It is true that last night was not an amazing night for Bernie. On the other hand, however, it is also true that this was predictable. A lot of the states that have already voted are really strong for Hillary for various reasons, and a lot of the states that haven't had their primaries yet are really strong for Bernie. And for sure that's unfortunate from a PR standpoint, especially since the media is gleefully declaring the contest over. I want to point out two things: first, that there are a lot of delegate-rich states still to go. This is not media spin, it is the truth-add 'em up. I don't claim to know who will win the primary, but it's pretty clear that either candidate still could. Bernie is behind, but he hasn't lost yet.
The second thing I want to say is to other progressives who are declaring on Facebook and elsewhere that after last night they don't want to hear anything critical or negative about Hillary because they will support either candidate (and they're assuming that she'll be the nominee). This really bothers me, and not just because I would like Bernie to win, but because I really am a progressive. I believe that a country has a responsibility to all its people, to enable them to make lives that they can live with dignity. I believe that a good government can and should protect human beings and values from the ravages of the capitalist market. I believe that it's inherently unethical to apportion resources by class and by birth and by race. I believe that there are things we don't know how to think or feel because the capitalist market encourages us not to value what's not of value to it--and I think those things are important. Those are my true beliefs. The Democratic Party has rarely, if ever, supported policies that are truly consistent with them. And so yes, I am excited about Bernie. I want him to win--but even if he doesn't, I want him to keep talking for as long as possible. Because I think that, for the first time in almost 50 years, Americans are hearing the sound of genuinely progressive ideals voiced by a major party figure on national television, and that sound is subtly changing the language we have to talk about the world. We've ceded a huge amount of ground to market based rhetoric-- in my lifetime, I've seen college students go from talking about "getting a job" to talking about "being competitive," and I've seen people go from talking about "borrowing" things from the library to "renting" things from the library. Those things seem small and silly, but I think they matter, and they're indicative of the degree to which we've let ultra-capitalists set the terms of debate. If you think that hasn't played into the kind of policies we have in this country and the kinds of people who are in office, I think you're mistaken--and Bernie is the one best placed to fight those trends. Let's keep him fighting.
Right now we also see Hillary Clinton moving her positions and language to the left--only because she thinks not doing so might cost her votes. The fact is, the Democratic Party has only ever really endorsed progressive policies when it felt like it could lose substantially by not doing so. I always think about the fact that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was championed and passed because the African American community itself was in play--it could have voted either way and the Democrats knew it. In the same way, I think progressives get the policies we care about when we're in play, as we are now. It's the reason Hillary is, for example, talking about stopping the TPP, which she formerly championed. And I think we really undercut our own strength by pledging our support to her way before she's actually won the primary. I mean, if you are a Democrat but not a progressive, as many people are, and you are pulling for Hillary because you really like her policies, go for it. I respect your right to have your own beliefs as I have mine (although I respect somewhat less your possible desire for me to stop voicing mine in the name of Democratic solidarity). But if you're a Bernie fan who's getting scared into shutting down conversation about Hillary, please, please take a deep breath and keep fighting until it's really over. There will be plenty of time later to praise Hillary, if you so choose.
I say this recognizing that Donald Trump is truly horrifying, and that a lot of people are feeling like they have to strengthen Hillary against his potential candidacy. But if you are thinking this, please consider the following two facts:
1-Hillary is a really smart lady, and I am positive that she's watching the news. She knows how horrifying Trump is, and hence I suspect she has a pretty good idea that most Democrats will support her if she's the nominee. The way we keep her listening to us is to give her some continuing doubt about whether enough Bernie supporters will flip. The second she feels sure that we'd all vote for her, she goes back to her normal stance on various policies, and we lose our influence altogether. That's how things have gone in pretty much every presidential election for the time I've been voting, and the real reason it's not going this way right now is Bernie. So keep stumping for him. Even if he isn't the nominee, which I hope he will be, we get better results the longer we stay in play.
2-I think people have the impression that any criticism of Hillary will resound on the national stage and come back to haunt her with independents should she be the ultimate nominee (thus possibly giving Trump the win), but at this point I don't think that's true. All eyes are on Trump, and even if they weren't, she has plenty of past baggage of her own that could be used against her in the general election (This is actually what would make her less effective against Trump, who specializes in locker room insults, than Bernie). Talking about her policies versus Bernie's policies is what should be happening at this point in the election season, and it's not exciting enough for anyone to be following but Democrats. (The fact that the media's pulling for Hillary makes this even more true--most of our internal rank-and-file debates aren't making it to the screen). After the nominees have been announced, if she's one of them, you can worry about it. Right now, all that shutting down criticism of her does is give her a free pass, and if you don't love her traditional policy stances, you don't want that.
It's unfortunate that we have a 2 party system in this country--it leads us to voting for what we can live with rather than what we believe in. The Democratic party holds it over us that the only alternative is the Republicans, and that they're worse--ideally we'd have a viable socialist party and there wouldn't be a primary where the choice was Hillary or Bernie. As it happens, that's the system we have. But we have a chance right now, as progressives, to push for another kind of country--more ethical, fairer, safer, better for all its inhabitants--and it's not a chance that comes every election cycle. We give up that chance if we shut down real discussion of either of our candidates this early, just like Obama gave up the chance of single-payer health care by pre-deciding that it wasn't viable. Really, really. So if you're a progressive, keep talking, keep pushing. The end-game is bigger than not-Trump--it's as big as a country where people know how to talk about the rights of workers, the potential in each person, and the value of what the market doesn't need but people do. This country could be a good place to live for everyone, not just the rich. Let's not cede the chance to make it that way quite yet.
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