It's often said that no one knows what Democrats stand for—we are a broad coalition of myriad interests and affinity groups, and that diversity makes it impossible to boil things down to just a few words. Republicans never had that problem, having successfully branded themselves as the party of family values, lower taxes, and a strong national defense. Everyone can cite that mantra, not just political junkies.
Then Republicans nominated Donald Trump, among the most morally depraved men in this country, paying hush money to porn stars he was dallying with while his wife was at home with a newborn baby. He repeatedly mocks service members he deems disloyal, regardless of their decorated status. He strips the defense budget for funds for his useless border wall. He loves our military only as long as it makes him feel or look good. Oh, and he sold out our country to Russia.
So sure, he delivered on lower taxes, but he has made an utter mockery of the core values Republicans once espoused, knocking out two of the GOP’s three planks.
It’s also the reason I don’t worry when people complain about the lack of a core Democratic message. I’ve seen people try! Is it about workers’ rights, climate change, justice, equality, opportunity, social net, health care? I could go on forever. There are as many core Democratic issues as there are Democrats. And there are a lot of us. Yet none of it matters. The only thing that matters is our presidential nominee’s message. It’s what the entire party will run on, for better or for worse.
That’s how Republicans could go from being all about morality and getting the vapors over consensual oral sex to slavishly worshipping Trump. That’s how Russia went from being our No. 1 enemy to being in control of our country without anything but utter compliance and surrender from the GOP. No party message matters.
Note that I’m sitting here heaping scorn on the GOP for abandoning their love of family values and an America-first national defense, all for a piece-of-shit president. I bet you are too! Those damned hypocrites!
But here’s the rub: We Democrats would be no different if we nominated Mike Bloomberg, thinking the only way to defeat Donald Trump is to have our own morally bankrupt billionaire Republican.
If you already think Bloomberg is bad, you don't know just how bad he is. Laura Bassett in GQ runs down the nearly 40 sex discrimination and sexual harassment lawsuits that Bloomberg or his company have faced, from 64 women, over the past few decades. That's double the number of accusers that Trump has faced.
Meanwhile, Nathan J. Robinson in Current Affairs has an exhaustive look at how Bloomberg uses money to buy everything and anything he desires, not to mention his abysmal record on criminal justice, housing, LGBTQ rights, diversity, and other key progressive issues.
If we nominate Bloomberg, we are as empty and hypocritical as the conservative movement.
Everyone left on the stage at this time is a better option. I hope we don’t let fear and loathing take us where the GOP went. Because we don’t need Bloomberg to win in November. But if we surrender to his tsunami of spending, we will be no better than what’s left of the Republican Party.
