A Few Words on Bernie

I commented on the last post that I stopped writing for a while at Balloon Juice due to the anti-Bernie hate I received for the sin of voting for him in the New York primary in 2016. I chose him over Hillary Clinton because I couldn’t vote for someone who voted for the Iraq War. To me, that was a “litmus test” that she failed. Biden did, too, and I didn’t vote for him in the primary, either. Ultimately, the inability of commenters there to admit a mistake and to accept Bernie was part of the reason I left.

Anyway, my kid and friends are all Bernie supporters. They love the guy. And I respect that: they’re smart, they’re well-informed, and they have clear, unambiguous beliefs about the institutional Democratic Party. They seem a hell of a lot smarter than the average Democrat, especially as years go by.

So I’ve been thinking about the all of the Bernie hate that I’ve experienced over the years, the intensity of which is, to my measurement, more than the hate a lot of the Bernie haters feel towards Trump. It’s visceral, and it’s personal. And it’s ugly.

I contrast that hate to the feelings that my kid and friends have towards Bernie. My kid has a Bernie fridge magnet. My kid’s preferred gift to me and my dad is a donation to Planned Parenthood in our names. My kid and friends’ Bernie support is visceral, it’s deep and it is lasting.

After the Trump grifts, the minor ethical issues with Bernie’s campaigns — the grifty consultants, whatever issues his wife had — seem like nothing in comparison. Hillary Clinton’s campaign advisors and her relationships with donors are, in hindsight, more corrupt than his.

He excited people. He brought people into the fold who otherwise weren’t interested in politics. If you haven’t seen this video, watch it. It shows a guy who has good retail political skills practicing them in a tough environment (West Virginia).

He’s made some mistakes, but overall I think most people (other than a few commenters at Balloon Juice) think he would have beaten Trump in 2016, and that he would have been a decent President.

AOC calls him “tío” (uncle) for a reason.