Democratic Primary Thread (Updated Poll #2)

[IrishLax]

***Only posts directly related to the Democratic primary field will be tolerated, all off topic and/or Trump posts will be deleted.***

This thread is to discuss the Democrats running for President. Please limit discussion to the candidates and their platforms. A poll will be included (and refreshed periodically) to track how the IE community at large is feeling about various candidates.

There will be significant emphasis on keeping posts on topic and respectful. No broader "politics" discussion or trolling will be tolerated.

 

[Legacy]

The RS Politics 2020 Democratic Primary Policy Guide: Where nearly two dozen candidates stand on health care, the climate crisis, closing the wealth gap, and more

Below is a guide to where nearly two dozen declared candidates stand on a variety of crucial issues. Scroll through at your convenience or click a candidate’s name to jump directly to their policy positions. For a look at where the candidates stand in the marathon horse race to secure the party’s nomination, check out the RS Politics 2020 Democratic Primary Leaderboard. Both guides will be updated as the primary progresses and candidates continue to develop policy positions.

The Issues: The most comprehensive guide anywhere to the issues shaping the 2020 Democratic presidential primary. Search by candidate, issue or category.

The underlying question each of us will answer after four years of any President is "Are you better off?" and "Do you like the direction the country has been taken?" and to candidates "What is your vision and the changes you advocate?"

Issues posted in above links.

 

[BleedBlueGold]

Amazing how just a few years ago I was on here lobbying for Bern and now I can't stomach the thought of voting for pretty much anyone on this list.

 

[ACamp1900]

Amazing how just a few years ago I was on here lobbying for Bern and now I can't stomach the thought of voting for pretty much anyone on this list.

Happened to me in the early 2000s... I campaigned for Joe Baca and was all in... I haven't been able to hold my nose on the left for many a year now.

 

[IrishLax]

https://www.politico.com/story/2019/07/08/2020-democratic-candidates-1399458

The field will likely get cut in half before anyone even gets to cast a vote.

 

[Wild Bill]

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2019/07/tom-steyer-2020-run/593434/

Steyer should focus his campaign on getting money out of politics and the wealth disparity.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I want thank my supporters & friends, my staff, & my family for making this journey possible. I’ll never forget the people I met & lessons I learned while traveling around our great nation. Though our campaign is ending our mission to end gun violence is just beginning... <a href="https://t.co/voEJRpYd2R">pic.twitter.com/voEJRpYd2R</a></p>— Eric Swalwell (@ericswalwell) <a href="https://twitter.com/ericswalwell/status/1148324647198441473?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 8, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Can't believe Swalwell is out.

 

[BGIF]

Eric Who?

 

[IrishLax]

https://thehill.com/homenews/campai...ratic-pack-by-15-points-warren-harris-sanders

Biden crushing the field right now, Bernie fading. Biden is doubling up the other candidates at 30% with the next closest (Harris, Warren, Sanders) all polling at 15%. Mayor Pete comes in a distant 5th with 5%. Bernie is down from 27% to 15% in just over a month.

The other 20ish candidates all have a combined 20% between them. So for someone to catch Biden, they will need to do more than gobble up the scraps from the also-rans. They will need Biden supporters to leave him OR to gain voters from the other contenders. Expect the attacks on Biden to be ratcheted up in the next debate.

 

[ACamp1900]

I wonder what a Biden admin would actually look like... it's difficult to see him going full ham on the far leftist policy/leadership style as I assume ANY of the others would... but who knows...

 

[Legacy]

Presidential candidate campaign travel, 2020 (Ballotpedia)

For the Iowa and Nevada caucuses, voters can vote by phone to increase participation. Both states will require Democratic voters to register online in advance of their virtual caucus, verifying their identity with a "multi-factor authentication." Voters will receive a PIN that they'll have to enter when they call in to participate.

 

[GowerND11]

Presidential candidate campaign travel, 2020 (Ballotpedia)

For the Iowa and Nevada caucuses, voters can vote by phone to increase participation. Both states will require Democratic voters to register online in advance of their virtual caucus, verifying their identity with a "multi-factor authentication." Voters will receive a PIN that they'll have to enter when they call in to participate.

I mean, this screams legal voter fraud doesn't it?

 

[ACamp1900]

I mean, this screams legal voter fraud doesn't it?

Well, we are in the correct thread...

 

[Old Man Mike]

Biden is probably the least "left" of all those names (by a wide margin), plus the oldest other than Bernie. Those two facts should tell you something about voter comfort zones.

Biden, as an old football player, comes across as a bit of a tough guy who doesn't back off easily. Some voters like that. He's a bit too Old School for many "moderns." He will lead off with jobs programs rather than LGBT issues or universal social programs (though he will be sympathetic to the latter.) He won't support "reparations" for slavery --- though if that goes down, I want to sign up for all the bad things done to my Irish ancestors while we were building the railroads. (Since I am intensely "conservative" in my defense of Creation/The Environment, that apparently makes me a "liberal" bizarrely, but if so I see slavery reparations as one of the craziest concepts ever floated --- and will be sorely pressed NOT to vote for any democratic candidate who supports that. --- even my buddy Obama completely seconds my stance on that.)

If he can discipline himself to clean up his "man's man" mini-gaffs and not piss off the more "sensitive" crowd, he'll probably run away with this. Then he'll ask around for a "less-sensitive" but politically-attractive female to solidify the base (Lord I wish that Jennifer Granholm wasn't born in Canada.). We'll see him at Catholic Mass more openly.

Obama and probably Bill Clinton will come out swinging for him, I would bet. So will Michelle Obama and some younger Kennedys in my crystal ball. He will probably hope that Hillary "stays at home." If any of the new young guns have any brain cells working, they should lay off his warts and wiseguy comments and back him up, if, that is, they really give a damm about the White House.

There is a reason that the current president is searching for an effective non-think nickname for him.

 

[RDU Irish]

Was in Iowa this week and I truly feel sorry for that state. The amount of advertising for candidates is just everywhere. Non stop and everywhere with such a long lead time.

Had a nice talk with my Dad about Kamala Harris - on surface she seemed like a decent option and I said please her, no way she survives Willy Brown. He was surprised I knew that name and he had only come across her connection with Brown while looking up info on her online. I said not to worry, Google will fix it by the primaries. I cannot fathom a San Fran elite as President but not really that much stranger than the last two folks to hold the office.

Biden - I don't see who he gains votes from. He has the moderates locked up pretty well but I see the loonies consolidating toward a champion Gluten Free Range/Open Border/Reparations/Etc candidate as the marginal folks drop out. I don't see how they survive the general with the route I see rhetoric going to get the nomination. Nobody even knows who over half these people are yet - plenty of time for someone to emerge.

 

[Irishize]

Biden is probably the least "left" of all those names (by a wide margin), plus the oldest other than Bernie. Those two facts should tell you something about voter comfort zones.

Biden, as an old football player, comes across as a bit of a tough guy who doesn't back off easily. Some voters like that. He's a bit too Old School for many "moderns." He will lead off with jobs programs rather than LGBT issues or universal social programs (though he will be sympathetic to the latter.) He won't support "reparations" for slavery --- though if that goes down, I want to sign up for all the bad things done to my Irish ancestors while we were building the railroads. (Since I am intensely "conservative" in my defense of Creation/The Environment, that apparently makes me a "liberal" bizarrely, but if so I see slavery reparations as one of the craziest concepts ever floated --- and will be sorely pressed NOT to vote for any democratic candidate who supports that. --- even my buddy Obama completely seconds my stance on that.)

If he can discipline himself to clean up his "man's man" mini-gaffs and not piss off the more "sensitive" crowd, he'll probably run away with this. Then he'll ask around for a "less-sensitive" but politically-attractive female to solidify the base (Lord I wish that Jennifer Granholm wasn't born in Canada.). We'll see him at Catholic Mass more openly.

Obama and probably Bill Clinton will come out swinging for him, I would bet. So will Michelle Obama and some younger Kennedys in my crystal ball. He will probably hope that Hillary "stays at home." If any of the new young guns have any brain cells working, they should lay off his warts and wiseguy comments and back him up, if, that is, they really give a damm about the White House.

There is a reason that the current president is searching for an effective non-think nickname for him.

Biden does well in polls until he starts talking. He’s a gaffe machine. I do give him credit for getting “blue collar” bonafides over his career but he’s not a person who truly pulled himself up by his bootstraps. His daddy struggled financially before becoming a successful car dealer but he was pretty firmly entrenched in the middle class. Like most pols, he’s BS’d his way to a career of generational wealth & power. The Leftists & the media will chew him up. Unfortunately, he’ll probably be taunted into a gaffe that seals his fate & his legacy. I don’t think he’s a bad person...just doesn’t think before he speaks off the cuff.

 

[IrishLax]

Biden does well in polls until he starts talking. He’s a gaffe machine. I do give him credit for getting “blue collar” bonafides over his career but he’s not a person who truly pulled himself up by his bootstraps. His daddy struggled financially before becoming a successful car dealer but he was pretty firmly entrenched in the middle class. Like most pols, he’s BS’d his way to a career of generational wealth & power. The Leftists & the media will chew him up. Unfortunately, he’ll probably be taunted into a gaffe that seals his fate & his legacy. I don’t think he’s a bad person...just doesn’t think before he speaks off the cuff.

His issue right now is that he’s trying to be #woke enough to not get eaten alive by the left wing media, and that is inauthentic which is why he “gaffes.” Trump has proven gaffes don’t matter if you keep powering through them like they didn’t happen, but Biden is always on the defensive.

I’m absolutely convinced that if he came out and said emphatically “If you want a left wing radical then vote for someone else. I’m running to be someone that represents all Americans with an open mind and liberal policies that I saw work for 8 years.” He would win in a fucking landslide.

 

[GowerND11]

His issue right now is that he’s trying to be #woke enough to not get eaten alive by the left wing media, and that is inauthentic which is why he “gaffes.” Trump has proven gaffes don’t matter if you keep powering through them like they didn’t happen, but Biden is always on the defensive.

I’m absolutely convinced that if he came out and said emphatically “If you want a left wing radical then vote for someone else. I’m running to be someone that represents all Americans with an open mind and liberal policies that I saw work for 8 years.” He would win in a fucking landslide.

I've been thinking that too. Too often people are distracted with the sparing of the Primaries, that they all end up bloodied and bruised, then hit the General Election, and the party is hobbling to the ring.

 

[Wild Bill]

I’m absolutely convinced that if he came out and said emphatically “If you want a left wing radical then vote for someone else. I’m running to be someone that represents all Americans with an open mind and liberal policies that I saw work for 8 years.” He would win in a fucking landslide.

I've been thinking that too. Too often people are distracted with the sparing of the Primaries, that they all end up bloodied and bruised, then hit the General Election, and the party is hobbling to the ring.

If true, why wouldn't ANY of the candidates do the same (I don't necessarily disagree - but there is something to this)?

How would Biden's campaign, if he took this advice, align with the DNC's vision of the future?

 

[Irish YJ]

I voted Biden. Not because I think he's great or anything. I guess deep down I'd like to believe most Americans, even most Dems, aren't all F'ing crazy enough to vote for some of the extremes.

Last election, I would have strongly considered voting for Bernie had he won the nomination. Now i just see him as another loon after all the crap that's went down the last 3 years.

I think Harris would love to be more moderate, but it's just not cool to do so right now.

Warren is like the old lady down the street growing up, that everyone tried to avoid having conversations with.

Mayor Pete.... Sorry, but you simply lack every type of meaningful experience.

I'd bet on a Biden/Harris ticket when it's all said and done.

 

[Irishize]

“If Democrats Lose in 2020 They Will Have Bernie Sanders to Thank”



https://apple.news/Agb-1ex-ZRRaZ6EMoyCkxZw

 

[Irish YJ]

“If Democrats Lose in 2020 They Will Have Bernie Sanders to Thank”



https://apple.news/Agb-1ex-ZRRaZ6EMoyCkxZw

polls are funny things....

In a recent Washington Post/ABC poll, when registered voters were asked to choose between President Trump and a Democrat who they considered a socialist, Trump won 49 to 43. Note that two-thirds of those answering that question identified themselves as a Democrat or independent; only 23 percent were Republicans.

 

[GowerND11]

polls are funny things....

Well I think that's telling of the party isn't it? I mean, I think there was always some kind of divide amongst the moderate Democrats and very far left, but it just seems to be growing. Those moderates are beginning to feel abandoned, and they will vote for Biden, until he loses, leaving Trump.

 

[Irish#1]

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2019/07/tom-steyer-2020-run/593434/

Steyer should focus his campaign on getting money out of politics and the wealth disparity.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I want thank my supporters & friends, my staff, & my family for making this journey possible. I’ll never forget the people I met & lessons I learned while traveling around our great nation. Though our campaign is ending our mission to end gun violence is just beginning... <a href="https://t.co/voEJRpYd2R">pic.twitter.com/voEJRpYd2R</a></p>— Eric Swalwell (@ericswalwell) <a href="https://twitter.com/ericswalwell/status/1148324647198441473?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 8, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Can't believe Swalwell is out.

He wants to thank the 14 people who supported him in this endeavour.

 

[Irish#1]

I wonder what a Biden admin would actually look like... it's difficult to see him going full ham on the far leftist policy/leadership style as I assume ANY of the others would... but who knows...

He wouldn't go far ham. He knows the loudmouth lefty's are a small minority.

 

[Irish#1]

If true, why wouldn't ANY of the candidates do the same (I don't necessarily disagree - but there is something to this)?

How would Biden's campaign, if he took this advice, align with the DNC's vision of the future?

Because the rest of them are pretty much far left radicals in one way or another.

 

[tadman95]

Wish Mark Warner would get in. Probably too center but he's good.

 

[Irish YJ]

Well I think that's telling of the party isn't it? I mean, I think there was always some kind of divide amongst the moderate Democrats and very far left, but it just seems to be growing. Those moderates are beginning to feel abandoned, and they will vote for Biden, until he loses, leaving Trump.

Extremes are wagging the dog. I bet Pelosi would love to cut the tail off.

 

[IrishLax]

Wish Mark Warner would get in. Probably too center but he's good.

Would instantly be my front runner. Was an amazing governor in Virginia... center-left guy who actually worked with people across the aisle. Business background, not a career politician.

 

[IrishLax]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">NEW: Takeaways from the Q2 report.<br><br>— Biden raised 1/3 of $$$ from $2,800 checks (but also ~1/3 from less than $200 givers) <br>— Mayor Pete as phenomenon: Merch sales rivaling Trump<br>— The debates are big $$ (Just ask Kamala and Julian)<br><br>And more: <a href="https://t.co/qerAX9xCuE">https://t.co/qerAX9xCuE</a></p>— Shane Goldmacher (@ShaneGoldmacher) <a href="https://twitter.com/ShaneGoldmacher/status/1151143368895995911?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 16, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Also, do check out these great $$$$ graphics from <a href="https://twitter.com/thomaskaplan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@thomaskaplan</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/rachel_shorey?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@rachel_shorey</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/nytgraphics?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nytgraphics</a> <a href="https://t.co/prr2kGhJjK">https://t.co/prr2kGhJjK</a></p>— Shane Goldmacher (@ShaneGoldmacher) <a href="https://twitter.com/ShaneGoldmacher/status/1151145453452517378?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 16, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Says a lot. Most of these candidates simply do not have the $$$ to sustain much longer. You have four Tier 1 candidates when it comes to fundraising... Pete's $$$ > poll numbers right now, and Harris poll numbers > money. No one else is a serious contender.

 

[IrishLax]

Fraud is spelled B-E-R-N-I-E

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">So does this fall under the category of hypocrisy, irony, or poetic justice?<br><br>All three?<br><br>Can’t make this stuff up.<a href="https://t.co/QWI344GYCp">https://t.co/QWI344GYCp</a></p>— Dan Crenshaw (@DanCrenshawTX) <a href="https://twitter.com/DanCrenshawTX/status/1152671506062815238?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 20, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

This is on the heels of reports a few days ago that despite his outspoken support for $15/hr minimum wage he is only paying some of his campaign workers $13/hr.