Your 2020 Presidential Candidate Speculation Thread

honestly I worry more about a left candidate having a genuine shot of getting the nomination than I do a left nominee actually winning the presidency. a lefty isn't going to win the nomination without a huge amount of momentum and enthusiasm behind them, it's not going to be like Clinton being the heir apparent in 2016. it's far more likely than not that the nominee is going to be A-OK with the donor class, even if they espouse some left policies. and perhaps the latter is the best we can hope for.

also the right portrayed him (and every other Dem "centrist") that way

xps

is there any chance of Sherrod Brown running because I think he'd be great

everybody is running

in other words, I think basically the same is true with Bernie as it was in 2016: he could beat Trump if he won the nomination, but I think his odds of being the nominee are still pretty long, regardless of his favorability rating.

This whole centrist-can't-win thing is complete horseshit. All you really need is some charisma.

Centrists can absolutely win elections, just not a hell of a lot else.

(this is true of all democracies AFAICT)

“Centrist” is too polite a word for people who won’t stand up to corporate power in the face of unecessary immiserarion and ecological doom. It’s not that they’re moderate, it’s that they’re sell outs.

No democrat thinks something like raising the minimum wage to be in line with real wages in the 60s is “too radical.” It’s stupid. They just know the donor class doesn’t like these kinds of policies.

Our politics is bizarre because common sense solutions to obcious problems, be it healthcare, the environment, or poverty, are decried as “radical” if they disrupt the flow of capital a little bit.

I’m “moderate” by temperament basically but of course I want medicare for all.

not a uniquely American problem but yes, the notions around what's possible needs to be radically reframed (or I guess we could all just die or whatever)

or I guess we could all just die

don't give them any ideas

Sorry I meant "non-centrist can't win." :P

lol DJI

Pretty much the same thing :)

Sherrod Brown is reportedly the candidate the Right fears most.

they clearly fear AOC more than anybody

and she turns 35 a month before the 2024 election

plus she'll probably be a mealymouthed centrist by then

are there signs of that beyond the prevaricating on Israel or something

no, just the trendline of what happens to ppl when they spend too much time in Washington

also a reflection of my own strategy not to hang my hopes on individuals, esp over long periods of time

good lord the idea of AOC running in '20 or '24

i definitely think she should run in 2020

she will be too old in 2024

🤔

lol

oh god, Bloomberg's been doing appearances in Iowa

oh hell yeah

Best of luck to Orlando Bloomberg

don't worry, even dumb appearances this far out are being protested

At a Des Moines screening of his new film about climate change, "From Paris to Pittsburgh," a group of protesters interrupted his opening remarks, shouting questions and holding a large sign. Some of the protesters were carried out by security, while others marched out and chanted.

The protesters were associated with the Central Iowa Democratic Socialists of America as well as the Ames and Grinnell chapters of Iowa Student Action.

“As Iowans, we believe a record of systemic misogyny, a history of racist stop-and-frisk policing, and complicity with the fossil fuel industry is anything but bold,” the groups said in a statement. “… Bloomberg’s history of personal and organizational misogyny should disqualify him from consideration for the presidency.”

he will focus on the environment, in his whiny Brahmin voice

I'd be onboard with Bloomberg, but I only know him as actually successful technology capitalist and national commentator, not as mayor.

MORE BILLIONAIRES IN POLITICS

it turns out that being a successful capitalist means your priorities diverge from those of the laboring classes, including the citizens governed by a mayor

people just can't get enough of this guy who loves stop and frisk

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/19/opinion/bloomberg-stop-frisk-racial-injustice.html

Best of luck to Orlando Bloomberg

anticipating ilx "nicknames suck ass" posts when i persist in calling pres bloomberg "bloomps."

Obama was a centrist. Clinton was a centrist. Carter was a centrist. The last time a representative of the Dem left was elected was 54 years ago. The last time a representive of the Dem left was elected having not served as VP was 86 years ago.

I want to win, I want to give a Left leaning Dem congress a chance to do things. The existential threat of climate change is the paramount moral issue of the day, and to lose in 2020, because we nominated some DSA approved character that couldn't carry swing states, will be a moral failing that will redound through millennia to come.

― Sanpaku, Tuesday, December 4, 2018 8:00 PM (four days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

This has a nice patina of using historical evidence to support your point, but each of the Presidents you've named was elected at a confluence of particular and distinct historical circumstances that had more to do with the American moment and their opponents than their purported moderation. Like you I don't just want to win, I know we must win -- there is no alternative -- but "some DSA approved character that couldn't carry swing states" is a figment of your imagination. Evers and Baldwin in Wisconsin, Whitmer winning comfortably in MI after being pushed left by Al-Sayed, we've got enough indications people are ready for a progressive leader in the likely 2020 swing states that it's not even an interesting question anymore. The interesting question is who the right one is.

well argued

conclusion: hoos is running

hey guys primaries exist, you can test their values and everything, shit's wild

https://media.giphy.com/media/mEUmeOiT9MCMo/giphy.gif

leaning toward HOOS or Sherrod Brown

Brb, mocking up the "I'm With HOOS" bumper stickers.

Make America steendrive again

WASHINGTON (AP) — Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand is looking at Troy, New York, as a potential base for a 2020 presidential bid, according to multiple people familiar with the discussions. pic.twitter.com/D8MR8GBEqf

— Joseph Spector (@GannettAlbany) January 10, 2019

can't wait for the style section trendpieces

Smarter pick than Brooklyn

"some DSA approved character that couldn't carry swing states" is a figment of your imagination. Evers and Baldwin in Wisconsin,

Evers was definitely seen as on the centrist side of the primary, but point taken re Baldwin, and the point will be hammered home in the 2022 when Mark Pocan beats Ron Johnson and Wisconsin has left-progressive Dem senators.

share the spider sense about this guy, but i'd love to see him debate some dreadful bore like garcetti or castro if they have undercard/kids table debates

I am no fan of golf. I think golf courses should be transitioned to homeless shelters. https://t.co/9e0oiNSHRx

— Richard N. Ojeda, II (@VoteOjeda2020) January 11, 2019

fuck golf tbrr