2016 Postmortem
In reply to the discussion: Ta-Nehisi Coates: Why Precisely Is Bernie Sanders Against Reparations? [View all]steve2470
(37,481 posts)Now let's say in 2016, Senator Sanders forcefully argued for reparations. The vast majority of DU and the left would support Senator Sanders in this. That's X percentage of the likely-voting population, sorry don't have numbers at my fingertips.
Pretty much zero percent of the right-of-center voting population would support that. I don't think I need to explain why.
Now the $64 million question (inflation, inflation) is, what percentage of the "centrist" voting population would support it ? I have no idea. It would depend on how skillfully it was framed and by whom. Somehow I think the percentage would struggle to reach 50% , but perhaps I underestimate centrist voters.
Overall numbers for Senator Sanders once he forcefully argues for this ? Hmm.... I don't know. However, what I am confident in predicting is that he would lose to Secretary Clinton (unless she also supported it forcefully).
People, we are in a very left-of-center BUBBLE here at DU. If you don't realize this and agree, I don't know what to say to you. Making it possible for any politician to publicly support this and forcefully argue for it is a long hard slog. I think, longer and harder than the slog was for gay marriage. I'm VERY glad that now marriage is equal, I really am. I just think reparations is much more difficult, because of the financial angle that will be lied about and distorted.
One day, sure, I think it's possible. In 2016 ? Only if Senator Sanders wants to lose the primaries. Political reality sucks, but there it is.