Sanders: Elizabeth Warren is a capitalist to her bones. I'm not

[crazytown]

ABC News, October 12, 2019
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/bernie-sanders-draws-contrast-elizabeth-warren-capitalist-bones/story?id=66217140

Bernie Sanders draws contrast with Elizabeth Warren: 'She is a capitalist through her bones. I'm not.'

With Sen. Elizabeth Warren continuing to climb in Democratic presidential primary polls, in part, at the expense of his own campaign, Sen. Bernie Sanders, in an interview on Saturday with ABC News' "This Week," explicitly highlighted a key difference in their core economic philosophies.

(snip) Sanders pushed back at the idea that he and Warren hold "identical positions," and added, of the notion that voters would prefer the similarly liberal Warren given she is younger and free of health concerns, that he is the sole candidate willing to take on the nation's "ruling class."

"I am, I believe, the only candidate who's going to say to the ruling class of this country, the corporate elite: Enough. Enough with your greed and with your corruption," Sanders said. "We need real change in this country."

Sanders noted that he and Warren have been friends "for some 25 years," and he thinks "she is a very, very good senator," but again contrasted their different economic beliefs.

"Elizabeth considers herself -- if I got the quote correctly -- to be a capitalist to her bones," he said. "I don't."

EDIT: DU interview link https://www.democraticunderground.com/1287306890

[Cha]

1. lol.. What Ever.

[NurseJackie]

17. I know... Right?

[Kahuna7]

19. ...

[dem4decades]

2. I'm glad Bernie stayed in the race after his heart attack so he could have a Warren attack.

Yeah that's sarcasm.

[Celerity]

70. oh, his (NON DU) BoB'ers are only just starting to fire up the old outrage Wurlitzer

[sheshe2]

3. Lol....

[crazytown]

8. I'm glad Bernie cleared that up.

It used to keep me up awake at night in 2016, wondering whether he was a capitalist to his bones.

[sheshe2]

12. ...

[George II]

33. Um, he'll never admit it but............ (nt)

[DURHAM D]

16. Yep. He obviously believes that Sen. Warren will win the primary.

What a guy.

[sheshe2]

23. Yep.

My thoughts exactly. She is one of the front runners that, in his mind, needs to be attacked. This pisses me off.

[BlueMTexpat]

71. It's hard for

an old dog to learn new tricks though.

[OKNancy]

4. Totally unnecessary

I'm sure he considers this a slam on Warren. It won't get him any votes.

[Kahuna7]

20. ...

[sheshe2]

24. I do love that gif, Kahuna.

One of my favorites!

[tishaLA]

5. If anything, this will help Sen Warren

with a significant number of voters

[Cha]

9. Exactly!

[nevergiveup]

10. Yep!

That was my first thought.

[peggysue2]

6. Seems to me Bernie has opened the door

If Elizabeth Warren considers herself a capitalist (which she does) and Senator Sanders does not?

Then what is he?

I have my answer at the ready.

[Cha]

11. lol

[Kahuna7]

25. ...

[George II]

35. In his own words:

[George II]

7. Aaaaand, the Unity Pledge takes another hit from the Vermont Senator.

[thesquanderer]

41. Unity pledge doesn't mean you can't make distinctions between your positions/philosophies and theirs

[MontanaFarmer]

13. Good grief.

There's not a secret socialist army out there just waiting for mr. right. Most Americans, even most Democrats, consider themselves to be capitalists. Capitalism is flawed, and i agree that major social changes and reforms need to be made. But if one wants to be the candidate that makes those changes, you probably don't want to criticize a very progressive reformer for being too capitalist. Can't think this will win many to his side.

[still_one]

14. He has alienatied many Democrats by hiring people who supported Jill Stein to high positions

in his campaign, and now furthers that alienation by attacking Elizabeth Warren with misrepresentations and distortions.

I really wish he would drop out of the race. He is a divisive person who adds nothing to the fight against trump except to push division among Democrats, something we don't need especially at this time

The fact that he has been losing supporter to Elizabeth Warren seem to indicate that people are not buy his nonesense

[DrFunkenstein]

15. We Need More Folks on The Left To Make Warren Seem Centrist

Instead of allowing far-right wingnuts and Wall Street financiers to determine what constitutes a "moderate."

Thanks, Bernie! Every day you are making Warren a more palatable option. If the country is ready for you, I'm ready to feel the Bern, but until then I appreciate the helping hand.

Just like the specter of Malcolm X helped make MLK's call to action seem more "moderate," Sanders helps make Warren's resurrection of trust bustin' Teddy Roosevelt and New Dealin' Frankie Roosevelt seem much more middle-of-the-road.

[Baclava]

74. Good point, thanks Bern! Thanks for making Liz less "radical" lol

Ok, u can quit now

[LAS14]

18. Thank you, Bernie, for making Warren more palatable....

... to more people. She says she's a capitalist. She wants "capatalism WITH RULES!!!"

[betsuni]

21. "If you write a best-selling book, you can be a millionaire, too."

[George II]

37. With the caveat that you have to buy all those books yourself and give them to paying attendees....

...at your speaking engagements.

[Me.]

42. But You Have To Have Town Halls

and have your campaign buy books and then charge $10. for a combined entrance and book fee. Your sale numbers go up and based on the previous book's numbers, you ask for a bigger advance with each succeeding book and lo and behold...you're a millionaire.

[ecstatic]

83. The hypocrisy is unreal.

Meanwhile, most Democrats are capitalists--we support the hybrid capitalist/socialist system we have now.

So, thanks Bernie for pointing out that you are out of step, not only with your own beliefs, but with most Democrats and Americans in general.

[Garrett78]

22. Sanders either doesn't understand or doesn't care that he's reached his ceiling of support.

All he's doing is shrinking the electorate by securing the following he's already developed. His supporters and members of the media make the mistake of thinking he's a contender based on his relatively strong performance in polls. But, while other candidates have the potential to rise or fall, it's pretty clear that the Sanders following isn't going to grow. He's a known quantity who has become as polarizing as Clinton, but with a much lower ceiling (and a less diverse following) than Clinton had--this is why we knew even before Super Tuesday in 2016 that he didn't stand a chance. Once again, he has no chance at the nomination, but maybe that's not his goal.

[nycbos]

26. This will help her.

[BeyondGeography]

27. That's fine

Seeing as this country is capitalist to its bones.

[dgauss]

28. Why leave out the first half of the sentence? (Never mind, rhetorical question)

The whole sentence, if that makes a difference to anyone, was:

"Elizabeth, I think, as you know, has said that she is a capitalist through her bones. I'm not."

And she did say that. He is using her own description of herself to draw a contrast. It is a legitimate difference between the way the two candidates view economic policy and Bernie is pointing it out, which is what candidates do.

But if quoting only half a sentence works better to get the thread rolling, that's good enough for some.

[George II]

39. Except that the OP didn't leave out the first half of the sentence.

[TwilightZone]

43. The reference was included in the OP.

It appears that you didn't read far enough.

"Elizabeth considers herself -- if I got the quote correctly -- to be a capitalist to her bones," he said. "I don't.""

[Turin_C3PO]

29. That comment is only going to help her.

It’s not very smart of Bernie to go with the socialist label. It will get him nowhere.

[BeyondGeography]

31. He's trying to keep his base from bailing

The dilemma is he shores up Warren’s overall appeal in the process. Damned if he does...

[Bleacher Creature]

30. Nice endorsement!! NT

[sheshe2]

32. Go Elizabeth!!!!

[Docreed2003]

34. +1

[Me.]

36. THank God She Is

It's why she's getting traction from Silicon Valley and other places because most polls say people DO NOT WANT socialism. In fact, the Cons want to use 'the DEms are socialists' meme as a battle cry. Keep talking BS.

[Docreed2003]

38. There was a BernieBros story here today that used the same quote...

This will not help bring people together after the primaries...this type of talk is only divisive

[aikoaiko]

40. People hate it when Bernie quotes Elizabeth Warren.

Link to tweet

?s=20

[TwilightZone]

45. That reference is in the OP.

"Elizabeth considers herself -- if I got the quote correctly -- to be a capitalist to her bones," he said. "I don't."

It appears that a few of you didn't bother reading to the end.

[dgauss]

54. Yes, to be fair, the full sentence is at the end of the excerpted text.

But here is the title of this thread:

"Sanders: Elizabeth Warren is a capitalist to her bones. I'm not"

Here is the one sentence summary, the only description offered by the poster, right at the top:

"Bernie Sanders draws contrast with Elizabeth Warren: 'She is a capitalist through her bones. I'm not."

Look, this isn't some high crime but it's a little dishonest and manipulative in my opinion. It feeds directly into the narrative that is constantly pushed that Sanders is always attacking Democrats. You honestly don't think that was a consideration when truncating the title and the one (half)sentence summary at the top of the page?

[crazytown]

56. The one sentence summary "Bernie Sanders draws contrast ...

is the headline abc News gave to the article. I was quoting exactly, not being manipulative.

[LanternWaste]

89. Lacking anything at all of substance, that's the same allegation I'd make too...

if my bias demanded it of me.

(try again... this time, read for context)

[aikoaiko]

90. Even your snark is weak sauce.

[TwilightZone]

44. That's going to complicate matters for the Sanders supporters who insist he's not a socialist.

If he's not a capitalist, the presumption would be that he considers himself a socialist.

Which, of course, is what he's been saying for decades, with and without the democratic modifier.

[myohmy2]

46. I'm...

...with you, Bernie

"Enough with your greed and with your corruption," Sanders said. "We need real change in this country."

...to embrace capitalism is to embrace evil...

...to embrace capitalism is to embrace the status quo...

...we need REAL change...

...are you happy with the status quo?

...

[Skittles]

47. .....

[flibbitygiblets]

48. I'm about sick of Bernie's shit-talking. He's not going to win and needs to drop out

for the good of the country because his supporters tend to take their marbles and go home if they don't get their way.

I want a Democrat to win. This isn't helping.

[Hav]

50. Shit-talking? I agree with the rest of your post

but he was quoting her.

[kcr]

61. So what if he was quoting her?

If he does it in such a way that it misleads, it's still wrong. He compares her to himself and claims he isn't, giving the impression that they're very different. He doesn't want another lefty candidate playing in his sandbox, so he wants to imply that Warren isn't a lefty. The fact he used a direct quote in that implication doesn't make it ok, especially given how similar they are on policy.

[MarcA]

49. What was the context of her remarks to the New England Council?

Looked several places, haven't found it. Anyone aware of the rest of her
remarks to the council? Understand it was from a year ago.

[Kurt V.]

51. Both true. love em both.

[Autumn]

88. Bernie says he's a democratic socialist, Liz says she's a capitalist. I'm neither and support them

both.

[ehrnst]

91. So why are you supporting Steyer, as per your sig line?

[tblue37]

52. Actually, that would help her with skittish voters in the GE--and I suspect Bernie

knows it would.

[Skid Rogue]

53. Our party is not a socialist party...

we're mostly capitalist who believe in a strong social safety net, investing in the health, education and welfare of all Americans, and taxing and regulating businesses to assure those things.

That sounds like Warren to me.

[BlueMTexpat]

72. Nice post!

[TidalWave46]

55. Fair game.

Just sucks when the shots come from a second tier candidate.

[mcar]

57. Someone seems defensive.

[Autumn]

58. Liz says that i am a "capitalist to my bones" . Bernie quotes her. Bad Bernie

Sen. Elizabeth Warren's recent remark that she is a "capitalist to my bones" is being treated as some kind of news, even though it is consistent with the policies and rhetoric the liberal Massachusetts senator has espoused for her entire career.

https://www.businessinsider.com/capitalist-elizabeth-warren-has-the-right-antidote-to-socialism-and-trumpism-2018-7

She has a lot of fans who agree with her. Over the last 15 years, as markets have repeatedly failed, the markets-first approach has become a political liability for Republicans and is increasingly discredited within the Democratic Party.

As a result, there is a now fashion for people on the left to call themselves "socialists" — often while implicitly or explicitly supporting many of the markets-with-guardrails policies Warren herself favors.

You can even design the same policy platform from either of these approaches, calling it "capitalist" in one case and "socialist" in the other. This is how Warren and Sen. Bernie Sanders are not that far apart on policy, despite their very different rhetoric about capitalism.

But which direction you approach the policy from matters — and if your system will continue to rely on private capital, as virtually every modern political platform claiming to be "socialism" does, it's to your advantage to place markets front and center, as Warren does, because you'll have to explain how you'll make those markets work well.

I don't see a problem with Bernie drawing that distinction. Liz is a capitalist, a darn good one. The whole article is a fascinating read.

[kcr]

59. It's the "I'm not" part

when he and Warren are very similar in their platforms. They're virtually identical. Whatever they call themselves, both of them have operated and governed well within the boundaries of our dual party system, beholden to capitalism. Sanders has a particularly long history. He can brand himself however he likes, but his attempts at distancing himself from Warren policy-wise are weak and transparent. If he actually campaigned on a true Socialist platform his career in US politics would have been very short.

[Autumn]

79. He doesn't consider himself a capitalist, I don't see a problem with him saying he isn't one.

He has never in his long career campaigned on a true Socialist platform. All of the candidates make a distinction between themselves and other candidates, that's important to do. And no, their platforms are not virtually identical.

[herding cats]

62. True, and his drawing the parallel does nothing but help her.

I hope she has the good manners to take a moment and thank him. He just lifted her up and insulated her from many of the smears the GOP has been trying to lay on her.

[Autumn]

80. Yes. But Bernie

[herding cats]

85. ?

He helped her, as I said. Which more than likely wasn't his intention here. <--- Is that what you're asking?

Warren is in my top 3 tier, I'm fine with this.

[qazplm135]

60. So basically Bernie's

Trying to help her win.

[betsuni]

63. Message to base: Capitalists cannot be true progressives, "I am ... the only candidate who's

going to" fight the corporate elite's corruption.

Message heard by others: Yeah, she's, like, a capitalism professor and creator of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and has fought against corruption her whole career. Actions speak louder than words. If Warren becomes our nominee she'll get called a socialist by one side and a capitalist (can't reuse "Wall Street" this time) by another.

Warren says the system worked from 1935 to 1980 when it was regulated, but now powerful businesses pay lip service to capitalism but don't really believe in competitive markets: "I love competition. I want to see every start-up business, everybody who's got a good idea, have a chance to get in the market and try. ... Everything I'm working on is about giving individuals the opportunity, the liberty to participate in this economy and in the governance of country. I love this stuff. Isn't this stuff fun?"

It's why people from all over the world used to want to come to America! Thanks, Republicans, for ruining our country.

[Cha]

65. Thanks for your post, betsuni.. So BS is saying

he's a socialist?

Progressives are those who Get Progress for their People.. President Obama is a Progressive who has gotten more done for the People of the USA than anyone who just talks about it.

[betsuni]

66. That seems to be the insinuation.

I see capitalist-as-an-insult popping up more and more often as Warren rises in the polls. It's pretty funny, thinking it's a bad thing and people shouldn't vote for an American politician who says she's a capitalist. Obviously Bernie has no interest in potential voters outside of his base.

[Cha]

67. And, has been obvious for a

long time.

Thank you.

[betsuni]

68. What Warren should do is put "grassroots" in front of capitalist.

"I'm a grassroots capitalist." Works for others. Having a fundraiser? Call it a "grassroots fundraiser" and suddenly it isn't bad and corrupting like all the other fundraisers!

[Cha]

69. Brilliant! And, no..

munching on "canapés behind closed doors"

[betsuni]

73. Oh, those Democrats seducing people with Establishment foodstuffs!

Either "They tried to seduce us with donuts and water" in public or the seduction behind closed doors with swanky canapes. "They will stop at nothing to defeat us."

[swag]

64. Because what sort of capitalist would own three houses?

[Baclava]

75. I guess theres no limit to the number of dachas the Politburo party chiefs can have on the Black Sea

Oh Bern, you 1%er you, lol, your game is up, relax and retire at one of your summer houses on the water, stress isn't good for you

[democratisphere]

76. But what about those nasty millionaires and billionaires which Bernie

is NOW a member of?!

[kennetha]

77. Well the problem is

All the obfuscation there has been in this issue mostly by Bernie and Bernie’s followers. Bernie and Bernie’s people keep trying to blur the meaning of ‘socialism’ by equating socialism with so-called democratic socialism but then point to social democracies of Europe as exemplars. But social democracy is not a form of socialism. It doesn’t call for socializing the means of production the way socialism does. Indeed every single European social democracy has a robust private/ corporate sector and relies on free but regulated markets to provide most goods ... that’s capitalism to its bones. But Bernie and his followers can’t and won’t admit that. They are trying to turn capitalism into a swear word, rather than making nuanced but important distinctions among different ways of implementing capitalism.

[PETRUS]

82. The confusion hardly began with Bernie and his followers.

Decades of cold-war propaganda have a lot to do with it. Watching one group of people argue that the Nordic states are capitalist, and another group argue that they are socialist is like watching one group of people insist that the image below is green, and another group of people insisting that it is yellow.

[DrFunkenstein]

78. FDR Was Called a Socialist, But He Saved Capitalism

And he had the trust and good will of the people because they saw that he was working for the people and doing his best to give the big "robber barons" of the country's gilded age a swift kick in the nuts.

A free market is not free if the biggest predators are writing the rules with a boot on the neck of competition. That's a rigged system. Warren wants to promote a fair competition, which is something that even regular Americans get.

[Beringia]

81. Harry Reid thinks Warren will turn her back on Medicare for All

Link to tweet

wideofthepost

Harry Reid tells David Axelrod that he doesn’t think Elizabeth Warren will follow through on ‘Medicare for All.’

“Give her some time, I think that she’s not in love with that, I think that she, you’ll wait and see how that all turns out... oh I know she’s pragmatic, just wait”

[Kahuna7]

84. LOL. How long before he calls her, "the establishment" ....

Warren to Bernie, thanks!

[scheming daemons]

86. This is a POSITIVE for Warren, and a NEGATIVE for Sanders.. especially in the General Election

[Joe941]

87. Sanders is making his case for why he is the best candidate.

He is making a good case for himself.