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![Joe Biden Joe Biden](imgs/2020-avatar-120-biden.jpg)
Democratic Primaries
In reply to the discussion: The Democratic Senators who were also primary candidates [View all]Gothmog
(157,920 posts)41. Why Can't Bernie Accept That Democratic Voters Didn't Want Him?
Link to tweet
https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/03/bernie-sanders-democratic-primary-joe-biden-2020-voters-establishment.html
Even many progressives who accept Biden’s nomination as a conscious, non-flukey choice by Democratic voters have insisted on portraying the Sanders agenda as the true winner. Many of them have cited polls showing a majority of Democratic primary voters favoring Medicare for All.
It is certainly true that most Democrats would prefer a single-payer system. I would absolutely prefer a single-payer system, and would happily pay higher taxes to say good-bye forever to employer-sponsored insurance. But Democrats are not unaware that Biden opposed this policy. It was heavily — nay, obsessively — litigated throughout the campaign. The topic consumed large portions of almost every single debate. If Democrats overwhelmingly chose Biden anyway, perhaps they bought his argument that the political barriers to full single payer are prohibitive, and that building on Obamacare to expand coverage makes more sense.
The Sanders campaign was highly successful in turning the race into an ideological referendum. What Sanders failed to anticipate is that doing so would ensure his defeat. Asked last year if they “would rather see the Democratic Party become more liberal or become more moderate,” Democrats chose more moderate by a 54-41 percent margin. Slightly more than half of its voters identify as either moderate or conservative, and slightly less than half identify as liberal. And Biden ate heavily into the liberal vote, dominating among those who identified as “somewhat liberal.”
The Democratic Establishment certainly played an important role in the contest. Its party elite helped coordinate the non-Bernie vote, foiling his plan to capture the nomination without expanding his share much beyond a third. The Sanders movement has remained genuinely indignant that it was unable to win the nomination and steer the party in a direction opposite of the desire of most of its voters by exploiting a divided opposition. But the Sanders plan for minority-faction rule, while it briefly seemed likely to prevail, always required denying the rest of the party a chance to vote up or down on his revolution. He lost for one simple reason: The process gave the voters, right or wrong, what they wanted.
It is certainly true that most Democrats would prefer a single-payer system. I would absolutely prefer a single-payer system, and would happily pay higher taxes to say good-bye forever to employer-sponsored insurance. But Democrats are not unaware that Biden opposed this policy. It was heavily — nay, obsessively — litigated throughout the campaign. The topic consumed large portions of almost every single debate. If Democrats overwhelmingly chose Biden anyway, perhaps they bought his argument that the political barriers to full single payer are prohibitive, and that building on Obamacare to expand coverage makes more sense.
The Sanders campaign was highly successful in turning the race into an ideological referendum. What Sanders failed to anticipate is that doing so would ensure his defeat. Asked last year if they “would rather see the Democratic Party become more liberal or become more moderate,” Democrats chose more moderate by a 54-41 percent margin. Slightly more than half of its voters identify as either moderate or conservative, and slightly less than half identify as liberal. And Biden ate heavily into the liberal vote, dominating among those who identified as “somewhat liberal.”
The Democratic Establishment certainly played an important role in the contest. Its party elite helped coordinate the non-Bernie vote, foiling his plan to capture the nomination without expanding his share much beyond a third. The Sanders movement has remained genuinely indignant that it was unable to win the nomination and steer the party in a direction opposite of the desire of most of its voters by exploiting a divided opposition. But the Sanders plan for minority-faction rule, while it briefly seemed likely to prevail, always required denying the rest of the party a chance to vote up or down on his revolution. He lost for one simple reason: The process gave the voters, right or wrong, what they wanted.
![](imgs/2020-avatar-120-biden.jpg)
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
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At the personal ore level, we agree, the personality traits needed by a President are lacking
empedocles
Mar 2020
#8
His brand is ruined no matter what he does. I would argue Bernie not voting on the bill is the most
beastie boy
Mar 2020
#15
was 4 trillion before they voted out some of the bail out crap amendments-even HR6201...
Sunlei
Mar 2020
#16
OMG! welcome back The Magistrate, you were so right about Ukraine! its been 4yrs
Sunlei
Mar 2020
#18
I would like to know where the delegates that would get him to 1991 are - which states?
George II
Mar 2020
#11
Bernie is single-handedly responsible for bringing the issues that now define Democratic values
Ravenspace
Mar 2020
#22
His campaign continues to attack Biden ...sowing division even as I write this ...so he is not
Demsrule86
Mar 2020
#27
No he's not. These have ALWAYS been Democratic Principles. I don't understand people ...
marble falls
Mar 2020
#31
So why do you think he was a no-show for the first vote on the emergency funding bill?
ehrnst
Mar 2020
#32
Yes, he's trying to have a positive impact but his tactics are backfiring. As they say....
George II
Mar 2020
#33
The way he has run campaign, who he has hired, his supports have consistently shown the difference
LizBeth
Mar 2020
#30
Exactly. The hiring of JILL FUCKING STEIN supporters to run his campaign...
NurseJackie
Mar 2020
#36