Three serious questions for my fellow Bernie supporters [View all]

[Old Crow]

I'm as excited about the Bernie Sanders phenomenon as anyone. But I'm also a realist. And from the beginning of all this, I've viewed a Sanders presidency as a very difficult thing to achieve. Three things lately are concerning me. Can anyone share some insights on these potential stumbling blocks below? I often see Hillary supporters or people in the media refer to them, but I don't often see possible solutions discussed.

Note: I'm hoping this post is acceptable to the Bernie Group. I think it's vital that we occasionally discuss challenges and not just focus on the happy stuff.

1. Campaign money
In these early stages, Bernie's doing great. I worry, though, that over the long haul he's going to get deluged with wave after wave of negative ads from, first, Hillary, and second, the Republicans. I'm old enough to have learned that you can get the majority of Americans to believe anything if you repeat it enough (see: Kerry, swift-boating). I don't know the figures, but I think Hillary's war chest dwarfs Bernie's and that concerns me. How is Bernie going to counter this? I've heard something about a possibility of accepting public funds, but apparently that has some restrictions; unfortunately, I'm not clear on any of it and would appreciate any insights.

2. Minority support
I keep hearing that Sanders's support among people of color is very low. Are there any signs in the polls that he's making progress? How much support is he going to need among African Americans to be viable? And do you think he can get it? It seems to me that a lot of the AA voters are wedded to Hillary and I don't see this changing.

3. The Biden factor
Biden is still trending at around 14% in the polls. If Biden does not run, does anyone know where that 14% is likely to go? If most of it goes to Hillary, the progress Bernie has made toward Hillary's number will evaporate overnight. I'm concerned more of it would go to Hillary than Bernie because I'm thinking Biden appeals to voters who are supportive of the Democratic status quo.

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That's it. I'll be reading any and all answers carefully and with appreciation for your insights. I come to DU to learn and I'm hoping you guys can help me out.

Thanks!