I’m here to pitch Bernie Sanders to you. Note how I’m being careful to use my indoor voice, because I know that a lot of people have been in your face over this. Well that’s not my way. I’m not going to accuse you of being a dupe, an oligarch, or an orc. I’m not even going to demand that you #FeelTheBern.
I’m going to invite you to consider the man.
Cast your mind back to before this all got personal. You know this man. You probably liked him. The fact that he did not officially have a D next to his name may have seemed like some kind of backhanded scold, but he has been a reliable and stalwart ally when it comes to the core values of this party. And if you need a character witness I call on the people of Vermont. They don’t just like their adopted Brooklyn-born native son; they’re proud of him, the way we in Massachusetts are proud of our adopted Oklahoma born native daughter, Elizabeth Warren. He’s been an effective legislator whose record of service stands for something. And I hasten to add this doesn’t mean Hillary is not for these things as well; I’m saying that Bernie’s career of dedicated and single-minded service deserves respect.
And I’m aware that that single-mindedness can seem like a drawback. That when he’s asked about race somehow his answer seems to always turn to his bête noire, the “billionaire class”. Well, consider for a moment the question of why the Republican debates degenerated to the point where Donald Trump’s member was a topic of discussion. The Republican party is the party of conformity. They have nothing to actually “debate” because they’re not allowed to be different. That’s why they’re so hot and bothered about “political correctness”. They hate the idea that different kinds of people can work together to achieve something.
Well that’s how Democratic politics works. It’s coalition politics. And the things that draw people into that coalition — people that are in so many ways so different from each other — are lunchpail issues. They cut across the board, because on the hierarchy of needs having a steady, good paying job, a roof over your head and a little set by for a rainy day is pretty basic stuff. People with money and time to participate in politics can’t so easily be dismissed or ignored. So if you were to say to me, “It’s time we had a woman for president,” I’d respond, “Hell, yes!” But it’s also time we return those lunchpail issues to front and center in our party priorities. And Bernie is the one politician who can be counted on to do that. His tendency to careen back into the economic justice groove isn’t a bug. It’s a feature.
Now I want to be clear I’m not idealizing Bernie here. And I’m assuming you don’t idealize Secretary Clinton either, because otherwise there’s no point in my even talking to you. You know her strengths and weaknesses, just as I know Bernie’s. I think there are legitimate grounds to criticize some of his actions. For example, while I think Secretary Clinton mischaracterized his anti-TARP votes, she was right to criticize them. As much as I dislike the idea of letting the big banks socialize risks and privatize profits, they were at that point to big to fail. And while I don’t doubt that Secretary Clinton’s plan to re-regulate those big banks will work fora while, these institutions are extremely hard to regulate that way. The toxic financial instruments that caused the big meltdown were beyond the grasp of anyone without years of advanced university math; even the senior executives at these companies didn’t really understand them. And as long as these institutions exist in their current form they’ll be attacking those regulations from both ends: chipping away at them by lobbying and creating exotic financial arrangements to evade them. Bernie’s right: too big to fail is too big to exist.
Finally there’s the issue of whether Bernie can win the nomination. And frankly, it’s a long shot. It always has been. But it’s a two way race; if you like Bernie and Hillary, you win either way. This horse race handicapping business is for big-time donors who are putting down big-time wagers. An ordinary citizen like you or me should vote for the candidate he likes best, and consider with an open mind who that ought to be.
And no matter who wins, we will come together, because that’s who we are: we’re the party of coalitions. If Hillary wins, I am shoulder to shoulder with the people who supported her all along. And as a matter of fact the prospect of a Hillary nomination has it’s appeal. I for one would enjoy seeing her hand that brass-domed tinpot fascist his ass in the debates. Just as I’m looking forward to him feeling the Bern, but not in a nice way.