And They're Off! The Democratic Candidates for 2020

Started by JBS, June 26, 2019, 05:40:42 PM

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JBS

This thread for stuff related to the Democratic Party primaries, so it doesn't get too entangled with Trump stuff on the main Trump thread.

Hollywood Beach Broadwalk

Daverz

Quote from: JBS on June 26, 2019, 05:40:42 PM
This thread for stuff related to the Democrat primaries, so it doesn't get too entangled with Trump stuff on the main Trump thread.

Democrat is a noun, not a modifier.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democrat_Party_(epithet)

JBS


Hollywood Beach Broadwalk

amw

I did not watch/listen to the debates but based on the comments of those who did, I'm definitely looking forward to Marianne Williamson becoming president and replacing all health care with healing crystals or something.

Que

Sorry to intrude at another American political party...

But in my humble outsider opinion the problem with the US is not that Democrats are not in power.

Your presidential, two party system has been malfunctioning for a long time and is now close to a breakdown. This political crisis is combined with a huge divisions in an increasing violent society and a general and deep rooted lack of trust in federal government

Getting "the right people" into office is not going to fix this.... I think... ::)

Q

71 dB

Quote from: Que on June 27, 2019, 10:48:11 PM
Sorry to intrude at another American political party...

But in my humble outsider opinion the problem with the US is not that Democrats are not in power.

Your presidential, two party system has been malfunctioning for a long time and is now close to a breakdown. This political crisis is combined with a huge divisions in an increasing violent society and a general and deep rooted lack of trust in federal government

Getting "the right people" into office is not going to fix this.... I think... ::)

Q

Todd will never admit non-Americans can understand the US politics. I watched the debates. Unless Biden's campaign does something  miraculous, the nomination seems to be a fight between Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris.
Spatial distortion is a serious problem deteriorating headphone listening.
Crossfeeders reduce spatial distortion and make the sound more natural
and less tiresome in headphone listening.

My Sound Cloud page <-- NEW Jan. 2024 "Harpeggiator"

amw

Quote from: Que on June 27, 2019, 10:48:11 PM
Sorry to intrude at another American political party...

But in my humble outsider opinion the problem with the US is not that Democrats are not in power.

Your presidential, two party system has been malfunctioning for a long time and is now close to a breakdown. This political crisis is combined with a huge divisions in an increasing violent society and a general and deep rooted lack of trust in federal government
I think it's functioning perfectly as intended, to be honest. It's a system designed to prevent the working class from ever taking power, or the wealthy from ever losing it. Both parties exist primarily to perpetuate themselves and enrich their members, as well as to soak up and diffuse any working-class political organising until it lacks any kind of class character. The main difference is which set of billionaires they represent. (or as the quote goes: "The United States is also a one-party state but, with typical American extravagance, they have two of them.")

This does however have the side effect of producing some wonderful theatre.

I don't have any strong predictions, but think the most likely outcome is Joe Biden winning the primary by a narrow margin after several months of back-and-forth mudslinging between him, Warren, Sanders and Harris, and then losing to Trump in the general election by ~100 electoral votes. The second most likely scenario is probably Marianne turning out the ~35% of Americans who never vote but read lots of self-help books and believe all science is fake, and winning in a 45 state landslide.

Karl Henning

Quote from: Que on June 27, 2019, 10:48:11 PM
Sorry to intrude at another American political party...

But in my humble outsider opinion the problem with the US is not that Democrats are not in power.

Your presidential, two party system has been malfunctioning for a long time and is now close to a breakdown. This political crisis is combined with a huge divisions in an increasing violent society and a general and deep rooted lack of trust in federal government

Getting "the right people" into office is not going to fix this.... I think... ::)

Q

Certainly, Trump is with us because both major parties let the country down. And Trump has done sufficient damage to the country, that just getting "the right person" in the White House may be too little, too late.
Karl Henning, Ph.D.
Composer & Clarinetist
Boston MA
http://www.karlhenning.com/
[Matisse] was interested neither in fending off opposition,
nor in competing for the favor of wayward friends.
His only competition was with himself. — Françoise Gilot

drogulus

     
Quote from: amw on June 28, 2019, 05:10:54 AM
I think it's functioning perfectly as intended, to be honest. It's a system designed to prevent the working class from ever taking power, or the wealthy from ever losing it. Both parties exist primarily to perpetuate themselves and enrich their members, as well as to soak up and diffuse any working-class political organising until it lacks any kind of class character. The main difference is which set of billionaires they represent. (or as the quote goes: "The United States is also a one-party state but, with typical American extravagance, they have two of them.")


     I certainly don't want the working class to take power. I want the Dems to represent them. Dems are more couth, too couth for my tastes.

     The loss of labor power has been a tragedy for this country. Organized labor provided a route to power and a social structure of support that has been filled by nothing but MAGAhood, nothing for sure.

     Dems have lost, workers lost a meaningful idea of class interest and if the only thing left is a lousy idea of a working class taking power instead of fully taking part I'm off to Paraguay.
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drogulus


     I'm in France so by osmosis I'm temporarily not understanding American politics. Ill be back tomorrow with a sword in my hand. No seashells for you.
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SimonNZ

Revitalizing Diplomacy: A 21st Century Foreign Service
-by Elizabeth Warren


[...]"Through a toxic combination of malice and neglect, Donald Trump has declared war on the State Department. In one of his first acts, he attempted to cut the State Department's budget by a third. Some senior career officials were pushed out, while others resigned in protest. The State Department has lost 60% of its career ambassadors and 20% of its most experienced civil servants. And too often, these skilled diplomats have been replaced with totally unqualified campaign donors and other Trump cronies.
[...]

I'll double the size of the foreign service and open new diplomatic posts in underserved areas to broaden U.S. presence. And to get the most bang for our buck, I'll prioritize growing core diplomatic functions like political and economic reporting and public diplomacy, and affiliated functions like the foreign commercial and agriculture services.

Achieving that goal means we'll need to recruit a new generation of foreign service officers while retaining the talented service we currently have. Here's what I'll do as president. First, I'll establish a diplomatic equivalent of the ROTC program at universities across the country. I'll double the size of the Peace Corps, exposing young people to the world and creating a direct employment pipeline to future government service. I'll grow programs that fund scholarships for critically important languages; and develop or expand similar programs for new skill areas such as data science. And I'll create new pathways to re-incorporate expertise into our diplomatic corps, including by reducing barriers for returning foreign service officers by fast-tracking reentry for those who return within 5 years; and expanding lateral entry and mid-career hiring authorities and pay.

We also need to significantly expand the pool of diplomatic talent so that our foreign service reflects the diversity of the country it represents. Today's foreign service is 79% white and 65% male €Š— €Šand the nature of the recruitment process also limits the number of diplomats from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. That changes in a Warren administration. I'll direct the State Department to correct the employment records of all employees fired or forced to resign because of their sexual orientation, to make it clear that all are welcome to serve their country. I'll dedicate recruiting resources to applicants from HBCUs and other minority-serving institutions, women's colleges, and community colleges. And I'll double the size of fellowships designed to recruit minority and low-income diplomats.
[...]

Trump has perfected the act of selling swanky diplomatic posts to rich buffoons. In the Trump administration, $1 million buys you an appointment to the Bahamas €Š— €Ševen if you're not quite sure what that means. For $2 million, you can become Ambassador to the United Nations. Trump nominated a real estate lawyer accused of sexual harassment as ambassador to Romania. His South Africa nominee is a handbag designer. In all, Donald Trump has appointed political cronies to nearly half the available ambassadorial positions €Š— €Šfar more than any president in recent memory. As a result, opportunities for career professionals are severely limited.

The practice of auctioning off American diplomacy to the highest bidder must end.

This president may think a fat wallet and a big campaign check qualifies someone to represent our country abroad. I don't. I don't spend my time at fancy closed-door fundraisers trading favors for money, and I'll make my ambassadorial appointments based on only one thing: finding the most qualified person for the job.

That's why I'm pledging to put America's national interests ahead of campaign donations and end the corrupt practice of selling cushy diplomatic posts to wealthy donors €Š— €Šand I call on everyone running for President to do the same. I won't give ambassadorial posts to wealthy donors or bundlers €Š— €Šperiod.

And I'll also ensure that some of the most senior positions in the State Department, including at least one Deputy Secretary position and the Director General of the Foreign Service, are always filled by experienced career ambassadors."

JBS

To be clear, giving ambassadorial posts to big campaign donors is a very old practice. The only limits were that such appointments were made only to posts of no great importance (say, Andorra) and State Department was able to send experienced staff who could make up for any deficiency.

Hollywood Beach Broadwalk

JBS

Quote from: Que on June 27, 2019, 10:48:11 PM
Sorry to intrude at another American political party...

But in my humble outsider opinion the problem with the US is not that Democrats are not in power.

Your presidential, two party system has been malfunctioning for a long time and is now close to a breakdown. This political crisis is combined with a huge divisions in an increasing violent society and a general and deep rooted lack of trust in federal government

Getting "the right people" into office is not going to fix this.... I think... ::)

Q

Though a quick glance may suggest otherwise, the US is nowhere near being a violent society. The late 60s, with student strikes and massive urban riots, was far more violent.
I would suggest that the political crisis (which certainly exists) is caused by and/or is a symptom of sociocultural divisions and lack of trust in government.

Hollywood Beach Broadwalk

SimonNZ

How and when did this Marianne Williamson get in the race? Does she have any experience in politics, or does she see this as an entry-level job?

It made the news out here that her answer to the question of her first act in office being to call Jacinda Adern (who said she wants to make Nz the best place to raise children) and tell her the US is the best for that.

Her first act, note, wont be to take the kids out of the cages.

JBS

Quote from: SimonNZ on June 28, 2019, 08:22:30 PM
How and when did this Marianne Williamson get in the race? Does she have any experience in politics, or does she see this as an entry-level job?

It made the news out here that her answer to the question of her first act in office being to call Jacinda Adern (who said she wants to make Nz the best place to raise children) and tell her the US is the best for that.

Her first act, note, wont be to take the kids out of the cages.

She's a best selling "New Age" author. Originally at least she based herself on "A Course in Miracles".  I haven't read a word she ever wrote.  As far as I know she has no political experience.  Of course, political novice with con artist background also described Donald Trump back in 2015...

Hollywood Beach Broadwalk

Que

Quote from: JBS on June 28, 2019, 07:41:37 PM
Though a quick glance may suggest otherwise, the US is nowhere near being a violent society. The late 60s, with student strikes and massive urban riots, was far more violent.

I wasn't particularly thinking of political violence (though that might come next), but of this development:



QuoteI would suggest that the political crisis (which certainly exists) is caused by and/or is a symptom of sociocultural divisions and lack of trust in government.

Ah, I didn't mean to connect the increasing violence directly to the political crisis, though they have socio-economic divisions as a common denominator.

Q

Karl Henning

The Descent of the Bern [my headline ~kh]

Since the Democratic presidential debate last week, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has fallen from 18 percent to 14 percent in the national CNN poll, stayed flat in the Morning Consult/Politico poll and dropped all the way to 9 percent in Iowa, a state in which he got 49.6 percent of the vote in the 2016 caucuses. He raised $18 million in the second quarter of 2019, $7 million less than the mayor of South Bend, Ind.

Sanders is delivering virtually the identical message, in virtually the identical cadence, from his 2016 campaign. It is fair to conclude that either voters are tired of it, craving change, or that an old white guy screaming about socialism isn't a winner in today's Democratic Party. Either way, I cannot think of a candidate in this field less willing than Sanders to adjust to changed circumstances. I find it improbable he will win, and frankly, I'd give that South Bend mayor, Pete Buttigieg, who's still an unknown to most voters, a better chance of winding up in the top three or four candidates.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/07/03/sanders-likely-cant-turn-it-around-biden-can-heres-how/?utm_term=.553684536759
Karl Henning, Ph.D.
Composer & Clarinetist
Boston MA
http://www.karlhenning.com/
[Matisse] was interested neither in fending off opposition,
nor in competing for the favor of wayward friends.
His only competition was with himself. — Françoise Gilot

drogulus


      Everyone (that is, not me) thinks Biden is liked by everyone who thinks Biden is liked by someone else. It might be the case that no one wants him to be President. He's almost as electable as Hillary, his time has come like hers did, it's his turn. Who besides several others could be better?

      The tussle over whether we should have Medicare for all or permit private health insurance will turn out to be meaningless. I have Medicare. I have private health insurance. Medicare will be delivered by private insurers unless you elect the government plan. I didn't, I elected Tufts Health Care Medicare Advantage. That's how it will work.
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Muzio

A little humor during the primaries, why not?  Seen on Twitter... :D


SimonNZ

No...because there's a tantrum-throwing toddler who needs disciplining.