Sanders Path to Victory Blocked by Media and Party Elites

[Jefferson23]

Former White House counsel Bill Curry says only sustained grassroots pressure will push democratic leadership to address the economic interests of the working-class - March 17, 2016

No transcript at this time. Time running is 12 minutes, approx.

Bill Curry was White House counselor to President Clinton and a two-time Democratic nominee for governor of Connecticut. He is at work on a book on President Obama and the politics of populism.

http://therealnews.com/t2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=31&Itemid=74&jumival=15898

[hrmjustin]

1. The voters blocked his path.

[Jefferson23]

3. Complexity in politics and all its variables is lost on some. n/t

[hrmjustin]

5. And the fact that majority rules is lost on others.

[Jefferson23]

11. Like I said, analysis is not welcomed by some. It really is not about your candidate, not entirely.

[hrmjustin]

13. Analysis of the results is clear.

Most people who voted in the Dem primaries so far like Sanders but don't want him to be their president.

It was a fair election and Hillary is winning.

[Jefferson23]

16. Simplistic, stay with that. You responded to this OP which is 12 minutes in length which

tells me you're not listening. The obstacles before Sanders are and were real, our
corporate driven media has closed off meaningful conversations on polices for
more than a decade...our democracy has been compromised and his platform
has been a threat to their complicit role. This election cycle and his campaign
has always been about more than Hillary Clinton.

[hrmjustin]

22. The idea that the media is for Hillary is laughable.

They look for any mistake or problem to blow up on.

And the voters saw all this and as of now she has more votes, states, and delegates. The voters see all through this and at this point want Hillary.

This election is fair.

[pangaia]

26. This is the unfairest election I have seen in my voting lifetime.

[hrmjustin]

29. How so?

[pangaia]

33. Oh jesu !

[hrmjustin]

39. You make a statement and I ask you to expand on that and I get a facepalm?

Ok. If you actually wish to discusx your opinion we can but I am not a mind reader.

[comradebillyboy]

115. It's unfair because his candidate is losing...

and he's losing fair and square.

[Dem2]

56. What??

A socialist democrat with little national name recognition is 2/3 of the way to achieving enough primary votes to win the nomination and YOU SAY IT'S THE UNFAIREST ELECTION YOU'RE SEEN IN YOUR LIFETIME???

Are you joking?


My head just exploded.

[Jefferson23]

35. Again, the bigger picture escapes you and progressive media watch dogs don't see it

as you do. Hillary Clinton remains the status quo establishment candidate, just as she was
before she ran..that does not mean she receives only praise from the press and no one said she
has.

[hrmjustin]

41. Just remember that the voters so far are saying thanks but no Thanks to Sanders.

[Jefferson23]

43. I already know that, and again, that's not what the OP is about. n/t

[hrmjustin]

44. And my point is it was not the media or party elite that is the reason he is losing.

[Jefferson23]

49. Your candidate is winning yet you appear to need to secure that win had nothing

to do with her having advantages..I can't take that seriously any more than I
would believe people who say the election was stolen from Bernie...which is
not the claim of the OP.


My last shot at this conversation with you, which I appreciate has been a respectful one,
is to say our corporate power structure has had long term ill effects on our election
cycles via media and has been a detriment to our democracy. Bernie's campaign was about much
more than Hillary Clinton, she was only the representative of what progressives have
been fighting against for a long time.

[hrmjustin]

54. We see it differently.

[bkkyosemite]

87. The bias is extreme. She is favored by the MSM and the Billionaires who control

our system. I find a lot of denial here.

[Land of Enchantment]

85. Correction: Most people who voted in the BIBLE BELT

went for Hillary. Most people in the RUST BELT voted it to a dead heat. Most people in the west and northeast have not been allowed to participate so far and that is WHY Bernie will win. I lived in the Bible Belt for some time and moved west because I could not STAND the people there and a LOT of them are my family. That they wanted her or they wanted Trump speaks volumes.

[hrmjustin]

92. All votes count. Cheers.

[Dem2]

53. As long as the analysis agrees with MY hypothesis

That the system is cheating me and my candidate!!

[Jefferson23]

55. No, it is about the influence of corporate driven media..for many that would be undeniable. n/t

[Dem2]

59. I've never seen a candidate get shit on like Hillary has

There's plenty of media crap going on and it's not favoring either Democratic candidate.

[Jefferson23]

64. They favor the establishment, overall. No one suggested they only write favorably about

her campaign..it is what they also leave out about Bernie.

[Dem2]

68. They showed an attack ad of Hillary barking like a dog every 10 minutes yesterday

This on a supposed liberal network.

I've never seen Bernie get negative coverage like that. He's doing really well considering his more-left-than-typical politics and his previous lack of name-recognition. No candidate is owed coverage.

[Jefferson23]

73. No candidate is owed coverage?

In a democracy a free press is essential and ours is abysmal..its not what we should
have to promote candidates ideas that are counter to corporate interests here
and abroad.

[Dem2]

111. I agree - any ideas on how to fix it?

I know it sucks, these people are indeed corporations who make money selling advertising.

The system sucks and it's stacked against the average person.

[Jefferson23]

113. Yes, and one conversation our candidates should have which is perilous to the msm

is the Telecommunications Act 1996. It did great harm, and brought about a concentration
of media ownership. When you read about it, it goes back even further than 1996, but
that made it worse..kind of like how Citizens United made an already corrupted election
system worse.

For obvious reasons the msm has no vested interest in examining that very real harm.
If Sanders could be elected I would hope to see that unraveled...we lost the Fairness
Doctrine too. There are many losses from the Reagan era, and Clinton's era as well.

If the issue became a major part of his platform they would go after him or any
candidate for that matter, even more so than what we see today.

As the saying goes, the more Americans are aware of what corrupts their
their democracy, the more you work to get them involved in the election
process. Mind blowing how many do not vote, they feel, presumably, that
it won't change anything...it is up to us to change that. No president alone
can do it..that's for sure.

[Kip Humphrey]

48. Spare us naivety - the "majority" is always absent in the primaries.

55% of 31% of the electorate is not majority rule. It is 17%. This is actually minority rule and primaries always has been ruled by the minority.

However, "Majority rules" does apply in the GE. This is why "electability" is so critically important, so very different from the primary, and so often, within the Democratic party, ignored to our great regret.

[hrmjustin]

51. A majority of the Democratic Party Primary voters.

I think that is clear.

[Kip Humphrey]

76. FYI, using Democratic turnout #s, Hillary is drawing 6.435% of the general electorate

Source: Democracy Now http://www.democraticunderground.com/12511513837

[hrmjustin]

78. Yes turnout is down but of those who are voting she is getting a majority of the vote.

[desmiller]

83. Another typical Hill-extremist. Even thought you're debating us,

I can't help but to sense your gloat. Welcome to my "naughty" list.

[hrmjustin]

88. I feel appropriately chided!

[brooklynite]

80. But we were told that Sanders would bring out the "absent majority"

We were told that there were millions of new voters waiting to cast a vote for him.

We we misinformed?

[Kip Humphrey]

91. So, I clarify the use of 'majority rules" and you reply with a hit job?

How very ****** of you.

[Jefferson23]

97. He brought out more than Clinton ever bargained for, she was only worried about a Warren run.

Funny how that changed with a Sanders run.

[treestar]

18. This

And Bernie's failure to convince.

[workinclasszero]

103. Right

But the will of the people is wrong if they don't support Bernie, don't you know?

[hrmjustin]

104. Damn those voters for voting!

[workinclasszero]

105. But..but...once they get to know Bernie and his wonderful plans, well...

Uh...


Nevermind.

[geek tragedy]

2. no, it's because Democratic voters prefer Hillary Clinton

Bill Curry has a serious, serious case of Clinton Derangement Syndrome.

If this race were close and Clinton ahead only by superdelegates, this argument would be legitimate.

But Sanders is losing the elected delegate and popular vote by very, very wide margins.

Maybe if he had decided to form relationships with Democrats outside of Vermont and Washington DC before running for President, he would have done better.

[peacebird]

6. We'll see how this plays out in the next contests. My bet is Bernie will tie it up by California

[JaneyVee]

12. It is impossible for him to tie it up by Cali.

Show me the path.

[geek tragedy]

17. The big states before California are all Hillary country.

Pennsylvania--like Ohio, except independents can't vote
New York--Clinton was very popular there, very expensive, racially diverse, independents can't vote
New Jersey-very expensive, racially diverse, independents can't vote
Maryland--heavily African-American, expensive, independents can't vote

People can talk about the south being Clinton's firewall, but she has a mid-atlantic firewall too.

[alcibiades_mystery]

57. I want to see how somebody wins New Jersey being anti-bank

Much of the middle class in north and south Jersey is created by the financial industry. People like to shit on Goldman Sachs and highlight the biggest asshole investment bankers. Fine, I'm no fans of them either. But Goldman Sachs (and the other banks) employ thousands of secretaries, operations people, sales assistants - and many of those jobs are places where working class people land and make middle class salaries - and middle class lives. Get up every morning, commute to Jersey City or Manhattan, work a full day's work for honest pay, then home again. So, yeah, good luck with Bernie's message in north Jersey. "Goldman" isn't a boogie-man abstraction there - it's a real entity that often pays for the food you pack in your kids lunch bag before you get on the PATH train. And no, those people aren't all evil billionaires.

Somebody upthread talking about complexity. Yeah, I'd like to see some more complex thinking in action, but not necessarily just from the Clinton people.

[geek tragedy]

60. I wonder how "close the ports" will play in California. nt

[Jefferson23]

7. No, he was always a long shot, b/c has taken on the establishment of politics, period.

The obstacles are being addressed, whatever you feel is this man's blind spots
are, there are media watch dogs coming to the same conclusions.

[geek tragedy]

14. the problem is that most Democrats are not terribly anti-establishment

to them the establishment is Barack Obama, not Debbie Wasserman-Schultz.

[geek tragedy]

27. no, disagreement with you does't mean someone is ignorant nt

[DemocratSinceBirth]

31. You would think all these philosopher kings and queens would be on tv or writing books./nt

[DemocratSinceBirth]

46. Can we both ask each other one question?

I am dying , not literally, of course, to know one thing about you and others that duplicate your modus operandi.


Oh, I swear on my dead mom to tell the truth.


As always, thank you in advance.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

65. I support

I support her because her temperament, dint of experience, and appreciation of nuance will make her an excellent leader. The nation and world is a big complex place and it takes a certain predisposition to navigate it.

I will ask my question and I hope it doesn't come off as mean spirited.

Why do some folks keep returning to a site where they have been previously barred from?

[DemocratSinceBirth]

106. They have returned with their own handles and not aliases.

I can't see i p addresses but if I did I would see the same ip addresses for multiple posters or ip addresses that are tied to proxy servers.

I wasn't born yesterday.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

108. We are straying far from the topic.

As I said I am not being mean spirited but I don't see the point of getting locked out, returning, getting locked out again, returning..., only to be locked out again.

[redstateblues]

63. that old smear again.

That was used when Bernie got crushed in the south. Very offensive. I am not a lo info voter.

[Jefferson23]

23. They're not terribly informed about the level of corruption, some think its on one

side of the political aisle. Telecommunications Act 1996..another Clinton gift.

I think we would agree, Sanders achievements thus far will pave the way
for reform or if the resistance is too great another party will emerge..we
are witnessing fantastic times in our political sphere.

[geek tragedy]

34. it will be up to his supporters to carry the movement forward

to do that, quite frankly, will require members of the movement to do less talking and a lot more listening to the people they're trying to win over, especially people of color

"Please tell me your perspective, I'm genuinely interested in learning what's important to you" is not a question most people expect from Bernie Sanders supporters. Instead it's usually Sea Lioning and "how can you not support Bernie?"

Clinton's policies aren't any better for a lot of groups supporting her, but they (a) feel like they know her and (b) feel like she's listened to them.

Listening is a highly, highly underrated concept.

[Jefferson23]

40. We've done better than some will ever give us credit for and we'll do better going forward.

We're sloppy at times, but we are honest and won't give up.

[geek tragedy]

42. sure you've done quite well, but there's a lot of unglamourous and humbling work

that goes into building a legit movement

[Jefferson23]

45. Unstoppable, geek...we'll get there. So far none of it has been glamorous and

from what I see on the state level we will keep moving forward.

He has helped advanced us tremendously...a win win when you look
at the long game, which was the only way to look at it, imho.

[Armstead]

10. He was a Senator. He wasn't just trying to pad his resume

He was not aiming his career at a run for president, but he decided that the unchallenged coronation required a challenge.

[geek tragedy]

20. sure, and that's one very big reason he's losing votes--because he never was concerned with building

a national profile.

that's not a character flaw on his part, but it is political reality.

[tritsofme]

4. Those pesky voters!

[JaneyVee]

8. Excuses excuses.

The media has handled Bernie with kid gloves.

[RKP5637]

9. Sadly, in my lifetime, USA has become USA, INC. Most don't give a damn about the

majority of Americans. Only $$$$$'s mean anything for influencing them. Really, congress should be renamed, CONGRESS, INC. And perhaps the president should be called US CEO.

[Agnosticsherbet]

19. Actually, it is Democratic Party Voters who blocked him.

They like Clinton better.

[Betty Karlson]

24. They like Sanders better, but not enough know him.

And Debbie and the coronation committee have done everything to keep it that way. Vile and corrupt.

[Agnosticsherbet]

30. No, the voters prefer Hillary Clinton.

He has had lots of time to get to be known. In Nevada and the last five states he spent more money than Clinton, by a lot.
Democrats chose Hillary Clinton.
Blaming DWS and the committee is just an excuse.
Sanders has failed to sell himself and his ideas.

[geek tragedy]

37. your statement is mathematically false nt

[DemocracyDirect]

28. Wow This Video Must Scare the Hillary Folks

They got a professional response going on it.

Glad they got to watch it.

[RandySF]

32. Nope, it's blocked by simple math.

[kstewart33]

47. Sanders' path seems to be blocked by voters.

The media is much less interested now because he has no realistic chance of winning the nomination.

The media reports on what sells, what gets them clicks online, and ratings on cable. And right now, Bernie's is a bit of a nonstory.

He'll win the caucuses coming up next week, but Clinton has already decided not to really compete in any of them. She's going for the states with a lot of delegates. A smart move, because of limited funds.

[LexVegas]

50. And Voters. nt

[merrily]

52. That has been true since Sanders said in 2014 that he would explore a run.

[Jefferson23]

58. Yes and as you can see in many of the responses, corporate driven media is not

a factor to consider.

[merrily]

62. I've become used to ignoring "many of the responses." Canned propaganda never

interests me.

[Jefferson23]

66. I see it as a defensive measure that secures in their mind a candidate is winning primarily

based on merit. There will be no recognition of her clear advantages from corporate media.

[merrily]

69. Could be mere psittacism.

[Jefferson23]

71. lol..yes, very likely. n/t

[merrily]

74. Bob Dylan sang "Money doesn't talk, it swears." It also posts. 24/7

http://www.barrypopik.com/index.php/new_york_city/entry/money_doesnt_talk_it_screams

[Jefferson23]

82. LOL that is excellent..thanks for adding that link. n/t

[merrily]

84. I live to link.

http://jackpineradicals.org/showthread.php?6094-Daily-Word-of-the-Day-March-11th

[Jefferson23]

90. Thanks, merrily.

[merrily]

94. The NYT has been among the worst, although with a negative post about Bernie per hour,

WAPO should get some kind of reverse Pulitizer.

[Jefferson23]

95. The Clinton era, the Telecommunications Act 1996. I refer to it as the gift that keeps

on giving to the elite. His trade deals, another gift to the world, deregulating
WS, another gift.


So many of his gifts that keep on giving. It is going to be fucking GREAT if they
win again, don't ya think?

[KoKo]

96. Okay..Merrily... you made me do this:

Psittacism

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psittacism
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Psittacism refers to parrot-like speech

Psittacism is speech or writing that appears mechanical or repetitive in the manner of a parrot.[1] More generally it is a pejorative description of the use of words which appear to have been used without regard to their meaning.

The word is derived from the Latin term for parrots psittaci[2] in an analogy with the ability of some parrots to speak human words but without any knowledge of their meaning. Parrots, in turn, may be used as symbols of psittacism. In Flaubert's story Un cœur simple the parrot may have been used in this manner. Ben Stoltzfus wrote in The French Review:

Thus, Loulou is a parrot, and at the same time a symbol of psittacism, that malady of so many of Flaubert's characterswho either parrot banalities without thought or meaning, or are the victims of this psittacism.[3]

[Jefferson23]

98. Great photo too..thanks, KoKo. :)

[vintx]

100. Have to deal with that cognitive dissonance somehow.

Denial is a powerful thing.

[Jefferson23]

102. I get how we are all vulnerable at times, but this thread is stunning in its denial of

corporate media bias.

[seabeyond]

67. It is not a bright man that holds his hand out for help and then trashes those that help him.

Sanders can own his misstep on not getting people behind him instead of blaming others for being pissed that Sanders feels the need to trash and insult them. This is really ironically a joke. Ownership is a good thing. He does not get to run roughshod over a party and candidates and the very voters as he demands they support them. How silly is that. That goes to his fantasies of being abused and liking it. Doesn't turn me on.

[Jefferson23]

70. Nonsense. Is Hillary running rough shod over Obama on TPP?

Under your logic only Hillary gets to decide what she disagrees on with Obama.

[seabeyond]

72. Reality, not nonsense. Tell me, who goes to a group and says, I want your resources and base...

Free of charge without me giving you a damn thing, and then for 8 months I am going to insult you and attack you as my hand is out for your money and resources. Oh, and you gotta vote for me too, even if I am talking to the others and not you.

Doesn't work that way.

[Jefferson23]

77. You have a strawman argument..you need to complain to the DNC they were accepting

of his run. I see you did not answer my question either.

Bernie is fine as long as he caucused with Dems, but not when he challenged Hillary?
I don't think so..he is entitled to criticize all he wants, and run his platform against
corruption in politics.

[seabeyond]

81. No. I do not have a strawman argument. Diss a group, it will piss them off.

[Jefferson23]

86. Unless Hillary decides to disagree with Obama...which is where your strawman plays out. n/t

[WhiteTara]

75. his path is blocked by lack of enough votes. nt

[KoKo]

118. Watch the Video and then go Back to watch Part I...because Bill Curry knows the Clintons........

Bill Curry was White House counselor to President Clinton and a two-time Democratic nominee for governor of Connecticut. He is at work on a book on President Obama and the politics of populism.

Maybe he spoke "Truth to Power" and CT has he Multi-Million Homes of Wall Streeters. I have lived in CT...so, I'm not clueless.

[ruralsteve]

79. PBS and NPR news anchors just as guilty

I have been appalled by public media newscasters seeming committed to disenfranchising the voters from states with later primaries, by continually questioning why Bernie doesn't give up the race. They've been doing it from the very beginning, almost as if they were committed to the Clinton inevitability campaign. They just don't get it -- besides their being undemocratic and a disgrace to journalism.

[bigwillq]

89. Don't think so

Voters have decided this primary and they're choosing Hillary. That's the way democracy works.

[Jefferson23]

93. Influences should not be examined, eh?

Telecommunications Act 1996 was a boon for democracy too?

Sometimes the opinions I read on DU are confounding.

[mythology]

116. So how did Clinton lose in 2008?

Was Obama more establishment? Or did he connect with a larger portion of the electorate than Clinton did in 2008 and Sanders in 2016? It's kind of hard to argue that Sanders would have won all the delegates if it wasn't for the meddling media when Obama showed it is quite possible to win against Clinton.

[KoKo]

99. Recommend...

[MaggieD]

109. And voters

[AzDar]

110. Ayup. We see it...

[GreatGazoo]

114. excellent and informative analysis

thanks for sharing

[KoKo]

117. "Bernie was an Insult to their Vanity"

And, he knows what he's talking about:

Bill Curry was White House counselor to President Clinton and a two-time Democratic nominee for governor of Connecticut. He is at work on a book on President Obama and the politics of populism.

[tomm2thumbs]

119. exactly

speaks volumes