O'Malley Warns Dems: 2016 Is 'Not a Slam Dunk.'

'In his first public appearance since suspending his presidential campaign last month, former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley warned that the general election is not a "slam-dunk" for Democrats even in the face of Donald Trump's polarizing candidacy and possible nomination by Republicans.

"I believe the level of anger in our country is such that, yes, this is not a slam dunk," O'Malley said at a forum hosted by the Georgetown Institute of Politics.

"There's a certain smugness inside the beltway in Washington. So I think we have our work cut out for us. This could be a very, very defining moment in the life of our republic."

O'Malley said that Democrats "have our work cut out for us, both in calling out fascism with clarity, without being shrill, without being angry ourselves," but also in offering a positive vision for the country.

"Just as importantly, we have to tell the larger story of how these decisions we make together will affect your lives and your kids lives," he said.

While he was sounding the alarm on Trump's potential strength in the general electrion, O'Malley also targeted the Democratic Party as partly to blame for the GOP frontrunner's rise. The erstwhile Democratic underdog sharply criticized Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, though not by name, for, he said, unilaterally deciding to delay the start of the Democratic debates until the late fall.

"It was a great disservice to the republic, actually, that we let that immigrant-bashing carnival barker, fascist demagogue Donald Trump have full run" of the media coverage of the election through the summer, O'Malley said.

Trump, he added, "grew into a phenomenon over those summer months, while we heard nothing from the Democratic Party," and when the Democratic candidates did debate, the events were scheduled at inconvenient times when Americans were unlikely to watch. That schedule did indeed draw criticism not just from O'Malley but also from Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders' campaign, both of which charged that Wasserman Schultz and the Democratic establishment were trying to inappropriately protect Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton by effectively hiding the debates.'>>>

http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2016-election/o-malley-warns-dems-2016-not-slam-dunk-n544276

First, the weekend debates drew in high viewership, and second, I live on the West Coast. Most of the debates started while I was still at work. People on the East Coast gripe when things start late, so it's best to have them at times the whole country can watch.

We've been pretty horrified. I know some BOBs who thought he was a joke, but not any actual Dems.

Unlike some who were convinced he was "the lesser of two evils"--I mean how stupid do you gotta be?

which I found out today in a discussion about our economic future, the future of our company, and the hate crimes. He seems sure the hate crimes will stop soon as they create more jobs in rural areas and rust belt cities and more Trumpers get back to work.

There are a lot of unlikely people who quietly voted Trump without telling anyone. They wanted us to feel complacent and planned it to inflict surprise upon us.

"Do it! DO IT!"

Many tried to warn them and they didn't listen. They have only themselves to blame for this mess.