General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: How about Martin O'Malley for POTUS 2020? [View all]Hortensis
(58,785 posts)their competition are always going to pick up some support from fringe types hostile to mainstream candidates, no matter their message. I hold 2016's farthest left candidate responsible for the behavior of many of the anti-Democratic people he drew, from both left and right, last time because I believe he did feed their negative attitudes.
But O'Malley never had a chance to show what he would do if they flocked to him, how he would try to keep their support, whether he would stoke hostility against the party to try to strengthen their enthusiasm or try to redirect it against the Republicans. I think it would be the latter because I see him as a strong liberal like me, not an anti-Democrat radical. Didn't like him bad-mouthing Hillary in the middle of that blizzard of lies about her though. He was out of the race that point, and not a sign I would want to see.