2016 Postmortem
Related: About this forumWhy Radicals Like Bernie Sanders Should Run As Democrats, Not Independents ...
This is a thread in the Bernie Group that I would have liked on, but I can't ... so I'll do it here.
A Bernie run would poses an interesting view of the Left ...
In the wake of his announcement, some on the pragmatic left rushed to make the socialist safe for mass consumption. Bernie Sanders is not Bukharin or Trotsky, Rolling Stones Matt Taibbi assured readers, while Thor Benson took to the New Republic to demand the media stop calling Sanders a socialist (hes a democratic socialist). The Huffington Posts Jonathan Cohn went even further. Sanders isnt actually that far to the left, Cohn said, and ultimately, the label doesnt mean a whole lot anyway.
Taibbi, Benson, and Cohn ... widely championed on these pages as "true progressives" are considered the "pragmatic Left" ... but, others like Smith and Swanson consider Bernie as a sell-out or not the true deal.
This split can't be good for the Democratic Party or the anti-republican party ... So, I would love for a radical like Bernie run as a REPUBLICAN ... it wouldn't be that difficult to frame his language to be consistent with the republican party's stated "ideals" and "principles" ... and it would get the left's message out to working class republicans that are voting against their interests because they are just voting against the "D".
NYC_SKP
(68,644 posts)Link: http://inthesetimes.com/article/17948/bernie_sanders_democrats
Key part of article you left out:
1StrongBlackMan
(31,849 posts)to do with my post.
NYC_SKP
(68,644 posts)is all that matters.
1StrongBlackMan
(31,849 posts)Bernie run as a republican ... He would pick up all the working class "I'll never vote for a Democrat" republicans, a significant portion of working class republican leaning independents, and ALL of DU!
NYC_SKP
(68,644 posts)He's easy to relate to.
Nobody out there can relate to a jet setting self-promoting, doesn't-have-a-message, professional millionaire politician.
Bernie, they will feel and understand his message.
1StrongBlackMan
(31,849 posts)because they feel him?
Yeah, right!
Can I have some of what you are smoking/drinking?
pnwmom
(108,997 posts)NYC_SKP
(68,644 posts)Hillary is scripted, always, and it shows.
And it's usually empty rhetoric, absent any specific plans or promises.
Or example, when asked about her plan to take money from Super PACS, Hillary Clinton said:
"We do have a plan. We have a plan for my plan."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2015/04/14/hillary-clinton-we-do-have-a-plan-for-campaign-finance-reform/
cali
(114,904 posts)He has caucused with the dems for 25 years. His voting record is more dem than a huge number of titular dems. His governing philosophy aligns with dems like FDR. And there are practical reasons as well; the repuke field is crowded with something like 20 batshit crazy potential candidates elbowing each other for the most wingnutty soundbite. It would look and be nothing but a stunt.
dumb, dumb and dumber idea for Bernie to run as a repub.
Bluenorthwest
(45,319 posts)Bernie Sanders, on the other hand has been in Congress caucusing with the Democrats since 1991. How radical.
delrem
(9,688 posts)Nice job of hitting the buttons.
1StrongBlackMan
(31,849 posts)delrem
(9,688 posts)1StrongBlackMan
(31,849 posts)I didn't write the article ... and you clearly did not read the article (or apparently, my OP either) if you are taking issue with those terms. But, felt the need to comment anyway?
delrem
(9,688 posts)AgingAmerican
(12,958 posts)...apparently
delrem
(9,688 posts)AgingAmerican
(12,958 posts)No they can't, because it's impossible to prove a negative.
libdem4life
(13,877 posts)hint of the political rhetoric of those quoted above. Pretty sure he doesn't believe in pink unicorns either.
onecaliberal
(32,902 posts)Autumn
(45,120 posts)WDIM
(1,662 posts)onecaliberal
(32,902 posts)libdem4life
(13,877 posts)NYC_SKP
(68,644 posts)You wrote:
This split can't be good for the Democratic Party or the anti-republican party ... So, I would love for a radical like Bernie run as a REPUBLICAN ... it wouldn't be that difficult to frame his language to be consistent with the republican party's stated "ideals" and "principles" ... and it would get the left's message out to working class republicans that are voting against their interests because they are just voting against the "D".
Exactly what are Sanders' positions that you find consistent with running as a Republican???
1StrongBlackMan
(31,849 posts)The pursuit of opportunity has defined America from our very beginning. This is a land of opportunity. The American Dream is a dream of equal opportunity for all. And the Republican Party is the party of opportunity.
Today, that American Dream is at risk.
Our nation faces unprecedented uncertainty with great fiscal and economic challenges, and under the current Administration has suffered through the longest and most severe economic downturn since the Great Depression.
Many Americans have experienced the burden of lost jobs, lost homes, and lost hopes. Our middle class has felt that burden most acutely. Meanwhile, the federal government has expanded its size and scope, its borrowing and spending, its debt and deficit. Federalism is threatened and liberty retreats.
For the world, this has been four years of lost American leadership, leadership that depends upon economic vitality and peace through strength.
Put simply: The times call for trustworthy leadership and honest talk about the challenges we face. Our nation and our people cannot afford the status quo. We must begin anew, with profound changes in the way government operates; the way it budgets, taxes, and regulates. Jeffersons vision of a wise and frugal government must be restored.
Providence has put us at the fork in the road, and we must answer the question: If not us, who? If not now, when?
That is the choice facing the American people this November. Every voter will be asked to choose between the chronic high unemployment and the unsustainable debt produced by a big government entitlement society, or a positive, optimistic view of an opportunity society, where any American who works hard, dreams big and follows the rules can achieve anything he or she wants.
The American people possess vast reserves of courage and determination and the capacity to hear the truth and chart a strong course. They are eager for the opportunity to take on lifes challenges and, through faith and hard work, transform the future for the better. They are the most generous people on earth, giving sacrificially of their time, talent, and treasure.
This platform affirms that America has always been a place of grand dreams and even grander realities; and so it will be again, if we return government to its proper role, making it smaller and smarter. If we restructure governments most important domestic programs to avoid their fiscal collapse. If we keep taxation, litigation, and regulation to a minimum. If we celebrate success, entrepreneurship, and innovation. If we lift up the middle class. If we hand over to the next generation a legacy of growth and prosperity, rather than entitlements and indebtedness.
That same commitment must be present both here at home and abroad. We are a party that knows the difference between international acclaim and world leadership. We will lift the torch of freedom and democracy to inspire all those who would be free. As President Reagan issued the clarion call to tear down this Wall, so must we always stand against tyranny and oppression. We will always support and cherish our men and women in uniform who defend our liberties with their lives.
As we embark upon this critical mission, we are not without guidance. We possess an owners manual: the Constitution of the United States, the greatest political document ever written. That sacred document shows us the path forward. Trust the people. Limit government. Respect federalism. Guarantee opportunity, not outcomes. Adhere to the rule of law. Reaffirm that our rights come from God, are protected by government, and that the only just government is one that truly governs with the consent of the governed.
The principles written in the Constitution are secured by the character of the American people. President George Washington said in his first inaugural address: The propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained. Values matter. Character counts.
Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan understand these great truths. They share a positive vision for America a vision of America renewed and strong. They know Americas best days lay ahead. It will take honest results-oriented, conservative leadership to enact good policies for our people. They will provide it.
We respectfully submit this platform to the American people. It is both a vision of where we are headed and an invitation to join us in that journey. It is about the great dreams and opportunities that have always been America and must remain the essence of America for generations to come.
That is the preamble to the 2012 republican platform Much of it (with the exception of the limited government/balanced budget. kill regulations, and the religion stuff) sound EXACTLY like what Bernie is saying.
Do you think Bernie's team would have any difficulty crafting a message to speak to any of this?
WDIM
(1,662 posts)He cant be a republican.
delrem
(9,688 posts)Explain why, or why not, in 5,000 words or less.
840high
(17,196 posts)AgingAmerican
(12,958 posts)Nothing radical about him.
pnwmom
(108,997 posts)Why doesn't he call himself a FDR or Ted Kennedy Democrat?
AgingAmerican
(12,958 posts)He isn't pretending to be someone else. Nothing 'radical' about that.
Please list his 'radical' ideas if he is so extreme.
pnwmom
(108,997 posts)to warrant a label that would put so many voters off.
AgingAmerican
(12,958 posts)Not right wing enough for you?
pnwmom
(108,997 posts)who wants to succeed on the national stage.
AgingAmerican
(12,958 posts)That didn't take you long.
Lemme guess, the GOP won't like it? Boo fucking hoo!
pnwmom
(108,997 posts)a liberal Democrat but he is stubbornly attached to a label from the 60's.
AgingAmerican
(12,958 posts)My condolences.
pnwmom
(108,997 posts)when he's really a liberal Democrat not much different from Warren.
AgingAmerican
(12,958 posts)Cuz, you know, the GOP won't like the 'S' word.
Are you for Obamacare? Are you for Social Security, Medicare, etc? If so, you are a socialist. So are most Republicans.
pnwmom
(108,997 posts)which is the majority -- away.
AgingAmerican
(12,958 posts)Deep, very deep
pnwmom
(108,997 posts)or that a politician is above all that and should deliberately use a label that turns voters off.
AgingAmerican
(12,958 posts)nt
pnwmom
(108,997 posts)Not acknowledging that is unrealistic.
AgingAmerican
(12,958 posts)Sorry that Bernie isn't shallow enough for you.
Defeatism
pnwmom
(108,997 posts)and how to appeal to them than you are, clearly.
I think he has lots of great ideas but it's stupid to brand himself with a brand that is a negative for the average voter he wants to appeal to.
AgingAmerican
(12,958 posts)Democrats shouldn't strive to appeal to idiots and you will never convince me otherwise.
Have a nice say!
merrily
(45,251 posts)US Senate is a notoriously conservative body. However, for about 10% of DU, Bernie is a radical. Go figure.
(10% according to this poll. http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6592890