Yesterday I wrote a diary asking why Mayor Pete attended a secret NYC meeting that included party leadership (Nancy, Chuck, and a few others) — that was organized by a billionaire who was one of the largest funders of the party in the 1990s.
My question was: What were you doing there at this meeting Pete and how does this not signify that you’re aligning your campaign with capital?
Why would I ask that?
Movement politics.
A candidate that goes to a meeting with party power brokers (without 1,000,000 small donors, without an army of activists, without other progressive orgs backing them) — is fundamentally at a power disadvantage. They will measure your political clout and make decisions based upon that. That is how behavior works.
It’s like if King Alfred went to go negotiate with the Danes after their invasion but decided practically that going alone would be the best option. (I love the Last Kingdom — sue me).
Now we know what Pete was doing at that those secret meetings:
www.cnbc.com/...
- Pete Buttigieg’s increasingly popular presidential run has drawn the support of more than two dozen top Democratic fundraisers, according to a list CNBC obtained from campaign aides.
- The list includes people who bundled big-dollar donations for Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.
Pete Buttigieg’s increasingly popular presidential run has drawn the support of more than two dozen top Democratic fundraisers, including people who bundled big-dollar donations for Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton during their White House bids, according to a list CNBC obtained from campaign aides.
The financiers on the roster range from former U.S. ambassadors to real estate executives, the latest evidence that the South Bend, Indiana, mayor’s underdog bid to challenge President Donald Trump next year is catching on with Democrats as the party sorts through a crowded primary field.
I had high hopes Mayor Pete would go the people powered route and aim for small donor donations. He has chosen as a candidate not to do that. By accepting this route of big dollar donations he is putting himself in debt to capital. Big business always demands a return on their investment.
If you were looking for a candidate that was for the 99% this cycle. We can say based upon behavior, outcomes, and what Pete is actively doing — that Pete will likely not be that person.