Watch Out! Berniecrats Are On The Move
Submitted by gjohnsit on Thu, 10/05/2017 - 12:21pm
When you think of Alabama, progressive politics isn't normally what comes to mind.
But populist challenger Randall Woodfin, a 36-year-old former board of education president endorsed by the Bernie Sanders-backed campaign group Our Revolution, topped Bell in the first round of voting in August. On Tuesday night, Woodfin finished the job in the runoff, stunning Alabama and winning the mayor’s race comfortably — Woodfin defeated Bell with 58 percent of the vote.
...But Woodfin’s campaign did not take place in a vacuum. His election comes just months after Jackson, Mississippi — the state’s largest city — elected Chokwe Lumumba Jr., a young populist who has vowed to make it the “most radical city on the planet.”
In November, Atlanta’s voters will go to the polls to choose the next mayor. One of the candidates, former state Senate Democratic whip Vincent Fort — a longtime foe of Wall Street and the city’s Democratic establishment — is also being backed by Our Revolution, as well as Sanders.
...Should Fort succeed, the largest cities in Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia will be run by mayors running from anti-establishment to downright radical — all within the span of six months of elections.
I can't emphasize enough that this is happening in the Deep South, where establishment Dems have been telling us for decades that you must run DINO candidates to win.
However, this isn't just happening in the South.
Earlier this week in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Tim Keller, the progressive-backed candidate came in first in the mayoral race. A Republican has led New Mexico’s largest city since 2009. And in September, the five-term Republican incumbent mayor in Manchester, New Hampshire, finished second in the primary to a Democrat.
These local level wins follow recent pick-ups by Democrats in state House races, where Democrats have beaten Republican in places as conservative as Oklahoma.
And then there were local progressive victories in Red districts that you probably didn't hear about.
Unfazed by public opinion, the Colorado Springs’ corporate political network and their hard-right Christian allies headed into the April council elections with a business dream team and mountains of money, fully expecting to increase their control by winning all six of the seats up for a vote. Sure, the T4CS group had popped into view, but it was seen as just another collection of liberal losers.
But the progressive upstarts pulled off a stunning upset. Even though T4CS was outspent by at least 10-to-1, the people’s efforts prevailed. All three T4CS endorsees were elected by substantial margins, as were the two candidates it recommended.
I believe the reason progressives are winning big in Red and Purple states instead of Blue states is because the Democratic establishment is weak there.
Corporate Dems are the biggest enemies of progressives, not Republicans.
In November, Columbus, Ohio could be next in line to bump off establishment Dems.
Comments
The only surprise
is Alabama. NM and CO not so much.
OH? They may knock off Estab Dems, won't win in the General especially if Kasich switches...
DINO? Nope Blue Dog. Haven't gone away just because the "Party" kicked them out.
Prof: Nancy! I’m going to Greece!
Nancy: And swim the English Channel?
Prof: No. No. To ancient Greece where burning Sapho stood beside the wine dark sea. Wa de do da! Nancy, I’ve invented a time machine!
Firesign Theater
Stop the War!
2018, maybe not.
But consider, these and others around the country are the up and coming generation of leadership. It is up to us voters to make sure they stay honest.
Mary Bennett
We must stop thinking R v. D or left v. right. It is 99% v 1%!
chuck utzman
TULSI 2020
Bingo!
I'm great at multi-tasking. I can waste time, be unproductive, and procrastinate all at the same time.
@Socialprogressive I am reminded of a
I am reminded of a recent debate as to whether the Christian god is the same as Islam's god. As a friend noted, "Or is my imaginary friend the same as your imaginary friend?"
I like your friends line of thought.
I'm great at multi-tasking. I can waste time, be unproductive, and procrastinate all at the same time.
If two faiths both posit that there is only one God
then they must worship the same God. Mathematical law of identity. Any other POV is polytheistic. Which I'm fine with, too.
"Bi-polar? I'm Bi-winning!!!" -- Charlie Sheen
@carptrash The Jews, Christians
The Jews, Christians and Muslims are Abrahamic sects so they share a common (alleged) deity.
Right! Neither Ds nor Rs are on 'your' side
unless you are a rich bastard or a corporation.
And Bernie's Our Revolution is just a sheep dog herding progressives to the Dem slaughter house.
I won't be fooled again.
Donnie The #ShitHole Douchebag. Fake Friend to the Working Class. Real Asshole.
I Think BIG vs Little is a Simpler and More Effective Metaphor
“Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.” ~ Sun Tzu
So you're telling me there's hope?
Hope is forsaken these lands.
I'm starting to call them the DINORINO party. I haven't decided if it's pronounced "deeno-reeno" or "dyno-rhino". I kind of like the latter.
"The only way to beat a RINO is with a DINO!" We just raise enough corporate money and run enough ads, except that doesn't work.
There are a lot of DINORINO candidates, but not many voters. The 90s are over. The future belongs to the far right and the near left.
I think the observation that these are regions where the corporate Democrats are weak is astute. Additionally, the Republican apparatus in those areas may be over confident and easily surprised. That advantage won't last forever.
A win is a win and I'm happy to see it.
"The greatest shortcoming of the human race is our inability to understand the exponential function." -- Albert Bartlett
"A species that is hurtling toward extinction has no business promoting slow incremental change." -- Caitlin Johnstone
Colorado Springs
I would never have known about this except for c99. And I live in Colorado Springs. The "Colorado Springs’ corporate political network and their hard-right Christian allies" own and control all the mainstream media here.
A certain irony attends the fact that the Internet source of the article hails from Illinois. Your humble scribe has an Illinois birth certificate which states that he is rightly a Colorado Springs native. (Actually born in Rantoul; home address was in Colorado Springs and is listed on the certificate.)
EDIT: "T4CS" is Together for Colorado Springs, a progressive organization which arose to participate in the April 2017 Municipal elections. T4CS now appears to have gotten some gravitas, and is here to stay.
"US govt/military = bad. Russian govt/military = bad. Any politician wanting power = bad. Anyone wielding power = bad." --Shahryar
"All power corrupts absolutely!" -- thanatokephaloides
This is interesting
link
Sad this is even a slightly controversial position.
Pelosi etc. should have left of their own accord well before this election. But, if there was any lingering doubt, 2016 should have erased that.
And what do we know about Rep. Sánchez? Is she a good Dem or just a newer name on the same policies? Sorry to say, I can't take something like this at face value anymore.
Idolizing a politician is like believing the stripper really likes you.
Rep. Sánchez
Unless she resembles Stalin, Pol Pot, Trump, or Hitler (good afternoon, Counselor Godwin!), I can't see how she could be as bad or any worse. Some things have got to improve with getting Zombie Pelosi the hell out of there.
"US govt/military = bad. Russian govt/military = bad. Any politician wanting power = bad. Anyone wielding power = bad." --Shahryar
"All power corrupts absolutely!" -- thanatokephaloides
You'd think but...
If there's one thing the Dems have proved successful at is hitting the bottom and continuing to dig.
Idolizing a politician is like believing the stripper really likes you.
Sanchez is centrist/right.
She represents a district in Orange County, California.
"Bi-polar? I'm Bi-winning!!!" -- Charlie Sheen
Sanchez
Damn.....
"US govt/military = bad. Russian govt/military = bad. Any politician wanting power = bad. Anyone wielding power = bad." --Shahryar
"All power corrupts absolutely!" -- thanatokephaloides
Second verse, same as the first.
Sigh.
Idolizing a politician is like believing the stripper really likes you.
@Dumbo
And that would be why she's permitted to demand that she be the stand-in for Pelosi as a pretend-improvement to take the same tack?
Psychopathy is not a political position, whether labeled 'conservatism', 'centrism' or 'left'.
A tin labeled 'coffee' may be a can of worms or pathology identified by a lack of empathy/willingness to harm others to achieve personal desires.
You nailed it.
Corporate Dems are the biggest enemies of progressives, not Republicans.
This is exactly what we have to always remember going forward. Corporate Dems, or Wall St Dems Must be removed in 2018.
Neither Russia nor China is our enemy.
Neither Iran nor Venezuela are threatening America.
Cuba is a dead horse, stop beating it.
meanwhile, someone NOT of the usual sort is
running to beat Paul Ryan: https://randybryceforcongress.com
The earth is a multibillion-year-old sphere.
The Nazis killed millions of Jews.
On 9/11/01 a Boeing 757 (AA77) flew into the Pentagon.
AGCC is happening.
If you cannot accept these facts, I cannot fake an interest in any of your opinions.
Nina will be in Austin tomorrow...
'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
Omigod good news!
Can C99% handle it?
“The loyal Left cannot act decisively. Their devotion to the system is a built-in kill switch limiting dissent.” - Richard Moser
LOL
They also let republicans run unopposed in too many states
Or they don't even bother to fund candidates who are running in republican territories for some reason I haven't figured out yet.
This is good news if good democrats (as far as we know) are winning in states that usually go for republicans. If we can get rid of the old guard such as Pelosi, Schumer, Feinstein and others who have more in common with republicans, then maybe there is some hope that eventually the democrats will get back being the party of FDR.
I am still wondering why they lost so many seats during Obama's tenure. Was that deliberate and if so, why?
This is an interesting article:
The whole Democratic Party is now a smoking pile of rubble
The down-ballot party has withered, and Obama’s policy legacy will be largely repealed.
I'm not sure what this person is smoking to think this is true.
Is this good or bad news?
A lot of his legislation that was supposed to be helpful for us and the country was passed just before he left office which means that it hadn't been taken effect yet which gave the republicans the opportunity to stop it becoming law.
Like the legislation that forbids our ISP providers from selling our browsing and search patterns to third parties who then used it to send us emails about their products. And most of his other legislation.
The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the dedicated communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists.
~Hannah Arendt
You've nailed it again!
You've nailed it again! People actually want a government that works for, not against, the public. Who'da thunk?
Psychopathy is not a political position, whether labeled 'conservatism', 'centrism' or 'left'.
A tin labeled 'coffee' may be a can of worms or pathology identified by a lack of empathy/willingness to harm others to achieve personal desires.