Even if they are unable to get any new legislation pass Congress, a Democratic Presidential win preventing Republicans from controlling all three branches of government is about as far from a “symbolic” win as I can image. Closer to a “vital necessity for the future of our democracy” win if anything.
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That was Bernie’s best moment last night.
He came off as angry for the first part of the interview—not what he needed—but seemed to mellow a bit after the “pick your question” envelope was opened.
All three candidates did well.
O’Malley was a bit too intense for most people.
Bernie was alternately irascible and avuncular.
Hillary was in complete control, comfortable with herself, and seemed the most presidential.
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This business of calling people “minorities” is something I do because I am “In Rome”. De verdad, soy latino y tengo una identidad aparte de las mentes de gabachos…
But, practically speaking, we blacks and latinos will always be “minorities” until racism as we know it dies down to the point of managability.
That being said, I do not have the right or prerogative to comment on “what blacks should do” with regard to upping their rate of voting. I will say that I heard (and admired) Ben Jealous and his calculations of how Georgia could have been Blue in 2014. However, NO LATINO wants to be within 100 feet of me saying that he or she could have voted “but did not”.
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They are using “franchise” in the sense of “right to vote,” as in the opposite of disenfranchise = deny the right to vote. So the sentence was saying that Bernie called for a constitutional amendment to protect the right to vote.
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I always enjoy reading your posts.
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I’m not sure what your aversion to voting is, but it seems pretty counter productive.
The Presidency isn’t the only elected office. Democrats need to get back to basics. We have one year to GOTV, what have the Do Nothing Democrats done to start that process?
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I suppose, emillianoelpexicano, that whites are to respond to Black Lives Matter as dismissively as you responded to “Too many people died for voting rights for blacks and hispanics to have lower turn out rates than whites.”
And to facts, such as, “for thirteen (13) out of fifteen (15) elections, the percentage of white turnout has exceeded both hispanic and black.”
Maybe when people stop responding based on perceived threat and consider the facts, whites will respond more positively to Black Lives Matter and you to the reality of thirteen out of fifteen elections.
Explain to me why the Democratic party nationally is in a state of full collapse. Sure there are a few states where Democrats are doing well, but the Republicans completely control 25 states and that number is growing. Democrats control 7. Republicans think Democratic states are up for grabs, but Democrats don’t think they can do anything in Republican states. Fire Debbie Wasserman Schultz and install somebody who can really lead.
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Spot on.
The next POTUS will be tasked with appointing 2, possibly 3, jurists to the SCOTUS over one or 2 terms.
jw1
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Try getting anybody who is any good through a McConnell lead Senate.
Consider the alternative.
jw1
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In my mind the alternative is reinvigorating the Democratic party at the base and winning local and state wide elections again. Your and Debby Wasserman Shultz’s alternative is a slow decline to nowhere.
How is that an alternative to Democrats winning the Presidency? Do Democrats, both leadership and voters, need to start doing more then just worrying about winning the presidency? Yes. Does that mean stopping Republicans from winning the Presidency is merely a symbolic victory? Hell no.
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I was supporting you with regard to the need to vote. You misunderstood me.
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Must be grand-- the ability to read minds.
I’m not a DWS fan in the least.
So there’s one you missed-- or simply assumed based on your own biases.
I’ve been calculating how long a political recovery might take for (D)s since around 2006.
With every aspect stacked against that probability at that point on the timeline-- (D)s are actually ahead of where I had envisioned at present.
It generally takes far longer to rebuild something that’s been willfully broken-- than, in this case, the 8 years it took to do so.
I am an optimist (if you feel the need to denigrate me for something).
And one of my sunny outlooks is a (D) recapture of the Senate in 2016.
Wish I could quickly find one or 2 of the posts (from Plucky or DaveyJones) that I think are indicative of the reasoning for my optimism-- but for an overview I’ll use this June 2015 overview from the WaPo (Cillizza)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/10-senate-races-most-likely-to-switch-parties-in-2016-elections/2015/06/07/d9215fbc-0d13-11e5-9726-49d6fa26a8c6_story.html
It’s a bit dated but will do for an example.
The timeline I’ve had in mind-- which began in the dark days of 2006-- plays out in 2020-- with (D)s holding/re-taking all three branches-- and a liberal majority on the SCOTUS.
And if I’m allowed to dream aloud? Our POTUS in 2024 will be named Castro.
jw1
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Oh, my … yeah, when he said he was given a kilt as a gift, I thought: “Show me! Wear it to prove it to me … and go commando!” 
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I agree with you but only in part because winning the Presidency is almost always (in large part but rarely 90% or 10%) symbolic in many ways – that is one reason we’ve heard the saying “the Presidency is a bully pulpit.” Your observation about Maddow asking about the weakened Democratic Party mainly in the South–I thought was a great question (perhaps the DP needs to hold a series of regional and national pow-wows on that very subject) was not addressed to my satisfaction. I think this question is so deep with many and very varied queries that it needs to be addressed by the Party heads in a very real, self-reflective way and then taken out on the road to town-halls or forums such as these.
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I thought Bernie’s response on the ISIS issue was great. What he advocated is exactly what needs to happen. As to what to do if the surrounding countries don’t step up, I say do nothing. It is a religious civil war, let them fight it our until either just the Sunni or just the Shiites remain or they negotiate a truce among themselves. It is not our problem.
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