ANTHONY WEINER: I have one big question for Bernie Sanders

[senz]

218. Bernie weighed the relative merits of a Democratic vs. 3rd Party run.

As a regular listener of the Thom Hartmann show, I have enjoyed one hour a week -- "Brunch with Bernie" -- of Bernie's give-and-take with Thom's listeners for years, learning to like and respect this guy more and more as I got a sense of who he is and how he thinks.

For the past six months or so, Bernie has been considering a presidential run. He openly discussed the pros and cons of running 3rd party or as a Dem (he caucuses with the Dems, votes with them, heads up Dem committees, etc.) His primary reasons, as I understood them, for choosing to run on the Dem ticket were:

1) The Democrats have a nominating organization already set up to facilitate a run. This is much smoother and less expensive than starting from scratch, especially for someone like Bernie who has quietly, steadily worked in the halls of the Congress and Senate alongside the Dems against the Repubs for DECADES, never trying to "be a star," but simply concentrating on representing his constituents without compromising his core democratic values. His votes have always aligned with the progressive side of his Democratic colleagues. He has not amassed big pots of money and fame, necessities for a strong 3rd Party run.

2) Bernie did not want to be a spoiler. He did not want to do what Nader did. Bernie is a realist, and he said he could never forgive himself if his run siphoned off enough votes from a Democrat to open the way for a Republican. Bernie stated that if he loses the nomination, he will throw his support to the winning Democrat. He loves this country, and this country, for him, is the American people. He, better than most, knows what the stakes are and would not put the rest of us at risk.

I was glad that he chose to run in the Democratic primary.

Now as for Mr. Weiner -- how is it possible that someone as experienced and tuned in as Anthony Weiner could be unaware of this? Bernie deliberated openly, not secretively (like some), and his reasons were not only expressed but also obvious to anyone who knows the game. Is Weiner simply doing a favor? Scoring points? Trying to win over certain disaffected parties?

Somehow, Weiner's "confusion" doesn't ring true for me.