Don't buy the spin that Bernie and Hillary are 92% alike on the issues. [View all]

[merrily]

Some talking head yesterday mentioned having just received a message that Hillary and Sanders voted alike 92% of the time when in the Senate. Just mentioned it out of absolutely nowhere and then immediately went on to something else.

I doubt that the Sanders campaign distributed that message to media. I don't know if it came from the Hillary campaign. I do know her DU supporters have been trying here to say "no real differences " since at least early May. (That may have been a response to the April 29 poll showing 90% of DU would vote for Sanders over Hillary.)

This 92% congruity in Senate votes message is probably technically accurate, but nonetheless very misleading. Why?

In the Senate, Bernie and Hillary were both in the Democratic Caucus voting against the Republican Caucus. No surprise that they both voted with the Democratic Caucus most of the time. A lot of Senate votes are not even substantive, about on the level of proclaiming national ice cream sundae day or expressing appreciation. Moreover the Senate is a very conservative body in the first instance. The only thing interesting to know, IMO, would be which votes comprised the 8% difference between Bernie and Hillary in the Senate.

Passing that: The biggest policy differences between Sanders and Hillary probably show up in Bernie's House votes, when Hillary was either First Lady or in the Senate, NOT when they were both in the Senate together: Bernie voted against Poppy's invasion of Iraq, against Dimson's invasion of Iraq, against DOMA, against DADT against repeal of Glass Steagall and so on. She was on the opposite side of all that, either expressly, by Senate vote or by choosing to associate herself in 2008 with her husband's record.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/12778412 ; http://www.democraticunderground.com/128033139 ; http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1277&pid=8899

I don't really care what percentage of votes the above comprises. Each of these events loomed large in the history of this country. Sanders was on the right side of that history. Neither Clinton was.

Bottom line: do not be deceived. As Bernie says over and over, he and Hillary disagree on many issues. I believe him and I have found that to be true myself over the months that I have been looking into his stands.

Going forward, I want the guy who was pro equal rights for everyone, including members of the GLBT community, who predicted exactly what would happen after repeal of Glass Steagall, who all along has said war should be the very last course of action, etc.

ETA: I should have noted originally that Bernie and Hillary were only in the Senate together from January 2007 to January 2009--and Hillary was probably absent a good bit of that time due to her primary campaign and preparing to become Secretary of State.