Diaries are flying back and forth, fast and furious, in support of Hillary or Bernie. I’ve read people’s reasons for supporting one candidate over the other. I’ve read a bunch of articles in favor of each candidate by journalists, bloggers and so-called pundits on other sites. For president, I will support who ever the Democratic nominee is.
But in the primary, I will be voting for Bernie Sanders for four simple reasons.
4. Negotiations: It’s kind of a fundamental tenet of being a successful negotiator to ask for everything you want (and maybe some things you don’t) in the hope you end up with what you really need. People can knock Bernie’s proposals for being unrealistic, vague and having no chance to become law; I’m OK with that. I’d far rather aim high and have a chance to get some or most of what we want and need, than give in to timidity by asking only what we think we have a chance to get — or what corporate donors want, and end up with not much. NEWSFLASH: Republicans hate Hillary as much or more than they hate Obama, so nothing much is getting done on her watch either, so might as well have some fun and think BIG! That said, Bernie actually has a very solid record of successful bi-partisan negotiations on progressive legislation. See #1 below: Getting Sh*t Done
“Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.” - Theodore Roosevelt
3. Judgement: Experience is one thing, but judgement is another. Hillary Clinton certainly has great experience on foreign affairs as Secretary of State, a U.S. senator for 8 years, and as 1st Lady for another 8 years, not to mention her pre-White House career. But I question her judgement. Nothing new here, but front and center is her “yea” vote on the AUMF back in 2002. Sanders’ vote against the AUMF stands not only in sharp contrast, but moreover, in his 2002 speech on the Senate floor, he predicted every consequence of invading Iraq which has come to pass. So he didn’t just win a 50/50 coin toss on which way to vote, he was prescient.
I also question Hillary’s judgement with respect to the $153 million in speaking fees she’s collected from Wall Street banks, the tens of millions donated to the Clinton Foundation by industries, corporations, and foreign governments lobbying for U.S. government contracts and favorable legislation during her tenure as Secretary of State, and her use of a private server for e-mails during that same time. None of this is illegal, but the optics are just awful. Don’t get me started on who she listens to for advice. Larry Summers, David Blinder, David Brock. I could go on, but suffice it to say I don’t agree with her judgement on many of her personnel choices and the voices she listens to.
For someone with ambition to be President, who has been in Republican crosshairs for over 20 years and is the most scrutinized political figure possibly ever, I’m dumbfounded she would make all these choices when it is so obvious her detractors could use these things to undermine her integrity. Bad judgement.
2. Integrity/Consistency: For 30 years, Bernie Sanders has been saying the same things and advocating the same policies regardless of what audience he’s speaking to. You may not like what he’s saying or every policy he’s advocating, but you can trust his sincerity and that he will doggedly work on behalf of every American to accomplish exactly what he says he’s going to. Hillary has a demonstrated ideological flexibility which prevents me from developing a trust and confidence she is as good as her word and has courage of conviction (See: Keystone pipeline and TPP, U.S troops in Syria, among others).
1. Gettin’ Sh*t Done: The final reason why I am supporting Bernie Sanders in the primary is because he gets sh*t done. Bernie’s detractors like to say he was ineffective in the Senate and only got three laws passed — two of which were to name post offices. That’s true, but at least the one of substance that did pass — the Veteran’s Choice Act, is a pretty good one.
But we do a disservice to Bernie, or any elected official for that matter, if we judge effectiveness merely by laws he/they sponsored. Bernie is apparently quite adept at using the amendment process to accomplish his legislative agenda and has actually achieved a lot of positives for average Americans — all as a progressive independent, in a polarized/paralyzed Congress which is heavily influenced by corporate interests. Rather than list the important amendments Bernie has helped become law, you can just click here.
Sanders did something particularly original, which was that he passed amendments that were exclusively progressive, advancing goals such as reducing poverty and helping the environment, and he was able to get bipartisan coalitions of Republicans who wanted to shrink government or hold it accountable and progressives who wanted to use it to empower Americans.
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While Sanders was an amendment king who was able to bring bipartisan coalitions together to make serious changes to laws, he also knew how to be a thorn in the side of the establishment until it offered up something in return.
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When the Affordable Care Act was in danger of not having the votes to pass, Sanders used his leverage to win enough funding for free health treatment for 10 million Americans through Community Health Centers. This gutsy move—holding out until the funds were put into the bill—has even Republican members of Congress requesting the funds, which have helped millions of Americans who otherwise would not have access.
As chair of the Senate’s Veteran Affairs Committee...
during the 113th Congress (2013-2014), 13 of the committee’s bills became law. That may not sound like a lot until you realize that the Senate Veterans Affairs (VA) committee only passed 8.5 bills into law on average during each of the past 20 Congresses and that these 13 bills became law during the second least productive Congress in American history.
And for anyone who is wondering, Hillary Clinton also had three laws passed during her time in the Senate: one renaming a highway in NY, one renaming a post office and one establishing the Kate Mullany National Historic Site in Troy, New York.
You may not agree with my choice or my reasons, but let’s keep any comments civil. Ultimately, we all want the same things, even if we advocate different ways of achieving them.
My final thought:
"You see things and you say, 'Why?' I dream things that never were and say, 'Why not?' - George Bernard Shaw