I understand why centrist/liberal Democrats are so determined to prevent Donald Trump from being reelected. What I don’t understand is why they think progressives should be as concerned about the prospect of a second term under Donald Trump.
1. In 2016, for the first time in decades, progressives withheld their votes from the centrist/right wing Democratic nominee in sufficient numbers to deny her victory. Look at where we are now: Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren account for about 50% of the Democratic primary vote. We’re talking about Medicare for all. Free college tuition. $15 minimum wage. There is no way, no way at all, that we would be talking about these things if Hillary Clinton were running for reelection.
2. What exactly would be so horrible about doing the same thing in 2020 if the Democrats nominate a conservative like Joe Biden? Perhaps the DNC needs a second dose of medicine in order to learn their lesson that they can’t win without progressives.
3. I don’t really understand what liberals are so terrified about anyway. Let’s say there’s a second term. What is Trump going to be able to do in that second term that he wasn’t already able to do in his first four years?
4. Presidential second terms are rarely a time when a president can accomplish anything at all from a legislative or policy point of view. Richard Nixon had Watergate. Ronald Reagan was hobbled by dementia and Iran Contra. Bill Clinton had impeachment and Monica Lewinsky. George W. Bush had Iraq and the financial crisis. Obama had an intransigent Republican Congress. Trump already has to deal with impeachment. And he will also have a Democratic Congress. Seems to me that the prospects of him getting anything significant accomplished are slim to none.
5. The worst case scenario is, he gets reelected and Mike Pence has three years to establish himself. That could truly suck.
6. Forget the Supreme Court argument. The supreme court is gone gone gone. It’s right wing from now on.
7. All in all, considering everything, it makes no sense for progressives to vote for the Democratic nominee unless he or she is a progressive.
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Finally had the dem/Liberal/Fauxgressive mindset explained to me the other day. I said that Dubya had started a war without Congressional approval. “No,” I was told. “He started an action, which does not require congressional approval.” Got that? It’s okay to blow up innocent civilians, as long as you follow the rules. Trump, you see, is breaking the law, and we are a nation of laws, and the collective d/L/F mindset is now akin to that of a group of people trapped in a nightclub fire in that there is no thinking going on anymore. It’s like religion. Virgin birth, talking snakes, no scissors on the Sabbath, mountains float on water, and so forth is all accepted without question, why wouldn’t you accept that Barack Obama dropping bombs on brown people was okay because the paperwork was in order but Donald Trump using a Sharpie is a crime?
The #VoteBlueNoMatterWho people are a perfect example of this sort of woo-woo thinking. Follow the lack of logic. “I will vote Blue no matter who.” Fine. What, exactly, do the dem leadership have to do to get your vote? “Nothing. Absolutely not a thing.” So why would they bother listening to even one of your concerns if they know you’re going to vote Blue no matter who? “Um. Um. Trump is bad.” Right. But since you’ve already admitted that you’ll vote for the candidate no matter who it is, how can you participate in the process in any way? “Um. Trump is bad.”
It’s hard to accept, but a lot of people really do not have critical thinking skills. And the dem leadership have pursued and cultivated those people for decades, putting them in positions of authority. If Sanders wins, I think it will be very interesting to see how many dem “operatives” end up out of a job because they’re simply too damned stupid to be of any use.
First, Obama had style, more than any president in my memory. Trump has no style. But substance? What was the big difference? Trump says he’ll cleanse America of Hispanics, but Obama was Deporter-in-Chief, and Trump has deported far fewer per annum than Obama. Obama destroyed Libya and Syria, and Trump hasn’t started a single new shooting war (yet).
Yes, Trump is terrible, but is he worse than Secretary Clinton, who promised regime change in Russia on Day 1???
I’ll vote for Tulsi for sure, and maybe Sanders or Warren, otherwise, I’ll stay home. Heck, if it’s Biden, I might figure even Trump is better.
What “I Seriously Don’t Understand” is “Why Centrist Democrats” who insist “That Nothing Matters More Than Getting Rid of” Trump, still intrinsically trust the Dem establishment to pick the 2020 nominee*** … like it did in 2016 … and failed miserably.
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*** a non progressive nominee … if Pelosi has her way, as she has trashed progressives among the primary contenders over 700 times according to the Rolling Stone’s “The Useful Idiots” youtube video hosts Halpern & Taibbi.