by Pa Rock
Citizen Journalist
There is a constant political drumbeat on social media - and particularly on Twitter - which lays the blame for Hillary Clinton's 2016 defeat on Bernie Sanders and his legions of supporters. The argument seems to be that if she had not had the distraction of having to deal with the Bernie insurrection, Hillary would have easily prevailed over Donald Trump. A slightly different version posits that Hillary would have won if not for the fact that many of Bernie's supporters refused to vote for her even after she proved herself by winning the Democratic nomination.
The loss was not Hillary's fault - she lost because of those evil Bernie bots.
Of course there is a counter argument to those positions, one that says the Democrats lost the White House in 2016 because the nomination was rigged by party chair Debbie Wasserman Shultz as well as representatives closely tied to the Obama and Clinton White Houses. The people pounding that position are adamant in their belief that Hillary was foisted on the Democratic Party by superdelegates and a biased party hierarchy, and that real people were essentially frozen out of the nominating process. They argue that Mrs. Bill Clinton was the wrong person to lead the fight against the fascists of Donald Trump.
There are two sides to the coin of why the Democrats lost the presidency in 2016 - and both sides have some validity.
Now, as the focus shifts to 2020, Democrats are beginning to gauge what it will take to win the White House back from the forces of darkness. In 2016 the party was battling an outsider, a real estate developer and television personality with no experience in politics. This time around they will be pitted against the consummate political insider, a man who is a proven manipulator of the press corps as well as large, staged, angry crowds. If anything this race will be much, much tougher than the last one.
With a tougher race on the horizon, it should be obvious to one and all that what the Democratic Party desperately needs is younger, tougher candidates, people who can go the distance and draw sharp contrasts with Trump and his Nazi hillbillies. People with a minimum of baggage.
That is what should be obvious, but the reality, at least in the early days, is quite different. Bernie Sanders (age 77) is already plaguing Iowa with the ferocity of.a summer locust, and Hillary (who will be 71 next week) is also starting to sound out the possibility of making a second run for the roses. And, as if two raids on the rest home were not sufficient, former vice-president Joe Biden (age 75) and former Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry (age 74) are also making serious noises about jumping into the race.
The Democrats are not going to win in 2020 by challenging the geriatric Trump with someone of his own generation. The party is in need of a much younger standard bearer, someone who will literally force America to focus on the future. It's time for someone like Kirsten Gillibrand, Cory Booker, Kamala Harris, Beto O'Rourke, or Julian Castro to take center stage and point the way ahead.
Bernie, Hillary, Joe, and John have served us well, but their time on the national stage has literally passed. The 2020 election needs to be about more than just giving one of them a few additional footnotes in history books - it needs to be about taking our country back from evil people who are bent on its destruction from within.
The plow horses have had their turns and worked tirelessly for a better America - but now its time for them to stand aside and let some young thoroughbreds onto the track. The 2020 election may be one of the most consequential in history - and it should not be thrown away as a "last hurrah" for some fading party star.
And the best thing that could happen for every Democratic congressional candidate today would be if Nancy Pelosi (age 78) would immediately announce her resignation from the Democratic House leadership. Her steadfast refusal to give up power casts cold shadows from the past over this year's crop of young and eager candidates. Nancy's looming presence as the "next Speaker" does not help the cause of those young, dynamic candidates.
The Democrats have their own 70's Show with the likes of Bernie, Hillary, Joe Biden, John Kerry, and Nancy Pelosi. It's an old show, a tiresome show, and a very, very sad show. It's time to say thank you, pass out a few gold watches, and flip the channel.
Citizen Journalist
There is a constant political drumbeat on social media - and particularly on Twitter - which lays the blame for Hillary Clinton's 2016 defeat on Bernie Sanders and his legions of supporters. The argument seems to be that if she had not had the distraction of having to deal with the Bernie insurrection, Hillary would have easily prevailed over Donald Trump. A slightly different version posits that Hillary would have won if not for the fact that many of Bernie's supporters refused to vote for her even after she proved herself by winning the Democratic nomination.
The loss was not Hillary's fault - she lost because of those evil Bernie bots.
Of course there is a counter argument to those positions, one that says the Democrats lost the White House in 2016 because the nomination was rigged by party chair Debbie Wasserman Shultz as well as representatives closely tied to the Obama and Clinton White Houses. The people pounding that position are adamant in their belief that Hillary was foisted on the Democratic Party by superdelegates and a biased party hierarchy, and that real people were essentially frozen out of the nominating process. They argue that Mrs. Bill Clinton was the wrong person to lead the fight against the fascists of Donald Trump.
There are two sides to the coin of why the Democrats lost the presidency in 2016 - and both sides have some validity.
Now, as the focus shifts to 2020, Democrats are beginning to gauge what it will take to win the White House back from the forces of darkness. In 2016 the party was battling an outsider, a real estate developer and television personality with no experience in politics. This time around they will be pitted against the consummate political insider, a man who is a proven manipulator of the press corps as well as large, staged, angry crowds. If anything this race will be much, much tougher than the last one.
With a tougher race on the horizon, it should be obvious to one and all that what the Democratic Party desperately needs is younger, tougher candidates, people who can go the distance and draw sharp contrasts with Trump and his Nazi hillbillies. People with a minimum of baggage.
That is what should be obvious, but the reality, at least in the early days, is quite different. Bernie Sanders (age 77) is already plaguing Iowa with the ferocity of.a summer locust, and Hillary (who will be 71 next week) is also starting to sound out the possibility of making a second run for the roses. And, as if two raids on the rest home were not sufficient, former vice-president Joe Biden (age 75) and former Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry (age 74) are also making serious noises about jumping into the race.
The Democrats are not going to win in 2020 by challenging the geriatric Trump with someone of his own generation. The party is in need of a much younger standard bearer, someone who will literally force America to focus on the future. It's time for someone like Kirsten Gillibrand, Cory Booker, Kamala Harris, Beto O'Rourke, or Julian Castro to take center stage and point the way ahead.
Bernie, Hillary, Joe, and John have served us well, but their time on the national stage has literally passed. The 2020 election needs to be about more than just giving one of them a few additional footnotes in history books - it needs to be about taking our country back from evil people who are bent on its destruction from within.
The plow horses have had their turns and worked tirelessly for a better America - but now its time for them to stand aside and let some young thoroughbreds onto the track. The 2020 election may be one of the most consequential in history - and it should not be thrown away as a "last hurrah" for some fading party star.
And the best thing that could happen for every Democratic congressional candidate today would be if Nancy Pelosi (age 78) would immediately announce her resignation from the Democratic House leadership. Her steadfast refusal to give up power casts cold shadows from the past over this year's crop of young and eager candidates. Nancy's looming presence as the "next Speaker" does not help the cause of those young, dynamic candidates.
The Democrats have their own 70's Show with the likes of Bernie, Hillary, Joe Biden, John Kerry, and Nancy Pelosi. It's an old show, a tiresome show, and a very, very sad show. It's time to say thank you, pass out a few gold watches, and flip the channel.
1 comment:
I've been saying the same thing for the past two years and adding the mistake of reinstating 78 year old Nancy Pelosi as minority leader. We need younger blood. We need people that are fired up - not tired and looking tired. Sure, Bernie can get his crowds going but I'm not going to vote for ANYONE in their 70's who is running for national office! And I'm not suggesting sending a bunch of 22 year olds to Washington. Let's support people with common sense and good ideas who people can admire and support. Where are they???
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