Circular Firing Squad?: Saturday Political Soapbox 209

I've lost count.

At the peak, there may be more than two dozen announced credible candidates for the Democratic Party Presidential nomination.

Finding an up-to-date picture is hard.  The one above lists some candidates who have not yet announced, and a few who have ruled it out.  But I think we will have the broadest range of candidates to look at than what we've ever seen.

Although there is a diversity of types of candidates, they do share a lot in common.  All will improve healthcare access in the country, although with different plans and different rates of speed.  All will do something about climate change, although I must say, in this area, speed and decisiveness is vital.  All will strive to decrease the income gap, and increase opportunity for the middle class and working poor.

Some of those running are conservative or moderate Democrats.  I call most of these Corporate Democrats.  Although I do not prefer Corporate Democrats, I do recognize that they believe in government, and its ability to improve our lives and work for us.  Barck Obama is my favorite President of recent times, and he is a Corporate Democrat.  I can work with a Corporate Democrat a whole heck of a lot easier than I can a Corporate Republican, a Christian Reich Republican, and for sure more than the reactionary authoritarian fascism that surrounds the cult of Trump.

That said, Corporate Democrats have serious flaws.  This can be evidenced by the recent bipartisan vote in the House to move forward legislation that would ban the IRS from having a free tax filing site and instead handing it over to private companies like Turbo Tax, whom I am sure are offering "free services" out of the goodness of their hearts.

Some of the Democrats running are Progressive Democrats.  I'm not gonna play verbal games.  These are my people, my allies, my posse, or (God forgive me) my fam.  They represent the goals most important to me - Medicare For All, the Green New Deal, a significantly higher minimum wage, civil rights protections, and more.  Not all Progressive are in equal lockstep - they vary on individual issues or how they present themselves.

I have read and heard a lot of stress among Democrats about how the competition among them may damage individual candidates and cause them to be ineffective against running against Trump.  The Corporate Democrats warn about going too far left and alienating the potential Trump converts.  The Progressive Democrats spend way too much time running purity tests. 

In a field this large, and a media that represents a gamut of political thinking, negative stories are going to be inevitable.  Huffington Post, a supposedly liberal news source, runs negative stories about different candidates every day (except Beto O'Rouke - but that's my own perception).  I urge Democratic primary voters to ignore the mess and stick to what's most important to them.  It won't be easy.

Spoiler Alert!  It don't matter how nice you are, Trump and the Republicans are going to come hard at the Democratic nominee and demonize whoever it is.

Double Spoiler Alert!  Running solely against Trump is a mistake.  He may not even be their nominee (he is treading water fast, and only protected by a temporarily good economy).  You need to be able to run against Republicans as a whole.  Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is as significant a threat as Trump (mostly because he is much more effective).

I expect the field to thin dramatically, if not in the Fall, certainly after Iowa and New Hampshire.  And I have faith that the candidate that emerges will be our most effective spokesperson, whether corporate or progressive (or ideally, a mix of both).  Anyone who thinks they know who that person will be, is blowing smoke. 

This year, I am Team Warren.  If not her, I still favor a female candidate.  It's way past time for a female President.  I fear that not enough Democratic primary voters share that feeling.  Most polling shows the male candidates ahead. We are becoming dominated at this time by the Four B's - Biden, Bernie, Beto, and Buttigieg. That might change.  It might not.


Yes, we need to be worried about the circular firing squad - candidates and media ripping everyone to shreds.  Yes, there is an ongoing battle between Corporate and Progressive Democrats (given the younger profile of most Progressives, it's only a matter of time before they take control).  But we all need to keep the primary goal in mind -  the nation will not survive another four years of Republican rule, at least the version of the party that is currently dominant.  I'm not kidding.  I'm not exaggerating.

So, support your choice.  Be enthusiastic and strong.  But be prepared.  Be prepared to switch if you have to and get solidly behind whoever emerges on top.

I did that with Clinton in 2016.  You can do the same in 2020.