Let me get this out first. After watching the Debate last night, and after a good nights’ sleep, I’ve come to a decision- I’m now all in for Bernie Sanders. I was heavily leaning his way anyway, but after listening to our candidates again, it really became pretty simple for me, and came down to thee major themes.
1. Health.
I have no doubt that Sanders represents our ONLY real chance for single payer. Hillary didn’t embrace it, and she even used the “raise taxes” scare tactic line of attack against Sanders’ policy. I know you know that attack is bull, since there’s no longer a price to pay for private health insurance (and the profit margins), even though single payer taxes will go up, the actual costs for most will go down thousands of dollars a year. There’s no real contest here. Sanders will fight for single payer, and Hillary won’t. If she does eventually, it will be with her kicking and screaming all the way. That’s the way I see it.
I remain pissed off that Obama didn’t even fight for it when he worked on Obamacare. It was a long shot then (and a long shot now) but even if he couldn’t get it pushed through, it would have laid the groundwork for a future fight. He gave up too early. Was that a bug or a feature? I don’t know. I used to think it was a bug, but now I wonder if Obama never really planned or supported Single Payer at all. That’s why I’ll never give Obama an A… maybe a B or B+ grade overall, but single payer is the number one thing any president can do now to only improve the heath of Americans, but also improve the economy and unlock millions of workers who are stuck in jobs that offer healthcare. Obamacare is already proving that, but not nearly enough.
2. Safety
War. What’s it good for? Absolutely Nothing! I trust Sanders would do the right things to keep America secure and protect us. HRC too for that matter, but I think she’s much more concerned about supporting the military/industrial complex than Bernie. She may give lip service to reducing our military expenditures and adventures, but nothing she’s done, and nothing I’ve heard from her makes me think she’s going to do a better job at keeping us safe, and moving us away from perpetual war.
3. the Future
Out of all the candidates this cycle, Bernie Sanders outshines them all with his commitment to battle global warming and steer us away from our dependency of fossil fuels. Others may provide some level of support, but I believe only Bernie Sanders not only fully appreciates the slow motion Apocalypse we’re causing, but has the fire and determination to try to do everything in his power to lessen the damage that our kids and grand-kids will have to deal with. Hell, for this reason alone I don’t see how anyone could support any other candidate. It’s that important!
One last thought — having to do with elect-ability and a thought before you vote...
In the old days, the Republicans would often put forth a viable candidate (Palin and W Bush were exceptions), so the chances of a true progressive fighting for radical ideas like universal health care, down-sizing the military industrial complex, and fighting for the future environment probably wouldn’t stand a chance… BUT this year we have a once-in-a-generation chance to actually have a REAL PROGRESSIVE elected president. Why? one word: TRUMP. The Republican front runner isn’t a joke, and he isn’t funny, but his positions have alienated enough of the electorate to pretty much ruin his chances of getting elected in a general election. We can make history in 2016… and I’m not talking about electing a woman (not that I’m against that), but by electing the only politician that embodies what I think most of us have been asking and begging for for years…. a person who'll fight for us, fight for good, and fight against the greed and self-serving 1%ers who are systemically working on destroying the country for the rest of us 99%ers.
Our three democratic candidates stand head and shoulders above the republicans in every policy, but out of our three running this cycle, I think only Bernie Sanders has the determination to go after the game-changing policies that our country sorely needs. Vote wisely. He’ll get my vote, and my money.
