PEORIA, IL -- Hillary or Bernie? Head or heart?
I love Bernie Sanders’ ideas. He’s right about taxing the rich to fund basics such as health and education.
Allowing the rich to escape taxation has funded the oligarchy that now controls most of the think tanks, the media and the elections, especially statehouse elections, where the awful gerrymandering has taken place. (Though not so much in Illinois.)
But let’s be honest: the gerrymandered U.S. House will never work with Sanders as president. The Obama stalemate will continue, so Sanders’ ideas will go nowhere.
Moreover he’s too old to be president, at 75 when he takes office, and he’s unlikely to run for a second term if he wins.
There’s a fabulous cartoon that ran recently, showing Hillary Clinton walking into a dorm room where two young women sit on the bed, one on her cell phone, the other with a ‘feel the Bern’ t-shirt. There’s a poster of Sanders on the wall.
Hillary says to them “When you get done mooning over a guy who’s way too old for you, I could use a little help.”
The girl with the t-shirt replies “Gawd, she sounds just like my mother.”
And there you have it – young women who should be supporting Hillary are rebelling against her because she reminds them of mom. Let’s hope they get over it.
Hillary Clinton, on the other hand, is brilliant, has great detailed plans to help the public, is more familiar with foreign policy, however flawed, and luckily has been pulled to the left by Sanders. That’s his real achievement.
She gets my vote.
Can Hillary be elected? I think so. Her ideas are so much better than any Republican ideas. All she has to do is communicate them to the public, and she will do that, despite sexist and other attacks against her. Those likely will generate sympathy.
I also believe that if elected, she can govern by charming enough Republicans to get legislation passed. Watch her on TV and listen, really listen to what she says.
Meanwhile, there’s a fabulous analysis of the election campaigns so far. Here is the link.
Basically the author says there are 3 ideologies at play in 2016. Bernie Sanders represents the social welfare left in the tradition of FDR and the Democrats until Reagan was elected in 1980.
Hillary Clinton and the establishment Republicans represent the neocon or neoliberal tradition in economics which has basically left the USA with increasing inequality and lower class discontent. Globalism and free trade policies come from this tradition. There are left and right versions of neoliberalism.
Trump and Crews represent right wing nationalism, thus blame immigrants, wrongly, for US problems. They are racist bullies, in the European tradition of fascism. Trump reminds me of Mussolini as he struts about the stage.
Some voters understand what Trump and Crews represent, but others apparently do not.
Recall the crowds cheering European fascists in the old newsreels and photos, oblivious to the dangers such candidates represent.
I believe only Hillary can defeat them because the Democratic voters will realize that only she can govern if elected. She will need Bernie’s help in the campaign, as he rouses young people from apathy. Despite the ‘feel the Bern’ rallies, statistics show that only Trump has brought in substantial numbers of new voters, so defeating him will be tough.
Here’s a bit of fun: Will Trump next turn on Rubio and demolish him as Chris Christie did recently? Or will he pick Rubio as VP?
Some say the Republican establishment will not allow Trump or Crews to get the nomination. Marco Rubio seems to be the choice, and a Rubio/Kasich ticket, Florida/Ohio, would be formidable. Their ideology seems to be right wing neoliberal but awful on social issues such as women’s reproductive rights, LGBT rights, union rights.
Can they defeat Trump and win the GOP nomination? Maybe.
But I predict Hillary vs. The Donald. Fasten your seat belts.
-- Elaine Hopkins
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