The Time To Ditch Bernie Is Now

Headline in today's The Hill: Sanders: "Clinton Will Play Vital Role In Future Of The Democratic Party."

So, now that the lingering "will he, or won't he run in 2020" doubt is settled, it's time to put Bernie in a nostalgia basket and push on. Apparently, his run really was a well-scripted sheepdogging effort to herd lefties and Millennials into the Killary fold. Look at the wreckage left in the wake: shellshocked Bernie delegates, tossed aside by the DNC; betrayed and poorer supporters who, once again, drank the Cool-aid of hope and real change; Trumpism now rules the land; third party dreams dashed. I don't have any answers. All I know is: the demoralization is complete and the Democratic party is dead.

http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign306532-sanders-clinton-will-play-vit...

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that whether or not they actually should, the Clintons and their ilk will be playing a major role in the party? Is Bernie in any kind of position to deny them?

Stating the obvious doesn't always mean endorsing it.

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They say that there's a broken light for every heart on Broadway
They say that life's a game and then they take the board away
They give you masks and costumes and an outline of the story
And leave you all to improvise their vicious cabaret-- A. Moore

ggersh's picture

most likely he never could, but the election is over, the party got trounced,
it now has only 18 gov's. Just 6 years ago they had majorities in both houses, so I ask you as an indie why would you even want her in the party?

The party is a party for who? it's so she has a platform for her foundation
none of it makes any sense. Why have "our revolution" "brand new congress" is she gonna lead any of that?

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I never knew that the term "Never Again" only pertained to
those born Jewish

"Antisemite used to be someone who didn't like Jews
now it's someone who Jews don't like"

Heard from Margaret Kimberley

who do we court?

My guess is that if we had Bernies agenda and him as pres most would be willing to call ourselves Dems.

Bernie is the only reason I registered dem, was green, indy WFP the rest of my life.

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ggersh's picture

but we don't and those that lead the party aren't for you and aren't for me
all they care about is the next fundraiser.

How can a DINO be the leader of the D party, a closet republican is the minority leader of the D party.

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I never knew that the term "Never Again" only pertained to
those born Jewish

"Antisemite used to be someone who didn't like Jews
now it's someone who Jews don't like"

Heard from Margaret Kimberley

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

CambridgePulsar1919's picture

About that new 'sheepdogging' position with the Dems...

Sanders has acknowledged that he is still foggy on what the new role will entail but sketched out his early thoughts on how he might handle it.

“The real action to transform America won’t take place on Capitol Hill, it will be in the grassroots America among millions struggling economically and young people,” Sanders said.

“I initially understand my role to be to get those people into the political process to demand the U.S. Congress and government and president represent all of the people and not just those on top. I’m excited about it, but how we go about it, I don’t know,” he added.

“Why is it that tens of millions of poor people, young people and working people don’t get involved in the political process? One of the goals is to bring people into politics and make them aware it’s not just Election Day, but the other 364 days of the year are also important.”

http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/senate/306528-sanders-wont-join-de...

sounds like he's continuing his role as the world's worst neoliberal sheepdog

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Big Al's picture

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the truth about Bernie? Keep that candle berning in the window for him. But when and if he ever makes a move, backing up his speeches with action, the train will have left the station and so will his supporter's trust. To have an affect on the 2018 and 2020 elections, Bernie needs to act now! Calling "Mr. Wall Street" the best person for the job of uniting the Dem party, and stating that Shillary will play a major role in shaping the party in the future, exhibits not only tone deafness but major stupidity. Bernie was just the best liar in the room, like Obama, and that's why he's such a good sheepdog. "One of the help", as Hill might say. Why he's so slavishly loyal to Dems, even though he's an Independent, is beyond my understanding.

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Cassiodorus's picture

We need to press him on the Podesta emails though, and on what his backup plan is for the future, because his backup plan for this year (endorse Clinton) sucked.

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"The war on Gaza, backed by the West, is a demonstration that the West is willing to cross all lines. That it will discard any nuance of humanity. That it is willing to commit genocide" -- Moon of Alabama

the same as 2016: bring dissident lefties into the Dem fold so another corporate Dem can unseat Trump, because Trump is the greater of two evils. Don't expect the flyover deplorables to see it Bernie's way, though.

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Cassiodorus's picture

there will be a concerted effort to impress upon Sanders how completely failed his post-July strategies have been. It's not as if nobody is noticing this. Jane Sanders has it thrown in her face in July and now Bernie wants to pretend it was a success?

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"The war on Gaza, backed by the West, is a demonstration that the West is willing to cross all lines. That it will discard any nuance of humanity. That it is willing to commit genocide" -- Moon of Alabama

Looks that way, doesn't it.

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us do or can know the motive(s) of another person, even if that person tells us the alleged motive(s).

My thoughts and those of all who replied are here, if anyone really wants to see them, but, my advice is, don't bother clicking.

http://caucus99percent.com/content/my-inner-journey-sanders-date
http://caucus99percent.com/content/my-inner-journey-sanders-date-phase-2
http://caucus99percent.com/content/spoiler-candidates-and-protest-votes-...

We all learned valuable things from his run, like how much money can be raised from small donors in the face of opposition from both the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. Let's remember those things as we think about ways to move forward.

As for working within the Democratic Party: Whether Sanders is authentic about believing in working within the Party or not doesn't seem relevant. If you, thinking independently of Sanders, believe that changing the Democratic Party from within is more than a dream, go for it, with my blessing. If you think it's a pipe dream, I agree with you and maybe that is a basis for us and people like us to work together.

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Cassiodorus's picture

And a new plan to get us a new party.

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"The war on Gaza, backed by the West, is a demonstration that the West is willing to cross all lines. That it will discard any nuance of humanity. That it is willing to commit genocide" -- Moon of Alabama

when I had a chunk of time to digest it and think about it. Unfortunately, that may not be for a while.

I didn't want to say anything negative about the Green Party before the election. I desperately wanted them to get 5% of the popular vote because I believed that was the most powerful thing we could do with our votes this time, little as that was, and I don't believe in sending mixed messages. However, with the election over, I can speak more freely. FWIW, I agree with you that Green is not the way to go. It's as though they try not to get votes.

I think it has to be at least two pronged, though, namely, also finding ways to reach out to the right one issue at a time. As you know, although many newer parties formed after 1854, none of them had much success. So, it's formidable.

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Green is not the way to go. It's as though they try not to get votes.

That people who know them well would rather start from nothing.
I think I will write them a weekly letter asking GP to show here and take questions.

Site owner did this in June and got zero back. He is still wanting them to come on.
I'll see if they respond in 10 weeks. Should be warmed up by week 10 .

thx.

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MsGrin's picture

He's leading the resistence against Trump's nonsense at this point. Sheesh.

He's trying to get the asshat Clinton supporters to follow him to meet up with the Progressive center so we can move the country to meet the needs of the majority of Americans. He's trying to unite the country - he got cheated out of the presidency, but he's THE leader who's emerging to fight for little people, so if you want to throw him away now, good luck with what else has materialized out there.

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'What we are left with is an agency mandated to ensure transparency and disclosure that is actually working to keep the public in the dark' - Ann M. Ravel, former FEC member

Cant Stop the Macedonian Signal's picture

you can bet that the opposition to Trump is going to be cosmetic, and engineered so as to effectively create a credibility generator for the Democrats.

Racism perpetrated by Republicans is the Democratic party's moral alibi. In order to embrace it, one must ignore, or sweep under the carpet, all instances of Democratic racism. One must also detach any economic component of racism and flush it down the memory hole, because the whole point of focusing on racism is to obscure issues of class. At least, that's how it is in the Obama/Clinton/Schumer DNC model of addressing racism.

Also, as a memo from Pelosi circulated around the House once said: make sure and nod sympathetically when Black people talk about racism to you, but don't express support for any specific policies.

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"More for Gore or the son of a drug lord--None of the above, fuck it, cut the cord."
--Zack de la Rocha

"I tell you I'll have nothing to do with the place...The roof of that hall is made of bones."
-- Fiver

PriceRip's picture

          I find this rather long (178 comments and counting, and I haven't read them all) discussion rather confusing. The whole "Bernie Bros" nonsense at TOP was about the perception that there were those that deified Bernie. Not every, but enough, comments suggest a level of disappointment with Bernie that I find disturbing, as they suggest Bernie owed his "followers" something.

          Some time ago someone mentioned that Bernie was playing n-dimensional chess (with n ≫ 2). I responded with a cryptic, "I am three moves ahead of him, Blah, Blah, Blah." The retort was a bit snarky, suggesting a lack of communication on my part, and convincing me to "bug out". You see, I was never in the frame of mind that could have ever lead me to the point of declaring, "The Time To Ditch Bernie Is Now". I cannot even, at this time, wrap my feeble brain around this notion. I do not understand why anyone would think Bernie's actions should conform to their expectations. But, be that as it may . . .

          The larger issue is: What value (if any) did Bernie bring to the process. Clearly he did something right. There were a great number of very large rallies wherein he was the featured speaker. Why didn't others (like #BLM as just one example) latch onto the pattern like a remora. Why was there ever a conversation (perpetrating lies) about how Bernie didn't support this group or that group. Screw the MSM, each and every "this group or that group" should have followed his lead. Nobody took advantage of the momentum by tying their special interests to Bernie. Rather there was "stupid talk" about how Bernie had not yet said the "right words". They (this is particularly true of #BLM) should have had their own rallies saying all the right words and linking same to Bernie by pointing out how their issues matched Bernie's rhetoric and interests.

          We shouldn't be in this situation. This "Groundhog Day" cycle of bullshit.

          We wouldn't be in this situation if the fractured population of progressives hadn't wasted their time bitching about process when there was a path to victory staring them in the face.

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