A Former Clinton Aide on Embracing the Sanders Movement

How the Trump years drove this one-time establishment insider to call for ‘nonviolent political revolution’

Peter Daou
Nov 26, 2019

http://gen.medium.com/a-former-clinton-aide-on-embracing-the-sanders-movement-31fcea5e04ea



[key excerpts - full post at link]

I have begun to question my core assumptions about politics and society, about the meaning of democracy in our dysfunctional two-party system, about the root causes of injustice and inequality.

The irony of my political journey is that my politics during the Bush-Cheney years put me squarely in sync with people like Paul Wellstone and Bernie Sanders. During the early part of the 2016 primary, I was excited by the Sanders campaign and praised him for raising issues like extreme inequality, which I had written about for years. But as the Democratic primary intensified, I hit back hard at any critique of Clinton’s character from right or left. And in the process I alienated many fellow progressives. I never used the term “Bernie Bro,” but I contributed to the narrative that Sanders supporters were all angry white males. I have apologized for that. I apologize here again. For the past two years, I’ve worked hard to build bridges to the Sanders supporters I fought with. And thankfully, they’ve reciprocated.

But my recent metamorphosis has gone beyond just expressing 2016 regrets or warming to Bernie Sanders after opposing him in the last election. I have begun to question my core assumptions about politics and society, about the meaning of democracy in our dysfunctional two-party system, about the root causes of injustice and inequality. I have been studying and learning more about neoliberalism, capitalism, and socialism to educate myself on the deeper structural issues that have led to obscene wealth and power concentrated in the hands of a tiny minority.

Incremental change won’t result in meaningful long-term progress. Democrats winning occasional elections may lead to less draconian policies for a time. And that’s a good thing. But it is always two steps forward and three steps back. Theocrats, plutocrats, and white supremacists are ascendant, consolidating their grip on power.

So, for the 2020 race, I am aligned with the people-powered movement sparked by Sanders. His plan for a systemic overhaul, a fundamental restructuring of our approach to government, is the only viable path to meaningful progress in the United States. His voters have created a mass movement to do it, one that has attracted millions of young people — America’s future. I feel at home in it.

[full post at link]