2020 Democratic presidential primary

I strongly suspect, though I can't prove, that this is a fair summation of what many left-leaning liberals feel re this whole mess

The Bernie people people in my cohort basically land on “I wish he wasn’t so old and crotchety but he’s the most vocal about income inequality and Medicare for all, so.” If another candidate signals a concrete commitment to those issues I feel like he/she will eat Bernie’s lunch.

— Will Isenberg (@Wiloceraptor) December 24, 2018

add in something there about climate justice of course

How have they not gone to Elisabeth Warren already, then?

The only thing she's been visible for over the last while (iirc) was that DNA fracas we'd all rather forget about, but I wouldn't rule out her eating into his base if they both run and she never ever brings it up again

I like his oldness and crochety-ness honestly.

And the new york accent. He seems more like someone I’d know irl—like a friend of my uncle’s or something.

I am disappointed he's not more religious tbh

I felt bad about how people piled on to attack her over the dna test since it was well meaning but there’s something to be said for not letting your adversary define the terms of the debate. Makes me think a lot of people question her instincts re:optics because of it.

I agree with that. Idk how she'll handle it if Trump opens up a copy of Pow Wow Chow at a rally (assuming he can read)

the DNA test thing was a misstep, but obviously not something that will prevent any reasonable person from voting for her on its own. I thought this masha gessen essay was the best thing I'd read about it at the time: https://www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/elizabeth-warren-falls-for-trumps-trap-and-promotes-insidious-ideas-about-race-and-dna

I'll take "Whoever" plz. Not looking forward to a high-drama Dem primary because I think the policy implications aren't that different no matter who it is and I dread all my liberal/lefty friends squaring off in a purity-vs-realism contest and know I will vote for them regardless, probably even if they are revealed as an actual lizard person.

fwiw I have voted for the likes of Bill Bradley and Barack Obama in presidential primaries

any reasonable person

Insert quote from Adlai Stevenson about needing a majority here

fwiw I have voted for the likes of Bill Bradley and Barack Obama in presidential primaries

Me too. I voted for Dean in '04. I voted for Nader in '00. I can be swayed by appeals to socialism, populism, protest, and just plain competence, depending on the circumstances. I have no idea who I might vote for in the 2020 primary, but I mostly fear self-defeating rhetoric about how this or that candidate is too much this or not enough that. The bottom line is you get at best to choose between D and R -- disappointment and revulsion -- and I will vote for disappointment no matter who's carrying that banner.

the primaries are all about choosing the best disappointment to vote for tho, a separate conversation than the general

I suspect that the wag who thinks the DNA affair matters is also a person who wishes Tim Russert still lived.

DNA affair was really egregious, stupid, and offensive imo

and could have been avoided if Warren had talked to some Native Americans? or been even minimally au fait with the discourse around identity and tribal citizenship

As NP said, only "important" for what it says about her judgment

She shouldn’t have risen to trump’s bait, or played into the noxious idea that affirmative action is something people are exploiting. She was one of the most highly regarded law professors in america—the idea she was ever a “diversity hire” was just gross and nonsense. As always the appropriate response to trump on this matter would have been to say “fuck off.”

I’d still vote for her in a primary though

Everybody in my Texas Latino holiday households is asking the political relative what he thinks of Beto

I think I accidentally talked myself into being fine with Harris while explaining her to my Stepmom

I'm leaning Harris as well

oh HELL yeah

CNBC reports Mike Bloomberg is willing to spend 00 million+ if he runs for president: https://t.co/OuSa9Wbl6I

— andrew kaczynski (@KFILE) December 27, 2018

that's 100 million, thx weird ILX formatting

Michael Bloomberg can go take a flying leap.

was gonna say, it's a real coincidence because i, also am prepared to spend 00 million on my candidacy

I will spend one dollar and win

double oh million *sips martini*

he's gonna do great:
https://gawker.com/5979679/id-do-her-a-brief-history-of-michael-bloombergs-public-sexism

chait on sanders/beto

http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2018/12/bernie-sanders-beto-orourke-feud-2020-campaign-democratic.html

it's gonna get ugly

still baffled by the Beto buzz just don't see it even remotely likely that he could win the nomination

chait on sanders/beto

pass

People think likability will be the most determinant factor in the sense that it will be the thing that makes someone impervious to the smears any candidate who faces the GOP is going to have to deal with. He had some viral moments in his Senate race, did way better than people expected so there’s some optimism there. There’s truth to that but he’s not Obama.

Would be funny if neither Biden, Bernie or Beto end up actually running.

I don't want a goddamn viral moment for president, I want someone who makes good policy!

I am not the majority of voters, of course

the Beto buzz came from his fundraising power. the buzzers aren't factoring in the power of cruz-hatred in that equation.

xp
i can understand the buzz: he's handsome, young, has an at the drive in connection, is good at fundraising, and showed that he could do well in purple/red states. ideologically sits in the center of the democratic party (near pelosi). obama likes him.

I don't want a goddamn viral moment for president, I want someone who makes good policy!

I am not the majority of voters, of course

basically this

haha fair enough

pelosi is not at the center of the democratic party tbh xp

lol are you going to argue that she's to the right

no she's definitely towards the left!

https://voteview.com/person/15448/nancy-pelosi
https://voteview.com/person/21361/beto-o-rourke

He’ll obviously be running on good policy in the primary. Whether he runs well on it is another story

i am struggling to find the primary sources for this beto buzz. the only stuff i've seen is people meta-arguing about the possibility, and how he compares to bernie from the point of view of the extremely online. there doesn't seem to be a big constituency for him.

this is good though. he should run again for tx senate.

pic.twitter.com/XONeh8HUf1

— Beto O'Rourke (@BetoORourke) December 28, 2018

he should run again for tx senate.

otm. he has a decent chance in TX and otherwise it's a gimme for the republicans. at worst he makes them spend a hundred million defeating him.

Fun to watch (not here) obvious concern trolls poison the well for Beto, Harris, and Warren among the "far left" and everybody just swallows it like a bunch of chumps

By this time next year they're going to have my propaganda-vulnerable friend talking about how the democratic front-runner--whoever it ends up being--is just as bad as Trump, like he did in 2016

Beto O'Woke

This article makes me think Warren has lost already: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/how-sen-elizabeth-warren-is-courting-black-voters-and-their-leaders-as-her-expected-2020-presidential-announcement-nears/

And I like Warren a lot. Policy wise by far my favorite candidate. But yeah. She'll make a good cabinet member?