2016 Postmortem
Related: About this forumBernie Sanders is the King of Credibility
Well, this is something that can't be lifted by another candidate.
Even more striking, the number of Democrats who consider Sanders honest and trustworthy was an astonishing 84 percent in that poll, almost 30 points higher than the same number for Clinton among Democrats and for Trump among Republicans.
Think about it: In an age of anti-establishment fervor, at a time when RealClearPolitics finds that Congress is held in disapproval by between 75 and 80 percent of voters, Sanders has achieved spectacularly positive numbers on matters of honesty, trust and favorability that are not matched by any Democrat or Republican running for president, or a Congress that is held in disrepute by more than three-fourths of the American people.
http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/presidential-campaign/273923-sanders-is-the-king-of-credibility-in-2016
DanTex
(20,709 posts)Betty Karlson
(7,231 posts)DanTex
(20,709 posts)Betty Karlson
(7,231 posts)Furthermore, the status quo is untenable, and she is always the last one to understand what untenable means. (For example: obstructing gay marriage, supporting the TPP)
And then there are her negative coattails, which spell doom for the party in the GE.
DanTex
(20,709 posts)Betty Karlson
(7,231 posts)Skwmom
(12,685 posts)DanTex
(20,709 posts)Skwmom
(12,685 posts)DanTex
(20,709 posts)hereforthevoting
(241 posts)peacebird
(14,195 posts)Jitter65
(3,089 posts)Surya Gayatri
(15,445 posts)highprincipleswork
(3,111 posts)I'm still just repeating words over and over again, as I try to re-program myself for the future world when I will learn to love endless war, corporate influence, voter disenfranchisement and shady elections, cuts to Medicare and Social Security (because they are so necessary and we are so powerless to use better means).
I am trying to get myself prepared for this world, but not sure I will make it. In which case, I'm getting ready with a whopping can of "I told you so."
BernieforPres2016
(3,017 posts)I suspect that what many people fear, even if subconsciously, is how much disruption there would be if a politician actually took on our status quo rigged economy. I predict that the stock market, with profits in so many industries inflated from fraudulent business models, tax fraud, monopoly rents due a lack of anti-trust enforcement and/or legislation written by industry, dumping their external costs on everybody else (i.e. fracking), aggressive accounting, etc., would be cut by half or more if Bernie became President. That would have a major negative impact on the funding status of pension plans.
Just a few industries that would be significantly impacted if Bernie was elected President and was able to achieve a significant portion of his economic agenda, off the top of my head:
Health insurance companies: their current business models would be decimated under a single payer Medicare type plan and employment in the industry would be significantly reduced
Too big to fail financial institutions: I think employment in that industry would actually increase if they were broken up as all the smaller institutions created would need management, IT, HR departments, etc.; but profitability would be reduced as some of their favorite ways to screw their customers would be prohibited.
Private prison industry: would be put out of business fairly quickly
For profit college industry: would be quickly put out of business, or at least dramatically downsized
Payday lending industry: would be quickly put out of business or at least dramatically downsized by reinstatement and enforcement of usury laws and improved services to the unbanked via post offices and possibly other avenues
Big pharmaceutical companies: profits would be cut dramatically as U.S. drug prices were negotiated down
Oil & gas: profits would be cut dramatically with the elimination of fracking, as they were forced to pay for externalities, and as special industry tax breaks were cut off
Corporate profits in some of these industries and many others would be reduced by dealing with offshore tax havens, cutting corporate welfare programs and imposing a minimum corporate tax rate. When corporate profits are cut dramatically, job cuts usually go along with it.
As an offset, putting more money in the pockets of low and middle income people via a large hike in the minimum wage and savings on health care (premiums plus deductibles and co-pays) would provide a large economic benefit. A large infrastructure plan that employed millions would be another boost.
I don't think the existing economic models of any economist could accurately predict the impact of so many significant changes on economic growth, the budget deficit, etc. I think a lot of it wouldn't be pleasant in the short run, but maintaining the status quo is worse. The system we currently have is economically unsustainable in the long run. Better to change it proactively than to wait on its inevitable collapse, but a lot of people won't see it that way.