Democratic Election Thread

[HuskerNation1]

Watching this Democratic debate, and overall it's going according to script, with most on stage fighting to see who can give the most liberal answer. It's amazing how much more diverse the GOP field is compared to the Dems, even if you take out the bottom 5 GOP candidates running that should drop out. I never thought I would see the day where its the Democratic party that the mainstream media would label too old and white.

 

The only candidate on that stage that is practical is Jim Webb, but I just don't see the leftists in the party supporting him. Hillary is going too far left on the gun issue and that will come back to bite her if she is the nominee, but I do applaud her opening answer and defense of capitalism. That answer alone I think will help give her momentum moving forward, and might possibly stop Biden from running.

[Hedley Lamarr]

Feel the Bern!

[HuskerNation1]

For those of you that didn't see this on SNL, it was pretty good.

 

 

The guy playing Bernie was great.

[Mars]

Biden says he's not running, which means Trump vs Clinton.

 

Bad day for Wall Street and progressives, because Biden stood a much better chance of beating Trump.

 

Trump is going to win. Great day for pro-American citizens who don't want their country turned into a third world hellhole.

[HuskerNation1]

Biden says he's not running, which means Trump vs Clinton.

 

Bad day for Wall Street and progressives, because Biden stood a much better chance of beating Trump.

 

Trump is going to win. Great day for pro-American citizens who don't want their country turned into a third world hellhole.

 

Trump is just as liberal as Hillary, so it's a good day for the left or center-left of this country. Trump is the Kim Kardashian of politics, and the question is whether the voting public will be sick of him before election day 2016. Somehow nothing seems to stick the guy, so I guess he's effective at what he's doing as a candidate.

[TGHusker]

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/heres-a-list-of-bernie-sanders-19.6-trillion-in-tax-hikes/article/2580846

 

While I posted on the single payer health care thread that Bernie grows on you - I appreciate his geniuses and honesty, this article underscores why

I cannot support him. He has proposed $19.6 Trillion in new tax/spending over the next 10 years - or a whopping 47% increase over current levels.

I don't see how anyone can support this type of proposal. It is as unrealistic as some of Trump's proposals are from the other side.

I'm sure he plans on getting there by a combination of budget cuts to defense and other line items not favorable to liberals as well as tax increases on

the 'rich'. However with a 47% increase over current - the cuts would be too deep and the increased taxes too much to make his plans viable.

 

[BigRedBuster]

As a lifelong conservative (no longer Republican).....If it came down to Trump or Sanders.....I would have to strongly consider voting for Sanders.

 

 

Now....that's about the only scenario. But....it's possible.

[Danny Bateman]

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/heres-a-list-of-bernie-sanders-19.6-trillion-in-tax-hikes/article/2580846

 

While I posted on the single payer health care thread that Bernie grows on you - I appreciate his geniuses and honesty, this article underscores why

I cannot support him. He has proposed $19.6 Trillion in new tax/spending over the next 10 years - or a whopping 47% increase over current levels.

I don't see how anyone can support this type of proposal. It is as unrealistic as some of Trump's proposals are from the other side.

I'm sure he plans on getting there by a combination of budget cuts to defense and other line items not favorable to liberals as well as tax increases on

the 'rich'. However with a 47% increase over current - the cuts would be too deep and the increased taxes too much to make his plans viable.

 

 

This is my problem with Bernie's campaign. I'm know that I will vote Democrat regardless of what happens. I just cannot fathom a Repub that I would select over any of the Dems available. The most reasonable to me seem to be Rubio and Bush, and it seems unlikely to me that either of them earns the nod.

 

Anyway, as a left-leaning guy on most issues, I agree with a ton of what Bernie says. I love his ideologies and his passion. But his fervent supporters (many of them in my age bracket, I'm 24) seem to fail to realize is that the multitude of overhauls he's proposing, his "political revolution"-- healthcare reform, free state college tuition, minimum wage increase to $15/hr, infrastructure reform, campaign finance reform, breaking up the big banks-- will cost a LOT of money. And Bernie doesn't seem to explain much in the way of payment specifics outside of "we will tax the billionaires," "we will tax Wall Street," and "we will take on the pharmaceutical companies."

 

Furthermore, I've very little about his foreign policy, and all I know about it is that he's very dovish.

 

Bernie's ideas sound great-- as sounding calls. I worry that he can't or won't get into specifics about how we're going to do any of it, and am somewhat fearful much of it becomes a pipedream with conservative opposition if he takes office.

[B.B. Hemingway]

 

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/heres-a-list-of-bernie-sanders-19.6-trillion-in-tax-hikes/article/2580846

 

While I posted on the single payer health care thread that Bernie grows on you - I appreciate his geniuses and honesty, this article underscores why

I cannot support him. He has proposed $19.6 Trillion in new tax/spending over the next 10 years - or a whopping 47% increase over current levels.

I don't see how anyone can support this type of proposal. It is as unrealistic as some of Trump's proposals are from the other side.

I'm sure he plans on getting there by a combination of budget cuts to defense and other line items not favorable to liberals as well as tax increases on

the 'rich'. However with a 47% increase over current - the cuts would be too deep and the increased taxes too much to make his plans viable.

 

 

This is my problem with Bernie's campaign. I'm know that I will vote Democrat regardless of what happens. I just cannot fathom a Repub that I would select over any of the Dems available. The most reasonable to me seem to be Rubio and Bush, and it seems unlikely to me that either of them earns the nod.

 

Anyway, as a left-leaning guy on most issues, I agree with a ton of what Bernie says. I love his ideologies and his passion. But his fervent supporters (many of them in my age bracket, I'm 24) seem to fail to realize is that the multitude of overhauls he's proposing, his "political revolution"-- healthcare reform, free state college tuition, minimum wage increase to $15/hr, infrastructure reform, campaign finance reform, breaking up the big banks-- will cost a LOT of money. And Bernie doesn't seem to explain much in the way of payment specifics outside of "we will tax the billionaires," "we will tax Wall Street," and "we will take on the pharmaceutical companies."

 

Furthermore, I've very little about his foreign policy, and all I know about it is that he's very dovish.

 

Bernie's ideas sound great-- as sounding calls. I worry that he can't or won't get into specifics about how we're going to do any of it, and am somewhat fearful much of it becomes a pipedream with conservative opposition if he takes office.

 

 

It's hard to see any of Bernie's pipe dream ideas actually making it through Congress, if he is elected. As you said, his ideas sound good when shouted at a crowd of supporters, but the expense of actually carrying out these ideas is going to be ridiculous, therefore making them unrealistic. It reminds me of all the ambitious (if not unrealistic) ideas that Obama had when he was first elected, and we all saw how that played out. I take pride in being an objective voter, but Bernie is a hard sell for me.

 

He seems like a decent guy, with good intentions.... He's also a guy with a socialist agenda.

[TGHusker]

As a lifelong conservative (no longer Republican).....If it came down to Trump or Sanders.....I would have to strongly consider voting for Sanders.

 

 

Now....that's about the only scenario. But....it's possible.

Or a 3rd party candidate - Jim Webb even. I feel your dilemma

[Danny Bateman]

Lol. I literally had a thought earlier after watching the SNL vid on the first page...

 

What if everyone just said screw it and wound up writing in Jim Webb.

 

Anywho, that's why Hillary will probably get my vote. I feel like she's got a better chance of getting stuff done working with Congress. And I don't find her as untrustworthy as a lot of other folks.

 

It's a legitimate beef that no one may want to play ball with Bernie. The Supreme Court is 5-4 Repubs as well.

 

It's a shame too, because he makes some really good points. Healthcare here is so ridiculous. Tax Wall Street. The stats about CEO salary increases far outstripping the American worker always sicken me.

[Landlord]

Lol. I literally had a thought earlier after watching the SNL vid on the first page...

 

What if everyone just said screw it and wound up writing in Jim Webb.

 

Anywho, that's why Hillary will probably get my vote. I feel like she's got a better chance of getting stuff done working with Congress. And I don't find her as untrustworthy as a lot of other folks.

 

It's a legitimate beef that no one may want to play ball with Bernie. The Supreme Court is 5-4 Repubs as well.

 

It's a shame too, because he makes some really good points. Healthcare here is so ridiculous. Tax Wall Street. The stats about CEO salary increases far outstripping the American worker always sicken me.

 

 

 

Even if Bernie got into the White House and wasn't able to live out his promises, so what? It's not like white middle class people have it bad in our country, at all, especially in the midwest. I'd rather keep the status quo with a .01% chance of fixing the system or at least making progress to check the greed of wall street than i would keep the status quo knowing that nothing is ever gonna change over the next 4/8 years.

[TGHusker]

 

Lol. I literally had a thought earlier after watching the SNL vid on the first page...

 

What if everyone just said screw it and wound up writing in Jim Webb.

 

Anywho, that's why Hillary will probably get my vote. I feel like she's got a better chance of getting stuff done working with Congress. And I don't find her as untrustworthy as a lot of other folks.

 

It's a legitimate beef that no one may want to play ball with Bernie. The Supreme Court is 5-4 Repubs as well.

 

It's a shame too, because he makes some really good points. Healthcare here is so ridiculous. Tax Wall Street. The stats about CEO salary increases far outstripping the American worker always sicken me.

 

 

 

Even if Bernie got into the White House and wasn't able to live out his promises, so what? It's not like white middle class people have it bad in our country, at all, especially in the midwest. I'd rather keep the status quo with a .01% chance of fixing the system or at least making progress to check the greed of wall street than i would keep the status quo knowing that nothing is ever gonna change over the next 4/8 years.

 

Beating the status quo - the dem/rep establishment in which it doesn't matter what party is in control, the special interests still get theirs while the middle class suffers. that is why there is such an attraction for Trump and Sanders - and to a lessor extent Cruz. Any of these 3 would try to make waves to break down the controlling interests.

[TGHusker]

Lol. I literally had a thought earlier after watching the SNL vid on the first page...

 

What if everyone just said screw it and wound up writing in Jim Webb.

 

Anywho, that's why Hillary will probably get my vote. I feel like she's got a better chance of getting stuff done working with Congress. And I don't find her as untrustworthy as a lot of other folks.

 

It's a legitimate beef that no one may want to play ball with Bernie. The Supreme Court is 5-4 Repubs as well.

 

It's a shame too, because he makes some really good points. Healthcare here is so ridiculous. Tax Wall Street. The stats about CEO salary increases far outstripping the American worker always sicken me.

I'd love to see some courageous people step forward - one repub and one dem and form a coalition ticket and run as independent - Rand Paul/ Liz Warren for example. This would have been the ideal climate for something like that - but it is wishful thoughts of fantasy. The fear that most of us have is that if we vote for that independent ticket, we might cause our worse nightmare to be elected from 'that other party'.

For it to work, a coalition ticket would have to start early and build support from the general population. They won't get support from the party machines or the big political action committees or the donor class.

[zoogs]

So what?!

 

Even if Bernie got into the White House and wasn't able to live out his promises, so what? I

I expect our president to bring a solid political agenda. When you consider Obama, for example, landmark healthcare reform was a major priority for him. It had been a "want to" movement for a long time, but the time was ripe to do it - and it was extremely tumultuous. His administration went to work on gay rights and achieved a lot there, starting with a concrete and overdue step in repealing don't ask/don't tell. Energy policy, immigration reform, they've worked hard at these things over the course of 8 years, but the future will depend on the priorities of the next guy. Normalizing Iran relations only began towards the end of his 2nd term, while Guantanamo probably won't be closed at all -- as simple a priority as that seemed.

 

I've seen Bernie rail on and on (and on, and on...) about wealth distribution and money in campaigns, both of which I agree are problems. I've seen him promise political revolution, but that is not an agenda so much as a desire. And absolutely I can both like what he says and feel he simply doesn't have a productive approach to the office which he seeks. The U.S. Presidency isn't a chair reserved for the guy I agree with most, or the one who speaks to my heart on the state of politics today.

 

Actually, I'm kind of surprised that Martin O'Malley is not a (much) more legitimate candidate with his platform. A sign of the times, I suppose.

 

Bernie support almost seems like a political reaction to Trump. Trump stands for something awful and people still endorse him; Bernie markets himself as the guy who stands most resolutely against that crap and always has. It's been effective and I'm positive his heart is in the right place. I'm less than impressed with his focus on a national $15 minimum wage and his 2nd healthcare revolution that might need to be inch-perfect, if it's not resoundingly optimistic in its promises already. And as much as I disdain what Trump, Cruz, and the Tea Party have to offer, I don't see a Dem primary ballot as a productive way of expressing a negative reaction.

 

We're not electing a supreme ruler here whose edicts all become law. We're electing someone that will have to work within the system to build on and solidify the tracks Obama laid. So, yes, I'd be extremely concerned with a candidate whose focuses were so singularly shake-things-up that he might be far from the best one to accomplish the nontrivial task in front of him. I strongly, fundamentally disagree with the notion that "nothing has changed" absent a complete shakeup of the order.

 

I hope that one day there are a hundred more of Bernie Sanders in Congress. But there's not, and putting one anti-Wall Street firebrand into office won't change that.