washington Post has a good article out today on this issue https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/10/12/why-bernie-sanders-isnt-going-to-be-president-in-5-words/

Yes, I am aware that some more recent polling — Internet-based, it's worth noting — suggests that socialism is getting more and more popular, particularly among young people. And that, as a recent New Yorker profile of Sanders makes clear, many of his supporters are drawn to his unwillingness to abandon the term. Here's a key passage:

Sanders has been known as a democratic socialist for decades. This didn’t matter much to Kiley or York, or to most other Sanders supporters I met during the next few weeks; mainly, they were impressed that he hadn’t shed the term. York thought that, because of Sanders and his “social-media-driven fans,” socialism was “getting a bit of a P.R. makeover.” She noted that sites like Reddit and Twitter were circulating videos of “Bernie explaining why he identifies as a socialist, and what it means to him, in a really positive light.” She added, “The word had a retro connection to Communism and was originally thrown at him as a damning label by his opponents. But for his supporters it isn’t a deterrent.”

But even in that Internet survey and even among millennials, the group most inclined to see socialism favorably, capitalism is still preferred by more people. And, people who are drawn to Sanders — at least so far — aren't even a majority of Democrats, much less the entire country.

[magical thyme]

74. cutting and pasting = analysis?

ok. whatev

[KoKo]

75. That article is an Opinion Piece written by Chris Cillizza in his Column.

Nothing more than his opinionated view. Which is fine because there are other views out there as to why Bernie is drawing bigger crowds than even the popular Obama managed to do. People love Bernie's Democratic Socialist policy proposals.

Those trying to equate Democratic Socialism with Communism are on the RW and they've carried on about Obama being a Socialist throughout his two terms and it hasn't hurt his popularity as President.

[Gothmog]

80. Chris Clilizza does one piece that does not attack Hillary Clinton and now he is wrong

This is amusing. Cillizza has done a ton of articles attacking Hillary Clinton that have been posted by Sanders supporters. Media Matters has commented on the 50+ articles Cillizza articles attacking Clinton http://mediamatters.org/blog/2015/09/25/50-headlines-that-reveal-wash-post-reporter-chr/205765

Chris Cillizza has written more than 50 posts mentioning Hillary Clinton's emails since March on his Washington Post politics blog The Fix, nearly all of them issuing dire warnings about the supposedly "massive political problem."

The New York Times first wrote about Clinton's email during her tenure at the State Department on March 2, when they falsely reported she had violated federal requirements by using a private email account. Since then, mainstream media outlets have attempted to find some scandal in the email story, often pushing various falsehoods and being forced to issue corrections after the fact. To date, there has been no evidence of any lawbreaking.

Cillizza has been a major contributor to this effort, repeatedly claiming the email story "just keeps getting worse" and that it's "not going away," while claiming Clinton has an "honesty problem" and should "start panicking."

I am amused to see the Sanders supporters now attacking Cillizza when he does just one article that is not attacking Clinton.

[mhatrw]

31. Count Floyd has a two word reply, "Oooooh, Scary!"

[Motown_Johnny]

35. You don't get it. He Wants That Fight!

He has been winning that fight for 35 years.

On MTP Sunday he was asked straight out if he was a Capitalist and he answered "No, I am a Democratic Socialist". He could have hedged, but he didn't. He answered "no".

Can't you see that he wants the debate to be about Democratic Socialism?

Given the mood of the country and it's attitude toward Wall Street and 1% ers, he would seem to have the advantage.


He isn't a Socialist, he is a Democratic Socialist and everyone paying attention to the race will understand the difference between the two by the end of the year.

[Gothmog]

71. Why Bernie Sanders isn’t going to be president, in five word

The Washington Post has a good article on this https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/10/12/why-bernie-sanders-isnt-going-to-be-president-in-5-words/

The simple political fact is that if Sanders did ever manage to win the Democratic presidential nomination — a long shot but far from a no shot at this point — Republicans would simply clip Sanders's answer to Todd above and put it in a 30-second TV ad. That would, almost certainly, be the end of Sanders's viability in a general election.

Americans might be increasingly aware of the economic inequality in the country and increasingly suspicious of so-called vulture capitalism — all of which has helped fuel Sanders's rise. But we are not electing someone who is an avowed socialist to the nation's top political job. Just ain't happening.

[Segami]

4. LOL!

[ucrdem]

6. One word:

Democrat. He could get a TKO in round one tomorrow but he's not going to win any purple or red states and that means he can't win.

[Uncle Joe]

9. It's funny that you should mention the word "Democrat," from this USA Today Poll dated Oct 4th

of Bernie, Hillary and Biden, the only one to have democrat in the top five words to describe them by the American People, is Bernie.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2015/10/01/suffolk-poll-clinton-sanders-biden/73132954/

[ucrdem]

17. I see HRC 40%, Sanders 21%. The rest is filler.

As for being a socialist, there's no reason Sanders couldn't have kept his membership in both as I read Vermont election statutes. He just didn't do it, presumably to help him win elections in Vermont. And if he doesn't have the stomach to run as a Dem in Vermont, who on earth would think he can pull off a national run? Clearly not Sanders, or he would have taken care of it by now.

[Uncle Joe]

19. The rest is not filler, it's a snapshot as to what the American People think about the candidates.

Why do you believe Sanders "just didn't do it, presumably to help him win elections in Vermont" isn't that a blue state didn't Leahy and Dean come from there?

So in your mind why would Bernie drop Dem, how would that be an advantage in Vermont?

Why would running as a democratic socialist or Independent be an advantage there?

[ucrdem]

20. Taxes. We're talking about Vermont.

Follow the money.

[Uncle Joe]

21. Doesn't the Democratic Party have more money than an Independent Party in Vermont?

[ucrdem]

23. LOL.

Could be.

[Mnpaul]

58. The Republicans in Vermont had a lot of money in 2006

It allowed them to lose to Bernie 67-24 instead of 71-24(2012).

[Art_from_Ark]

51. The Vermont Democratic Party is proud to feature Bernie on its web site

http://www.vtdemocrats.org/elected-officials/senator-bernie-sanders

[Thinkingabout]

29. The voting section says a lot, huh. The other is talking points someone wants others to believe, I

will stay with Hillary.

[Uncle Joe]

32. It said a lot on Oct 4th both in poll numbers and the peoples' perception about the candidates

you can't have one without the other.

[Thinkingabout]

34. I overlook talking points especially when it isn't true, say what you want, attack, but it does not

change the facts. If I expressed my perception about the candidates it would not be the ones expressed here.

[Uncle Joe]

37. It may be true for you, but if the poll is valid, why shouldn't the stated perceptions be? n/t

[Thinkingabout]

38. Perceptions is not factual.

[Uncle Joe]

40. Regarding perception

There are things known and there are things unknown, and in between are the doors of perception.

Aldous Huxley


Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/aldoushuxl386509.html#rwLR2JiyJQfeblHe.99

Old Newtonian physics claimed that things have an objective reality separate from our perception of them. Quantum physics, and particularly Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle, reveal that, as our perception of an object changes, the object itself literally changes.

Marianne Williamson


Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/m/mariannewi635445.html#HBVMQ53UeiVgjbyp.99

The perception of the audience is the interesting part. If the audience doesn't hear what is going on, is it going on or not?

Robert Fripp


Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/r/robertfrip320743.html#Tp7oet0oAOcMpDbV.99

[Scootaloo]

11. Another vote of confidence for the republican party by a DU Clinton supporter

[Logical]

63. LOL, OK, wow, remember 2008? I guess not. nt

[ucrdem]

65. Sure, and I also remember 2004:

[Logical]

66. Oh FFS, Hillary had a 30 point lead in 2008 and lost it. Unbelievable. nt

[ucrdem]

67. Well once Joe makes it official she'll have that and more

and as has been duly noted, Bernie is no Barack.

[Logical]

68. Funny how you people give Obama credit and no blame to hillarys lack of support. nt

[ucrdem]

69. Well, this time Clinton has Barack, Bill, and every other Dem behind her,

save Ellison and Grijalva, who are good guys to support their friend, but let's face it, aren't doing themselves any favors.

[jonno99]

8. Phew! I thought this was going to be an irrelevant thread about his hair...nt

[reddread]

18. Berning Sands of the Fire Swamp

ROUS bbq

[raven mad]

22. So was this dude from Chicago...........

his name is Barack Obama.

[Uncle Joe]

24. He was also an African American and some people claimed that would be "inconceivable."

Now I believe it's conceivable, I guess some people just have to wait until after the fact until they're convinced, sort of like waging war with Iraq would be a bad idea.

[raven mad]

25. That, sir, is a perfect analogy -

we can all be amazed as well as engaged!

[orpupilofnature57]

26. See ya tomorrow .

[Motown_Johnny]

28. You forgot the sarcasm tag.

Famous last words:

[Uncle Joe]

30. I hate using the sarcasm tag, it's like having to explain a joke.

[Motown_Johnny]

33. It is always safer here to use it.

Judging from some of the responses, many did not get the joke.



I tend to use:

For The Sarcasm Impaired >>-------->

Feel free to borrow it anytime.

[Uncle Joe]

36. I added the video for the sarcasm impaired.

hopefully that will suffice.

Thanks for the tip, Motown_Johnny.

[Motown_Johnny]

39. I hope so.

Good luck to you.

[sabbat hunter]

41. You keep saying that

I don't think it means what you think it means.

[Aerows]

44. No word, by itself, expresses how wonderful this post is except:

Terrific!

[Uncle Joe]

46. Thanks Aerows,

I'm heading out for a dinner date, please watch my back.

[Aerows]

49. I gotcha, and I hope you have a lovely dinner!

[lovemydog]

48. Hahaha!

Have fun on your dinner date. Thanks for the laugh!

[blackspade]

54. You wins teh interwebs...

[SheilaT]

57. Remember that nice guy

from 2007 who was trying to run for President? Had a strange name. Made a terrific speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. Unfortunately for him, he's black, and such a shame but this country absolutely is not ready to elect a Black President, is it?

Whatever happened to that guy?

[LWolf]

62. Never get involved in a primary war on DU.

And never go against the 3rd way when the queen's future is on the line.

[beam me up scottie]

64. LOL!

Thanks, Uncle Joe!

[Vattel]

77. As Sanders once said, "I'm a socialist and I mean it! Anybody want a peanut?"

[Hiraeth]

84. Thanks for the chuckle, Uncle Joe. K&R

[Flying Shoe]

88. Ahh.. but find you correct yoda does not.

[link:|

[ColesCountyDem]

89. Welcome to DU! n/t

[Flying Shoe]

98. Thank you!

[FSogol]

96. LOL. "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."

[suffragette]

99. :)