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"IT'S NOT ABOUT BERNIE, IT'S ABOUT US!"
From my friend Bruce XXXXXXX
6 hrs ·
I'm not a Democrat. I'm an Independent liberal, and have been since the day I first registered to vote. I posited a hypothetical question yesterday on Facebook; Shouldn't we as liberals, at least listen to what's in Bernie Sanders latest iteration of Medicare for all?
.
You'd think I got busted sneaking out of Ann Coulter's boudoir. Right out of the gate, it was about Sanders himself. Then the tide shifted, and the Hillary haters came out of the woodwork. By the time I left for work, the thread looked like a Wes Craven flick of liberals attacking liberals.
.
I get it, some folks hold Bernie Sanders responsible for Hillary's defeat. And some folks insist Hillary's candidacy is why we wound up with Trump. GROW UP! It's been a year. It's over! Neither Hillary nor Bernie were perfect, but either would have been better than the monster we ended up with. I ENTHUSIASTICALLY supported and voted for Hillary Clinton last year, but had Sanders won the nod, I'd have done likewise for him. What pains me, is how so many folks obsess over personality rather than policy, and they blame that person for everything. Like the fifty-five year old guy at a party who pulls out a picture of his wife who left him 25 years ago, and drones on about how she's responsible for his drinking problem.
.
IT'S
NOT
ABOUT
BERNIE,
IT'S
ABOUT
US!
.
Had anybody but Sanders introduced that bill yesterday, it wouldn't have been an issue. In fact, we'd have all welcomed it, if not applauded it. But no, some folks just had to drag the past into it, and the conversation veered into the gutter. It was shameful!
.
Early yesterday morning, 6 Senate Democrats had announced they'd co-sponsor Sanders' bill. Do you know how many had signed on by the end of the day? 16! That's one in three sitting United States Democratic Senators. Probably only one of whom, Jeff Merkley, endorsed Bernie Sanders last year. The rest all endorsed Hillary Clinton.
.
And yet, they were capable of seeing beyond their differences, forgetting for the moment the antipathy of last year for an opportunity to make a symbolic but IMPORTANT statement. That the American healthcare system needs to be revamped.
.
Of course, this new bill is dead on arrival. Nothing of this nature will make it into or out of committee—it's just too progressive for our pals across the aisle. Perish the thought, we'd actually cut corporate interests out of the system. The point of it, which was lost on so many of you, is that with each new attempt, it drives the ball one yard further towards the end zone. Yesterday, 16 Senators co-sponsored it. Next year maybe it'll be 18. And if the Democrats ever get their shit together long enough to retake Congress, they just might have a majority... and then... THEN we'll be able to put the Big Pharma lobby, the insurance industry, and all the other factors that have brought us to where we are today in check. And nobody in America will go bankrupt just because they woke up one day with cancer.
.
Novel concept, huh? What really nauseated me yesterday, was the cult of personality. Bernie this, Hillary that, and how so many of the comments were about these candidates, rather than their policies. I do not GET IT!!
.
There's only one personality that makes me retch at his very sight, and that's Donald Trump. Yet even there, Nancy Pelosi and Charles Schumer have been making progress. And isn't that the whole point of being a PROGRESSIVE?
.
Bury the hatchet Bernie/Hillary haters. Your hatred benefits only the Republicans. Again, I'm not even a Democrat, though I've ALWAYS voted for the Democratic candidate. But that little display of internecine warfare yesterday makes me worry for our future. You're our best hope. Don't blow it.
.
You'd think I got busted sneaking out of Ann Coulter's boudoir. Right out of the gate, it was about Sanders himself. Then the tide shifted, and the Hillary haters came out of the woodwork. By the time I left for work, the thread looked like a Wes Craven flick of liberals attacking liberals.
.
I get it, some folks hold Bernie Sanders responsible for Hillary's defeat. And some folks insist Hillary's candidacy is why we wound up with Trump. GROW UP! It's been a year. It's over! Neither Hillary nor Bernie were perfect, but either would have been better than the monster we ended up with. I ENTHUSIASTICALLY supported and voted for Hillary Clinton last year, but had Sanders won the nod, I'd have done likewise for him. What pains me, is how so many folks obsess over personality rather than policy, and they blame that person for everything. Like the fifty-five year old guy at a party who pulls out a picture of his wife who left him 25 years ago, and drones on about how she's responsible for his drinking problem.
.
IT'S
NOT
ABOUT
BERNIE,
IT'S
ABOUT
US!
.
Had anybody but Sanders introduced that bill yesterday, it wouldn't have been an issue. In fact, we'd have all welcomed it, if not applauded it. But no, some folks just had to drag the past into it, and the conversation veered into the gutter. It was shameful!
.
Early yesterday morning, 6 Senate Democrats had announced they'd co-sponsor Sanders' bill. Do you know how many had signed on by the end of the day? 16! That's one in three sitting United States Democratic Senators. Probably only one of whom, Jeff Merkley, endorsed Bernie Sanders last year. The rest all endorsed Hillary Clinton.
.
And yet, they were capable of seeing beyond their differences, forgetting for the moment the antipathy of last year for an opportunity to make a symbolic but IMPORTANT statement. That the American healthcare system needs to be revamped.
.
Of course, this new bill is dead on arrival. Nothing of this nature will make it into or out of committee—it's just too progressive for our pals across the aisle. Perish the thought, we'd actually cut corporate interests out of the system. The point of it, which was lost on so many of you, is that with each new attempt, it drives the ball one yard further towards the end zone. Yesterday, 16 Senators co-sponsored it. Next year maybe it'll be 18. And if the Democrats ever get their shit together long enough to retake Congress, they just might have a majority... and then... THEN we'll be able to put the Big Pharma lobby, the insurance industry, and all the other factors that have brought us to where we are today in check. And nobody in America will go bankrupt just because they woke up one day with cancer.
.
Novel concept, huh? What really nauseated me yesterday, was the cult of personality. Bernie this, Hillary that, and how so many of the comments were about these candidates, rather than their policies. I do not GET IT!!
.
There's only one personality that makes me retch at his very sight, and that's Donald Trump. Yet even there, Nancy Pelosi and Charles Schumer have been making progress. And isn't that the whole point of being a PROGRESSIVE?
.
Bury the hatchet Bernie/Hillary haters. Your hatred benefits only the Republicans. Again, I'm not even a Democrat, though I've ALWAYS voted for the Democratic candidate. But that little display of internecine warfare yesterday makes me worry for our future. You're our best hope. Don't blow it.
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119 replies
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Response to ProfessorPlum (Reply #41)
Or is it persists, either way, why doesnt she just shut up, right?
I mean, yeah...
no, GOD DAMMIT to anybody else reading this I am NOT suggesting she shut up, I hope she NEVER shuts up
You may work on changing the rules?
Response to heaven05 (Reply #3)
Response to Name removed (Reply #10)
Senator Patty Murray, ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) and Representative Bobby Scott (D-VA), ranking member of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, introduce comprehensive child care and early learning legislation that will ensure that every child has access to high-quality early learning and care that will not break the bank for their parents. The Child Care for Working Families Act is a part of Democrats commitment to giving working families a better deal by building an economy that works for all, not just those at the top.
This proposed legislation is an economic issue, it's a feminist issue, it's a family issue, it's an issue of social justice. It's a bill that we should all get behind.
See we don't have DNC captains, as we are a Our Revolution group 
So we are a bit different. We consist of Democrats and progressive indie voters who concentrate on getting the progressive voice out; going door to door and talking with people about what concerns them the most when it comes to issues. What it is that they consider the most serious issues. We've gotten a lot of people to come out to our meetings and it's certainly been a very interesting ride. I am amazed at how many people feel like they simply aren't represented. It is rather sad to be honest....
Perhaps John Conyers should court more publicity about HR 676, but he's not the type of leader who grandstands.
Either is Bernie who first introduced single payer in 1992.
It's not about one person. Great post, as usual Bains....
