Q&A of the Day –Be careful what you wish for with Bernie Sanders
Each day I’ll feature a listener question that’s been submitted by one of these methods.
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Today’s entry: You made a good pt this week. VERY few thought Donald Trump could win. Honestly, I like the idea of a Bernie vs. Trump general, but what if...?
Bottom Line: Recently I brought you first of its kind perspective on the Presidential candidates. How far to the left of President Trump each of the Democrat front-runners happen to be based on their progressive policy score from Indivisible. I’ve now received hundreds of inquiries from across the country on this story so I’ll reset and address your note rethinking your preference.Indivisible provides a score for candidates based on their percentage of “progressive” policy solutions based on their record and answers to questions submitted to them by candidates.
President Trump is a zero. This means he chooses private solutions over government solutions every time he’s presented with the opportunity. President Obama was a 66, choosing government over private solutions two-thirds of the time. Here’s where the lead Democrats rank once again.
- Biden: 40
- Buttigieg: 71
- Sanders: 97
Here’s what this really means. Anywhere from 40% to 97% less personal freedom, in lieu of government intervention paid for by us,than we have today if any of these candidates are elected president and are successful in enacting their agendas.It’s alarming in context. It shows that none of these candidates are moderates. As large as government influence already is in our lives, they represent huge increases – though clearly there’s a vast difference between Biden and Sanders for example. And that takes me back to the premise of your note and the warning I discussed recently. Whether it’s a local election or a Presidential Election, someone will always win, including occasionally someone few expect to win. For that reason, I always want the best possible candidates on the ballot regardless of party. One of them will win and impact our lives. It’s a dangerous game to cheer for who you think would be “easiest” for your perceived candidate to beat and yes, Donald Trump is the quintessential example.
In 2016 Trump was the preferred candidate by Democrats and their allies in news media alike – thinking he’d be the easiest to beat. This is why the coverage of Trump was generally positive during the primary – including regular visits on Morning Joe- MSNBC and CNN. Only for them to immediately turn their talons on Trump once he had the nomination. Clearly, there was a miscalculation. It’s likely safe to say that Democrats, and their allies in news media, would have taken any of the other Republicans running over Trump with hindsight. Republicans need to be careful not to fall into a similar trap this time. While conventional wisdom on the right suggests Bernie Sanders is too radical for this country and would be the easiest to beat,while potentially helping Republicans in congressional races as well, what if? If he’s the nominee he has a chance to win. That’s a risk that’s too great even if it proved to be good for Republicans in the end. Be careful what you wish for. As I’ve said before, at least I know Bloomberg is a capitalist. That’s no longer the case with many Democrats.