The New Yorker: Bernie Sanders, Loud and Clear (Bernie Group)

[Omaha Steve]

Last edited Mon Nov 16, 2015, 09:54 PM - Edit history (1)

Even if his polling numbers don’t budge, Sanders still has an important role to play in the Presidential race.
CREDIT PHOTOGRAPH BY MANDEL NGAN / AFP / GETTY

http://www.newyorker.com/news/john-cassidy/bernie-sanders-loud-and-clear

BY JOHN CASSIDY

From the beginning of Saturday night’s Democratic debate, Senator Bernie Sanders was very clear on what he wanted to talk about. He began with two sentences about the terrorist attacks in Paris, expressing his horror and disgust, then he moved onto his main message: “I’m running for President, because as I go around this nation, I talk to a lot of people. And what I hear is people’s concern that the economy we have is a rigged economy.”

It was an awkward transition, and not one most politicians would have made. Rather they would have devoted, as Hillary Clinton and Martin O’Malley did, their entire opening statements to the attacks, seeking to come across as empathetic, resolute, and ready to take over as Commander-in-Chief. But Sanders isn’t like most politicians, and he sometimes doesn’t abide by the often stultifying conventions of modern Presidential elections.

Congenitally averse to political theatrics, he reportedly didn’t practice much before the first debate, and it showed. This time, according to a Times article published on Friday, he agreed to do some real prep work, taking part in serious and lengthy rehearsals, with a staff member playing the role of Hillary Clinton. Perhaps as a result, he looked sharper. His answers were more direct and, unlike in the first debate, he didn’t make any off-the-cuff remarks that risked diverting attention from his message that America’s economic and political systems are broken. In a debate that was inevitably somewhat overshadowed by the aftermath of the terrorist attacks, what he was saying came through loud and clear.

The first question put to him on domestic issues was about taxation and how far he would go in raising the top rate of income tax on well-to-do Americans. “In the last thirty years, there has been a massive redistribution of wealth,” Sanders said. “And I know that term gets my Republican friends nervous. The problem is, this redistribution has gone in the wrong direction. Trillions of dollars have gone from the middle class and working families to the top one-tenth of one per cent who have doubled the percentage of wealth they now own.”

FULL story at link.

[Fawke Em]

1. I think the polls are wrong and I'm compiling some info on why.

And, it's not Romneyesque - it's a real polling problem.

[madfloridian]

4. Go for it, and post it when you get it compiled.

[Fawke Em]

6. I plan on it. Started to do a thread and kept running

across so much new research, I just copied what I had, stuck in a Word Doc to continue to work on. It may take some time, but I'm still researching.

BTW, I remember sparring with you in the Dean v. Clark months. You were a formidable opponent, but we kept it civil. I was "Clarkie" back then, I think.

I came back on months later as another name (Scoop-something - I ended up not being very active under that name when Obama ran because I had a newborn baby girl), but recalled your beautiful, interesting and informative posts on education. I am a former newspaper reporter and consider teachers my closest allies in educating people - they the young, me the adult. I want to thank you for so many wonderful posts on that subject. I learned A LOT from them and can converse with my children's teachers on a level, now, that I think they appreciate as much as I do.

[madfloridian]

7. lol the deaniacs and clarkies are looking pretty mild compared to right now.

A few things you wrote kind of struck a chord...but not enough for my brain to fully remember.

I sure was stubborn back then...wouldn't give an inch. I am looking back and thinking how I never did back down.

I am seeing Dean and other stuff in different lights now, but I am just as stubborn about supporting Bernie.

If a lightbulb goes on over my head I will PM you.

[Fawke Em]

11. Doesn't matter - we both learned the same lesson.

We need to take our party LEFT.

[WHEN CRABS ROAR]

5. Conduct your own unscientific pole, here's how.

On a large 2 foot by 3 foot foam board write

HONK
FOR
BERNIE

Go to a busy intersection and hold the sign up high so the drivers can read it.

A couple of things will happen, it might get loud with horns honking and others will realize how many supporters he has.

Now is the time for a real progressive populist movement, but the message needs to be clear and not overly complex and it needs to be repeated over and over to drive it home into the minds of the people.

Then Bernie will win.

[eridani]

12. The problem is that we just can't learn much from them.

The online polls are skewed towards the Sanders demographic, and the landline polls (of "likely voters&quot skewed in favor of the Clinton demographic.

For that reason, I almost never click on poll threads. Or psychobabble. The only thing that is important is organizing.

[Kalidurga]

2. Thank you

that takes the edge off how terrible I thought his opening remarks were. I guess watching the debate when feeling so upset over the attack in Paris blinded me to what he was actually saying. He is running for President of the United States, not President of the World. I still think it was horrible, but I can see his pov now.

[appalachiablue]

3. Although brief I didn't think his statements on the Paris attacks were inadequate.

I do think the French tragedy might have contributed to Clinton's odd mention of NY's 911. That strange association with receiving funds from Wall Street didn't go over well we know.

[Kalidurga]

8. No they weren't inadequate, that particular venue doesn't lend itself to grief and horror very well

And I don't think it's how do you say the right time to make it about politics. It would be unseemly to vent in such a manner.

But, I had trouble following the line of thought. And now I get it a lot better than I did before. It's the economy and not just ours. It's about resources as he talked about in context of global warming. And there is a connection to 9/11 if we want to talk about how that ended up with us being in Iraq and not because Osama was there.

[MasonDreams]

9. Oh yea, now I remember, we did invade where Osama was'nt

Well, we must have had a good reason, No? Well it was the elected President's agenda.
My country right or wrong. What? he did not get more votes than the other guy? And the VP outed a CIA agent for disputing the misinformation campaign. Where was the opposition party? Go along to get along? BERNIE::BECAUSE FUCK THIS SHIT!!!

[Kalidurga]

10. Yes and Hillary stepped in it with that response Ms Noun Verb 9/11 woman.