No Democratic Candidate Can Pass A Purity Test
Since the 2020 primary cycle begun, we’ve seen a pattern where when any candidate announces or moves up in the polls, that candidate is suddenly attacked in harsh terms by their fellow Democrats. Some of these attacks have even used GOP talking points. Once a Democratic candidate undergoes an attack, Trump and his willing accomplices in the GOP are quick to pick up on them and repeat them.
The reality is that none of our presidential candidates can pass a purity test and none of them are perfect. As former Massachusetts Congressman Barney Frank tweeted in 2013: Vote Democratic. We’re not perfect-but they’re NUTS!
Current front runner Bernie Sanders voted for the 1994 Crime Bill and the 2005 law that provided legal immunity to the gun industry. Nonetheless, Bernie has since repudiated those votes. I take him at his word.
Joe Biden also voted for the 1994 Crime Bill. What has been lost in the furor is that it included a 10 year assault weapons ban and it was supported by the Congressional Black Caucus. The assault weapons ban was the only defeat ever suffered by the NRA/gun lobby in Washington.
Pete Buttigieg has come under fire for the racial disparity in marijuana arrests in South Bend and decisions that led to him having no African American leaders in his administration. Moreover, Mayor Pete has talked about deficit reduction. Nevertheless, I was impressed by his speech at the Morrison-Exon dinner in Omaha in 2017.
Amy Klobuchar has been criticized for allegedly being mean to her staff. I had the pleasure of visiting with her for about ten minutes at the 2015 Morrison-Exon dinner. I found her to be very friendly, intelligent and thoughtful.
Elizabeth Warren (along with Biden and Klobuchar) voted for the Hyde Amendment which bars federal funding from going toward abortion. Warren and our other candidates voted for it to avoid a government shutdown and debt default. Nonetheless, Warren is a fighter for the middle class and the poor.
Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has lots of baggage. His stop and frisk policies were deplorable and he blamed the end of redlining for the crash of 2008. In any event, Bloomberg has committed to investing $1 billion of his fortune to oust Trump, even if he isn’t the nominee.
None of our candidates can pass a purity test but they are all so much better than Trump. All of our candidates would restore decency and ethics to the White House. Moreover, they all support democracy, the rule of law, universal health coverage, humane immigration policies and expanded educational opportunities.
Trump is the most unpopular president in the modern era and is very vulnerable. Remember that Gallup poll that showed Trump at 49% approval? The GOP and the “liberal” mainstream media contended that it indicated a big Trump comeback. Well, it was an outlier. Here are the last three polls on Trump’s approval: Morning Consult: 41%, YouGov 40%, Ipsos 41%. He can’t get re-elected with those kind of anemic approval ratings unless the Democratic Party self destructs.
As President Obama said in 2018: “Do not wait for the perfect message, don’t wait to feel a tingle in your spine because you’re expecting politicians to be so inspiring and poetic and moving that somehow, ‘OK, I’ll get off my couch after all and go spend the 15–20 minutes it takes for me to vote.’ Because that’s part of what happened in the last election. I heard that too much.”
If we want to expand health care and education, we need to win the 2020 elections. Our party has a rich history. We are the party of Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, Obama Care and civil rights. A second Trump term would destroy these historic achievements.
The only check and balance on Trump and a radicalized GOP is the Democratic Party. Vote Blue no matter who!