Pie-in-the-sky Sanders more realistic than Clinton: Kirsten Powers
Pie-in-the-sky Sanders more realistic than Clinton
How do you solve a problem like Bernie?
Belatedly appreciating the Sanders threat, Hillary Clinton is trying everything to stop the septuagenarian socialist democrat from Vermont. She has attacked his position on guns, his support for a single-payer health care system and his idealistic penchant for believing that Washington can be changed. Nothing has proved to be the silver bullet that would take out the unlikely spoiler of the second almost-coronation of Hillary Clinton. So, what’s next? Sanders himself predicted at his New Hampshire victory speech that soon the kitchen sink would be coming his way.
The New York Times reported that Clinton’s flailing campaign is trying out a new line: that Sanders is a “one-note” candidate who is captive to an obsession with Wall Street and campaign spending. Clinton is determined to prove that Sanders is not ready for office, but that she is. “If we broke up the big banks tomorrow,” Clinton asked a group of union members, “would that end racism? Would that end sexism? Would that end discrimination against the LGBT community?”
Just so we’re clear: Sanders is an unserious pie-in-the-sky candidate because he wants to rein in campaign spending and institute a health care system that is commonplace in Europe. Clinton, on the other hand, will eradicate sexism and racism in America. Who’s the dreamer here? After all, Clinton can’t even keep her own campaign surrogates — Gloria Steinem and Madeleine Albright — from taking sexist swipes at young female Bernie supporters.
Clinton’s attack is, not surprisingly, dishonest. (There is a reason that among New Hampshire's Democratic voters who listed trustworthiness as their most important issue, Bernie won out 91%-5%.) Sanders’ platform is as comprehensive as Clinton's. But Bernie has focus. He is animated by the suffering of the vast majority of Americans who are struggling economically. He is no more of a one-note candidate than Bill Clinton was in 1992 when his campaign slogan was, “It's the economy, stupid.” Whereas Hillary is continually reinventing herself and her campaign, throwing things against the wall to see what sticks, Sanders appears to be driven by core values. He’s running because he wants to upend a broken system.
She’s running because she thinks it’s her turn.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2016/02/16/kirsten-powers-bernie-sanders-hillary-clinton-democratic-primary-2016-column/80407150/#
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