So how come we worry about Bernie’s age, but cheer for Ginsberg?
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Judging by the sheer number of BERNIE 2020! banners cropping up all over social media this morning, his status as the go-to rabble-rousing voice of the Democrats for the news, his very effective grassroots efforts since 2016, and his name recognition, I think he’s still considered a top candidate by many people. Which would take away from all of the many, many new candidates jockeying for votes. I think a significant push by Bernie will give the election to Trump.
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He offers the chance to re-litigate 2016 again and have the Bernie Would Have Won people be smug assholes to everyone for the next year and a half.
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And of course it’s not just a matter of whether he lives to 87 (which in itself would be beating the odds). At least we have experience and precedent for how to deal with a President dying in office.
What we don’t have is a good way of dealing with the problem of a President undergoing the clear but gradual cognitive decline that most of us suffer if we live into our 80s and beyond.
Anyone who ever had to take away an elderly relative’s car keys knows how difficult it can be, especially if that person insists they’re still fit to drive. Now imagine that scenario only with stakes a billion times higher and tangled up in partisan politics.
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Because going with the loser from the previous race has worked well?
Ah well, at least this will give him the opportunity to inject non “centrist” issues into the campaign.
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Bernie Sanders’ candidacy was good for the Democrats in 2016, and will be good for the Democrats in 2020.
No candidate has shown they’re the right person for the party to fall behind, in my opinion.
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Cheapest form of astroturfing ever invented, really. I’m still skeptical about how much support is organic, and how much is pregenerated to stir up trouble.
Social media is simply untrustworthy, but also far too effective as a way to manipulate the gullible. Like me. Which is why I avoid most forms outside of this one (Yes, the BoingBoingBBS is my social media of choice).
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Yes. And Trump is slightly older than Reagan was.
And of course that’s working out great. He’s got the biggest collection of all the best years. So many years! He had to get special permission from the fire marshall to let all those years in here at once.
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“So how come we worry about Bernie’s age, but cheer for Ginsberg?”
Because she already has the job. I’m sure this is one of those things that felt like a clever gotcha when you typed it, but really, it isn’t. If I could, would I replace Ginsberg on the court with a 50-year old woman of similar intellect, fire, and political bent? Sure! I’m sure RBG herself might seriously consider retiring if that option existed. But it doesn’t. And in the case of the presidency, it does.
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i supported him in 2016 until he lost the nomination, and then i voted for Clinton, and i was fine with that. he has proven his policy ideas are popular, he’s shifted the democratic party to the left (which it needed), and despite all the hate and rancor STILL being thrown at him by bitter Clinton backers, he continues every day to fight the good fight. he was right then, and he’s right now. while i would have preferred he stand back and throw his weight behind a younger candidate – which he could still do down the line – i still think he’d be a damn sight better than what we have now. it will be interesting to see what his announcement does to the race. he has a lot of work to do, no lie.
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My daily background anxiety contains a constant question about whether she’s died today. If anything, that’s what I want to prevent. I cheer because at this point each day she lives is a goddamned miracle. I don’t like depending on miracles if I can help it though.
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But I thought the superdelegates already chose Kamala. (Assuming Trump actually leaves office after he loses.)
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What he offers is an unwavering voice for progressive causes for well over 50 years. As @beschizza points out everyone in the field so far has moved left primarily because of the success he had in the last run. He moved the needle radically toward economic and social justice issues being the underpinning force to most of our present ills. He remapped the entire DNC platform. He proved that big money in politics does not happen at the exclusion of great ideas. He got significant portions of the electorate fired up to attempt grass-roots runs, many of which upended decades-held stagnant bluedog incumbents. I don’t think his impact can be overstated.
I agree with many commenters upthread that he is, sadly just too old at this point and, being an older white male, he doesn’t really reflect the progressive zeitgeist. I see no reason for him not to run and act as a foil to all of the middle-of-the-road (read: actually middle-right) candidates like Klobuchar and ensure that the candidates that have really waffled on progressive legislation like Harris, Warren and Booker actually plant a flag for progressive ideals and answer for their past stances.
Then take the VP nod from the (ideally) female nominee and act as a guard dog steering the ship left.
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Dude, if I wanted a clever gotcha, I could have found a very good meme. That’s my jam.
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As for him running, why the hell shouldn’t he? I don’t particularly like him and didn’t vote for him last time, but he’s a real voice, and he doesn’t owe anybody anything, least of all the Democratic party. It’s February for God’s sake. Why not have a firebrand running around the country galvanizing the Dems to enshrine policies like universal health care and taxing the 1% in everybody’s platform?
If your only argument is “he’s going to drag votes away from [Democrat X],” well, unless he runs in the general as an independent, no he isn’t. As I understand it, he’s running for the Democratic nomination again. If he gets it, great. If he doesn’t, he’s not dragging votes away from anybody, and I assume he’d give most of his likely competitors a much more full-throated endorsement than he ever gave Hillary.
It’s February. It’s fine. I don’t like the guy and I don’t plan to vote for him, but whining about his even being in the race sounds deeply spooked and flimsy. If he pulls a Nader and runs in the general, then all of these criticisms become a lot more valid. But if he’s just taking another shot at the Democratic ticket, hell, bring it on. If Kamala Harris or Warren or Booker or whoever can’t be a more compelling voice for the modern Democratic constituency than an 81-year old white guy from Vermont, why should they get the nomination?
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Yeah, the Democratic front runner is going to be a heavy target for the GOP warmachine, not to mention soaking up all of Trump’s name calling and shitposting. Bernie could be the shield that absorbs all the early wrath, allowing another candidate to move forward.
???
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It’s peanut butter jelly time.
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Exactly. We don’t need to be in such a rush to crown the next God of de Libs. Let them have a long, protracted debate over what the left actually wants instead of doing what they’ve done for the past 40 years: offer feeble compromises to the aggressive right-lurching trend at the sacrifice of all of the most vulnerable populations that are simply not loud or white enough to be heard. We’re in no rush. What’s that phrase? Oh yeah, “Sunlight is the best disinfectant.” The left’s house right now is like Miss Havisham’s cake room. Open those windows up and dust that shit out!
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I hope he lives for another thousand years.
But if it’s more of this, it’s not helping.
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If you think Bernie is too old, then you should also think that RBG was too old when she didn’t retire early so Obama could replace her. If your retort is Merrick Garland, she should have retired two years into Obama’s term
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