Hillary Clinton
Related: About this forum"Stop the Revolution! I want to get off!" How Bernie is NOT creating a REAL political movement.
I have said and will continue to say I have always liked Bernie and honestly think his heart has always been in the right place on progressive issues. I think he sincerely wants real political reform, to reverse income inequality, to reverse climate change, and to return political power to ordinary Americans. But I have also always said that as a self-described socialist who came so late to the party that he now wants to lead, he will not be able to win the nomination nor the general election.
I do give Bernie credit for having said some things, VERY GENERALLY, that need saying on the issues, and that these BROAD clarion calls have inspired a lot young people to engage in this primary. People are legitimately angry about a lot of things, and he has tapped into that frustration. However, his platitudes are very VAGUE, he has shown a far too-limited and frankly inexcusable lack of detailed knowledge on the very issues he is trumpeting, and too many of his promises, though noble and inspiring, are not very realistic. Yes, we need inspiring goals, but we also need REALITY.
And here is the big thing. While he says that what he is doing is about more than Bernie Sanders, I truly sense that WAY too many of his supporters are ALL ABOUT BERNIE and NOT about the larger cause of BEATING REPUBLICANS at every level and STAYING IN IT FOR THE LONG HAUL. So many of his supporters are reporting that they are ONLY voting "FOR BERNIE" and NOT because they are inspired by the call for a LONG, HARD, DIFFICULT, SUSTAINED political movement much like the workers rights, women's suffrage, and civil rights movements of the past which required MANY YEARS of SUSTAINED and arduous WORK. Some are already saying that if Bernie doesn't get the nomination, they won't vote at all. HOW IMMATURE! HOW NONSENSICAL! HOW NON-REVOLUTIONARY!!!!
These Bernie folks need to SEE MORE THAN BERNIE. They need to see that Hillary is also PROGRESSIVE. They need to see that we can not allow a TRUMP or CRUZ to get the White House. They need to see that if they are really PROGRESSIVE, that is about PROGRESS and not just one titillating candidate, and you have to STAY ENGAGED for the LONGTERM and VOTE IN EVERY ELECTION, even the ones where there is NO BERNIE!
Some Bernie folks are now complaining about their registration status in NY. The fact is, MANY were never registered as Dems or may not have been registered at all, and THAT is why they can't vote in the primary. If they didn't have the energy to check their registration status according to the rules and deadlines, how do they have the energy to engage in a LONGTERM and REAL political "revolution" movement?
Bernie Folks, my message to you is that if you want PROGRESS, and REAL CHANGE, you have to STAY ENGAGED ALL THE TIME AND IN EVERY ELECTION. Being titillated into the voting booth just one time on promises to shut down big banks and get free tuition isn't nearly enough. Look to American history. Look at what had to be done and sacrificed for MANY YEARS in order for women to get the right to vote, for workers to get rights, for African Americans to get full rights, etc. It didn't happen overnight. People were committed to a CAUSE, not just one person. I am so glad you are engaged in this primary process, but that is NOT ENOUGH. And if Hillary is the nominee, you need to see that she will give you MUCH more of what Bernie is for than Trump or Cruz, and that should be WAY more than enough to KEEP you engaged in this presidential cycle, which is what is needed. STAY ENGAGED NO MATTER WHAT, AND VOTE DEMOCRATIC UP AND DOWN THE BALLOT IN NOVEMBER. Then you will get PROGRESS which is what PROGRESSIVENESS is all about. The stakes are too high, and this is election cycle is NOT and can not be just about Bernie.
handmade34
(22,757 posts)one man a revolution does not make... just think what Barack Obama could have accomplished if all the people had continued the fight and pushed him instead of sitting out the 2010 elections
change is long and difficult at times and the energy directed towards Bernie needs to be expanded to get progressives at all levels elected and the fight cannot stop when a person is successfully put into office...
I have seen (and studied) this same thing many times over the years... people have the power but seldom use it
I do not trust that the (majority of) people supporting Bernie Sanders have the wherewithall to continue the arduous struggle needed to make the drastic changes they want
RBInMaine
(13,570 posts)NurseJackie
(42,862 posts)You're an excellent writer... thanks for posting that!
Thinkingabout
(30,058 posts)Which went on for years and though not perfect now are much better. The struggle for women to get the right to vote went on for years and more years for the Voters Rights bill to pass.
72DejaVu
(1,545 posts)They are in it for themselves. They want higher wages, they want lower tuition, etc. That's all good, they should want those things. But they aren't interested in fighting against racism or homophobia, or for women's rights, except to the extent that they can use those issues against "the establishment". The heart of Republicanism can be summed with the slogan "Fuck everybody else, I got mine." Bernieism can be summed up as "Fuck everybody else,I want mine.'
Rose Siding
(32,623 posts)If a leftist sort of Tea Party were to develop, the blockage would be complete on both sides. Obama referenced this a little yesterday, I think.
brer cat
(24,592 posts)The political naivety and single mindedness of many Bernie supporters concerns me for our future. It is akin to a child demanding his way RIGHT NOW THIS MINUTE, which denies their awareness of the "LONG, HARD, DIFFICULT, SUSTAINED political movement much like the workers rights, women's suffrage, and civil rights movements of the past which required MANY YEARS of SUSTAINED and arduous WORK" as you stated so well. I have come to fear that our young people are so accustomed to instant gratification and possess such short attention spans that we may never again see the great movements for change.
The other issue is that many Bernie supporters seem so blinded by their Hillary-hate that they would welcome a President Trump or Cruz just to show her, and us, that we can't win without them. Their narcissistic posts about how "mean" we are and how much we will regret it when we "need" their help is very telling. They don't give a damn what is best for the country, only their ego.
RBInMaine
(13,570 posts)it will take for YEARS to make real gains.
stopbush
(24,396 posts)is to make millionaires of Tad Devine and Jeff Weaver by taking millions of donations from college kids who can barely afford their nightly bowl of ramen noodles, well, I sort of question whether you really understand the issue you're pushing.
pandr32
(11,605 posts)If they "don't see more" than Bernie and the bigger picture is lost on them than it is Bernie who is to blame. He is schooling them on both "the issues" and civics.
RBInMaine
(13,570 posts)to vote up and down the ballot, and that he would support the Democratic nominee no matter who it was. What he needs to do is tell his people to support the Dem nominee regardless of who it is and to STAY engaged.
pandr32
(11,605 posts)It seems to have gotten buried under his anti-Hillary smears.
Cary
(11,746 posts)There is no reason to believe that they are any more functional now. The real revolution is up to us, the grown ups.
RBInMaine
(13,570 posts)The problem with too many of them is that if they are not titillated by some personality, they sit on their asses. And that is BULLSHIT. It is just plain immature crap. You can't always have political purity and titillation. That is NOT the recipe for a "revolution."
Cary
(11,746 posts)And that's a big problem.
DemonGoddess
(4,640 posts)Great post!
DavidDvorkin
(19,483 posts)Maybe that should be his campaign motto.
BlueCaliDem
(15,438 posts)President Obama has always been the revolution we needed, and he's done a fantastic job! Unfortunately, the "throw the BlueDemDogs out!" campaign in 2010 stopped his progress - the progress Sanders supporters say they want but couldn't be bothered to support because of what Cenk Uygur, Ed Schultz, Michael Moore, Ralph Nader, Thom Hartmann, and other noted "Liberals" were wailing about when there was NO consensus in Congress to get single-payer through.
People need to know that there are elections every TWO years, not every four years. Once we can put this in their hearts and minds, we can successfully reverse all the damage Republicans have done since taking the House in 2010 and then the Senate in 2014.
NastyRiffraff
(12,448 posts)I disagree on some things, but the main thrust of your excellent post is spot on. Thank you!
If you can take the vitriol, I hope you'll post this in GDP. Those people NEED to read it. (Don't blame you if you don't but I hope you do)
Hekate
(90,773 posts)creon
(1,183 posts)This "movement" needs to be much more than Sanders.
This requires all three - organization, discipline, persistence.
Sanders is running as a Democrat because he has no organization.
he, and his friends have to build one.
They have to earn their spurs.
AgadorSparticus
(7,963 posts)robbedvoter
(28,290 posts)BS voters didn't bother to vote past him!
In NYV. the Working Families Party had an online vote to pick their candidate (usually they front the D candidate). They had their primary - BS won. He'll be in GE on that ticket. Now we have ours. (P.S. those are the politically savvy BS supporters in NY - the rest don't know a vote from a bong)