Ta-Nehisi Coates: Why Precisely Is Bernie Sanders Against Reparations?

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

311. Dude, do you know anything about how politics works? There's something called

a "head count". The Majority Whip or perhaps the president's Chief of Staff takes a reading of how many members of the caucus might support or oppose a particular policy position. Trust me, even in the Democratic party, there were a long list of conservative Democrats who were opposed to a single payer system, not to mention a public option.

Were you just born in 2008? Do you not remember us going through this hell for nearly two years on the health care debate? Do you not remember the Democrats taking a count of their party members and realizing that there were some electorally vulnerable (read: cowardly) Democrats who wouldn't/couldn't go along with single payer? You don't remember Max Baucus and Joe LIEberman?

You should go back and revisit history between the latter half of 2008 through early 2010 and catch on that health care debate.

The president never had the votes for single payer. We tried the public option--the votes weren't there, either.

Maybe you weren't around DU then, but that time was absolute HELL around here.