Pete and Amy are like two sides of the same sandwich -- made with white bread and mayonnaise, take your pick. I think they cancel each other out and I don't see that either has gained any traction whatsoever with Democrats of color, in Nevada, South Carolina or anywhere else.
I listened to both Pete B's and Bernie's New Hampshire post-result speeches. I'm warming to Bernie but not to Pete. I just didn't find him inspiring or specific enough. He seemed like a deer caught in the headlights -- just too wet behind the ears for me. There were awkward pauses between his sentences ended and when people clapped.
My current thoughts on Bernie Sanders: Tonight he sounded authentic to me now (finally). I have long been critical of him, mostly due to his claim to be spearheading a revolution (based on ideas and values every Jewish grandparent, parent aunt and uncle I know from Brooklyn, including my own, held long before him.) But now he's been running for President so long he has become like a comfortable old shoe. I actually believe that if he's the nominee and his health holds up, he will do everything he promises, from canceling student debt to offering health care for all to making big inroads in the reform of the criminal justice system and protecting Medicare and social security. Who knows, maybe he'll even have a Middle East peace plan both sides would listen to. He's certainly more capable than Jared Kushner.
Even if moderate Midwestern Dems are now adverse to Bernie's ideas as too far left, I think it might be worthwhile to nominate him because of how many millions more Americans will become exposed to his positions. After all, they are the right positions, I've never had a quarrel with that. And if the public isn't ready for these ideas in 2020, hopefully they will be in 2024, allowing the next generation of progressive candidates to run all the way home with them.
I'm just not convinced that any of the current crop of Dems can beat Trump. It's hard to argue with stupid, and that's the only explanation I can think of that anyone would still support him. But they do -- just look at the sea of white bread faces at his rallies who applaud his fear-mongering -- last night he said:
They're going to take away everything. They're going to take your wealth, they're going to take your guns. They're going to take away everything."
He also retold his snake story to ramp up fear of immigrants. (As I've pointed out before, there are many other meanings to that story, including that the snake is a metaphor for an untrustworthy cooperating defendant who bites his unsuspecting codefendant in the as*, killing him).
At least Bernie will give as good as he gets when it comes to battling Trump. Maybe Dems need a knock-down, drag-out fight right now to take out Trump, rather than a bland or non-charismatic mid-western moderate who doesn't offend or scare anyone.
I'm not committing yet, just thinking out loud. But I am glad Bernie won last night in New Hampshire. I'm just not sure what it means, especially with billionaires Bloomberg and Steyer throwing money at ads like drunken sailors.
As for "vote blue no matter who", while I encourage everyone else to do that, I'll only get on board so long as it isn't Biden (or Bloomberg, who I view as a Republican and I never have and never would vote for one).
