Two Predictions for Monday's Iowa forum: 1st -- Clinton will sound like a Republican on all issues

[Attorney in Texas]

except 2nd Amendment rights in a transparent effort to cast Sanders as "out-of-the-mainstream" and "unrealistic" in his goals for America;

2nd -- this tactic will backfire on February 1.



It remains true that Clinton is the favorite and Sanders is the underdog. Yet Clinton appears to be doing everything in her power to help Sanders change that dynamic.

If Clinton's campaign was smart, they would stop attacking Sanders and his agenda and simply focus on why they believe their agenda is better for America. If it is true that "Bernie is too liberal" as all of the Clinton surrogates are being programmed to say this cycle, then Clinton should win a straight up debate on the issues and the added benefit to Clinton is that these debates would position her as a relative moderate going into a general election against whichever right-wing nutjob the Republicans nominate.

This debate on the issues is Clinton's pathway to victory. It is also Sanders' pathway to victory (the only difference being that Sanders is betting against the Clinton position that he is too liberal for America).

Such a debate on the issues is also best for the Democratic party in the general election no matter which candidate wins the nomination.

[MineralMan]

1. She certainly won't sound like any of the current Republican

candidates, though. Why? Because she is a Democrat and a rather liberal one, at that. Her record indicates that, with some few decisions where the opposite has appeared to be true.

Hillary Clinton is a mainstream Democrat. You may find that objectionable, but she is not a Republican.

[Attorney in Texas]

3. I halfway agree. She'll sound like the current Republicans on foreign policy issues and she'll sound

like a Republican somewhere on the spectrum between Nixon and Reagan on domestic policy except for 2nd Amendment issues, where she will sound like the candidate Republicans wrongly think Obama is.

[Hortensis]

2. No kidding! Hillary on Campaign Finance Reform:

Hillary is calling for aggressive campaign finance reform to end the stranglehold that wealthy interests have over our political system and restore a government of, by, and for the people—not just the wealthy and well-connected. Her proposals will curb the outsized influence of big money in American politics, shine a light on secret spending, and institute real reforms to raise the voices of regular voters.

Hillary will:
Overturn Citizens United.
* Hillary will appoint Supreme Court justices who value the right to vote over the right of billionaires to buy elections.
* She’ll push for a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United in order to restore the role of everyday voters in elections.

End secret, unaccountable money in politics.
* Hillary will push for legislation to require outside groups to publicly disclose significant political spending.
* And until Congress acts, she'll sign an executive order requiring federal government contractors to do the same.
* Hillary will also promote an SEC rule requiring publicly traded companies to disclose political spending to shareholders.

Amplify the voices of everyday Americans.
* Hillary will establish a small-donor matching system for presidential and congressional elections to incentivize small donors to participate in elections, and encourage candidates to spend more time engaging a representative cross-section of voters.

Hillary's positions on something like 30 specific issues -- with details on HOW she plans to implement them -- are at
https://www.hillaryclinton.com/issues/

[MineralMan]

4. But, see, that doesn't match preconceived ideas.

So, it's worthless or something.

[Attorney in Texas]

6. But, see, Clinton's platform doesn't match her past actions, her current campaign strategy, or her

biggest campaign contributors' goals.

Clinton's credibility on these issues is impaired by her past actions and the campaign donor base that she relentlessly courts.

[NorthCarolina]

5. Their agenda isn't saleable to the general public like Bernie's is,

which is precisely why they are running the type of underhanded campaign that they are...full of distortions and word salads.