"We got 80% of what we wanted in this platform,"--Sanders campaign

[geek tragedy]

http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/09/politics/democrats-15-an-hour-minimum-wage-bernie-sanders-hillary-clinton/

Overall, though, they celebrated, touting the party's platform -- finalized in the wee Sunday morning hours -- as one that reflects the causes that animated the Vermont senator's campaign.

"We got 80% of what we wanted in this platform," top Sanders foreign policy adviser Warren Gunnels told CNN.

Those successes could keep in place plans for Sanders to appear in person with Clinton on Tuesday in New Hampshire, finally endorsing his Democratic primary rival.

Clinton's campaign also touted the platform. "We are proud of the work that Democrats did in Orlando and for coming together to further strengthen the most progressive platform in the history of our party," said Clinton senior policy adviser Maya Harris.

NB: Gunnels was in charge of negotiating all platform items for the Sanders campaign.


The people complaining that the 2016 Democratic platform is Republican lite are the same purist idiots who gave us wisdom such as "Bush=Gore." Get back to us when Bernie Sanders likes >80% of the RNC platform.

[Renew Deal]

1. That's no surprise considering Hillary and Bernie agree on 93% of things

[AgadorSparticus]

2. That was my first thought, too.

[Johnny2X2X]

3. Precisely.

Outside of a couple issues the only way they disagree on anything is the degree to which they want something done. Clinton is a little more pragmatic.

I've been saying this for 9 months. As someone who's been a close follow of both for decades, they have consistently fought side by side on nearly every major issue.

[seabeyond]

14. +1. Nt

[kacekwl]

48. Pragmatic is a funny word.

[Sheepshank]

22. Same

For all the wailing and gnashing of teeth....they really were more like than they were different.

[Tal Vez]

28. Yes, what it means is that Sanders should stick with the Democratic Party.

The Democratic Party is a natural home for Sanders. He agrees with 80% of the platform.

[shockey80]

4. Sanders

Bernie did what i was hoping he would do. Push hillary and the democrats to the left.

[840high]

31. .+1

[Orsino]

55. We are better for his candidacy.

I think he'll be watching to keep us woke. Turning the platform into policy may be the hardest thing we ever do.

[Scootaloo]

5. So does the platform matter or not?

'Cause I keep seeing "look how liberal it is!" from people... who then say "well the platform doesn't matter" when the other 20% is pointed out.

[HumanityExperiment]

6. ^^^ THIS ^^^

n/t

[geek tragedy]

7. it matters, and it doesn't matter

in terms of getting legislation enacted, it doesn't achieve anything, it doesn't lower global warming, doesn't feed a single hungry child, etc.

but, in terms of pushing the party left, it does have some meaning. Clinton presumably doesn't mind the party being pushed left, but also doesn't want stuff in there that will make getting elected or governing more difficult.

the only way to get 100% instead of 80% is to win the voting

[Scootaloo]

8. I'm questioning the effort to have it both ways

I want internally consistent logic, is all.

[geek tragedy]

9. kind of like saying that the losing candidate getting 80% of his

wish list items is irrelevant because of the other 20%?

intellectual consistency is a rare thing in political debates

[Arkansas Granny]

18. How much of that 80% was in Hillary's campaign all along

and how much was due to Bernie's influence? It never seemed to me that they were that far apart on the issues.

[Eric J in MN]

33. Things in the platform to the left of HRC's positions.

- Abolish the death penalty.

- Pathway towards marijuana legalization.

- $15 minimum wage.

- Federal investigation of all "questionable or suspicious" police shootings.

[seabeyond]

41. Proof of 4? And she has no problem with 2 and has said this probably pathway itself

to legalization.

Abolish the death penalty is more a Democratic platform issue, not just Sanders.

[cosmicone]

19. It is just a symbolic document

that will be forgotten by mid-August.

[stevenleser]

32. Yep. None of this matters. nt

[seabeyond]

10. Sanders does not get to own Democratic issues.

[geek tragedy]

11. no, but I also have confidence Clinton wouldn't agree to anything

that (a) she seriously objected to or (b) would hinder her ability to get elected or to govern.

The more of an ownership stake Sanders supporters feel in the platform, the more they'll turn out to help enact it by kicking Republican ass.

[seabeyond]

12. That is the point. A lot of that 80% is Clintons stand, the Democratic stand. Sanders did not

push us, or give it to us. We did not "adopt" his position. They are our positions.

[geek tragedy]

13. agreed nt

[BlueMTexpat]

16. This is what really "gets"

me - it's as if we haven't been fighting for these things all along. In my case, it's been all my life and I am 70+.

[seabeyond]

17. You and mean both. And Clinton for sure. And not just talk, she has been out there

doing. Yes, it is insulting Democrats as a whole and has been from day one. I agree with you.

[Ash_F]

44. All of his positions poll a very large majority of Democrats.

[Schema Thing]

15. LOL, is there any reporting at all on the writing of the GOP platform?

I think it's probably just been reduced to


All Lives Matter

Build a Wall

[Warren DeMontague]

21. "You're gonna get a platform. It's gonna be the BEST platform. We're gonna have a platform, it's

gonna be beautiful. Amazing. A beautiful platform."

[Schema Thing]

49. Ha!

[Warren DeMontague]

20. The language on marijuana is better than I expected.

I'm glad that party officials are taking the issue seriously. I wonder what some of the would-be comedians here who were yammering about "pot legal? you must be high", making stoner jokes, etc. think about the whole thing now.

[seabeyond]

23. Since it is slowly being legalized thru out the states, it is an inevitable, just like marriage

equality. Start in the states and watch it grow. They are even talking about it here in Texas.

[Warren DeMontague]

24. It certainly isn't hurting with the state budget.

http://www.oregonlive.com/marijuana/index.ssf/2016/05/oregon_collected_105_million_i.html

[seabeyond]

25. I mean, Colorado wants what? free college? No, it is not hurting the states, hence more getting

on board. They want the action, too.

[Warren DeMontague]

26. Exactly.

I have friends in Illinois, which is experiencing an ongoing GOP-governor sponsored budgetary clusterfuck right now, Scott Walker style.

I'm like "gee, whiz, if there was only some way for the state to generate additional revenue, hmmmmm"

[seabeyond]

29. I went up to Colorado springs over a year ago, when they had just past the law.

I was expecting cops at the border, pulling people over right and left. Not a cop around. All this time later, no real consequence legalizing. They have good stats from the states that legalized to be more comfortable with it and have a sell. I really expect more and more states to just open up until it hits fed.

[seabeyond]

30. Do they have little shops in Oregon? Still not very many? How does Washington work?

Shops?

[Warren DeMontague]

35. Good question. WA did it in 2012 vs. 2014 for OR so for a little while they had an advantage

There was a fairly decent amount of cross-border activity, from what I heard.

But what Oregon has done- since our state government from Gov. Kate Brown on down is pretty progressive and on board with the whole thing- is implement a system whereby until the full licensing and regulatory scheme is up and running- which should be happening soon- is allow limited recreational sales through already established medical mj dispensaries, many of which are now in the process of applications for recreational licenses. They wanted to get recreational sales online as quickly as possible.

So, short answer, yes, shops. Walk in, show your ID, everyone is super friendly and knowledgeable. I believe recreational customers can buy up to 7 grams a day from a dispensary, or one 15 mg thc serving of edibles now starting the past June 1. (One thing they got from CO's experience is they want to start people slowly on things like edibles, if they don't have experience with them, so they're not overwhelmed: Mo Dowd, I'm talking to you) ...

I stopped in to check out one of the WA outlets near the border back before Oregon passed Measure 91. Purely for research purposes, mind you. It was probably more established and bigger than a lot of the smaller OR dispensaries, however I wonder how much their business decreased once Oregon pot became recreationally available. I think our taxation scheme is more reasonable, too. However, as I understand it there is a greater range of products- strength of edibles, etc.- one can buy in WA, at least currently.

One other difference between OR and WA law is, as far as I understand it, in OR any household can grow up to 4 plants. I think the OR law is a good model for other states to look at, personally.

http://www.oregon.gov/olcc/marijuana/pages/default.aspx

Also, as you can see from the map, despite the "almost everywhere" headline, really the vast majority of recreational outlets are in the west half of the state (to be fair, the vast majority of people are in the west half, too) .. that said, once you get out to John Day territory you're basically in Western Idaho.

http://www.opb.org/news/article/marijuana-oregon-recreational-sales-map-where-to-buy/#

[seabeyond]

43. Thanks for all that. Very informative.

I had gotten to Colorado right after the law passed. So there were only two places at the time. One in Denver and one in Pueblo. Mine wasn't about research, lol, for real . Good shit. (Hey, it was legal, no different than having my glass of wine).

It was fun. They had it sectioned for medical and recreational, two different entrances. And yes, the people there were a blast. All young, having a terrific time educating us.

It was really interesting.

So, it is sounding like the set up is a lot the same.

[Logical]

50. Hillary still not sure it should be legal. nt

[geek tragedy]

47. first they ignore you, then they laugh at you ... nt

[puffy socks]

27. Proving the Democratic Party was already progressive

They didn't need Sanders to storm in and make a scene.
They didn't adopt his entire platform nor did they adopt 80% of his platform so his campaign can drop the Sanders is the one who pushed to the Democrats to the left narrative

[Eric J in MN]

34. If Bernie Sanders hadn't focused on the platform

...then it probably wouldn't have:

- Abolish the death penalty.

- Pathway towards marijuana legalization.

- $15 minimum wage.

- Federal investigation of all "questionable or suspicious" police shootings.

[puffy socks]

37. and yet Barnet Frank introduced

a bill to legalize years ago and the Dems put up a bill to allow states that legalize marijuana alone

And raising the minimum wage was never inquestion and she will still raise it incrementally as she stated many times

Some of us don't want the death penalty abolished because we believe it an appropriate response to some criminals.
Tim McVeigh comes to mind.

Feds are already investigating questionable and suspicious shootings by the police.


What Bernie appears to want is credit for positions the Dems already hold...hence Sanders caucusing with them for years and Hillary voting nearly identically when they served together in the senate.

[Eric J in MN]

40. Barney Frank is to the left of HRC. NT

NT

[puffy socks]

42. No kidding there's range of

Progressives that are Dems. Welcome to the reality that they already are Progressive. They didnt need Bernies platform nor "push"
B Frank has been a member of the Dems for decades and called a shill for Hillary by Sanders supporters on DU as have all "establishment" Dems who have supported her.

[SaschaHM]

46. I'd give you the first 3, but definitely not the last one.

[Warren DeMontague]

36. I care about actual progress. Not who gets credit.

He should endorse Hillary, so "his campaign" ought to be a moot point.

Beyond that, though, all the Team B versus Team C crap is tiresome and should be left behind. We are all team D, now, aren't we?

[puffy socks]

38. I care

Because a ton if people have worked hard all their lives and they dont need Bernie asanders to come in and tell them how its done, especially considering that he coulnt get crap done ecause he couldnt work with anyone. As he keeps demonstrating.

The next time you do something really meaningful, that took a long time I expect you to give credit to someone else for doing it, someone who has been bashing you at every turn ..and do it with a smile because only the results matter, right?

[Warren DeMontague]

39. Yeah, and the people who deserve credit for the DNC finally taking marijuana legalization seriously

are those of us who have been arguing for it for decades, those of us in Western states who got off our asses to make it a reality, those of us who have put up with years and years of snarky-ass east coast beltway bullshit about "pot will never be legal" and "silly stoners, you must be high!"


So credit where credit is due. Of course.

[Hekate]

45. HRC and BS were never all that far apart in the first place, but if it makes everybody happy I say

....go for it, and I do hope people are happy and ready to get to work.

[Warren DeMontague]

51. It's pretty easy to tell the difference between people who genuinely want unity and to move forward

and those who are really only interested in grudge matches, settling scores and continuing fights.

But, then, I tend to think that stuff usually has more to do with peoples' personal unhappiness and issues than actual political reality.

[seabeyond]

52. It isn't about grudges or fighting. Sanders made it sound like 80% of his policy.

I would LOVE for the damn primary to end. But, Sanders came out, once again, in front of media implying he got 80% of his policies in the platform. Not true.

Now... I would go into why it is important he does not get to own what isn't his, but that gets into discussing the primary and we are not allowed. Jury, what I posted now though is discussing what Sanders said in the now, not the past of the primary.

No, Sanders does not get to take ownership of Clinton or Democratic policy. He could have easily made the statement cheering on the platform to not imply it was his 80%, but Sanders chose to make it sound like this is all about him. Today.

[Warren DeMontague]

54. I think he should concede and endorse, myself

And if the word on the street is to be believed, he might do it Tuesday. I hope so.

(Edited to add- giving him benefit of the doubt, maybe he made that statement in advance of a concession to help get more of his supporters on board. Just a thought)

But my post was more a general observation of the state of this place than about anything specific. FWIW, you seem like one of the people trying to put the primary fighting behind.

[senseandsensibility]

53. Is he bragging or complaining?

LOVE Bernie (no sarcasm here), but when I read this OP title, an old saying that was popular with my parents was the first thing that sprang to mind.