Bernie didn't say or MEAN "ditch identity politics"...the TPM headline & story were not accurate.

[Ken Burch]

I agree that he shouldn't have said what he said about Hillary and gender. It was tone deaf and badly expressed. It was not what we need at this moment.

But he did not say or even come close to meaning what the headline in the TPM story implied.

What Bernie said, and what he has always said, is that we need fight for social justice AND economic justice, since both justice struggles need to prevail if either is to prevail.

It's pretty obvious that the TPM story, with its inflammatory and inaccurate headline, was designed to thwart efforts to find the unity and common ground we desperately need.

This was an effort by TPM to divide and play us off against each other.

[TexasTowelie]

1. I read his full remarks

and the only thing that I picked up from them is his criticism of the Democratic Party. If he actually cared about the Democratic Party then he would join it and try to work within it to effect change. Reverting back as an independent and launching criticism as an outsider leads me to believe that his "I told you so" comments should be disregarded.

[Demsrule86]

4. This sort of behavior on Bernie's part will cause more divisions, and we will

lose more elections...if he isn't even a Democrat, he should not be speaking about what Democrats do or don't do...I am sure he feels deep" pity" for the poor white working guy who elected Trump. The video is positively nauseating...he should not have been put in a position of leadership unless he joined the party. Schumer made a mistake.

[bettyellen]

2. Well he did in 2013 - you saw those quotes so why beat around the bush?

He's not a fan, thinks it upsets those Reagan democrats or whatever. Not a priority like the WWC. He started his campaign being woefully uniformed about women's issues and the racist criminal justice system. Why pretend otherwise. We remember. You were probably one L of the people calling me a shill for noticing it. We noticed and were vilified here for it. Wasn't just the JPR people either.

[Demsrule86]

9. I remember very well what you are talking about.

Reagan was elected in 1980...36 years ago. It is time to let it go. I doubt there are many 'Reagan' Democrats still living as many were quite old then or so I have been told.

[Demsrule86]

3. There is a video. And honestly I am sorry I listened to it.

He shouldn't have done it.

"

[boston bean]

7. He has no idea. What he said was actually stupid and insulting to every minority and woman who

votes in the Democratic Party.

We do not vote with skin color or our vagina's Bernie!!!!!!!

But you go ahead and peddle this nonsense to angry white men. Go for it.

[lovemydog]

5. Agree. I'm pretty surprised how many here are misinterpreting

the nuance of what he actually said & meant. I think there's a lot to what he said, if we want to win elections going forward. I don't mean just Sanders. I mean future candidates.

[boston bean]

8. There was no misinterpretation.

[NCTraveler]

14. You agree with the op but the op doesn't agree with you when it comes to the words used.

"It was tone deaf and badly expressed."

[Cobalt Violet]

6. but like flies on shit

It sure did attract Bernie bashers.

[kcr]

10. I'm just going to repost what I said in another thread on this

It was based on the premise that Dems put up candidates and vote on them based solely on race. Like there's some kind of quota. He is playing on the fears of those who think Affirmative Action means unqualified people will coast in. The bolded part shows it. (The bolded part from the other post being this quote fro Bernie: "If that guy is going to be shipping jobs out of this country and exploiting his workers, doesn’t mean a whole hell of a lot if he’s black or white or Latino"). Oh, no! If Dems don't go beyond "identity politics" Then who knows! Maybe those brown people might do dumb stuff like ship your jobs away! That whole speech was filled with dog whistles. He seems to think that he's the white guy who's brave enough to tell it like it is, and that's why "The Working Class tm" * will listen to him, and it's such a shame Dems didn't pick him and that's why they listen to the only other white guy brave enough to tell it like it is. If only the Dems would learn this lesson!

*That would be another one of of those dog whistles. Because minorities work, too. They're part of the working class. This plays on the notion that minorities are lazy.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

11. Bernie can never do any wrong. Let's worship at his alter.

Even if that costs the democratic party its entire coalition.

[NCTraveler]

12. How could he. His political career is deep in identity politics.

Just look at the comment about women you briefly touch on. There is a long line of such comments directly from him. Some days he seems to use identity politics in the same manner as Trump. Other days he rightfully uses it to highlight oppression. Depends on who he thinks he is addressing.

[Justice]

13. Bernie was so Bernie. Inflammatory - lost his message.

He bashed our nominee Hillary based on gender. Indefensible.

Why did he do it? To get attention? Because he meant it? Loved getting in a little dig?

Stop defending him.

Worse for him, He was ineffective in delivering a message for social justice and economic justice. He failed to get his message across because he was so interested in being Bernie.

[NCTraveler]

15. "Why did he do it?" It plays to the base he built.

It is who they are. Sanders is a career politician and knows exactly what he is doing. This type of verbiage is like porn to his base.