So, a funny thing happened in Iowa..

[kentonio]

No, I'd temporarily forgotten again that you are insane. I'll leave you in peace with your finger paints now.

[Kidlicious]

No, I'd temporarily forgotten again that you are insane. I'll leave you in peace with your finger paints now.

Is that your typical response to people calling you out on your bull****? It's no wonder you're a socialist. You have no idea of reality in America.

[Ben Kenobi]

[NICE MOBIUS]

Let's get real: Bernie will never get Black, Hispanic, or blue-collar white votes. He'll do well in whitebread and affluent Iowa, New Hampshire, and Vermont, but would fall apart in the South, California, New York, Pennsylvania, Florida, Texas, etc.

Opinionated, much, Albie?

Let’s see what Shaun King, Black Lives Matter activist, has to say about Bernie Sanders and Black Lives Matter:

When women from the Black Lives Matter movement interrupted his campaign speeches and demanded he not only acknowledge state violence against black bodies, but that he also needed to have strong policy positions on the issue, I was all for it. At the time, thousands of liberal white folks were irritated to no end when they saw the demonstration.


Looking back on it, I truly think it was the most important moment of his campaign. He took the brave interruption to heart. Instead of simply saying "Black Lives Matter" here and there, he released the most comprehensive, thorough, specific plan of any candidate on either side to address police brutality, economic inequality, voting rights, education, health care, gun safety and more.


It shocked me, actually. I had grown used to politicians shrugging off the pain and pleas of black folks and just assuming we'd vote for them anyway. Bernie didn't do anything like that.


He hired Symone Sanders, a black woman who has fought for juvenile justice issues her whole life, not as his juvenile justice liaison, but as his national press secretary.


He hired one of the most respected immigration activists in the country, Erika Andiola, to not only connect with Latino voters, but to also shape his campaign on immigration issues.


Those two moves meant everything to me, but three separate moments hooked me once and for all, and got me feeling the Bern.

DailyNews


Shaun King expanded on this in another article.

I've said this publicly, but Sanders was an acquired taste for me. I hardly knew who he was a year ago, but over this past year, I've grown to believe he is about the most honest, consistent and compassionate politician we have in the country right now.


I also believe that he, more than any other candidate, is fully aware of the systemic injustices done to black America and wants to help create a fair and balanced country to put all people on a level playing field.

DailyNews

The real question is, does Bernie have enough time to get his message through to the very people that would benefit the most from supporting him...?

I actually made the prediction that Sanders would beat Clinton to Imran back when he was still posting and way before Kentonio.

I still think it's touch and go, but not necessarily because Hillary is the better candidate, more that his message still hasn't filtered through enough just yet. I'm hoping the same thing will happen to Sanders' campaign as what happened to Obama's by doing well in the first few states...

[DinoDoc]

Shaun King is white.

[kentonio]

Shaun King is white.

Please don't say that, its extremely offensive.

[Kidlicious]

Shaun King is white.

That's gonna go in one ear and out the other. He went directly to the next Black Lives Matter story without even thinking twice.

[pchang]

Shaun King is the son of a Caucasian mother and an African-American father

[rah]

The top officials in Iowa are pretty funny. Since Cruz came out for ending ethanol subsidies, they're in anybody but Cruz mode. Which basically leaves them with TRUMP.
Hilarious.

And will a new report of top secret docs on Hillary's private server being released every few weeks drag her down farther. It almost sounds orchestrated.

[DinoDoc]

Shaun King is the son of a Caucasian mother and an African-American father

That isn't what his family says.

[Dinner]

http://m.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/2016/0125/Why-many-black-voters-aren-t-flocking-to-Bernie-Sanders

Sanders has narrowed the gap with black voters but Hillary remains hugely in the lead with that group. South Carolina is going to be a Clinton blow out.

[kentonio]

http://m.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/...Bernie-Sanders

Sanders has narrowed the gap with black voters but Hillary remains hugely in the lead with that group. South Carolina is going to be a Clinton blow out.

He's gained 25 points in SC since November. He'll probably still lose, but its not likely to be a blow out anymore after the additional bump from Iowa, NH and possibly even a win in Nevada. That would be a lot of momentum.

[NICE MOBIUS]

My Dear Friends,

When I was a child, they said there was no way this majority-Protestant country of ours would ever elect a Catholic as president. And then John Fitzgerald Kennedy was elected president.

The next decade, they said America would not elect a president from the Deep South. The last person to do that on his own (not as a v-p) was Zachary Taylor in 1849. And then we elected President Jimmy Carter.

In 1980, they said voters would never elect a president who had been divorced and remarried. Way too religious of a country for that, they said. Welcome, President Ronald Reagan, 1981-89.

They said you could not get elected president if you had not served in the military. No one could remember when someone who hadn’t served had been elected Commander-in-Chief. Or who had confessed to trying (but not inhaling!) Illegal drugs. President Bill Clinton, 1993-2001.

And then finally “they” saId that there’s NO WAY the Democrats were going to win if they nominated a BLACK man for president — a black man who’s middle name was Hussein! America was still too racist for that. “Don’t do it!”, people quietly warned each other.
BOOM!

Do you ever wonder why the pundits, the political class, are always so sure that Americans “just aren’t ready” for something — and then they’re always just so wrong? They says these things because they want to protect the status quo. They don’t want the boat rocked. They try to scare the average person into voting against their better judgment.

And now, this year “they” are claiming that there’s no way a “democratic socialist” can get elected President of the United States. That is the main talking point coming now from the Hillary Clinton campaign office.

But all the polls show Bernie Sanders actually BEATING Donald Trump by twice as many votes than if Hillary Clinton was the candidate.

Although the polls nationally show Hillary beating Bernie among DEMOCRATS, when the pollster includes all INDEPENDENTS, then Sanders beats Trump two to one over what Clinton would do.

The way the Clinton campaign has been red-baiting Sanders is unfortunate — and tone deaf. According to NBC, 43% of Iowa Dems identify themselves more closely with socialism (sharing, helping) than with capitalism (greed, inequality). Most polls now show young adults (18-35) across America prefer socialism (fairness) to capitalism (selfishness).

So, what is democratic socialism? It’s having a true democracy where everyone has a seat at the table, where everyone has a voice, not just the rich.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary recently announced the most looked-up word in their online dictionary in 2015 was “socialism.” If you’re under 49 (the largest voting block), the days of the Cold War & Commie Pinkos & the Red Scare look as stupid as “Reefer Madness.”

If Hillary’s biggest selling point as to why you should vote for her is, “Bernie’s a socialist!” or “A socialist can’t win!”, then she’s lost.

The New York Times, which admitted it made up stories of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq & pushed us to invade that country, has now endorsed Hillary Clinton, the candidate who voted for the Iraq War. I thought the Times had apologized and reformed itself. What Is going on here?

Well, the Times likes its candidates to be realistic and pragmatic. And to them, that means Hillary Clinton. She doesn’t want to break up the banks, doesn’t want to bring back Glass-Steagall, doesn’t want to raise the minimum wage to $15/hr., doesn’t want Denmark’s free health care system. Just not realistic, I guess.

Of course, there was a time when the media said it wasn’t “realistic” to pass a constitutional amendment giving women the right to vote. They said it would never pass because only all-male legislators would be voting on it in the Congress and the State Legislatures. And that, obviously, meant it would never pass. They were wrong.

They once said that it wasn’t “realistic” to pass a Civil Rights Act AND a Voting Rights Act back to back. America just wasn’t “ready for it.” Both passed, in 1964 & 1965.

Ten years ago we were told gay marriage would never be the law of the land. Good thing we didn’t listen to those who told us to be “pragmatic.”

Hillary says Bernie’s plans just aren’t “realistic” or “pragmatic.” This week she said “single payer health care will NEVER, EVER, happen.” Never? Ever? Wow. Why not just give up?

Hillary also says it’s not practical to offer free college for everyone. You can’t get more practical than the Germans – and they’re able to do it. As do many other countries.

Clinton does find ways to pay for war and tax breaks for the rich. Hillary Clinton was FOR the war in Iraq, AGAINST gay marriage, FOR the Patriot Act, FOR NAFTA, and wants to put Ed Snowden in prison. THAT’S a lot to wrap one’s head around, especially when you have Bernie Sanders as an alternative. He will be the opposite of all that.

There are many good things about Hillary. But it’s clear she’s to the right of Obama and will move us backwards, not forward. This would be sad. Very sad.

81% of the electorate is either female, people of color or young (18-35). And the Republicans have lost the VAST majority of 81% of the country. Whoever the Democrat is on the ballot come November will win. No one should vote out of fear. You should vote for whom you think best represents what you believe in. They want to scare you into thinking we’ll lose with Sanders. The facts, the polls, scream just the opposite: We have a BETTER chance with Bernie!

Trump is loud and scary — and liberals scare easy. But liberals also like facts. Here’s one: less than 19% of the USA is white guys over 35. So calm down!

Finally, Check out this chart — it says it all: (Note: Hillary has now changed her position and is against TPP)



I first endorsed Bernie Sanders for public office in 1990 when he, as mayor of Burlington, VT, asked me to come up there and hold a rally for him in his run to become Vermont’s congressman. I guess not many were willing to go stump for an avowed democratic socialist at the time. Probably someone is his hippie-filled campaign office said, “I’ll bet Michael Moore will do it!” They were right. I trucked up into the middle of nowhere and did my best to explain why we needed Bernie Sanders in the U.S. Congress. He won, I’ve been a supporter of his ever since, and he’s never given me reason to not continue that support. I honestly thought I’d never see the day come where I would write to you and get to say these words: “Please vote for Senator Bernie Sanders to be our next President of the United States of America.”

I wouldn’t ask this of you if I didn’t think we really, truly needed him. And we do. More than we probably know.

Sincerely Yours,

Michael Moore

I don't actually like Michael Moore that much, but he's definitely talking sense here!

[pchang]

That isn't what his family says.

Haven't you heard? Shaun White is no Rachel Dolezeal.

[rah]

I don't actually like Michael Moore that much, but he's definitely talking sense here!

If those were those only issues, I'd have to agree but he did cherry pick the issues a touch.