and the first on the list was health care. I think we should lead with that one since voters from both parties want that.

It's a right wing lie, and it would be nice if nominal Democrats would stop trying to shop that shit around to Democrats.

I'll say it again:

Here are a few things we clearly stand for:

We stand for fiscal responsibility. We fix the economy every time Republicans trash it. Which is every time Republicans are in power.

We stand for women. We fight for their rights to sovereignty over their bodies, we pass legislation to equalize pay and opportunity, we support the social services that are most used by single woman heads of households, among other things.

We stand for people of color. Again, we pass legislation for equalization of pay and opportunity. We speak out against the rank racism of republicans. We don't welcome the kkk among our ranks. WE believe that Black Lives Matter, though some progressives and all republicans don't.

We stand for peace. We do not pick fights with nuclear madmen, and we don't start wars for no reason. We maintain productive and respectful relationships with other countries.

We stand for the disabled and the elderly and the poor. We protect and increase the social services that keep the elderly from destitution and keep the poor from starvation and homelessness. We pass legislation to equalize opportunity for the disabled.

We stand for the environment. We fight for protected spaces and against the rape of the earth simply for profit. We legislate subsidies and opportunity zones for clean energy companies. We respect the laws we have that protect the environment.

We stand for families. We pass legislation to allow parents to insure their children. We support people who cannot work because they are raising disabled children. We stand for FMLA and the right of families to plan their size. We stand for family leave and equal pay for female breadwinners. We stand for good schools.

We stand for access to affordable, quality medical care for all.

We stand for fairness in elections and protection of the franchise. We fight voter suppression. We fight gerrymandering. We are the only ones demanding answers on the Russian interference in our elections.

And PS: The Democratic Party was standing for all of these things a long time before Independent Senator Sanders said anything about them.

That's to name only a few. So just cut that shit out of saying "we don't stand for anything."

I know all of your points. I, too, have heard them for decades. It looks like a convention platform, which is what we do need. But those points are, shall we say, sleepers. They imply a kind of evolutionary, painless shift. They're easy to read and easy to forget.

My belabored intention is to cut to the chase and slam the electorate with four hard, concise proposals for ACTION-- and drive them home with relentless, concrete messaging. Tax reform revisited is a must. Increasing taxes on the wealthy and corporations isn't a nice idea. It's a mandatory survival mechanism that makes the rest of the Democratic Party agenda possible. Without it, we're all fucked.

One more thing: Sanders came into the political limelight in 2016 because there existed a void in the regular Democratic Party. There SHOULD have been a Democrat beating the drum every day, but there wasn't. Sanders did his homework and knew that his message would resonate. And it did. So don't dismiss Sanders. He did the Dems a big favor by being their mouthpiece when the Dems couldn't come up with one. HRC? She was both a pre-ordained "winner" and a johnny-come-lately who had to co-opt Sanders' message when she knew that he was catching on. For myself, I could have voted for either one. They're both way better than the Russian agent we have now.

swear it never happened, those who are surprised have to be pretty dim.