What Hillary Clinton Can Learn From Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump

[demwing]

Whether you support Clinton or Bernie, it does not appear (as Bernie has admitted) that he will be the Democratic Party nominee.

We will all now make our own choices on how to progress, and where many will jump on the "Bernie or Bust" bandwagon, it can't be advocated on DU, and therefore won't be advocated in this group.

That's not to say that we suddenly have to join a Clinton love-fest. Clinton is not the perfect candidate, and some constructive, progressive criticism is in order.

Writing for the Nation, Marshall Ganz and Hahrie Han submit the following advice for Camp Clinton:

As the (presumptive) Democratic nominee, she not only faces Donald Trump, she also has an extraordinary opportunity to shift our political direction. To do so, she has three bridges to cross:

She will have to tell us the story of how she became who she really is, and the values that guide her choices. Years of image management may have made this impossible, but without it, her candidacy will be seriously crippled, especially when competing against an opponent whose “self” has been at the heart of his appeal.

She will have to narrate an “us” as people who experience hurt and hope in their lives, a constituency far closer to that of Sanders—or that of Barack Obama eight years ago. When she minimizes the hope, and understates the hurt, her narrative serves only to reduce motivation, not engage it.

Finally, her story of now will have to bring alive a set of aspirations rooted in the values that animate her constituency. To do so, she must find a way to articulate an authentic response to what the country wants, needs, and expects from presidential leadership.

Fear doesn’t motivate turnout. Hope does. Anger can. It won’t be enough for her to rely on fear of Trump to motivate her constituency in the absence of an effective—and hopeful—leadership narrative of her own.

https://www.thenation.com/article/what-hillary-clinton-can-learn-from-bernie-sanders-and-donald-trump/

[merrily]

1. Thanks, demwing.

If someone plans to go Bernie or Bust, he or she better check state law fast.

In some states, writing in anyone for POTUS can invalidate your entire ballot. Also, regardless of state, a write in vote will likely not get reported anywhere. Therefore, in all likelihood, those who write in will not even be making a statement.

Obviously, everyone controls his or her own vote. However, I would urge: Don't stay home; don't vote Republican; and, if you are planning to write in, know what the consequences in your state will be and consider carefully what, if anything, writing in will accomplish.

[leftofcool]

2. Sorry Nation. Hillary has absolutely nothing to learn from Trump

[bravenak]

3. Thank you

[fasttense]

4. Actually in one respect Bernie and Trump said the same thing

At the beginning, Trump was talking about leveling economic opportunity by using tariffs and doing away with trade agreements. He was, for a short while, a socialist. But he sprinkled it with racism and bigotry.

If Hillary learns anything from the 2, it should be that we the people want economic opportunity and that neoliberal, free trade does Not provide it..

[rhett o rick]

5. Yes Clinton could learn something from Bernie and Trump. It is a little presumptuous to

think otherwise. Between the Sanders supporters and the Trump supporters there are a hell of a lot of people against the Establishment. And as we watch the end game of capitalism we will see a repeat of what happened in the 1930's when things got tough in the USofA and Europe. The Center quickly becomes irrelevant. Some will turn to the Left like in the USofA and some will turn to the Right like Italy and Germany. Today the FDR Left is Sen Sanders and the fascist Right is Trump.

The Establishment of both Parties have alienated millions of their respective bases and are seeing some push back. A lot of push back. To ignore this may make it tough for Democrats in Nov.