Op-ed by Bernie Sanders: Platform draft 'excellent start' but should oppose the TPP.

[Eric J in MN]

Bernie Sanders:

Here are some very positive provisions in the platform as it stands today:

At a time when huge Wall Street financial institutions are bigger now than they were before the taxpayers of this country bailed them out, the platform calls for enacting a 21st-century Glass-Steagall Act and for breaking up too-big-to-fail banks.

The platform calls for a historic expansion of Social Security, closes loopholes that allow corporations to avoid paying taxes, creates millions of jobs rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure, makes it easier for workers to join unions, takes on the greed of the pharmaceutical companies, ends disastrous deportation raids, bans private prisons and detention centers, abolishes the death penalty, moves to automatic voter registration and the public financing of elections, eliminates super PACs, and urges passage of a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United, among many other initiatives.

...(However) we need to have very clear language that raises the minimum wage to $15 an hour, ensures that the promised pensions of millions of Americans will not be cut, establishes a tax on carbon, and creates a ban on fracking....(and opposes) the Trans-Pacific Partnership...Doctors Without Borders is strongly opposed to (the TPP) because its members understand that it would increase prescription-drug prices for some of the most desperate people in the world by making it harder to access generic drugs.

http://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/20160703_Sanders__Party_platform_still_needs_work.html?mobi=true

The current draft of the Democratic Platform was written by 15 members of the Platform Committee. On Friday and Saturday, the full committee will meet in Orlando, Florida to vote on amendments.

[BlueMTexpat]

1. OK, OK, Bernie ...

we're still waiting to see actual efforts to defeat Don the Con.

Right now I see more energy expended against Democrats. JMO.

[Eric J in MN]

2. I've watched Bernie Sanders call Donald Trump a 'liar' who uses 'bigotry'

...in dozens of rallies and TV interviews.

[BlueMTexpat]

3. I must have missed that he was

campaigning with or for the presumptive Democratic nominee at the time.

[Eric J in MN]

4. I hope that Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton campaign together.

Sanders took the first step towards unity by saying he'll vote for Hillary Clinton.

Now HRC should announce that she'll consider signing one of his policy ideas into law if it reaches her Oval Office desk, and then he'll probably endorse, and then they will probably campaign together.

[pnwmom]

6. She has already said she'd accept his $15 wage proposal and that she'd sign it into law.

And that is just one of the Bernie plans they wrote into the platform. So I don't know what you mean about him taking the first step.

[Eric J in MN]

10. Yes, she should say something analogous

...about another of his policy ideas, in response to his saying he'll vote for her.

[pnwmom]

11. And then he'll just want more and more and more.

He won't be satisfied till her platform has been replaced by his platform.

And that's not going to happen.

But she doesn't need him anymore. He's over-played his hand. His few supporters in Congress have lost patience with him, and for good reason.

[Eric J in MN]

17. I think he'd settle for one post-primary compromise from HRC.

Regarding the idea that HRC doesn't need Sanders: let's say she can easily beat Trump.

We still need the help of everyone possible to take back Congress.

[pnwmom]

20. He's already gotten substantial changes on the platform,

including the $15 minimum wage. He is refusing to take "yes" for an answer.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/wp/2016/07/01/bernie-sanders-is-winning-some-big-victories-over-the-dem-platform/

The latest draft of the Democratic Party platform, which is set to be released as early as this afternoon, will show that Bernie Sanders won far more victories on his signature issues than has been previously thought, according to details provided by a senior Sanders adviser.

The latest version of the platform, which was signed off on recently by a committee made up of representatives for the Sanders and Clinton campaigns and the DNC, has been generally summarized by the DNC and characterized in news reports. Sanders has hailed some of the compromises reached in it, but he has vowed to continue to fight for more of what he wants when the current draft goes to a larger Democratic convention platform committee in Orlando coming weeks, and when it goes to the floor of the convention in Philadelphia in late July.

But the actual language of the latest draft has not yet been released, and it will be released as early as today. It will show a number of new provisions on Wall Street reform, infrastructure spending, and job creation that go beyond the victories that Sanders has already talked about. They suggest Sanders did far better out of this process thus far than has been previously thought. Many of these new provisions are things that Sanders has been fighting for for years.

We already know from the DNC’s public description of the latest draft of the platform that it includes things such as a general commitment to the idea of a $15-per-hour minimum wage; to expanding Social Security; to making universal health care available as a right through expanding Medicare or a public option; and to breaking up too-big-to-fail institutions.

Here’s more.

SNIP

[lapucelle]

54. I think that the only thing Sanders wants is credit.

These are fairly mainstream Democratic policy planks. Sanders needs to stop grandstanding.

I'm beginning to see why he has a reputation for not working well with others.

[AgingAmerican]

86. That is nonsense

[pnwmom]

87. His own committee members voted to approve the amended platform

after all the parties worked it out.

He's the only one standing in the way of a unified convention.

[Justice]

94. Exactly right!

[BlueMTexpat]

35. Hillary won. Bernie lost.

She - and the Democratic Party - have bent over backwards to humor him since. I know of no Democratic primary winner EVER who has made such overtures and taken into account the concerns of the losing party as much as Hillary has.

Nothing has been enough for Bernie so far. I am beginning to believe that nothing will ever be enough.

As always, Hillary as a winner is being held to a different standard. If Hillary had acted towards Prez O in 2008 in the same way that Bernie is acting towards her in 2016, the outcry would STILL be resounding and SHE would have been metaphorically - if not literally - torn apart.

I can think of only one reason why Bernie believes that he can hold Hillary to a different standard.

[Eric J in MN]

36. In 2008, Obama urged his supporters to donate to HRC

...during the post-primary pre-convention period.

HRC hasn't done anything for Sanders post-primary pre-convention.

[SaschaHM]

38. What?

Bernie has received many major platform concessions already. Hell, the fact that he has people on the platform committee is a major concession that has never occurred before.

[Eric J in MN]

39. Bernie Sanders seems to both want a liberal Democratic platform and for HRC to say

...something to the left on health care or tuition from what she's said so far.

[Maru Kitteh]

80. She's advocated for debt-free college, I think we may see

her advocate for a public option in each state as part of her campaign. That would be a good compromise and one I think would be both palatable and tenable.

We'll see I guess, right?

[BlueMTexpat]

40. Wow - more than a bit of revisionist history there, methinks!

Not only are you overlooking concessions already made to Sanders in the Dem platform, you seem to have completely omitted the facts that Hillary conceded that she had lost the primary in a much closer race and wholeheartedly endorsed Dem primary winner Barack Obama on June 7, 2008. For a refresher course, please see, e.g., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Party_presidential_primaries,_2008

Hillary had showed him BEFORE THE WORLD that she was 100 percent behind his candidacy!

I have seen NO concession from Bernie. I have seen NO congratulations from Bernie. I have seen NO endorsement from Bernie.

What I have seen is a half-hearted acknowledgement that HE will not be the Dem nominee and that Hillary will. BUT he will continue to withhold any endorsement unless ALL HIS demands are met by Hillary and the Dems.

That is NOT uniting the party. That is deliberately continuing to sow dissension within it.

It is now July 3, 2016. The Democratic Convention will be held from July 25-28, 2016. The rest of us will unite without him.

If Bernie continues like this, history will simply pass him by.

[Maru Kitteh]

81. a virtual K&R of your reply here

It's pretty tragic really that Mr. Sanders has chosen to defer the desires and hopes of his coalition.

[lapucelle]

56. Sanders made his own choices.

Hillary gave Obama a full-throated endorsement and immediately began campaigning for him.

Sanders has made it clear that he is never going to endorse Hillary. At this point, he just seems like a bitter spoiler.

[pnwmom]

60. Hillary endorsed Obama on June 8th. Bernie's still holding out on that. n/t

[shireen]

47. oh please ... this situation is more complex than it looks

Bernie still needs to represent the significant numbers of people who voted for him. We cannot be ignored. He won't win everything in the platform, but he's going to give it his best effort.

And he WILL play a critically important role in unifying the party. All this is leading up to a very dramatic moment at the convention, when many people are paying attention, when he will endorse Hillary. It will be YUGE and it will generate a lot of positive publicity for the candidate.

This nomination will not be a Hillary coronation, as was presumed early in the campaign. Bernie was a formidable opponent. Hillary worked hard to win that nomination. She showed strength and tenacity. IMO, Bernie made her a better candidate, one that will win over many independents.

I hate seeing the Bernie bashing that's still going on, and wish people had a more nuanced view of what he's doing. He will endorse Hillary and he will campaign for her because it's the right thing to do. He will do everything possible to help her win the White House.

But he's not going away. He's started a movement and there's no stopping us.

[Eric J in MN]

50. If Sanders waits until convention to endorse then big ratings.

Good point about his endorsement being more dramatic if it's at the convention. People will tune in wondering if he will or not.

[pnwmom]

62. Hillary won the popular vote count by a few votes and she STILL endorsed

Obama. That was her best way of representing her voters -- by helping Obama fight the R's.

Bernie lost by millions of votes and hundreds of pledged delegates and he's still refusing to concede or endorse. There is nothing complex about this. He is not helping her by delaying or by trying to force all his positions on issues on the millions of voters who chose HER.

[pangaia]

65. This is one of the big truths.

That all this has many, many sides to it, nuance, as you say. It is so much more complex than in the past because of another big truth; Bernie Sanders is fighting a different battle than almost anyone in the past. Many just do not see that. He is not even fighting the same battle that Hillary Clinton is fighting. I don't think he really cares if he is the next president. That is not the main point.

What he is doing for other human beings IS the main point.

[Arkansas Granny]

9. Yep, all I've heard out of him is demands from the Democratic party to adopt his platform.

This is not helping to unify the party and it's doing nothing to defeat Trump.

[BlueMTexpat]

33. Exactly. eom

[zazen]

41. actually, his platform (anti-TPP) has a BETTER chance of defeating Trump than the current one

Isn't this the best of both worlds? You get your candidate, you get her pragmatism in implementing things, and you get a platform that is only in existence because this man poured his heart and soul into galvanizing millions through an unprecedented primary campaign and woke the American people up to the realities of severe economic inequality.

I'm not crazy about her but she is tough as nails and I'm not sure he'd have been the best manager anyway (I think he needs to be in a gadfly/prophet in the wilderness mode, not insider-leader role). So, you get her, and he (and we) keep pushing for his platform.

You can keep fussing about it but we're on the right side of history here and making economic populism a central, unapologetic centerpiece of the platform will help prevent the co-optation of a lot of frustrated people by right-wing bigots.

[pangaia]

66. YES !!!!!!!!!!! Way to Rock'N Roll, Zazen !!!

[andym]

79. Very good points. NT.

[uponit7771]

93. This is false, if Clinton tore up all the trade deals and implemented 500% tariffs it still wouldn't

... win his supporters over.

People don't understand the draw of tribalism

[CobaltBlue]

83. Bernie Sanders isn’t alone. I voted for him. And I ‘demand’ them as well.

[AgingAmerican]

85. How is writing the Democratic Platform "energy expended against Democrats"

Please explain?

[BlueMTexpat]

90. Forcing his stands - and his alone -

on the Democratic platform when he LOST and then withholding his endorsement of the winner, while stating that accepting his demands is is a requirement for that endorsement is clearly expending energy against Dems as a whole and against Hillary in particular.

Nevermind. This strategy is already making him a footnote to political history when he could have been a "player."

It also demonstrates why so many of his colleagues in the House and Senate - the people who know him best - did not endorse his candidacy. He is simply not a team player in the ultimate team player game.

[AgingAmerican]

91. He can fight for whatever he wants to fight for

That's how things get done in the political world.

[BlueMTexpat]

92. It's not the "fighting" where

things get done. It's all in the "compromising."

Fighting is black and white, all or nothing. Compromising is more nuanced.

[pnwmom]

5. Hillary has already gone the extra mile on this. It's time for Bernie to recognize

that he's not going to get everything he wants. That's the nature of COMPROMISE.

The TPP isn't in here because Hillary doesn't want to publicly go against the President. It's not going to be part of the platform. Period.

[Tom Rinaldo]

7. Sanders pushing hard on this now makes it harder for some Democats to vote for the TPP in Congress

...during a lame duck session. This is still a live issue with the outcome still in doubt. By working to make it a defining issue for Democrats Sanders is working on its defeat. It doesn't matter whether or not it becomes a platform plank, win or lose at the convention, his tactic to raise the profile of this issue higher now makes sense. I appreciate and applaud his efforts.

[pnwmom]

8. The Dems in Congress aren't going to change their votes because of Bernie.

They have known him for a long time and they're not suddenly becoming Bernie followers.

[Eric J in MN]

12. They're not his followers but they'd like to vote for the TPP

...and have few people notice.

Sanders is putting them in a position that if they vote for the TPP, many people will notice.

[Tom Rinaldo]

13. It isn't about Bernie, it's about the TPP

and how the voting public reacts to it. Bernie is the same now as he was before he ran for President. It is the public debate on the issues that has changed, and as a result the priorities of millions of voters who Democrats depend on. In that regard it is like Gun Safety. Nothing changes unless it is taken on in a sustained high profile manner. The Democratic establishment has been on course to back agreements like the TPP for decades. Without high profile opposition to it now they will continue to do so.

[pnwmom]

14. I bet 80% of the public couldn't say what the TPP is. n/t

[Eric J in MN]

19. Maybe. But Hillary Clinton said

...during her Cincinnati rally with Elizabeth Warren that she'll say, "No to bad trade deals like the TPP."

If enough people understand the TPP for HRC to discuss it, then enough understand the TPP for Sanders to discuss it.

[zazen]

42. that was 95% 12 months ago. The downsides of "free" (not fair) trade are finally being discussed.

Why is this a bad thing?

[pnwmom]

78. The only bad thing is that the party is continuing to be divided because

the person who lost is trying to impose his platform views on the person who won, and won't accept the very large compromises that have already been made.

[dflprincess]

76. Hillary has publicly said she now opposes the TPP so she's already "gone against" the President

there's no reason that opposition to it shouldn't be part of the platform. Strange that her surrogates on the platform commission voted against including it.

[DemonGoddess]

15. The fact that Sen. Sanders

is actively lobbying against something the SITTING Democratic president is working to get done AND wants that language in the platform, shows he does not GET how the party works.

Do you honestly think if he were in that position, that he'd be happy if his party did this to him?

[TCJ70]

16. According to her words, so is Hillary...

...does she also not understand how the party works?

[DemonGoddess]

18. She's said that she opposes it

in the its current form, because she thinks it needs more work before being passed. He is outright opposed to it, whether or not anything to work on it to make it better is done.

She does understand how the party works, which is why that language will NOT be in the platform. Why would she insult PBO that way?

[TCJ70]

21. We'll see what happens once she's in office...

...I mean, she also referred to it as the gold standard of trade deals so who knows...

[Eric J in MN]

22. HRC has since used stronger language against the TPP.

Clinton said during her rally with Elizabeth Warren that she'll say, "No to bad trade deals like the TPP."

I don't think HRC was insulting Obama. I think she was disagreeing with him on a public policy issue.

[DemonGoddess]

23. You're missing the whole point here

PBO is a popular SITTING Democratic president. He's not "third way" "DLC" or any other garbage labels the ones who dislike him may want to tack onto the man. That being the case, the DNC is not going to include anything in the platform which would be taken as a slap down of him.

Don't forget that as long as he is in the White House, he is the HEAD of the Democratic Party.

[HereSince1628]

27. Maybe someone else is missing the point.

He called himself most like a moderate republican of the 1980's.

I wonder what would a moderate republican of the 1980's brought to 2015 be thinking about international trade?

I suppose that can't be discussed

[AgingAmerican]

44. Obama is of the Third Way

The head of the Democratic party is Debbie Wasserman Schultz.

There is no obligation within the party to be in lockstep with the leadership, particularly when they hold positions that are disastrous to the middle class.

[uponit7771]

95. wow...wtf... the person who lost does not get the set the agenda

[pangaia]

68. This is not about Obama. In 6 months he will be gone.

This is about the future of all human beings.

[CobaltBlue]

84. pangia—I’m glad you mentioned that. Hopefully, TPP never gets passed.

[AgingAmerican]

43. He is actively lobbying against a disaster

As a Senator, he has an obligation to serve the people. People over party.

[pangaia]

67. Bernie knows exactly how the party works. The party if for the party.

If it happens by accident to do something good for people, that is a by product.
THAT is the problem.

Bernie is trying to do something for all human beings

[dflprincess]

77. I know there were resolutions passed at DFL caucuses against the TPP

I would guess things like that happened all over the country. Apparently we, who make up the party, don't want it. Perhaps it's not Bernie who doesn't understand how the party works.

[cosmicone]

24. Bernie is hamstringing Hillary with an unmarketable platform n/t

[Eric J in MN]

25. The platform should have been silent about the death penalty

...since it has majority support?

[cosmicone]

26. The platform should contain generalities

with weasel clauses so that it can appear palatable to a lot of people from different walks of life.

It should not contain black and white statements that might offend a huge swath of the electorate.

The goal is to win an election -- not become a martyr over inflexible positions.

[AgingAmerican]

45. "All things to all people" comes across as insincere

The platform is meant to outline policy specifics that separates the Democratic party from the GOP.

[cosmicone]

46. Winning an election is more important than martyrdom n/t

[pangaia]

69. The platform should tell the truth !! What a novelty THAT would be.

It should NOT contain weasel words. I've heard weasel words my entire life. That is one reason I supported Sanders in the primary ( he other reasons being his positions). He doesn't use weasel words. Almost every other national level politician I have ever seen weasels everything.

The GOAL is to help other human beings have a happy, fruitful life, or at least give them a fighting chance. Stating THAT, truthfully, directly and without hidden meanings, and slippery half truths and what have you, will win..!

[cosmicone]

70. It is a PR document - that's all it is -- like a product brochure.

It is not supposed to turn off window-shoppers who don't have the same ideology as you but make it appealing to a wide range of people.

Some are confusing it with a manifesto.

[Tal Vez]

28. I am not surprised to learn that Sanders agrees with Clinton on almost everything.

I am happy to learn that he likes the platform that the Clinton team is putting together. I knew it would all work out.

[Dustlawyer]

29. Way to go Bernie!!! Keep it up and help kill the TPP!

[JaneyVee]

30. Bernie rehashing his writing career?

Just concede already. Its getting awkward!

[gollygee]

31. I don't like the TPP, but they're unlikely to make a platform that contradicts the

Sitting President.

Hillary is opposed to the TPP so maybe there's the possibility of changing it in the future, but of course Obama is in favor of it. There's no way the platform will contradict him while he's in office.

[Arizona Roadrunner]

32. TPP ISDS and the Democrats

As a person who has served on a local government’s Board of Directors, I am VERY concerned about the TPP ISDS court process with results being the surrendering of governmental sovereignty to corporate interests, foreign and domestic.
Basically due to secretive deliberations, this “judicial” process is designed to favor corporate over governmental concerns and interests. This agreement should not allow corporations to use this judicial process, but should demand they use our existing judicial process as it relates to governmental entities. How many state and local governments can afford to be involved in such a process? Just by the threat of suits through ISDS, a climate where governmental units cave in will be created. Look at what has happened under NAFTA and the WTO as it relates to our right to know where our food comes from. Look at how a Canadian corporation is using NAFTA to sue the U.S. on the Keystone project.
This will mean that political topics such as minimum wage increases and housing and zoning laws may be pre-empted by just the threat of a suit through the ISDS process. Look at what happened with Egypt when a corporation tried to use a process analogous to the ISDS to prevent Egypt from raising their minimum wage laws. (Veolia v. Egypt)
Therefore, I recommend, in the national interest, this agreement not be approved. When people find out how this can be used to prevent them from finding out things such as where products are made, etc., there will be charges of treason and the political process will never recover the trust of the American citizens.

By not voting against the TPP outright, the Democrats have given Trump a great opportunity to tie the Democrats to the "establishment" and "corporate America". He can also use this position to raise questions about the Democrats "really caring about you and your job". This is a loser position for the Democrats for the "down ticket" candidates too. By the way, the US Chamber of Commerce is not worried about Clinton being "currently" against TPP. They figure after she gets into office, she will find a way for her to be "currently" in favor of it.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-naiman/chamber-of-commerce-lobby_b_9104096.html

[randome]

52. There is no sovereignty given over to corporate interests.

There is a little bit of sovereignty given over to trade tribunals, much like there is with agreements fashioned through the U.N. Should we withdraw from the UN, too, in order to protect our precious bodily sovereignty?
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Don't ever underestimate the long-term effects of a good night's sleep.[/center][/font][hr]

[pangaia]

71. I don't necessarily agree with you,

but I did get what you did there with " in order to protect our precious bodily sovereignty? ."

Bravo...!

[baldguy]

34. So, is his going to finally concede his defeat & be the guy inside the tent pissing out?

Or is he going to keep being the outside the tent pissing in?

[Lil Missy]

37. Oh Bernie, go away. Shoo!

[red dog 1]

48. Sign Robert Reich's Petition: Tell the Democratic Platform Committee To Take a Stand Against the TPP

Democracy For America (DFA)
July 3, 2016


"Time is running out to show your support for one of the most important battles that our movement is fighting over the Democratic Party platform before the DNC convention.

Opposition to the job-killing Trans-Pacific Partnership should not be controversial within the Democratic Party.
Both Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton campaigned against the TPP in this year's presidential primaries.

Join Robert Reich, Bernie Sanders, Keith Ellison and DFA to demand that the Democratic Party take a stand against the TPP in the Party platform."
http://act.democracyforamerica.com/sign/stopTPPinDNCplatform/

[BainsBane]

49. Unlikely given the president's support of it

And he is still the head of the party. But this brings me to a larger question. Even if it were in the platform, that doesn't stop it from becoming law. Congress is where that happens. That is as true for TPP as the minimum wage and every other issue Bernie wants to see in the platform. A platform document that is his idea of perfection still doesn't change anything. I find it difficult to understand why he isn't focusing his efforts on the Senate, of which he is a member, rather than an entirely unbinding platform document.

[Eric J in MN]

53. Republicans control the Senate. He's laying the groundwork for when Democrats contol it, again. NT

NT

[senz]

58. They don't care, Eric.

Issues that directly affect the American people are like annoying little flies, irrelevant and silly.

Here, enjoy a nice cartoon. It's called, oddly enough, "Pearls Before Swine."

[BainsBane]

61. By then TPP will already be law

How does the platform affect that? More importantly, what should be the alternative?

[Her Sister]

51. Yippee was so waiting for his bi-weekly writings!

[BlueMTexpat]

55. .

[lapucelle]

57. There are under 20 comments to Sanders's editorial

and many of them are intimating that losers don't get to dictate terms.

I wonder what other newspapers he shopped that editorial to before it was finally accepted for publication.

[PatrickforO]

59. Quit sniping at each other. We need to come together.

Thing is, I basically support the Sanders platform. So, yeah, please do accept the fact that this party has a middle of the road wing, a conservative wing and a liberal New Deal type wing. Millions of us New Dealer type Social Democrats will be watching as things move forward.

Speaking for myself alone, though the Green party has positions that most closely resemble my own, I will be voting for Clinton this time around, as well as ALL downticket Democrats. We cannot let Trump anywhere near the White House, and we need to recapture majorities in both Houses.

I'm not thrilled with Clinton but she will be a sane president, and I am confident she will do her very best once in office.

That said, I get TIRED (that's right, with a capital T) of getting told

- You're too liberal
- You're a unicorn
- Your positions are not do-able

Did you know Rahm Emmanuel called people like me 'libtards?'

But you know what? There's about 830 people in DC who call the shots and if they wanted single payer we'd have it now. If they wanted a fair tax code to make corporations pay their fair share, we'd have that now. If they wanted unions to be strong, workers to earn living wages, safe workplaces and great benefits like defined pensions, we'd have that now. If they wanted to change corporate charters to put workers, customers, the communities in which the company has locations and the earth itself on an equal footing with shareholders (check out 'b' corporations and regenerative capitalism), then we would have that now.

I get sick of looking at the way things are and wanting to puke. I'm all about doing our best to create the world as it could be.

Yeah I know there must be compromise, but I will fight tooth and nail to drive this party to the left. I'm doing that now, will be doing that during the election and most importantly after the election at the local and state levels. That's what we who wish to organize our society around human need rather than human greed need to do.

I will be voting a straight Dem ticket this election, but when it's over I WANT CHANGE.

[randome]

63. This shows what poor political instincts Sanders has.

He has deliberately taken a losing position. There is no chance that rejection of the TPP will be written into the Dem platform. None. Does anyone expect him to shrug and say, "Well, that's okay. I wholeheartedly support Clinton now."?

It would come across as farcical. He's backed himself into a corner and he can't get out.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Don't ever underestimate the long-term effects of a good night's sleep.[/center][/font][hr]

[ucrdem]

74. Oh he's looking out for number one just fine.

Now he can safely spend the next eight years complaining as bitterly as he did the last eight.

[RobertEarl]

64. Bravo Bernie!

Keep fighting for us!

[Lord Magus]

72. Does Bernie understand that he's not going to be able to get everything he wants?

The losing candidate doesn't get to have his entire platform adopted by the winner.

[randome]

73. It's like someone yelling across the table at you, "Pass the goddamned butter! Now!"

The last thing in the world you want to do is pass him the butter.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Don't ever underestimate the long-term effects of a good night's sleep.[/center][/font][hr]

[bravenak]

75. Perfect

[Eric J in MN]

82. The article is about the party platform, not HRC's platform.

The Democratic Party platform draft advocates abolishing the death penalty, which isn't part of HRC's campaign platform.

[jimw81]

88. It's time for Hillary supporters

To put pressure on Hillary/DWS appointments to not Cave into Sanders and his petty demands. He already got enough on the platform. The idea of not acknowledging Jerusalem and policy towards Israel sounds regressive. Party already move to left and I don't want to scare off the middle.

[Eric J in MN]

89. The platform draft says

We will continue to work toward a two-state solution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
negotiated directly by the parties that guarantees Israel’s future as a secure and democratic
Jewish state with recognized borders and provides the Palestinians with independence,
sovereignty, and dignity. While Jerusalem is a matter for final status negotiations, it should
remain the capital of Israel, an undivided city accessible to people of all faiths. Israelis deserve security, recognition,
and a normal life free from terror and incitement. Palestinians should be
free to govern themselves in their own viable state, in peace and dignity.

https://demconvention.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/2016-DEMOCRATIC-PARTY-PLATFORM-DRAFT-7.1.16.pdf

Do you disagree with the above? Are you saying that Bernie Sanders disagrees with the above?