This map has a real good perspective about yesterday's primaries:

Ex-DNC official says she was warned against breaking from Clinton

Source: The Hill

Tulsi Gabbard, the Hawaii Democrat who resigned a leadership post with the Democratic National Committee in order to endorse White House hopeful Bernie Sanders, admitted she was warned against breaking from front-runner Hillary Clinton.

"I'll be very honest with you, a lot of people warned me against doing what I did," the lawmaker told MSNBC on Tuesday night.

"But this is a very serious issue and what I did speaks to the high stakes that exist. War is a very real thing, its real to me, it's real to our service members and their families."

Gabbard, a veteran, made her surprise decision during a Sunday interview on NBC's "Meet the Press." Her response on Tuesday came after MSNBC's Brian Williams asked her if she's worried about what her life in Congress would be like if Clinton wins.

More at link

Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-races/271446-house-democrat-says-she-was-warned-against-breaking-from

The Case for Nominating Elizabeth Warren to the Supreme Court

It’s been almost two weeks now, and the talk of who Obama may appoint to replace Justice Antonin Scalia has already been pushed off the front pages. The White House rather brilliantly trolled the GOP this week with rumors that it was vetting GOP Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval. Republicans dutifully refused to consider his nomination and scurried back into their dark corners. Sandoval removed his name from consideration. And incensed conservative commenters scolded Obama for playing games, as if they hadn’t been insisting for two weeks that they were going to pick up their football and go home.

There are a few lessons to be drawn from the Sandoval trial balloon: First, there is no point in Obama picking a conservative or even a so-called “consensus” candidate. Obama pretty clearly couldn’t get a vote if he nominated Eugene Scalia, the former justice’s son—this is the hill Mitch McConnell has chosen to die on. This issue will either remain in the forefront of the national conversation about the 2016 elections, or it will fade away. It’s in Obama’s and the Democrats’ interest to ensure that this unprecedented and wholly unprincipled obstruction remain an election issue every single day.

This leads us to the second lesson. To the extent that this is a political battle, it is a battle over symbols, not people. The loss of Antonin Scalia—the lion of the Federalist Society and the face of modern conservative jurisprudence—cannot be overstated. Had another conservative member of the Supreme Court passed away, I am not certain you would have heard McConnell insisting immediately that he could not be replaced by this president. For the GOP, losing Scalia was like losing Reagan. The notion that he could be replaced by anyone is still in doubt on the right.

In addition to Justice Scalia, there’s another powerful symbol in this constitutional game of chicken: President Obama. The GOP opposition to even discussing any nominee Obama puts up is just the latest attack on his legitimacy. It calls to mind birtherism and the incessant moves to repeal Obamacare and all the 101 other signals that they not only hate this president, they also don’t accept that he’s the real president.

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more at link: http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2016/02/the_case_for_nominating_elizabeth_warren_to_the_supreme_court.html?utm_content=inf_91_2641_2&wpsrc=socialedge&tse_id=INF_f67c1785c32a4bd58908a715546dee28

George Carlin on the American Dream

DNC Vice-Chair Resigns, Throws Support Behind Bernie Sanders

U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii announced Sunday that she will resign as vice-chair of the Democratic National Committee and endorse Bernie Sanders for president.

"I think it's most important for us, as we look at our choices as to who our next commander in chief will be, is to recognize the necessity to have a commander in chief who has foresight, who exercises good judgment," Gabbard said on MSNBC's "Meet the Press."

BREAKING on #MTP: @TulsiGabbard just announced her resignation as DNC Vice Chair and endorsement of @BernieSanders #Decision2016

— Meet the Press (@meetthepress) February 28, 2016

Hawaii US Rep @TulsiGabbard says she backs @BernieSanders because she respects his approach to foreign policy and avoiding unnecessary wars.

— John Nichols (@NicholsUprising) February 28, 2016

According to an email obtained by Politico, Gabbard told her fellow DNC officers that "after much thought and consideration, I’ve decided I cannot remain neutral and sit on the sidelines any longer."

"There is a clear contrast between our two candidates with regard to my strong belief that we must end the interventionist, regime change policies that have cost us so much," she wrote. "This is not just another 'issue.' This is THE issue, and it’s deeply personal to me. This is why I’ve decided to resign as Vice Chair of the DNC so that I can support Bernie Sanders in his efforts to earn the Democratic nomination in the 2016 presidential race."
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more at link : http://www.commondreams.org/news/2016/02/28/dnc-vice-chair-resigns-throws-support-behind-bernie-sanders

Today I end my flirtation with the Third Way. Oh sure, they talk a good game, but in the end

I realize they don't have labor's back at all, and never have. In fact, they co-opted many, many Republican ideas until we lost our party. No more. I have seen the light. I have heard Sweet Bernie's dulcet tones on his Folk album, and I like it that he hasn't changed a position in 40 years. I like it that he doesn't just talk a good game, but he actually DOES SOMETHING. Like protest. Like get arrested for his beliefs. Like always, always advocate for the least of these. He has principles. He has scruples. He is not afraid to march, or to work a picket line. He has charm and wit and personality, and he has real values that line up precisely with mine, not just kinda-sorta. That's not why I've made up my mind, though.

My mind is made up because Hillary will get slaughtered in the general. Without a doubt.
Bernie might not win, but he has a better chance than Hillary, by far.
And more than likely, he will win.

Barring any nefarious activities with the voting machines installed by Bushco and controlled by private corporations rather than our local elections boards. Too bad we all fell for that one, too.

Those who demand I fall behind the party nominee if I don't like them, consider this:

My views haven't changed in 50 years. Only the party has. I am still the same person today that I was when Nixon was impeached. I am still the same person I was when Teddy Kennedy (God rest his soul) ran against Carter. (We had a poster of Jimmy riding a horse and carrying a whip and it read "I'll kick his ass!) hanging in our kitchen. We had Billy beer in the house (though I'm sure Jimmy wasn't a fan). I'm the same person that said to my coworkers when Reagan came in that our pensions were screwed. I am the same person today that I was when Bill Clinton shafted us with NAFTA and shut my Dad's factory down. Yep, one and the same. So before you get down off your high horse consider that maybe, just maybe, some of us old-timers DO know what the hell we are talking about. As far as withholding the vote, that is not petty. I can't stomach one of the candidates on the national stage. If I don't vote, I haven't voted for anyone. The blame (if there is any) will like squarely at the feet of the voters and the candidates themselves. It is up to the candidate to earn the votes, not the other way around. So if the results aren't to your liking, maybe your weathervane was malfunctioning. I have a feeling that more than just a few politicos will see some earthquakes this cycle. As for me, I'm still standing on the same CORE Democratic values I've always had. If the party chooses not the represent those values, they just might find themselves crying over spilled milk.

how did Hillary get my name and address?

I got mail from her today. I have only donated to Bernie and a couple down ticket people. That's it. so, how did she get my name and address?I got mail from her today. I have only donated to Bernie and a couple down ticket people. That's it.

Genuine DU question: Are the rules of the site that we can post about any Democrat

running for office? Specifically, say, in theory, I am supporting a Democratic challenger to a sitting Democratic member of congress- can I safely support the challenger here? I don't even know where to find this info. Thanks for any help. Peace.

Character matters: