Joe Biden has reportedly become more open in recent days to hearing arguments that he should step aside as the Democratic presidential candidate after the party’s two main congressional leaders told him they doubted his ability to beat Donald Trump.
While continuing to insist he will be the party’s nominee in November, the president has reportedly started asking questions about negative polling data and whether Vice-President Kamala Harris, considered the favourite to replace him if were to withdraw, fares better.
The indications of a possible rethink come after Biden tested positive on Wednesday for Covid-19, forcing him to isolate for several days while curtailing a campaigning visit to Nevada that had been part of a drive to show his candidacy was very much alive.
It also coincides with fresh polling data showing that he now trails Trump by two points in Virginia, a state he won by 10 points in 2020.
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Oh, ok, so I guess we can all vote third party now and you won’t complain?
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LOL. Centrists aren’t a majority in the coalition. Mainstream Dems are. It’s not like the Blue Dogs dominate the Democrats. They’re a tiny problematic sliver (waaaay smaller than the CPC).
But I never claimed the progressives were a majority. I know dedicated progressives only made up 30-40% of the primary. I’m just asking whether we’re irrelevant enough for you not to care if we vote for someone else. Because you guys sure seem upset when progressives don’t vote for Democrats.
We can be irrelevant or we can be responsible for the party losing, not both, and if we’re the latter then yeah, you do need to accept that other members of the coalition actually get something from it.
I am upset when progressives don’t vote for the dem candidate. And in the few cases a progressive wins the primary Im equally as pissed when centrists don’t vote for them.
Ok, then follow the rest of that phrase to its conclusion and realize a coalition involves critical voting blocks each getting something along the way and quit your bitching about the left asking for representation. We’re either irrelevant or not. Pick one.
It’s more so people bitching about Bernie not winning and that “Biden doesn’t do anything” but go off.
I love though how your first inclination is to “vote third party.” The siren song of the trolls/bots or the idiots in a FPTP system. Must be a life of luxury you live when you’re privileged enough to watch the world burn but go “at least I followed my conscience.”
And what more do you want? I mean, Biden has canceled as much student loans as he could, passed the biggest climate bill ever, relaxed restrictions on weed, etc. He’s done quite a bit with 1- a majority in name only where we had Manchin and Sinema and 2- a terribly extreme Republican house who will go down as one of the most unproductive of all time.
Again- the USG is an aircraft carrier. It doesn’t turn on a dime AND no matter what passes, you won’t be happy. None of us will. Politics is about compromise and realizing that life is never and will never be perfect.
Or are we just agreeing all along? I’m not sure. I think progressives deserve some things. But if you’re thinking we were getting Medicare for all way back when Obamacare came in? Nah. I mean, that was dumb to capitulate to Republicans but when you have assholes like Lieberman (and now Manchin who while great to have on your side at all is not great to have him there all the time) it just is never gonna happen at certain points.
But yes, maybe if we all just sucked it up and voted for whoever we wanted in the primary and whoever the Dem was in the general, we’d have more reps and senators to actually pass legislation that got us closer to progressive ideals. I’d sure as hell love that. Give me ten more Bernies please.
I’m never going to vote third party, just laying bare your cognitive dissonance. Either the left is a core component to the Democratic coalition and voting third party is doing incredible harm to the nation, in which case, stop complaining about trivial little comments wishing they had their preferred candidate on the ticket to represent them (in a subordinate role no less!), or they’re irrelevant and they deserve to be ignored, both in their desires and in their potential voting plans.
You don’t need to speculate about what the ask was, this thread was a specific ask. Maybe a silly one since Bernie is old as shit, but it’s not asking for governmental miracles, it’s asking for the team to have representatives from both sides. I don’t expect it to happen, especially not with Bernie specifically, but the idea of energizing a large faction that faction Biden-Harris has been on shaky ground with is an entirely reasonable idea.