How EXTREMELY unrepresentative of Democrats DU appears to be

[tgnyc]

2/3 of Democrats want Clinton to stay in. Yet, by the postings in GD-P, it seems as though we are roughly 85% against Hillary's being allowed to even be seen in public, much less continue her run for the presidency.

Couldn't help noticing the severe disconnect. Why do you think it exists?

[melody]

1. Because DU is largely a board of progressives and many of Clinton supporters aren't?

Could be?

[redqueen]

10. That'd be my guess. (nt)

[TechBear_Seattle]

12. Also, DUers tend to be involved and informed, unlike the rank and file

There is a reason why, early in the campaign season, Kucinich led DU poll after DU poll, usually by double digits.

[BootinUp]

33. I need to add that we are informed with a lot of bs in addition

to any "truthiness".

[rodeodance]

40. what a nasty thing to say about voters. Most of the crap that goes on here is not worth knowing!

[Medusa]

65. Especially when someone is telling the truth about your

slime-throwing candidate huh? :rofl:

[11 Bravo]

48. Yeah, DAMN that hoi polloi! Let's re-institute a literacy test.

[tgnyc]

76. That does seem to capture the current zeitgeist around here.

[TechBear_Seattle]

80. You believe that most voters actually research their vote?

Keep in mind, these are the same people who give American Idol and Survivor smash ratings, demand more Paris Hilton coverage from the mainstream media and make up the 70% of Americans who believe the Bible to be literally true.

Particularly around election season, I fear that my low estimate of the average American is not low enough; something always manages to surprise me.

[question everything]

77. Right, DUers are informed which is why many of us stick with Hillary

even though it would have been so much easier to "go with the flow."

Obama supporters, on the other hand, have nothing to say to justify their support except that he is not Hillary (as are the forces in the Democratic party of Kennedy & Co. who desperately needed one), is charismatic, eloquent and, of course, black.

[Catherine Vincent]

16. With a lot of Clinton-hating trolls mixed in. nt

[reality based]

31. I don't know how "progressive" or informed we are here.

http://shakespearessister.blogspot.com/2008/03/still-not-hanging-ten.html
http://www.talkleft.com/story/2008/3/6/114959/3814

[melody]

36. It's a matter of degrees

We're certainly more informed and progressive than many Democratic enclaves.

[Jamastiene]

72. Well, outright Fox talking points posts stand

and never get deleted any more. Just five or six months ago, it wasn't like that here at all. Things have changed drastically. And now Reagan worshiping is actually considered a good thing here too. Something is just not right.

[surfin]

50. Because we love gardening

we want to remove all clinton bushes from goverment. Weed them out. The sooner the better.

[MonkeyFunk]

66. Nothing about Obama is more progressive than Clinton

the more likely answer is that DU is largely a board of nutjobs, malcontents and rabid haters.

[Jamastiene]

73. It's like that here in GD: P any more.

That much is for sure.

[leftofcool]

2. DU'ers 000000.1 % of Democrats?

[samdogmom]

3. People on DU tend to be the more vocal/active side of the Democratic party. n/t

[anigbrowl]

4. Because DU is full of political junkies, whereas polls are not

That's it, in a nutshell. DUers are obsessed with strategy and so on, regular voters don't think all that much about it.

[Jamastiene]

74. That's probably a good bit of the answer right there. n/t

[Arkansas Granny]

5. I believe someone posted a poll here a few days ago that

showed that Obama supporters outnumbered Hillary supporters on DU by about 5 to 1 or something like that. Maybe because they perceive him to be the most progressive of the two. :shrug:

[pbca]

15. Yep, link is in my sig n/t

[mmonk]

6. Information or lack thereof along with disinformation.

[Fovea]

7. DU are more active, informed, and progressive

on the whole than where the Dem on the street is at any given moment.
OTOH, we serve as a good bellweather, IMO, of future attitudes.

Lately, our microtrends are becoming macrotrends.

[Justitia]

8. Because that poll is bullshit? -eom

[ExFreeper4Obama]

9. For the same reason why Obama is KILLING Hillary in Caucuses

More passionate and more vocal voters. Duh.

[TheDoorbellRang]

30. Hey there, ex freeper.

Welcome to DU. :hi:

Someday you ought to start a thread decribing your journey from freeperville to DU.

[Omega3]

11. b/c the Obama supporters want to spam the pages with pro-bama stuff, there was even a thread about

how it looked like there weren't enought threads praising BO on the GD-P page and how they had to step it up. Perhaps they are selfconscience that if they don't start more threads that his support will wane. Anyway, I don't really care b/c DU is NOT representative of the dem voters out there. That's been said before and it's true.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

13. DU's more informed.

DU, for example, was against George Bush, or the war in Iraq, when most were for it.

[marions ghost]

26. and ALSO

very important--DU was one of the few places on the net where discussion was going on about the stolen selection of 2004 immediately after it happened. This was when a lot of liberal groups refused to believe it. The DU Election Reform forum is an important resource on the subject going back to that time of complete media blackout.

There are a lot of sharp people posting on DU. ;-)

[k8conant]

14. A lot of Democrats don't know what we know...

the ones that depend on MSM for their spin on the news. Just now are the media noting that Hillary didn't gain anything from her "big win" on Tuesday.

[Auntie Bush]

27. Ha, Aren't you contradicting your own post? Make up your mind.

[dchill]

17. Actually, the poll said...

that 67% of Democrats wanted her to stay in if she won both Texas and Ohio. It was 42% if she didn't. She did, so she's staying in. Now THAT's what I call buyer's remorse!

[katty]

18. Why? easy answer: bias

[dchill]

19. Yes, I am biased.

Against Hillary. It's true, goddamn me. I have never thought she had a sincere bone in her body, and every day in some special way, she proves me right.

Is there something wrong with bias? After all, we're not posting on middleoftheroadunderground.com are we?

[jgraz]

21. Yes, we don't like Hillary around here. Deal with it.

[emilyg]

25. Speak for yourself

I love Hillary.

[xmas74]

47. So do I.

And so do most of the people involved in my local Dem party. I don't mean the people on the street-I mean the people who actually show up to the monthly meetings, who actually volunteer for the party and so on.

[proud2BlibKansan]

49. Just the opposite here where I live

Both sides of the state line. Far more Obama supporters. In fact, we had a hard time finding a Hillary supporter for a mock debate we held.

[xmas74]

55. She won my county

She won the entire Fourth District.

Obama received the college votes and our students do not have a history of volunteering for campaigns. That protest they wanted the other day-less than a dozen actually showed. Right now most are pissed at the city because they've raised the age to enter the bars to 21. In that case they are running students for city council, only to lower the age to 18 to enter the bars.

In my area the only ones who actually show up to Dem meetings and volunteer are either the single mothers (you'd be shocked at how many of us show up to the meetings!), the LGBT community, the feminists and the retirees. In my community they all voted for Hillary. The only ones I've met that voted for Obama in my county were all college students-and most of them have already taken down their signs to support the students running for city council instead.

[proud2BlibKansan]

57. I don't think I have seen any Hillary signs anywhere here

Isn't it amazing how different it is when we are so close geographically?

I am sorry I missed that protest. I couldn't get anyone interested in going. And I just didn't want to drive down and back alone.

BTW, I met a guy running for state rep in your area last night. He spoke at our DFA meetup. If I could find his card, I would tell you who he was. LOL

:hi:

[xmas74]

64. There were very few at the school who actually showed up

for the protest. It's too bad really-I had such high hopes that UCM would finally do something besides get drunk and fight police officers in bars. I purchased two cases of bottled water, planning on handing it out at the protest to show my support. Turns out I didn't need to do so.

I am in an adjoining county with Jackson and HRC won here. We have quite a few signs for her throughout Warrensburg and the best-known progressives in town are all rooting for her. I've also noticed quite a few vehicles with DoD stickers on them and HRC signs in the back window.

She got the military vote in my county and got it in a big way. I have yet to see a McCain sign in my county (I believe that Huckabee took the county) though there are quite a few Ron Paul signs in the staunchest Republican front yards. The only Obama signs were in the front yards of college houses and in dorm windows. Now they are gone and instead there are signs for the three students running for city council. (They've stated that it's only about the 21 and over resolution that goes into place on March 12th. The bar owners have filed for a restraining order against the city, claiming it's against the 14th Amendment.) But the HRC signs are still there and the excitement for her is building. More women showed up at the last progressive meeting, excited about HRC.

Shows how big a difference there is from one county to the next!

[KAZ]

62. He's speaking for most of the board, lately. n/t

[wileedog]

20. Because The MSM

Hasn't accurately portrayed just what a long shot Hillary is at this point. Even today they continue to trumpet her "Big Victories" and Huge Comeback (in states she used to lead by 20+ points) despite the very common knowledge that she picked up very few delegates, and is actually probably in worse shape than she was Monday from a delegate standpoint.

Nor will they. Not that they are biased against either candidate per se, but they want the race to last as long as possible obviously. And for those who follow the races much more casually that is all they know.

[Armstead]

22. Because most people don't care

Seriously. I'd bet the average view is "Hillary or Obama? Both Democrats, and I could live with either one."

People who tend to be more interested and involved in politics and public affairs have more emotional investment in the process. So it seems a lot more greuling to those who care about the outcome.

[Kolesar]

23. Wow. Great answers on this thread, especially 3 through 14

I think we suffer from groupthink. OTOH, there is a definite dynamic of needing some kind of group as we see our government becoming more tyrannical and intrusive.

[tgnyc]

61. Very enlightened.

[Kokonoe]

24. 2 divided by 3 equals .666 wants Clinton.... OK

[RoadRage]

28. I completely agree.. Satan most certainly likes Clinton, and will vote for her. ;) NT

[Captain Hilts]

29. DU is NOT at all representative of Democrats as a whole. nt

[lumberjack_jeff]

32. DU is more like a caucus. It's a giant gang-tackle.

Led by people who lack the experience to understand the downside of that approach.

[ingac70]

34. No love for DLC corporate whores at DU. n/t

[angie_love]

35. DU doesn't like war mongers

[indimuse]

37. I wonder if Obaama sent a memo to all his fans

to call for HIllary to step down...sounds like it!

[THUNDER HANDS]

38. because DUers, for the most part, understand politics better

[tgnyc]

39. So what I'm hearing is that DUers are more informed and more involved/passionate

Well, most news reports I heard/saw/read on March 5th included very prominantly the fact that Clinton still has a severe uphill climb to catch Obama in pleged delegates. I don't think the average Democrat is unaware of this.

This election has probably generated more passion among American voters than any other in the post World War II era. I don't think average Democrat lacks for passion this time out.

So what is it that we know or feel that the average Dem doesn't that explains why Hillary MUST GET OUT NOW FOR THE GOOD OF THE PARTY?

After all, who is the party? The voters. If they are OK with Clinton being in, why are they wrong?

[emilyg]

60. Good post.

[Exilednight]

41. The average voter is not nearly as informed as a member of this board. Most people view....

government like I view grocery shopping. I only complain about it when I open the fridge and see a bottle of wine, a dozen eggs, and nothing else.

[tgnyc]

42. What is it that we know that they don't that explains why she must drop out

[Exilednight]

44. They don't understand that there are .....

really two Democratic camps within the party. Ask a normal voter who doesn't follow politics on the regular basis to explain to the difference between the DLC and the DNC, I bet that most don't even know what DLC stands for.

They see the name Democrat and believe that we all sit under the same big happy tent, but we don't.

People listen to pundits who say that Obama and Hillary are exactly the same on the issues, barring minor nuances, but they're not.

Allow me to use this analogy: I see a red Ferrari next to a Yellow Lamborghini. I know both are highly tuned sports cars and can go very fast, but a car nut can tell you what makes them difference as night and day. On the other hand, I know they look cool and go fast, but don't ask me what's under the hood.

[tgnyc]

51. But why does that mean Clinton must drop out, as opposed to keep trying until she has

clearly lost? Or to use your analogy, what's wrong with you test driving both cars until you're sure which one you want? It is a big purchase after all.

[Exilednight]

58. Because she is bringing down the party, or .....

to use my analogy - why keep racing your car in a three lap race when your only hope of winning the qualifier is to run your teammates car into the wall so you both have damaged cars to run in the next race.

If she keeps going they're both damaged goods to the voting public, especially independents who actually decide elections.

[tgnyc]

81. Everyone keeps saying that, but how does her continuuing bring down the party?

[NastyRiffraff]

46. Well informed? You're kidding, right?

True, some people here are well informed, but I've seen the most stupid statements about politics (or anything else, for that matter) right here on DU.

I'd say the rank stupidity pretty much cancels out the occasional brilliance.

[mudesi]

43. Clinton is the most conservative of all the candidates (nm)

[bunnies]

45. Not in my personal experience. nt

[OzarkDem]

52. Maybe they aren't real Democrats...

[goldcanyonaz]

53. Most here have been calling her to drop out since her win in New Hampshire.

They're extremists and don't represent the party as a whole. They only serve their master.

[sueragingroz]

54. most Hillary supporters left GD-P ages ago

there's only a few of us stalwarts left that will do more than lurk here occasionally.

[Jed Dilligan]

56. Yes, it's too bad that politically knowledgeable and active people

like the ones you find on DU are so unrepresentative of party voters on the whole.

[HughMoran]

59. Psychopaths

We have some fanatical psychopaths here lately - I'm just putting them on ignore en mass.

[Laelth]

63. Just to be clear ...

The essay to which you link does not say that 2/3 of Democrats want Hillary to stay in the race. It says, specifically:

"it seems safe to assume that rank-and-file Democrats want the race to continue."

And that's based upon polling conducted before it became clear, on March 4, that Hillary's chances of winning were minuscule.

Thanks for the link. I have heard the claim that "2/3 of democrats want Hillary to stay in" before, and it irked me then because I couldn't believe it.

Now I know why. That's not what Gallup said.

-Laelth

[tgnyc]

69. It says 2/3 want her to stay in if she wins Ohio and Texas. She did.

[Laelth]

75. Well, I suppose you could parse it that way if you wanted to.

At best the poll is based upon old data that is not reflective of the reality of the campaign after March 4.

-Laelth

[tgnyc]

79. ...when she is even stronger (except in the minds of DUers)

[AtomicKitten]

67. Because we are paying attention.

[Raffi Ella]

68. funny isn't it?

The public at large does not hate Hillary,as proven by her wins in Ohio and Texas and the bucket loads of money pouring into her campaign...

Go Hillary!

[Jamastiene]

70. Good point.

It has gotten to the point where if you are a Hillary supporter on here and actually bring up any good points, you'll be hated and attacked like nothing you've ever seen. Yet, in real life, even here in NC, I know plenty of Hillary supporters. It's rather odd here lately and the numbers are all wrong.

[candice]

71. By default, this is a love fest for Obama...one year in the Senate and then "I'm better"

...vote for me for the most difficult job in the world.

If we weren't in such a mess, I'd be more inclined to vote for another media fave who needs on-the-job training and says he'd "hire" the expertise to compensate for his lack of experience.

Was the Senate too boring?

[rug]

78. Quite true.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=4950794&mesg_id=4950794