2016 Postmortem
Related: About this forumVanity Fair: Sanders Is Closing in on Clinton, and He’s Not Even Trying
http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2016/01/bernie-sanders-is-closing-in-on-clinton-and-hes-not-even-tryingThe two Democrats are nearly neck-and-neck for the nomination. What happens if Sanders actually attacks?
BY T.A. FRANK
I cant imagine that Bernie Sanders actually expected to topple Hillary Clinton. Sure, he expected to change the parameters of debate and offer a broader vision of the Democratic Party, but not to run away with it. That he might succeed says less, Im afraid, about Sanders than about Clinton. Friends of Clinton say shes wonderful company in private, and supporters say shes at her best when governing rather than campaigning. But that doesnt get anyone very far. They might as well be saying shes great company when no ones around, and shes a great candidate when no one else is running.
On Sunday, well get the best indication yet of whether Bernie Sanders really intends to go all the way. He has never gotten rough, sticking to a mode of implied contrast on issues. Yet even his mildest jabs have wounded the frontrunneror erstwhile frontrunneras if a tug on her sleeve would be enough to rip off her entire arm. Last November, when Sanders told the Wall Street Journal that his political consistency on a trade deal (with an implied contrast to Clintons reversals) does speak to the character of a person, the Clinton campaign reproached the Sanders campaign for personal attacks that they previously said he wouldnt do.
Sanders prides himself on never having run a negative ad (a claim Clintons touchy campaign disputes), but hes perfectly capable of negative statements. He has called Donald Trump a pathological liar who simply cannot control himself, someone who lies, lies and lies again. Not so much implied contrast there. The question, as Ross Douthat notes in The New York Times, is whether Sanders is willing to deploy even a fraction of such vehemence against his Democratic rival.
It cant be an easy choice. First, Sanders must decide if he can really withstand the hell of an entire presidential campaign, possibly against Donald Trump, and then becoming Americas oldest president-elect, at age 75. True, the Oval Office will not turn Sanders hair gray, but the experience of the presidency, the position of sudden world-spanning power, is extreme. So is the confidence that it requires.
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merrily
(45,251 posts)He's maintained a killer schedule and achieved remarkable things, including raising almost as much as Hillary (exclusive of PACs) without going to big donors, a sea change in modern American politics.
Green Forest
(232 posts)Instead of being gentlemanly in neutralizing her email/private server woes and Bill's serial past (and likely, present) adultery in past debates. He even gave a pass to Chelsea on her shameless parroting of Hillary's ongoing lies about his wanting to get rid of Medicare, etc.
merrily
(45,251 posts)Green Forest
(232 posts)The author clearly appreciates the value of going negative, but Bernie's not going there though I don't think there's anything wrong with it if it is done well, such as how Barack does it.
All in all, I like the fact Bernie is finally getting press.
Ed Suspicious
(8,879 posts)And taking it a nd taking it until they've so thoroughly claimed the wrong position that it"s impossible for them to wriggle out when he inevitibly turns the tables on them.
Green Forest
(232 posts)I'll bet Joe Biden's remarks praising Bernie last week were not an accident.
Donkees
(31,481 posts)Proserpina
(2,352 posts)the snideness is unmistakable.
In case the author hadn't noticed due to lack of attention, Bernie already decided...back in August, when it became clear that the need, the hunger for leadership, was knocking on his door.
merrily
(45,251 posts)condescending or damning with faint praise, or all three.
roguevalley
(40,656 posts)I would say go bernie. you have health, decency and wisdom.
magical thyme
(14,881 posts)That doesn't mean it is effortless. In fact, the exact opposite. Their work ethic makes the rest of the world look like a bunch of slackers. They just combine total focus, perfect technique and zero wasted effort.
So when you see somebody doing really, really well and making it look easy, consider the possibility that they work harder than you ever dreamed was humanly possible.
daybranch
(1,309 posts)remember when she did not mention his name as she sought to show how well she could best the republicans in speeches but now Bernie continues to run against the oligarchy and does not even put Hillary's name in the commercials. That must sting and it works as the people see him as a man for us and ignore Hillary as a tool of her wealthy donors. Her continued claims to the Obama legacy are also wearing thin and are being questioned by many as she demonstrates her disagreements with Obama on policies including TTP, the Iranian sanctions etc. She is to the right of Obama and her past actions regarding incarceration and welfare hurt the black communities. We all know or will soon.