This just in (to my inbox) from Sanders re: 2020 run

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Thu, 12/27/2018 - 3:58pm

I receive from Sanders requests for donations at least every day or two. This one is a bit different. I post it, in its entirety (except for my real life first name). Bolding is mine.

Bernie Sanders

{Henry} -

Let me take this opportunity to wish you a very happy holiday season and a wonderful new year.

Whenever I am asked about running for president in 2020, I answer that if I am the best candidate to beat Donald Trump, then I will probably run. That is the truth.

If that happens, the political, financial and media elite of this country will stop at nothing to defeat us. You know that. We’ve lived through it together once before. Our ideas terrify them. So what they will do is try to divide us up with attacks — some old, some new — and our political opponents will spend obscene sums of money on ads to defeat us.

I just did not expect the attack ads to begin before I even made a decision. But they have…

Right now, a group of Wall Street Democrats known as the Third Way is running ads in early primary states — Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada — calling me out by name and saying our ideas, like Medicare for all, are a path to defeat in 2020.

They not only want to discourage or defeat a Sanders candidacy, they want to make sure that the progressive agenda is not advanced by anyone. They want us to go back to their failed corporate approach which has led to a massive level of income and wealth inequality, a bloated military budget and a failure to address the crises of climate change, a broken criminal justice system and inhumane immigration policies.

Last time we ran, we made the financial elite pay a price for their attacks on our progressive agenda. It is just as important we do it again today:

Make a $400 donation to our campaign to help us fight back and send a message that we will NOT let the political and financial elite of this country buy this election and scare candidates from supporting a progressive agenda.

Our agenda terrifies the political and financial establishment of this country.

But the truth is, their agenda should terrify all of us.

Our ideas will lift people out of poverty, they will guarantee health care as a right for every man, woman and child, and they will make certain that every person in this country with the ability and the desire can get the education they need, regardless of the income of their family.

Ours is not a radical agenda. It's the agenda the American people want.

Their agenda, paid for by wealthy campaign contributors, has led to record levels of inequality, a health care system that costs more per capita than any other developed nation while leaving millions uninsured and underinsured, and grotesque amounts of student debt that rob many of our young people of their futures.

Theirs is the agenda that made Donald Trump possible. Ours is the agenda that will defeat him.

And that’s why it’s so important progressives stand up to their attacks today:

Make a $400 donation to our campaign as a way of saying we will NOT let the political and financial elite scare candidates from supporting a progressive agenda. Make them pay a price for their attacks.

In 2016 we faced the kitchen sink. If we run again, you should expect no less. But the political revolution is stronger and larger than ever, and they will be no match for us if we’re in this fight together.

In solidarity,

Bernie Sanders

DONATE

*Ducks for cover while rapidly exiting left.*

Tags:

Bernie Sanders Trump Third Way 2020 Presidential election

Vote

Comments

Submitted by Anja Geitz on Thu, 12/27/2018 - 8:18pm

Ok, thanks for the clarification

@HenryAWallace

I'm at work now and no time for a more thoughtful comment. Will try later if I can.

—

There is always Music amongst the trees in the Garden, but our hearts must be very quiet to hear it. ~ Minnie Aumonier

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Thu, 12/27/2018 - 8:38pm

Your comments are always welcome and well worth reading.

@Anja Geitz

Submitted by Anja Geitz on Thu, 12/27/2018 - 9:54pm

That's very generous

@HenryAWallace

Of you to say. I feel the same about yours as well.

—

There is always Music amongst the trees in the Garden, but our hearts must be very quiet to hear it. ~ Minnie Aumonier

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Fri, 12/28/2018 - 4:46am

Thank you!

@Anja Geitz

Submitted by Fionnsboy on Thu, 12/27/2018 - 10:30pm

--and immediately forwarded it to one of my brothers, and a dear friend, with whom I went to see Bernie twice, in Portland, ME, and Boston, my hometown. Those were the days! lol I want to see him run, will support him if he does, and not the least of my reasons for doing so is to watch the Haters over at TOP justify not supporting him once he becomes the nominee, if in fact he does-- I put nothing past the DNC, Third Way, etc, which would (as I said back in 2016) no doubt prefer losing to Trump again (though more likely it will be Romney or Kasich this time, I daresay) than winning with Bernie. All the calumny, vitriol, and distaste in the world is not enough to express my disdain for both them and their revolting lot of Bookers, Harrisses, Patricks (I think Mr. Bain Capital is out now though) Wasserman-Schultzes and the like, these despicable caterpillars of the commonwealth. As I've mentioned to my friends a million times, while I loathe the repubs and mostly agree with Chomsky (who called them the most dangerous force in the world) my most fiery ire is reserved for the dims, who should and do know better. A pox upon them and their identity politics! (And please pay no attention to those times when they conveniently fling those various groups under the bus when it suits them to do so, i.e., welfare 'reform,' three strikes and you're out, don't ask, don't tell, Heritage Foundation Care (aka 'Obamacare, aka Romney Care)cabinet picks, SCOTUS picks, etc etc etc. The plain truth is, Bernie, despite past transgressions (supporting HER, not saying shit when he had a mouthful of it courtesy of the DNC) is the very best of a bad bunch. Get ready for the David Brock-esque smears ("He's out of touch with communities of color," "He's sexist," "He's too old," "He wrote an essay about a rape fantasy" etc etc, and the real opposition will come from centrist Dims themselves, the NPR/NY Times crowd. But fuck them. Fuck them and their Russia screeds. Fuck them and their Neoliberalism, their addiction to war, wall street, and corporate cash. Fuck everything about them. At least republicans never try to hide the fact that they're as loathsome and traitorous as they are.

—

Semper ubi sub ubi

Submitted by smiley7 on Fri, 12/28/2018 - 1:24am

Yes, Bernie is best, better than ice-scream ...

@Fionnsboy

Facebook minions blast away in bitter taste, so is the challenge; good or evil? Ready, beyond ready ....

Fuck 'em!

Join hands.

--and immediately forwarded it to one of my brothers, and a dear friend, with whom I went to see Bernie twice, in Portland, ME, and Boston, my hometown. Those were the days! lol I want to see him run, will support him if he does, and not the least of my reasons for doing so is to watch the Haters over at TOP justify not supporting him once he becomes the nominee, if in fact he does-- I put nothing past the DNC, Third Way, etc, which would (as I said back in 2016) no doubt prefer losing to Trump again (though more likely it will be Romney or Kasich this time, I daresay) than winning with Bernie. All the calumny, vitriol, and distaste in the world is not enough to express my disdain for both them and their revolting lot of Bookers, Harrisses, Patricks (I think Mr. Bain Capital is out now though) Wasserman-Schultzes and the like, these despicable caterpillars of the commonwealth. As I've mentioned to my friends a million times, while I loathe the repubs and mostly agree with Chomsky (who called them the most dangerous force in the world) my most fiery ire is reserved for the dims, who should and do know better. A pox upon them and their identity politics! (And please pay no attention to those times when they conveniently fling those various groups under the bus when it suits them to do so, i.e., welfare 'reform,' three strikes and you're out, don't ask, don't tell, Heritage Foundation Care (aka 'Obamacare, aka Romney Care)cabinet picks, SCOTUS picks, etc etc etc. The plain truth is, Bernie, despite past transgressions (supporting HER, not saying shit when he had a mouthful of it courtesy of the DNC) is the very best of a bad bunch. Get ready for the David Brock-esque smears ("He's out of touch with communities of color," "He's sexist," "He's too old," "He wrote an essay about a rape fantasy" etc etc, and the real opposition will come from centrist Dims themselves, the NPR/NY Times crowd. But fuck them. Fuck them and their Russia screeds. Fuck them and their Neoliberalism, their addiction to war, wall street, and corporate cash. Fuck everything about them. At least republicans never try to hide the fact that they're as loathsome and traitorous as they are.

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Sat, 12/29/2018 - 1:03am

I know you didn't mean to, but you just reminded me of

@smiley7

a post I used to see again and again about Gore.

He's rested. He's ready.

Submitted by Fionnsboy on Fri, 12/28/2018 - 3:07pm

@Fionnsboy As my sainted father

@Fionnsboy As my sainted father would say,"God damn it, why am I always right?" A few hours after I wrote this, someone on FB posted a scurrilous NYT piece about how Bernie won't be able to attract the same large following should he run in 2020. It's starting again! Bastard-covered bastards, with bastard filling.....

--and immediately forwarded it to one of my brothers, and a dear friend, with whom I went to see Bernie twice, in Portland, ME, and Boston, my hometown. Those were the days! lol I want to see him run, will support him if he does, and not the least of my reasons for doing so is to watch the Haters over at TOP justify not supporting him once he becomes the nominee, if in fact he does-- I put nothing past the DNC, Third Way, etc, which would (as I said back in 2016) no doubt prefer losing to Trump again (though more likely it will be Romney or Kasich this time, I daresay) than winning with Bernie. All the calumny, vitriol, and distaste in the world is not enough to express my disdain for both them and their revolting lot of Bookers, Harrisses, Patricks (I think Mr. Bain Capital is out now though) Wasserman-Schultzes and the like, these despicable caterpillars of the commonwealth. As I've mentioned to my friends a million times, while I loathe the repubs and mostly agree with Chomsky (who called them the most dangerous force in the world) my most fiery ire is reserved for the dims, who should and do know better. A pox upon them and their identity politics! (And please pay no attention to those times when they conveniently fling those various groups under the bus when it suits them to do so, i.e., welfare 'reform,' three strikes and you're out, don't ask, don't tell, Heritage Foundation Care (aka 'Obamacare, aka Romney Care)cabinet picks, SCOTUS picks, etc etc etc. The plain truth is, Bernie, despite past transgressions (supporting HER, not saying shit when he had a mouthful of it courtesy of the DNC) is the very best of a bad bunch. Get ready for the David Brock-esque smears ("He's out of touch with communities of color," "He's sexist," "He's too old," "He wrote an essay about a rape fantasy" etc etc, and the real opposition will come from centrist Dims themselves, the NPR/NY Times crowd. But fuck them. Fuck them and their Russia screeds. Fuck them and their Neoliberalism, their addiction to war, wall street, and corporate cash. Fuck everything about them. At least republicans never try to hide the fact that they're as loathsome and traitorous as they are.

—

Semper ubi sub ubi

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Sat, 12/29/2018 - 12:56am

Being right is not always satisfying.

@Fionnsboy

I think the author of that article has been linked to Neera Tanden at Podesta's think tank. Ah, yes, here it is:

https://twitter.com/davidsirota/status/1078090505156608000

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Sat, 12/29/2018 - 1:01am

Of the President, the Senate, the House, the Pentagon and the

@Fionnsboy

rest of that mess, Bernie is far and away the best. That one gets disappointed now and again does not negate that. I don't know of any leftist who has said otherwise.

--and immediately forwarded it to one of my brothers, and a dear friend, with whom I went to see Bernie twice, in Portland, ME, and Boston, my hometown. Those were the days! lol I want to see him run, will support him if he does, and not the least of my reasons for doing so is to watch the Haters over at TOP justify not supporting him once he becomes the nominee, if in fact he does-- I put nothing past the DNC, Third Way, etc, which would (as I said back in 2016) no doubt prefer losing to Trump again (though more likely it will be Romney or Kasich this time, I daresay) than winning with Bernie. All the calumny, vitriol, and distaste in the world is not enough to express my disdain for both them and their revolting lot of Bookers, Harrisses, Patricks (I think Mr. Bain Capital is out now though) Wasserman-Schultzes and the like, these despicable caterpillars of the commonwealth. As I've mentioned to my friends a million times, while I loathe the repubs and mostly agree with Chomsky (who called them the most dangerous force in the world) my most fiery ire is reserved for the dims, who should and do know better. A pox upon them and their identity politics! (And please pay no attention to those times when they conveniently fling those various groups under the bus when it suits them to do so, i.e., welfare 'reform,' three strikes and you're out, don't ask, don't tell, Heritage Foundation Care (aka 'Obamacare, aka Romney Care)cabinet picks, SCOTUS picks, etc etc etc. The plain truth is, Bernie, despite past transgressions (supporting HER, not saying shit when he had a mouthful of it courtesy of the DNC) is the very best of a bad bunch. Get ready for the David Brock-esque smears ("He's out of touch with communities of color," "He's sexist," "He's too old," "He wrote an essay about a rape fantasy" etc etc, and the real opposition will come from centrist Dims themselves, the NPR/NY Times crowd. But fuck them. Fuck them and their Russia screeds. Fuck them and their Neoliberalism, their addiction to war, wall street, and corporate cash. Fuck everything about them. At least republicans never try to hide the fact that they're as loathsome and traitorous as they are.

Submitted by dervish on Fri, 12/28/2018 - 1:16am

Y'all are a bunch of Russians! n/t

—

"Obama promised transparency, but Assange is the one who brought it."

Submitted by Centaurea on Fri, 12/28/2018 - 3:20am

So I have been informed

@dervish @dervish
So I have been informed by strangers on FaceBook.

The first time was when I explained what was in the DNC emails leaked to Wikileaks (response: "Those are Russian talking points!"), and again when I posted a link to a Caity Johnstone piece in which she asserted that the "liberal" Dem base has lost its marbles. Some poor guy went ballistic, insisting I was a Russian troll using a fake FB account. Kind of proved Caity's point, I thought.

—

"Don't go back to sleep ... Don't go back to sleep ... Don't go back to sleep."
~Rumi

"If you want revolution, be it."
~Caitlin Johnstone

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Fri, 12/28/2018 - 4:52am

That would mean that they had marbles to lose.

@Centaurea

And that their current statements are sincere, as opposed to shilling.

I am not sure either is so.

Submitted by Pluto's Republic on Fri, 12/28/2018 - 2:39pm

This post and its comments are great

...in so many intricate ways.

What an honest and fascinating community this is.

Champagne all around!

—

____________________

The political system is what it is because the People are who they are. — Plato

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Sat, 12/29/2018 - 12:42am

I am glad that you enjoyed the thread.

@Pluto's Republic

I thought some of the replies and their upvotes were quite dishonest. That's what makes a horse race, I guess. (Yet another expression I don't get: Horse and jockeys make the horse race. Differences of opinion about the outcome of the race cause the betting results. I know, I know. I'm too literal. I cannot deny it and no one would believe me if I did.)

Submitted by Big Al on Fri, 12/28/2018 - 3:12pm

Sum total of money I've donated to politicians in my entire

life: 0 Actually I might have checked that "presidential campaign box" on the tax return form once, but can't recall for sure.

I guess there's always the first time, but I don't see it happening.

Does that make me a bad person? Someone who doesn't participate in democracy? I don't think so, in fact, those that do donate are like church people to me, listening to the latest preacher who needs another Porsche for his wife. I think it's stupid and shows how stupid how political system is at it's very foundation.
Money for politicians.

Submitted by dervish on Fri, 12/28/2018 - 7:40pm

You get what you pay for... n/t

@Big Al

—

"Obama promised transparency, but Assange is the one who brought it."

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Fri, 12/28/2018 - 10:23pm

(-:

@dervish

A donor can often co-opt a legislator for remarkably little. Sometimes merely the fear of annoying potential donors keeps a legislator in line. So, donors often get much more than the donor pays for.

Meanwhile all taxpayers are paying for the massive, incredibly costly shit show we laughingly call federal government, with its buildings, embassies, spies and other "presences" in D.C. and every state and territory, especially Utah, and quite a few foreign countries--and interest on debt to China. And the majority of taxpayers get nothing to very little that is positive for their money.

Like some people, some dollars are much more equal than others.

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Fri, 12/28/2018 - 10:25pm

You and my blue no matter who friend have that in common:

@Big Al

no money for politicians ever. I csn't seem to get the hang of it.

Submitted by MrWebster on Fri, 12/28/2018 - 4:24pm

Bernie's value is as an ideological leader, not a candidate

Well, corporate democrats and their allies in the media have started an agiprop campaign against Bernie now rather than waiting until the primaries. I hope Bernie the candidate wins democratic primaries. I think he will be cheated again. But also, the democratic party base may believe in progressive policies, but Hillary proved they will not vote for those policies. Bernie is important as he has given progressive candidates a program and agenda. The smear campaign has just started in earnest.

Submitted by TheOtherMaven on Fri, 12/28/2018 - 6:39pm

I'm not sure 2016 "proved" anything

@MrWebster

except that the people who actually run the Democratic Party(TM) are rotten to the core and corrupt as hell. When they didn't like the results - sometimes even just the projected results - they fucked with them until they liked the outcome.

—

There is no justice. There can be no peace.

Submitted by janis b on Fri, 12/28/2018 - 4:53pm

Nice commentary you've generated and contributed, Henry

A little sorry though for some of the misunderstanding you received. I wondered if you were getting some of peoples misplaced anger at Bernie. Anything I’ve read here at c99 by you I have found to be extremely well informed, appreciative and inclusive of others, and totally respectful.

Submitted by HenryAWallace on Fri, 12/28/2018 - 5:55pm

Thank you so much, janis! All nice words are welcome,

@janis b

especially on a message board, but, let's be honest: Nice words mean more coming from some people than from others. For me, you are definitely one of the people from whom nice words mean quite a lot. You've given me a great start to the weekend. Much appreciated.