This is not the diary I intended to write when I registered (maybe I will get around to that issue one day), but reading through the Hillary/Bernie diaries tonight clarified my thinking on the two factions into terms that may be helpful in the coming days.
Up front, I’m a Bernie guy, so tonight wasn’t a great night. I don’t know why but after getting kids to sleep I spent more time than usual reading the Bernie stories and then afterwards the Hillary stuff as well. What struck me as I read through the separate camps diaries is how different each group frames their thinking and discussions.
Wade into a Hillary diary and what you’ll see is a political discussion. Paraphrasing here, but the types of things I see repeatedly are “Continuing and building on Obama’s legacy”, “Taking everything that’s been thrown at her, including the kitchen sink, and she’s still standing”, etc. None of this addresses specific policy issues because it’s a “politics” frame of reference. Compare that to threads in a Bernie diary, where the talk is all about issues. Even the anti-Hillary diaries are issue specific “Here are 10 specific policies Hillary supported that we hate”, etc. Political analysis is an afterthought, if present at all.
My realization tonight is that these two groups aren’t even talking the same language. Pro-Hillary talks political “rally the troops” talk while Pro-Bernie talks policy details. Pro-Hillary doesn’t understand why Pro-Bernie doesn’t see the political calculus of nominating the candidate with the best chances in the general election and supporting the team, while Pro-Bernie doesn’t understand how Pro-Hillary seems unfazed by her distasteful history or stances on certain issues.
I am of course generalizing here (and I’m sure the above doesn’t apply to everyone, etc, etc), but in general I believe it to be an accurate snapshot of the primary thus far. But now the winds have changed. With this margin of support in the south, Hillary needs to start shoring up her support inside the party and thinking about the general election. How do you get policy motivated voters excited about Hillary? Certainly the political talk will win some of the faction over but my feeling is that there is a significant chunk that won’t be moved by political calculus. I don’t know how this plays out, but understanding the other side is probably the first step to a better outcome.