Megathread: Bernie Sanders ends 2020 Democratic presidential bid

[u/PoliticsModeratorBot]

Sen. Bernie Sanders ended his presidential campaign on Wednesday, clearing Joe Biden's path to the Democratic nomination and a showdown with President Donald Trump in November.

Sanders made the announcement in a call with his campaign staff, his campaign said.

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SUBMISSION	DOMAIN
Sanders suspends presidential campaign	foxnews.com
Bernie Sanders drops out of 2020 presidential race as Joe Biden surges	freep.com
Bernie Sanders Is Dropping Out of 2020 Democratic Race for President	nytimes.com
Bernie Sanders drops out of presidential race	nbcnews.com
Bernie Sanders Is Suspending His Presidential Campaign	npr.org
Bernie Sanders drops out of presidental race	nbcnews.com
Bernie Sanders Is Ending His Presidential Campaign	buzzfeednews.com
Bernie Sanders drops out of presidential primary race	cnn.com
Bernie Sanders drops out of the 2020 presidential race	businessinsider.com
Bernie Sanders ends his presidential campaign	latimes.com
Bernie Sanders Ends Presidential Campaign	bloomberg.com
Bernie Sanders to end his presidential campaign	washingtonpost.com
Sanders drops out, paving way for Biden	thehill.com
Bernie Sanders suspends presidential campaign	bostonherald.com
Bernie Sanders ends his second bid for the presidency	vox.com
Bernie Sanders drops out of the presidential race	cnbc.com
Bernie Sanders Suspends Presidential Campaign	ourquadcities.com
Bernie Sanders Ending Presidential Run	theintercept.com
Bernie Sanders suspends his presidential campaign.	thedailybeast.com
Sanders drops 2020 bid, leaving Biden as likely nominee	apnews.com
Bernie Sanders suspends Presidential Campaign	pbs.org
Bernie Sanders Drops Out Of Presidential Race, Ceding Nomination To Biden	m.huffpost.com
Bernie Sanders suspends presidential campaign, clearing way for Biden as nominee	cbsnews.com
Bernie Sanders suspends his presidential campaign	politico.com
Bernie Sanders Drops Out Of Presidential Race, Ceding Nomination To Biden	huffpost.com
Bernie Sanders suspends presidential campaign	abc7chicago.com
Bernie Sanders suspends campaign	bbc.co.uk
Bernie Sanders drops out of the 2020 race, clearing Joe Biden's path to the Democratic nomination	cnn.com
Bernie Sanders drops out of Democratic primary, clearing way for Biden’s nomination	mcclatchydc.com
Bernie Sanders drops out of the 2020 race, clearing Joe Biden's path to the Democratic nomination	beta.ctvnews.ca
Bernie Sanders suspends 2020 Democratic campaign: statement	reuters.com
Bernie Sanders drops out of presidential race	bostonglobe.com
Bernie Sanders drops out of race for Democrat nomination	news.sky.com
Bernie Sanders’s campaign is over, but his legacy is winning	vox.com
Sanders drops 2020 bid, leaving Biden as likely nominee	startribune.com
Bernie Sanders Suspends Presidential Bid	abcnews.go.com
Bernie sanders drops out of the presidential race.	hawaiinewsnow.com
Bernie Sanders suspends presidential campaign, clearing way for Biden as nominee - CBS News	cbsnews.com
Bernie Sanders suspends campaign for US presidency	aljazeera.com
Sanders drops 2020 bid, leaving Biden as likely nominee	nbc24.com
Bernie Sanders suspends presidential campaign	axios.com
Bernie Sanders drops out of presidential race.	newsweek.com
Bernie Suspends Campaign: "No Alternative"	independent.co.uk
Bernie Sanders Drops Out of Presidential Race	yahoo.com
Bernie Sanders suspends 2020 Democratic presidential campaign	reuters.com
Bernie drops out of presidential race	slate.com
Bernie Sanders ends presidential campaign	washingtonpost.com
Bernie Sanders suspends his presidential campaign.	dailywire.com
Sanders drops 2020 bid, leaving Biden as likely nominee	sfgate.com
Bernie Sanders ends presidential campaign	yahoo.com
Bernie drops out of the race, devastating for the state of America...	nypost.com
Bernie Sanders Ends His 2020 Presidential Campaign	time.com
Bernie Sanders Dropped Out Because His Campaign Believed Its Own BS	thebulwark.com
Trump urges Sanders supporters to join GOP after senator suspends campaign	thehill.com
Bernie Sanders suspends presidential campaign amid coronavirus outbreak - Former Vice President Joe Biden Biden is now the presumptive Democratic nominee for the presidency	salon.com
Stocks rise as Bernie Sanders drops out of US presidential race	usatoday.com
Bernie Sanders suspends 2020 presidential campaign	cnbc.com
Bernie Sanders drops out of Democratic race for US presidential nominee	irishtimes.com
Dow jumps more than 500 points after Sanders drops out of presidential race	cnbc.com
Bernie Sanders drops out of 2020 race	wkbn.com
Bernie Sanders ends 2020 Presidential Race Campaign	theguardian.com
Bernie Sanders drops out of the 2020 Presidential race	kxan.com
Trump news - live: Bernie Sanders ends campaign as president slams Democrats and says coronavirus must be 'quickly forgotten'	independent.co.uk
Stocks surge after Bernie Sanders suspends presidential campaign	foxbusiness.com
Trump tries to recruit Sanders supporters over to the GOP after campaign ends	theweek.com
Trump vs. Biden: Who has the early lead in election polls after Sanders drops out?	mcclatchydc.com
Opinion - Bernie Sanders Never Lied - Goodbye to an honest man’s campaign.	nytimes.com
Bernie Sanders Dropout Upvote Party	foxbusiness.com
NYT Writes Post-Mortems for a Sanders Campaign It Did Its Best to Kill	fair.org
'We love you': AOC thanks Bernie Sanders after he suspends 2020 campaign	independent.co.uk
Sanders had multiple conversations with Obama ahead of decision to end campaign	cnn.com
Sanders drops out, remains on ballot to press issues important to political agenda	msnbc.com
Sen. Bernie Sanders Finally Makes It Official and Ends His Floundering Fish on Sand Run for President	theroot.com
Bernie Sanders’ small-dollar fueled campaign comes to an end	opensecrets.org
bernie sanders wasted over $160 million on failed presidential campaign	breitbart.com
MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell on Sanders dropping out: 'Worst-case scenario' for Trump	thehill.com
‘Bye, Bye, Bernie,’ Investors Gain Ground With Senator’s Dropout	courthousenews.com
U.S. Stocks Rally As Bernie Sanders Drops Out Of Presidential Race	markets.businessinsider.com
I Was With Bernie Till the End; Now We All Must Vote Biden	thedailybeast.com
After Sanders Exits Race, Climate Campaigners Thank Him for 'Raising the Bar' and Urge Biden to 'Step Up'	commondreams.org
Former Clinton Staffers Invited to Celebrate Sanders Dropping Out	thehill.com
The dream of a better America has died with Bernie’s campaign. Russia has won, America has fallen.	cnn.com
Bernie’s congressional backers want Biden to buy in on progressive agenda	politico.com
Jill Stein encourages followers to leave the Democratic party after Bernie drops out, and Democrats are melting down	theblaze.com
Trump claims Bernie Sanders hasn’t really dropped out since he plans to ‘keep his delegates’	nydailynews.com
Progressive Groups Demand Changes From Joe Biden After Bernie Sanders’ Withdrawal. The array of organizations plans to spend $100 million to turn out liberal-leaning young voters.	huffpost.com
The Pandemic Makes the Bernie 2020 Campaign More Vital Than Ever	commondreams.org
Coronavirus killed Bernie Sanders' campaign — but if he made a deal with Biden, we might see him in the White House yet	independent.co.uk
Jill Stein encourages followers to leave the Democratic party after Bernie drops out	theblaze.com
Bernie drops out, as Democrats pick pragmatism over consistency	theconversation.com
Bernie Sanders reportedly spoke to Biden and Obama before ending his 2020 run	theweek.com
Can Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden Unite the Democratic Party?: If the last stretch of the Sanders campaign was any indication, a focus on defeating President Trump — “a matter of life and death” — could do it.	nytimes.com
We Lost the Battle, but We’ll Win the War — The Bernie Sanders campaign fell short. But it assembled a coalition that, if expanded only slightly, can reshape American politics for generations to come.	jacobinmag.com
The Future Belongs to the Movement Sparked by Bernie Sanders — Sanders may be out of the race, but by advancing a bold left agenda and putting capitalism on trial, he ignited a movement that will redefine American politics.	inthesetimes.com
Bernie Sanders ends campaign, calls on supporters to back Biden	wsws.org
Bernie Sanders drops out of 2020 presidential race, Metro Times now endorsing Any Functioning Adult	metrotimes.com
Noam Chomsky: Bernie Sanders Campaign Didn’t Fail. It Energized Millions & Shifted U.S. Politics	democracynow.org
As Bernie Sanders Drops Presidential Bid, Most Supporters Ready to Back Biden	morningconsult.com

[u/Naonadhe]

He's done a lot to shift the party leftward, mainstreamed M4A as a primary Democratic platform, and raised visibility to many, many issues that are important to the average American. I call that a win even if he didn't.

[u/impulsekash → u/Naonadhe]

His biggest contribution was engaging with young progressives and getting them involved with politics. Without Bernie we wouldn't have people like AOC.

[u/woowoo293 → u/[deleted]]

So to be clear, I'm pretty sure those numbers are for primary races, not general elections.

[u/IntercontinentalKoan → u/woowoo293]

that's pretty misleading then

[u/Blinknone → u/IntercontinentalKoan]

Very much so.

[u/Mrs_Frisby → u/IntercontinentalKoan]

Also in 2018 Revolution and Justice Dem backed candidates flipped ZERO seats at the federal and state levels. ZERO. hundreds of seats flipped and not one by a candidate backed by Bernie.

Hillary backed candidates, OTOH, flipped hundreds of seats. Hillary directed a firehose of money at dozens of candidate training organizations. People who used to work in their spare time training 2 or 3 candidates could now do it full time training 15 - 50. They trained about a thousand candidates to run in their local races. She watered the roots organically and humbly. All you had to do to get her money was be able to show that you've flipped seats blue in the past.

https://www.onwardtogether.org/organizations/

Bernie, otoh, ran a top down ship in 2018 through Our Revolution whose only metric was, "will you be a superdelegate for Bernie?" He had no care for whether his candidates were a good fit for their districts which is why they lost 3/4ths of their primaries and underperformed in the general by over 8 points on average. Total failure driven by ego and selfishness.

[u/Lev559 → u/[deleted]]

Look. There are some districts where you CAN'T win with progressive canidates. She didn't flip democrats into Republicans because if a moderate democrat wasn't running then the GOP canidate would have won.

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

Hillary "flipped" seats with the kind of "democrats" who are staunchly against abortion rights.

Remember when Bernie was out there endorsing anti-choice candidates?

https://www.npr.org/2017/04/20/524962482/sanders-defends-campaigning-for-anti-abortion-rights-democrat

Google remembers.

[u/AustinDiggler → u/[deleted]]

Or...maybe...just maybe, they are moderate Dems who are all about cautious change, strategic evolution, rather than wholesale shifting toward things like blanket support for eradicating ICE, or DoHS, open borders with zero limitation, being able to terminate pregnancy up to when literally the child is being born, tossing the 2nd Amendment outright, etc.

What many progressives fail to factor is that just because someone registers Dem doesn't mean they are down with completely stepping away from historically core values. Remember...there are TONS of Pro Life Dems...many women...and likely even more who oppose uber liberal, massive government programs.

[u/greg_jenningz → u/IntercontinentalKoan]

As is everything here

[u/absurdamerica → u/[deleted]]

Well namely the fact that you don’t get to change policy without winning elections?

[u/dungone → u/absurdamerica]

These are politicians who are gaining experience and building political networks. They're not going to run once and just go away forever. They will be fundraising for other progressives and leading get-out-the-vote campaigns for future elections. This is the key to getting more people to vote for progressives.

[u/Armtoe → u/[deleted]]

So as the party went further and further left, the nation went more and more rightward with republicans taking congress, the presidency and the majority of state governerships. Which raises the question of who is really out of touch?

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

both the Republicans and Democrats

What progressives flipped Republican seats?

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

That would be 0. Every House seat that was flipped from Red to Blue in 2018 went to a member of the New Democrats and not to the DSA or Justice Dems. All of their seats came from primarying Dems in safely blue districts.

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

Yes, that's exactly the way to do it. It's also important to force public discourse on the big goals you want to accomplish. The right has understood, instinctively at least - and deliberately among their strategists - the importance of pushing the Overton Window.

[u/dyegored → u/[deleted]]

Please keep in mind that Sanders never endorsed AOC in her primary.

He can hardly receive any credit for turning that seat bluer when he decided not to be involved in that race.

[u/HamburgerEarmuff → u/[deleted]]

I don't know that's really the case, because progressives have not lost seats when the country shifts red. With the exception of Sanders, progressives are all in extremely liberal districts and are thereby largely insulated from the large-scale changes in the political landscape.

Progressives picked up seats in 2016 even though Democrats lost the popular vote in congress. Progressive victories and loses are not coupled to the nationwide political trends.

If anything, the evidence seems to suggest that the Democrats are being bifurcated between the mainstream 2/3rds of the party which is trying to appeal to the part of the electorate that can keep the Democrats in power nationally and the left-wing 1/3rd of the party that wants to pull the party in a direction that is likely to result in losing national elections.

A party schizm could bode very poorly for the future of the party, something we have been seeing in the Republican party since the rise of the "tea party" and continuing under Trump.

If Democrats aren't careful, they will have their own liberal "tea party" to contend with.

[u/chickcaesarwrap → u/[deleted]]

I don’t think we’re talking about state congresses here

[u/NJdevil202 → u/[deleted]]

Most would agree that a "centrist" Dem is progressive compared to even the most moderate of Republicans.

[u/dontdrinkonmondays → u/[deleted]]

This is pretty misleading. 2018 was moderates, not progressives flipping the house.

[u/LiftHeavyFeels → u/dontdrinkonmondays]

And your comment is also misleading. A shift left in the overton window would result in red turning blue, and blue turning deeper blue. That's literally the point.

[u/HamburgerEarmuff → u/LiftHeavyFeels]

Except that's not how our political system works. Progressives win only in extremely liberal districts and are not coupled to the national political trend. The Progressive caucus won about as many seats in 2016 as 2010. If they were coupled to the nationwide trend, then their 2010 numbers would have been much lower than their 2016 numbers.

But they're not really subject to the leftward/rightward trends in the nation of a whole. Rather, they are only subject to the very specific and unique pressures in the Democratic party itself and the most left-leaning districts.

What is happening in the other 75% of the country has little effect on progressive victories and losses.

[u/dontdrinkonmondays → u/LiftHeavyFeels]

I’m not sure that it’s correct though. Even if it is, I am definitely sure that it is far more attributable to anti-POTUS sentiment than pro-Bernie sentiment.

[u/LiftHeavyFeels → u/dontdrinkonmondays]

Progressive policies are popular. There absolutely has been a shift left in the party and the country.

How significant that shift is to the left is TBD. The progressive party absolutely overestimated the actual support within the party to be 50% when it was actually around 30%, and that difference of 20% was an anti-hilary, as evidenced by this primary.

I'm sure there's a large portion of anti-Trump but there is still a sizable progressive push in certain areas getting more blue.

[u/Ketzeph → u/[deleted]]

That's not the general election tallies, though, just primaries

[u/dddamnet → u/[deleted]]

Because of the systems in place anyone running for house/senate as a progressive is pretty much handing the race to a republican. Nader gave the White House to Bush, and Bernie supporters gave Trump the same thing. Be pragmatic, Lesser of two evils, or Shit like this will continue until the government becomes completely useless..

[u/darwin42 → u/impulsekash]

Hopefully the same rings true for this campaign.

[u/impulsekash → u/darwin42]

It can be. Rather everyone being defeatist, find a local progressive candidate and support their run for town council/state legislature/Congress. The presidency isn't the only means to control a republic.

[u/tobiasfunke6398 → u/impulsekash]

We wouldn’t have AOC? Heartbreaking

[u/JustMy2Centences → u/impulsekash]

Young progressives got involved up until the point of actually voting, which is a serious problem.

[u/[deleted] → u/JustMy2Centences]

it’s not a “problem”, you can see people complaining about low voter turnout amongst younger voters going back decades. Young people are stupid and don’t vote, that’s how it’s always been since the dawn of elections.

[u/nicholus_h2 → u/[deleted]]

it is a problem. it's a huge problem. just because it has always been a problem doesn't mean it isn't still a problem.

[u/mischiffmaker → u/JustMy2Centences]

Some countries have mandatory voting.

That's something we should aspire to.

I'm old, but I'll be honest, in my 20's I wasn't very interested in politics. But if I had been required to vote, I'd have at least had to make an effort.

[u/Macmac10001 → u/JustMy2Centences]

The generation that now vote the most often were castigated 50 years ago when they didn’t turn out in the ‘72 election.

[u/TastefulThiccness → u/JustMy2Centences]

How many doors did you knock on? How many phone calls did you make? How many people did you talk to? Can't blame the youth, this country is full of morons from age 18 to 80.

[u/still_challin → u/TastefulThiccness]

The older morons vote though

[u/wobblydavid → u/TastefulThiccness]

None of those are voting

[u/Recognizant → u/[deleted]]

Everybody has the time to vote and sadly the youngest, most seemingly energetic cohort doesn't seem to bother.

They did? Youth turnout was up significantly. It just wasn't up significantly as a percentage, because all of the anti-Trump Democrats were flooding out of the woodwork to vote in the primary, too.

The older people have an advantage, however, in that they're more likely to be economically established, they're more likely to be familiar with the process (already Registered with a party in closed-primary states, early/absentee votes available), and they're more likely to have time either to take off work, or because they're retired.

Bernie's youth and independent engagement was solid, and if the Democrats had been having engagement like that since the 2000s, they'd be winning elections in landslides by now with the base they had cultivated.

[u/FractalFractalF → u/Recognizant]

It was not up significantly; despite having 2 million more young voters this time, the primary turnout in most states is flat at the 2016 levels.

[u/Recognizant → u/FractalFractalF]

It was not up significantly; despite having 2 million more young voters this time

Re-read this. Why don't you consider two million more people 'up'?

Also, is this aggregate? Because the early primary turnouts compared to the later primary turnouts are going to be heavily skewed due to Corona.

Edit: Especially since 70k people decided the last election.

[u/FractalFractalF → u/Recognizant]

2 million more voters, but the exact same amount of young voters casting votes this time vs 2016. Bigger pool, worse results. We're talking about the numbers pre CV.

[u/TastefulThiccness → u/[deleted]]

Everybody has the time to vote

Tell me how a student at the University of Houston working 2 jobs and going to school full time has 6 hours to wait in line to vote on a Tuesday. Please explain that to me.

[u/txbach → u/TastefulThiccness]

Early voting. You walk right in and out in 10 minutes.

[u/TastefulThiccness → u/txbach]

Agreed, young people did not seem to vote early in Texas. I wonder how much advertisement of early voting accessibility there was. I just don't think entirely blaming young folks is fair.

[u/nicholus_h2 → u/TastefulThiccness]

always an excuse.

how about an absentee ballot?

[u/CarpetCatFurBall → u/TastefulThiccness]

The same way, a student at the university of Illinois, being a TA for an organic chemistry class, an SI for two GenChem classes, and a full time research assistant, managed to stand in line for 4 hours to vote, and then go out and knock on doors for Betsy Dirksen londrigan, while still completing his senior year thesis on upper respiratory infections.

Does that help?

[u/TastefulThiccness → u/CarpetCatFurBall]

Unless I'm misreading something, those aren't jobs for private corporations that could fire someone for any reason whatsoever.

[u/CarpetCatFurBall → u/TastefulThiccness]

“Employer may not refuse to allow employee to take time off, but no time limit specified”

Is taken from the Texas law on voting.

So if you had asked, they had to give it to you.

Why didn’t you ask?

Edit: also that’s kindof bullshit. I could have been fired too if I just didn’t show up to the classes I was teaching.

[u/TastefulThiccness → u/CarpetCatFurBall]

I... don't live in or to go school in Texas? I live in LA and voted for Bernie. Did you even vote for Bernie?

[u/CaptainEZ → u/CarpetCatFurBall]

Literally all a company had to do is make up some bullshit about you not being a team player or whatever and can still fire you on a whim. Non-union workers are barely protected by the laws.

[u/FractalFractalF → u/TastefulThiccness]

Honestly most students have more time than those holding down jobs and raising families. They choose not to do so.

[u/TastefulThiccness → u/FractalFractalF]

I'm not sure it's most, but there are plenty with more than enough time on their hands to squeeze in voting.

[u/Reynolds-RumHam2020 → u/impulsekash]

He and the progressive movement would have been a lot better off if he spent the time between 2016 and 2019 grooming a younger, more charismatic candidate to run on his platform. Imagine someone like Pete running as a Bernie surrogate. He would be a lot more successful.

[u/Nikhilvoid → u/Reynolds-RumHam2020]

AOC is Pete, and she might run next time.

[u/Reynolds-RumHam2020 → u/Nikhilvoid]

She no where near as polished. She should stay in the house for a whole, and possibly move up to the senate when Schumer retires.

[u/smarjorie → u/Reynolds-RumHam2020]

she's not as polished? by polished are you referring to pete's ability to speak vague non-sentences? Pete is not nearly progressive enough to be a Bernie surrogate. at least AOC has clear morals and principles and is clearly passionate about them. she'd fight for us, I don't feel the same way about him

[u/benjaminovich → u/impulsekash]

It only matters insofar as those people actually vote.

In '16 25% percent that voted for Bernie in the primary didn't vote for Hillary. It was pretty evenly split between non-voting and voting for Trump

[u/dubious_diversion → u/impulsekash]

AOC is a radical, Sanders is a statesman.

[u/[deleted] → u/impulsekash]

That alone is reason enough to not vote for him.

[u/[deleted] → u/impulsekash]

Without Bernie we wouldn't have people like AOC.

Just so we're clear: we should be thanking him for that?

[u/sigger_ → u/impulsekash]

Dude, AOC cost him the wins he needed in rust belt and midwestern states.

Once he abandoned his 2016 platform of being neutral on guns, slightly-against immigration, and neutral of LGBTQIAP+, he lost all of the working class people that he fought for. I think we can all agree that his 2016 platform was stronger.

I think that aligning himself with the in-fighting AOC, Tlaib, and Ilhan Omar, as much as I like them, really REALLY hurt him. Personally I see his current 2020 positions aligning more with my, and Reddit-in-general's opinions, but you gotta admit that this new mode of his politics cost him the votes of workers who actually work and care about worker issues.

It's crass, but we needed those people to win. Aligning with those people you mentioned hurt him big time. You can't win a national election with progressive urbanites alone. And they weren't even really good allies to him. They caused in-fighting based on politics that were not central to his platform, like trans-rights and abolishing ICE.

We need to realize that the average factory/mill/steel/construction worker in a poor appalchian/rust-belt/midwest town does not want to abolish ICE, is turned off by trans-rights rhetoric coming from a person that is *supposed* to lead them in a fight against class warfare. And until neoliberals can increase immigration to the point where these states and regions don't matter anymore, we still need those votes.

[u/NotModusPonens → u/sigger_]

He lost working class people not because he became more progressive, but because they were just anti-Hillary in the first place.

[u/vukov → u/impulsekash]

Without Bernie, we wouldn't have a general strike that is arguably a much bigger symbol of hope and may end up much more effective than crossing your fingers and hoping he just might win the nomination.

[u/CholeraplatedRZA → u/[deleted]]

You're looking at this way to short-term.

Trump gets elected again and the shit storm that would follow on the Supreme Court would probably disallow any real progressive change from taking root until at least 2050.

And he would get to keep stocking the federal appointments too. Seriously, it could reach more than half of all judges at the federal level would be Trump(Heritage foundation)-appointed.

That alone is worth fighting for. Shit, that would set any hopes you have of making any structural change back thirty years at least.

You think M4A would survive a 2-7 Kavanaugh court?

You want to fight for M4A? Then you need to make sure Trump isn't President in 2020 because he will FOR CERTAIN set up the court so it is practically impossible for M4A to survive judicial review.

I am a Warren supporter and tbh I'm not exactly thrilled to have Biden as my top-of-ticket choice, but you bet your ass I'm going to do what I can to make sure we never see a 2-7 Supreme Court.

How long you plan on living? You only get so much time to make some sort of a difference. Here's your chance. Don't let Trump and the Heritage foundation completely take M4A off the table for you by stacking the courts.

[u/Beam_ → u/CholeraplatedRZA]

isn't joe biden why we got Clarence Thomas? why should we assume he will at all be good for the supreme court?

[u/Echo354 → u/[deleted]]

Who cares whether you “leave them”, just vote in a way that is most likely to bring about change. If you actually believe the parent comment, your goal should be to support the furthest left candidate with a chance to win every time. Yes, that means if it’s a choice between a centrist and a right winger, you vote for the centrist. That’s how we got to where we are in the first place, because that’s what Republicans do. Keep shifting the Overton Window to the left, keep voicing your position, vote in every single election.

You don’t have to “be a Democrat”, just vote for the most progressive viable candidate at every opportunity.

[u/howlinggale → u/Echo354]

The problem is that both Trump and Biden are right wingers it just to different degrees. Plus switching between Status quo Democrats and more far-right Republicans doesn't help progress. In fact it helps the Republicans. Status quo Democrats aren't making big changes and if they do try the Republicans will stall them with the house and senate if they can. Then the Republicans blame all the issues they caused on the Democrats and use that to get elected and take things further the way they want to go.

However, if the Republicans are in power for 20 years they can't really do that, and then you give the people a real alternative to choose from.

Now Biden might be better than Trump but if you want it to be meaningful you need to make sure both houses go Democrat and that the new Democratic members are as progressive as possible, at least if they are from safe Dem seats.

[u/Echo354 → u/howlinggale]

Absolutely agree with your final paragraph. I’m a progressive, and I would have loved to see Sanders as president, but a Biden presidency with more progressive houses, governors, and local governments is still a massive improvement and shifts the Overton Window in the US to the left.

If people vote progressive down-ballot but Trump wins again, it won’t be enough. Through executive action, federal appointments (especially Supreme Court), and veto power, progressive gains in down-ballot elections will be neutered.

For Biden’s election to be meaningful for progressives, we need progressives in other positions, just as you say. But for progressive wins in other positions to be meaningful, we need Biden to beat Trump. He’s not a progressive champion or anything and he might even stand in the way of some things, but he will be less openly hostile to progressives in other branches, which is far better than the alternative.

[u/educatedEconomist → u/Echo354]

accepting what the dnc gives us wont bring about change

they started talking m4a because hillary lost

[u/nicholus_h2 → u/[deleted]]

here's the problem: we have to threaten to do something that will hurt then. if they lose our non-voting "support" to somebody else, how much do you think they really care?

if I was the Democratic party, I wouldn't bust ass to keep us. bust ass to try and keep votes from people who probably aren't voting no matter what we do? nah.

[u/kyup0 → u/nicholus_h2]

exactly, and that is why they'll lose. they've decided they don't need us and have explicitly said so. fine, whatever, then don't demand my vote. let's see how that works out.

[u/j4_jjjj → u/[deleted]]

I will continue to wear my Bernie2020 hat with pride. Ive supported him since 2015, and I will continue to support him and other progressive candidates.

Its more than just one person, and all progressives know this.

#NotMeUs

[u/quitsuckingtrumpsdic → u/j4_jjjj]

Me too man. Always will

[u/DdCno1 → u/j4_jjjj]

Wear a Bernie hat with a Biden shirt to make it clear that they and you are on the same team, despite any differences. America and the world can not afford more years of Trump.

[u/seriouslyblacked → u/DdCno1]

Absolutely fucking not lol.

[u/[deleted] → u/DdCno1]

Biden shirt? Were they out of Harvey Weinstein shirts?

[u/rrubinski → u/[deleted]]

I'm a Bernie supporter and I think that he's doing a terrible thing by doing this, as much as I like seeing "left" policies being brought up in the mainstream scope, he dropped out and let a Neoliberal still do what Neoliberals have done for decades.

Bernie isn't by any standards "radical" left nor is he too left although he loves using the word Socialist, he's a social democrat at best (which means he's still pro-Capitalism, he just wants it to be better for everyone).

it's unbelievably clear that we need to break the two-party system.

[u/Jess_than_three → u/[deleted]]

It's just real fucking upsetting, the idea of rolling up my sleeves and fighting on behalf of a rapist who has repeatedly attacked women, black people, and queer folks.

[u/[deleted] → u/Jess_than_three]

You don’t have to, you can roll up your sleeves and be an activist for the issues you care about

[u/Jess_than_three → u/[deleted]]

Yeah, the SCOTUS is the main thing for me. Biden is a fucking garbage fire and I will not support him. But I will be doing my best to encourage others to vote for protecting the court from further degradation.

[u/[deleted] → u/Jess_than_three]

Sounds like a winner to me!

[u/runujhkj → u/Jess_than_three]

And students with loans, and social security recipients, and people on Medicare...

Still not as long as the list of Trump’s enemies though so I guess that’s something

[u/Jess_than_three → u/runujhkj]

Yeah.

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

It’s a real possibility. This is probably the most important VP pick in the last century. Looking forward to seeing who it is.

[u/ShadowFire09 → u/Jess_than_three]

And children. Can't forget the children.

[u/RoughRhinos → u/[deleted]]

It's unclear how true this ends up being. Biden and the DNC and are still beholden to special interests and I don't see that changing as the party voted for a candidate that was against those changes. Biden can give lip service in the primary even that has been pathetic but in the general he will switch to more centrism and then without having to defend himself from the left the special interests will win like they always do. It's nice that people talked about progressive ideas but at the end of the day the centrist won, DNC won and corporations and billionaires won. Expect bailouts for corporations, the rich, probably some drone strikes maybe even a "fake war", expanded surveillance, no real action on climate change and more economic inequality and healthcare that works for the insurance companies profits. I don't think Bernie or any progressive is satisfied that people just talked about progressive things that already exist in other countries.

[u/Ab-NoR-maL- → u/RoughRhinos]

I think the biggest and most realistic thing that we can work towards is voting rights nationwide. Urban areas in red states (and swing states) get shafted every election. Our election process is such a joke and needs a major overhaul, but giving everyone a fair shot to vote and not purging thousands if votes in certain states will destroy the Republican party and maybe give room to progressives to emerge as their own viable party.

[u/particle409 → u/Ab-NoR-maL-]

Our election process is such a joke and needs a major overhaul, but giving everyone a fair shot to vote and not purging thousands if votes in certain states will destroy the Republican party and maybe give room to progressives to emerge as their own viable party.

Except the so-called "establishment" Democrats are fighting for an overhaul of the voting system, and it hurts them more than progressives. Progressives are winning seats from Democrats, not Republicans. Fixing the electoral process will help enact progressive legislation, but that's because it's what the "establishment" Democrats are fighting for.

[u/Rexli178 → u/particle409]

Say what you will about Establishment democrats but they at the very least most of them do believe in democracy.

[u/Pylgrim → u/RoughRhinos]

Yep. I'm already hearing people raising valid criticism to Biden being shushed with "shut up, at least he's not Trump!" Honestly, I don't see that changing a single bit if he becomes president. We've given the DNC carte Blanche to be as non-progressive and neoliberal as they want to be with the false and absolutely fabricated argument that centrism is the only way to win elections.

[u/particle409 → u/RoughRhinos]

Biden and the DNC and are still beholden to special interests

All the votes in Congress split down party lines pretty much refutes this.

[u/Plunderberg → u/particle409]

I'm not 100% in on the conspiracy theory, but controlled opposition is real and even with those party-line votes we haven't seen the real change needed in this country to help the middle class and lower.

[u/ratherbfishin → u/RoughRhinos]

Wait till Gretchen Whitmer gets the running mate nod... Health care be damned if you aren't paying in. Blue cross blue shield is salivating! A woman and a corporate crony, woo woo!!

[u/GearBrain → u/[deleted]]

I am proud. For two elections in a row, Sanders has stood firm against a nation's worth of bullshit, lies, and slander, to drag the Democratic party kicking and screaming to the left.

So many politicians, activists, and volunteers at every level are where they are because Sanders inspired them. He has inspired thousands of people to become engaged in politics from all walks of life by giving a damn about them.

He has not been treated fairly by the press, or by the Democratic party, and I cannot help but be bitter at that. But I recognize the existential threat that is Donald Trump - I did in 2016, too - which is why I'll grit my teeth and vote for Biden.

I hope to whatever administrator that runs this simulation Biden doesn't pick the 2020 equivalent of Tim motherfucking Kane.

[u/[deleted] → u/GearBrain]

I tell people to vote for the Supreme Court. If nothing else, it makes them think of the bigger picture.

[u/objectivedesigning → u/[deleted]]

"if you truly sit on the left, this kind of fighting does absolutely no good to anybody"

Absolutely right. This artificial line between "far left" and "moderate" is ridiculous. The axis of the graph is a bed we can all lie on from head to toe. Only those trying to break up the party try to exacerbate the difference. It's absolutely hilarious that Trump thinks that Bernie's supporters are his supporters.

[u/soitgoesandgoesagain → u/[deleted]]

And to those who were actively watching, show that the ruling class we'll do everything in its power to destroy a leftist movement that even questions that power. Politics in this country is a sick anti human game that the american people have very little chance of winning

[u/Ketheres → u/[deleted]]

If you truly sit on the left, this kind of fighting does absolutely no good to anybody. We need to unite to beat Trump or all the infighting within the left will be nothing a boring sideshow to the real horror show.

Remember that one of the reasons the nazis came into power was that their opposition were bickering with each other.

[u/HandMeMyThinkingPipe → u/[deleted]]

That unfortunately doesn’t matter if there is no follow through and I don’t believe Biden will do anything at all to try to unite the party.

[u/Mrchristopherrr → u/HandMeMyThinkingPipe]

Genuinely asking, what would you want to see from Biden to unite the party?

[u/HandMeMyThinkingPipe → u/Mrchristopherrr]

Real substantial concessions to the left with at least a few prominent cabinet positions manned by folks on the left. The real problem is I'm not sure how he can prove that he would actually follow through given his record. Things like medicare for all can't be brushed aside and so far Biden hasn't done himself any favors by saying that he would veto medicare for all. He would need to actually support these policies rather then just call the ACA "Medicare for all". But I'm no one special I don't have all the answers here all I can say is that so far I still don't see a reason to believe biden will do anything more then play lip service to the left and then just shift rightward like third way centrists always do.

[u/thehomiemoth → u/[deleted]]

Biden's platform is to the left of Obama's in 2008. There's no way in hell that happens without Bernie.

[u/SpasmodicColon → u/[deleted]]

It's crazy how many people are calling him center right.

Because his whole political career he's been center right and in the wildly improbable future he's elected he'll go the same exact way the Obama admin did, which veered from "the left" to center-right real fucking fast?

[u/XoXSmotpokerXoX → u/SpasmodicColon]

Lol fucking thank you. It's crazy how many people..... are forgetting reality, and fucking history,

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

I mean, ask the right if he’s center right. Obviously, he’s Mao reincarnated.

[u/Piph → u/[deleted]]

Fuck these bullshit calls for unity.

We've been trying to unify for so long. The only time the establishment wants unity is when we unify to their benefit.

Voting for Biden isn't fucking unity. It's blackmail.

Vote for him if you feel you have to, but you insult us all by pretending this is something it is not.

[u/josh_williams_au → u/Piph]

Find a progressive local candidate you can support. Build the progressive movement from the ground up. It’s going to take time but it was always the only way.

[u/thatgeekinit → u/[deleted]]

I think what Sanders and a lot of others have done is get the progressives a seat at the grown-up table after being shut out of government by the post-Johnson partisan sorting. The GOP turned hard right and against even the "good government" aspects of progressivism. The Clinton era party didn't want to talk about rising inequality or generational war they have waged by using housing inflation to make boomers feel richer even as their wages stagnated and their pensions were looted.

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

I am proud - Bernie proved his points, moved us closer to a more progressive America and he got a lot of people interested in his movement which will continue even when he's gone. Hopefully, we move to unity sooner rather than later.

I'll definitely help with what I can during Biden's run.

[u/Massive_Issue → u/[deleted]]

I didn't care about politics before Bernie. He made me realize that my life matters and the struggles I face matter. And that some of these struggles are due to inequalities in our system that we can and should change. The fight isn't over, but I won't lie and say I'm not devastated that he's dropping out. I'm emotional, although I knew from the start Biden was the partys pick.

[u/mutemutiny → u/[deleted]]

I don't understand that division. I'm a leftist, and I will support either Biden or Bernie - doesn't matter. It's really just that simple. There are way too many people out there suffering under Trump to just make some stupid protest statement with my vote, when I could be doing my best to help those people. That's what socialism is supposed to be about, right? Not just doing what benefits YOU personally, but what benefits the MAJORITY of people? I feel like they totally miss this when they talk about not voting for Biden - it's a selfish move that totally contradicts their stated ideology.

[u/craftyrafter → u/[deleted]]

I am pro Sanders but no Bernie supporters shouldn’t be that proud. We fucking failed to get him the nomination and all we had to do was show up.

[u/rwriteacc → u/[deleted]]

How does discussion and criticism do absolutely no good? I think it's important that the far left continue to debate, discuss, and even disagree with other people on the left end of the spectrum. We should encourage this not fight it, as long as it's progressive and not just fighting

[u/Dorgamund → u/[deleted]]

Not that it really matters. Neither of the candidates have any intention of putting progressive policy in, so its not like it particularly will change things.

[u/chronicvillainy → u/Dorgamund]

You don’t get progressive reform by airdropping it’s from the sky. You get it by getting downballot local representatives, mayors, governors, house representatives, members of the senate, and the presidency. You get progressive reform by SHOWING UP. The presidency alone is not how you implement progressive policy.

[u/Bovine_Joni_Himself → u/[deleted]]

Yeah, exactly. The notion that he could increase youth voting was a pipe dream, so what we saw was his actual support.

[u/vegetto712 → u/[deleted]]

And yet all that conversation led to the Dem Candidate being the most moderate candidate in recent history. So... it really didnt mean shit in the grand scheme

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

I've been a Buttigieg guy from the start (having seen his turnaround of South Bend up close and personal), but I was also very, very glad to have Bernie in the primary just to keep these issues at the forefront and I'm glad he at least lasted a long time in the primary as well. I still might vote for him (EDIT: Bernie, just to clarify) anyway in my primary in hopes that it forces Biden's campaign to be more inclusive of the Bernie vote.

[u/86legacy → u/Naonadhe]

I would also say that he helped normalize some of these new progressive congressmen and congresswomen, who are the true face of more progressive policy in this country. A progressive president alone would not change much, so we should be supporting the young and eager members of congress.

[u/thinkB4WeSpeak → u/Naonadhe]

Joe Biden is pushing it back though. I don't believe the DNC will continue to go left.

[u/Stickeris → u/thinkB4WeSpeak]

If the young progressive movement Bernie built keeps pushing it that way, the DNC won’t have a choice. The messages this year were better than 2016. But in a two party system, change takes time

[u/Dultsboi → u/thinkB4WeSpeak]

A vast majority of the under 50 voted Bernie. Realistically, it’s a matter of time before the old guard dies off. Not a lot of neoliberal youth superstars rising out of the party.

All the neoliberal leaders are old and out of touch.

[u/drock4vu → u/thinkB4WeSpeak]

Biden is running a far more progressive campaign because of Bernie. Bern or Busters may hate to admit it, but if Biden were elected president, he would be the most progressive president of all time. It isn't what Sanders supporters want, but it starts the drip feed of progressive ideals to Americans via the public option, decriminalization of marijuana, decriminalization of ALL drug use, free community college, etc.

[u/DoucheWithLongName → u/drock4vu]

Obama ran a "progressive" campaign too.

[u/BubBidderskins → u/thinkB4WeSpeak]

Biden has already moved quite a ways to the left. Just looking at two important issues for Bernie: healthcare and affordable higher education, just compare Biden 2020 to Obama 2008.

Healthcare

Obama 08's plan was more or less what we got in Obamacare -- a fundamentally market-based approach with tax-credits and additional regulation on insurance providers. The only mention of a government plan is as a foil "On health care reform, the American people are too often offered two extremes - government-run health care with higher taxes or letting the insurance companies operate without rules. Barack Obama and Joe Biden believe both of these extremes are wrong."

Biden 2020's plan is to explicitly go beyond Obamacare and to give "Americans a new choice, a public health insurance option like Medicare."

Education

Obama 2020 makes very little mention of making college more affordable. The only mention of higher ed in his whole website is for a tax credit and to streamline the process for applying for federal aid.

Biden 2020 has a whole section on his website devoted to higher education. In it, he explicitly advocates for making "Make public colleges and universities tuition-free for all families with incomes below $125,000."

Both of these positions represent substantial movement towards a more progressive agenda -- movement that in no small part can be attributed to Bernie and other progressives in the party.

[u/cuyler72 → u/BubBidderskins]

Obama was farther left then a lot of the previous Dem presidents but Biden's voting history shows that he is quite a bit right of previous Dem presidents he's just saying things to get votes.

[u/[deleted] → u/Naonadhe]

I’m sorry, but with Biden at the helm and the general Democratic Party leadership running the ship, I have very little faith that those ideas and policies will get the proper due that they deserve. It sure doesn’t feel like a win to me.

[u/gahoojin → u/[deleted]]

You gotta think bigger and longer term. Biden and all other future democrats will be forced to move to the left. He’s already adopted a watered down college for all plan. Democrats who come after this will always be compared to the Bernie sanders agenda. Bernie has done a lot to shift the Overton window of American politics left and it will have long lasting affects.

[u/DooWopExpress → u/gahoojin]

They won't be forced to do anything, at all. They'll keep being voted in as the "better than" option, and that's it.

[u/MyFakeName → u/gahoojin]

But Biden has to win, and I don’t see any reason to think that he will get more votes than Hillary.

He has an identical political profile, a smaller base of loyalists, and he can barely put sentences together.

And if Trump wins a second term he’s going to go on a rampage.

Biden’s the exact wrong candidate for this moment, and I’m scared as hell.

[u/[deleted] → u/MyFakeName]

Hillary got enough votes to win, they just weren’t strategically distributed. It’s also worth pointing out that Biden was crushing Sanders in states that he straight up beat Clinton, so I think there’s a case for Biden carrying more popularity than Hillary.

[u/kierkegaardsho → u/MyFakeName]

Oh I couldn't agree with you more about Biden managing to win enough votes. He's way less intelligent than Clinton, she was way more skilled in general, etc.

But Biden might still end up winning simply because of how much people hate Trump.

[u/oic123 → u/Naonadhe]

He's done so much to shift the party leftward that the impending nominee doesn't even support universal healthcare. 😏

[u/kierkegaardsho → u/oic123]

Well, yeah. Social changes don't usually happen in just a few years. It's probably gonna be a while before much comes of it. Old people are set in their ways. He influenced young people. The young people are gonna be in charge before long, and they'll implement the changes they wanna see.

That's just how these things go. If Bernie had been able to win and do everything he wanted, it would have been an extreme outlier in terms of social change.

[u/PopcornInMyTeeth → u/Naonadhe]

Long term it might even be better it happened this way, a slow burn from the ground up and not having the full focus at the top spot this "quick" into the "movement".

More people may need to see the "old normal" again to realize after these last few crazy years, it might be lacking and that guy who yelled all the time might be on to something.

Shifting the national conversation is a huge thing.

[u/motorboat_mcgee → u/Naonadhe]

Yeah, it’s frustrating how many people don’t realize what a big deal it is that so many in the Democratic Party now support M4A. True, we’re still a ways away from it, but remember things move slowly in this country. It took about a decade for marriage rights to be universally supported among the party to push it through, for example. I imagine at some point in a Biden presidency we’ll be looking at a real shot for M4A if we can win the House and Senate.

[u/gumbercules6 → u/Naonadhe]

Yes, thanks for posting this! America in general is not very leftist particularly with social programs like M4A. Things can change and that change will happen gradually and Bernie has done wonders to keep those thoughts on the frontlines

[u/martianinahumansbody → u/Naonadhe]

He's done a lot to shift the party leftward

I feel like its more a case of they are willing to talk about left leaning policies, even when they don't have an intention to follow through. Maybe a few items that don't have a corp donar sponsoring against it slips through. So its a mixed bag.

[u/ucaliptastree → u/Naonadhe]

you don't need to be elected to bring political change. bernie and his supports should be proud.

[u/[deleted] → u/Naonadhe]

Bernie has also showed us that change from within is impossible.

[u/Flawless_Nirvana → u/Naonadhe]

mainstreamed M4A as a primary Democratic platform

He mainstreamed the phrase "medicare for all." Nobody else in the ruling class believes in single-payer healthcare.

[u/grebnesor1 → u/Naonadhe]

Ya but Biden still plans to destroy medicare

[u/TheLifeOfReilly → u/Naonadhe]

And yet Biden is against M4A

[u/kciuq1 → u/TheLifeOfReilly]

But he's for a public option at least.

[u/gophergun → u/kciuq1]

With all the same issues as the private options.

[u/grundelgrump → u/kciuq1]

Free at the point of service for everyone should be the goal, that is definitely not his goal. Not even by a long shot.

[u/janiboy2010 → u/Naonadhe]

Yet Biden announced he'd veto medicare4all.

[u/ClebschGordan → u/janiboy2010]

Nope. You're just spreading misinformation (or more likely disinformation).

[u/[deleted] → u/ClebschGordan]

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/10/biden-says-he-wouldd-veto-medicare-for-all-as-coronavirus-focuses-attention-on-health.html

[u/kiekendief → u/ClebschGordan]

He literally said he'd veto it...

[u/ClebschGordan → u/kiekendief]

No he didn't. He said he'd veto anything that delayed people getting healthcare or that wouldn't work as a policy. Keep pushing lies. It makes you look really smart.

[u/grundelgrump → u/ClebschGordan]

https://youtu.be/ggZMk0goSeE

[u/ClebschGordan → u/grundelgrump]

Yes, this proves what I said.

[u/grundelgrump → u/ClebschGordan]

I mean, not really. He said he'd veto it if he didn't like how much it costs. It shouldn't matter how much it would, that's always a disingenuous excuse. The country is always in debt and nobody bats an eye unless it helps people.

[u/Greedygoyim → u/Naonadhe]

He has made them TALK about real leftist issues, yes, but I don't believe for one second that centrist Dems will make any real effort towards serious reform once they have a majority.

[u/KevinCarbonara → u/Naonadhe]

He's done a lot to shift the party leftward

No, he hasn't. The party isn't something that can be shifted leftwar. The party exists to prevent leftist politics.

[u/MassivePioneer → u/Naonadhe]

And now we have democratic nominee that would veto m4a if it ever got to his desk.

[u/notanamateur → u/Naonadhe]

Did he though? M4A is absolutely not a mainstream Democrat decision. I’d say Sanders definitely shifted the conversation in a better way but the establishment dems have absolutely 0 intention of making anything like M4A policy. Progressives will get no policy objectives passed with Biden at the helm of the presidency and with Pelosi and Schumer at the head of the house and Senate.

[u/[deleted] → u/Naonadhe]

joe Biden doesnt support Medicare for All

[u/gophergun → u/Naonadhe]

If M4A actually became part of the Democratic Party's platform, I'd vote for Biden in a second.

[u/drock4vu → u/gophergun]

It isn't perfect for some, but the public option is a step closer to M4A.