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"Bernie Sanders is right, Hillary is not qualified to be a progressive President"
Sanders is Right: Clinton Not Qualified To Be a Progressive President
On 'quality control' and the Democratic Party
by Peter Bloom
April 7, 2016
Peter Bloom is a lecturer in the Department of People and Organisations at the Open University. He has published widely on issues of 21st century democracy, politics and economics in both scholarly journals and in publications including the Washington Post, The New Statesman, Roar, Open Democracy, The Conversation and Common Dreams. His book, Authoritarian Capitalism in the Age of Globalization, will be released next year.
Sanders has forcefully challenged Clinton’s own qualifications. He challenged her credentials on both domestic and foreign policy issues. Referring to the recent release of the “Panama Papers” he proclaimed “I don't think you are qualified if you supported the Panama free-trade agreement, something I very strongly opposed, which has made it easier for wealthy people and corporations all over the world to avoid paying taxes owed to their countries.”
Clinton has been trumpeted repeatedly for her undeniable political experience. Yet as Sanders has taken great pains to point out – it is easy but dangerous to confuse being experienced for being qualified. Also required is wisdom, judgment and strong ethical principles.
It is not clear by any stretch of the imagination that Clinton is more experienced than Sanders. His success as a mayor, congressman and Senator holds up well with her resume as First Lady, Senator and Secretary of State. However, it is hard to argue that she matches up to him in terms of wisdom and principles.
Time and again – from the Iraqi invasion to LGTB rights, from the free trade to the environment – Sanders’s judgment has revealed itself far superior to Clinton’s. The leak of the “Panama Papers” further highlighted this qualified difference between the two candidates. While Clinton as Secretary of State was negotiating a free trade agreement with Panama that would easier for the wealthy to move their money offshore, Sanders was giving a speech on the Senate floor railing against this deal as a giveaway to the rich at the expense of the majority of Americans.
The contest between Clinton and Sanders represents something far bigger than the election of the candidates themselves. It is the choice between status quo experience and progressive wisdom. To quote Robert Reich, Hillary Clinton is " the most qualified candidate for president of the political system we now have. But Bernie Sanders is the most qualified candidate to create the political system we should have, because he’s leading a political movement for change."
Hillary Clinton is undeniably an extremely experienced and informed candidate. She is also a clear lesser evil than any Republican she will face. However, Sanders is right, she is not qualified to be a progressive President.
Clinton has been trumpeted repeatedly for her undeniable political experience. Yet as Sanders has taken great pains to point out – it is easy but dangerous to confuse being experienced for being qualified. Also required is wisdom, judgment and strong ethical principles.
It is not clear by any stretch of the imagination that Clinton is more experienced than Sanders. His success as a mayor, congressman and Senator holds up well with her resume as First Lady, Senator and Secretary of State. However, it is hard to argue that she matches up to him in terms of wisdom and principles.
Time and again – from the Iraqi invasion to LGTB rights, from the free trade to the environment – Sanders’s judgment has revealed itself far superior to Clinton’s. The leak of the “Panama Papers” further highlighted this qualified difference between the two candidates. While Clinton as Secretary of State was negotiating a free trade agreement with Panama that would easier for the wealthy to move their money offshore, Sanders was giving a speech on the Senate floor railing against this deal as a giveaway to the rich at the expense of the majority of Americans.
The contest between Clinton and Sanders represents something far bigger than the election of the candidates themselves. It is the choice between status quo experience and progressive wisdom. To quote Robert Reich, Hillary Clinton is " the most qualified candidate for president of the political system we now have. But Bernie Sanders is the most qualified candidate to create the political system we should have, because he’s leading a political movement for change."
Hillary Clinton is undeniably an extremely experienced and informed candidate. She is also a clear lesser evil than any Republican she will face. However, Sanders is right, she is not qualified to be a progressive President.
Read the complete article at: http://www.commondreams.org/views/2016/04/07/sanders-right-clinton-not-qualified-be-progressive-president
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