Bernie Sanders is promising a revolution, but is it realistic? Fearing no, some Democrats are coping with the possibility of having to settle for the most qualified presidential candidate ever. Sure, Clinton’s resume is impressive, but have you seen how cute Bernie is when he’s disappointed in America?
Everyone loves Sanders’s character. The only question is whether his head is in the clouds. Seriously…is it? No? That’s his hair? Is Supercuts part of the rigged economy?
Here’s what The Atlantic’s Eric Liu thinks about Bernie’s idealism:
…here it’s instructive to compare Sanders and Donald Trump. Both rely on broad, satisfying refrains of “We’re gonna”: We’re gonna break up the big banks. We’re gonna make Mexico build the wall. We’re gonna end the rule of Wall Street billionaires. We’re gonna make China stop ripping us off. The difference is, Trump’s refrains are more plausible.
When you’re getting called less plausible than Donald Trump, you need to take a good, long look at yourself in the mirror. And now that I’ve got you in front of a mirror, here’s a comb.
Keep in mind what Sanders is up against here; two of his competitors, Jeb and Hillary, have former presidents campaigning for them. Jeb is driving voters his way by appearing alongside George W. Bush, while Hillary, wife of legendary Democrat Bill, is driving voters her way by appearing alongside George W. Bush.
Are there enough Bernie Bros to pull off a revolution? It’s hard to say, since Sanderspeople ride single file to hide their numbers. But polls show the Vermont senator continually closing the gap between himself and frontrunner Clinton. He’s closing the financial gap too, having brought in $6 million in donations in the 21 hours following his New Hampshire victory, boasting an average donation of just over two inches of string.
Sanders is actually polling ahead of Clinton when it comes to the general election, as Hillary faces demonization by Republicans as an entrenched Washington politician. We’re in an era when complete amateurs are preferred over “insiders” with “actual experience governing.”
Just take this tweet from policy virgin and probable literal virgin Ben Carson:
That’s why Dr. Carson usually lets his nine-year-old nephew do the brain surgery. Also, evidently, take photos for tweets.
It’s like if NFL coaches started drafting toddlers as quarterbacks because toddlers have never thrown an interception. They’re like, who cares if Trump is a little Hitlery? He’s new, and he dislikes all the right groups. Now go long for a Heil Mary.
Whether support for new sorts of politicians – Trump, Carson, and, to an extent, Sanders – is solid, or whether it’s simply a temporary expression of frustration, will be seen as we get deeper into primary season. Trying to keep the snowball rolling, Bernie has been urging his supporters to put down the bong, pause Friends, and get to the polls on election day.
In an era of political disenchantment, Sanders, glowing with sincerity and idealism (also, socialism), is a poetic adversary to the political institution that is the Clinton family. If anyone can upset Goliath, who better than a man that is perpetually upset?
Kevin Lawson* 