2016 Postmortem
Related: About this forumMy prediction: Elizabeth Warren will not be endorsing anyone anytime soon
Some people in both the Bernie and the Hillary camps have been waiting with bated breath to see who Warren is going to endorse.
I don't think she is endorsing either. At least not anytime soon. And for some very obvious, pragmatic reasons.
Warren is a leader, if not THE leader, of the progressive side of our aisle. As such she wields considerable power and she has certain expectations placed on her by voters. Therein lies the problem.
If she were to endorse Clinton instead of Sanders, people she most covets would be furious. Really furious. A lot of the gravitas she has built with the left would be blinked out in a second. Moreover, she counts Sanders as a friend; their working relationship would be strained, to say the least.
But what about endorsing Sanders? Well, this is where the power problem comes to bear. Warren's endorsement would not have the power to bring many Clinton voters to the Bernie fold, as her supporters have already embraced Sanders. Sure it might make the current Sanders supporters more energized and excited, but it is a non-event outside that circle.
Moreover, Warren's aura of power and control would be diminished, if Clinton ends up winning the nomination handily. Her influence would be seen as weak and that would cause problems within the Congressional Halls for her to influence policy.
So, she will wait. Maybe she will endorse when the nominee is clear or maybe she'll wait until the Convention to endorse the actual nominee, but she is too smart to make any move now.
Warren is going to sit this one out.
MADem
(135,425 posts)1StrongBlackMan
(31,849 posts)Arkana
(24,347 posts)If she endorses one of the primary candidates she alienates half her fanbase.
Kentonio
(4,377 posts)longship
(40,416 posts)Just like I took her at her word that she said multiple times that she was not interested in running for president (an opinion which got me banned from the Elizabeth Warren group -- I was correct, BTW.)
Above all, I find her as a very pragmatic senator, one of the smartest on the Hill. Maybe she does not want to plunge herself into the hideous vat of necrotizing fasciitis that has become evident in the DU GD.P and candidate groups.
MeNMyVolt
(1,095 posts)JI7
(89,237 posts)I think she will only endorse Clinton if she wins the nomination .
Godhumor
(6,437 posts)Iowa nor New Hampshire are enough to change the race narrative considerably. She may endorse if he breaks through in South Carolina, as that would indicate a lot of trouble for Clinton.
Skwmom
(12,685 posts)What a hell of a fighter she is.
Not saying anything is sending a load and clear message: I approve of the way business is done in Washington, DC.
Typical politician.