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writing for godot

Why Bernie Will Beat Trump in 2020

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Written by Tom Herman   
Saturday, 01 February 2020 08:46

 

The list of serious contenders for the Democratic nominee for 2020 has been whittled down. Several candidates are still in the running, but many observers suggest it is essentially a two-person race: Bernie Sanders vs. Joe Biden. Polls show that, on the issues, Bernie is way ahead of Biden and his other rivals. Moreover, his favorability rating among Democrats is the highest of all the candidates. Still, canvassers for Bernie's campaign are used to hearing people say, “I really like Bernie a lot, but I'm not sure he can win.”

Polls show that in spite of Bernie's wide popularity, more people believe that Biden can beat Trump than believe Bernie can. Yet we must ask ourselves whether this belief is true or false. Is it rooted in reality or does it reflect the bias of the mainstream media, who see Sanders as a threat to their own special interests?

The gap between Bernie's popularity and his perceived electability is important to look at. For if Bernie is actually more electable than Biden, we'd better figure that out before we nominate the wrong candidate! Indeed, there is much evidence that Bernie is the best candidate to beat Trump.

Here are some facts that bear this out:

1. Bernie consistently beats Trump in head to head polls. In the last 63 polls (beginning March, 2019) Bernie has beaten Trump 57 times.

2. Bernie will bring out the base. Other polls, which ask how excited you are about your candidate, show that people who support Sanders are more enthusiastic about their choice than followers of other candidates are about theirs. The polls also show that Sanders voters are less likely than others to change their minds. Excitement and loyalty are important because they determine how many people will actually show up and vote rather than simply sit the election out.

3. Bernie will bring out voters who have never voted before. A lot of people have lost faith in electoral politics because both parties have sold out to their corporate donors. Many people don't care all that much who is in power because the issues that matter most to them are not addressed. Bernie is offering policies that will definitely help everyday people: Medicare for all, free college, $15 minimum wage, a federal jobs guarantee, just to name a few. Like other candidates, Bernie is beholden to his donors, but his donors are regular people, not the rich and powerful.

4. Bernie is very popular in the must-win rust belt states. These are the states the Democrats must win in order to beat Trump. While some states are definitely Democratic and some are definitely Republican, the “rust belt” states can swing either way and are therefore crucial to our success. People in these states know that Bernie has always been a staunch supporter of labor unions and workers' rights. This is one reason he performs well there against Trump.

5. Bernie is not vulnerable to Trump's attacks. Bernie is the candidate who will be the most resistant to Trump's abusive tactics. We have seen how brilliant Trump is at bringing his opponents down. He works on their vulnerabilities, humiliates them, makes them look foolish and hypocritical. He is able to do this because they are hypocritical and they have vulnerabilities. Bernie alone has no substantive vulnerabilities!

True, Trump will hammer Sanders on his “socialism”. But consider how empty this threat is. In the first place, Bernie is proud to be a champion of social justice for all: economic justice, racial justice, environmental justice. And polls show that all of his policies are extremely popular, even outside the Democratic base, especially among independents and with many Republicans as well. Plus he has a long record of fighting for the noblest causes, even when they are not yet popular. Indeed, Bernie is rightly famous for his honesty and integrity. In other words, he is the perfect person to go against Trump. He can legitimately take on Trump's vulnerabilities because he is not compromised himself.

6. Joe Biden has many vulnerabilities. Joe Biden's record is filled with positions and actions that have worked against the best interests of millions of regular people, including his support of NAFTA, the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) and other job-destroying treaties; fighting against school busing along with Republican segregationists; supporting the banks to make it harder to declare bankruptcy—a policy that has hurt students badly; voting for the Iraq war; and trying several times to reduce social security payments.

In addition, there is the question of Biden's credibility. Various mainstream news outlets, including CNN and the New York Times have pointed out Biden's repeated lying over many years about his activity in the civil rights movement—claiming to have organized sit-ins he never attended and to have marched in demonstrations he did not participate in. He has also lied about his educational background, inflating his accomplishments and his performance as a student.

If this were not enough, he has a well-documented history of plagiarism as well. He has used verbatim remarks from British politician Neil Kinnock as well as John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy and Hubert Humphrey, all without crediting their source.

 

Finally, there is the compromising situation in Ukraine. While Biden was V.P. and point man for Obama's Ukraine policy, his son Hunter Biden was hired to be on the board of Burisma, a private Ukrainian gas producer, where he was paid an estimated $50,000 a month. Hunter himself has admitted he would not have gotten this job but for his well-positioned father. Though this was not illegal, it does suggest he was using his influence as a national leader to give unmerited help to his family.

Some Democrats may look the other way on these issues, because all that matters to them is getting rid of Trump. But that is exactly why we must look at them! Biden's positions and actions over the years will provide Trump easy ammunition to attack him effectively and relentlessly. With Biden severely damaged, Democratic voter turnout will be diminished, and it may well cost us the election. It is imperative we look at this now, for Trump will certainly do so later—if given the chance.

7. Bernie is the best candidate and the best positioned to beat Trump. We do not have to make the hard choice between the candidate we like best and the candidate who will beat Trump, because Bernie Sanders is both! The public knows the system is rigged and that both parties are corrupt because of big money interests. Bernie, who depends only on small-dollar donations from everyday people, will not only champion all Americans, but will beat Donald Trump as well.

While Biden has been coasting on a myth of electability, Sanders is the truly electable candidate, and will be the president America so desperately needs right now!

 

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