We Sanders supporters need to recognize that his brand is damaged now

[BainsBane]

125. its quite clear to me

That the goal us to make the party centered around the privilege of the middle and upper-middle class and that there is no concern about poverty or equality. The debate on abortion rights surrounding the Mello candidacy proved as much. Despite repeatedly being told that lack of access to abortion dramatically increases poverty for women and children--the majority of the population. We were told the basic survival of that majority was too "divisive" to remain a priority for Democrats.

We have also seen "working class" used to describe the affluent, incomes many times greater than the national median, while the majority of low to median wage workers are excluded from the designation. Clinton overwhelming won low income voters and led amoung median income voters. But we are told time and time again that Democrats dont represent "working people." Somehow "working people" earn over $100k. Either those making that argument are completely ignorant about polling data, or the emphasis on the more affluent is deliberate. Given that the voter data has repeatedly been brought to their attention and they persist in the same argument, it becomes difficult to believe it is mere oversight. The same is true for data on abortion rights and increased poverty. These are some of the reasons why I do not believe the goal is to address economic inequality.

I see an effort to orient the party away from low to median incomes toward the more affluent. Your point about college education is a prime example. The resistance to means testing is something that benefits the upper-middle and upper class, while the inattention to the chronic inequality in k-12 education that cements generations of poverty likewise shows the priority on the already privileged.

We hear lots of rhetoric about corporate this and that, but the reality of the proposals and arguments championed do not reveal a priority on equality, but rather a focus on the prosperity of the white middle- to upper-middle class.

He adopted a number of Clinton's positions (see the NY Daily News interview), more since the GE.
Of course, to recognize that, one would have to know what her positions were, and I've observed a fierce determination by many to avoid doing so. My suspicion is that they are afraid they might actually like them.