2020 Presidential Election

[MsTinkerbelly]

I wasn’t impressed by any of the candidates tonight, and I’m finding it hard to be inspired by the people running this time. Maybe because there are so many of them to listen to? It all becomes a bit blah, blah, blah after awhile...my brain just shuts down.

I wasn’t impressed by RM tonight, but I LOVE HER any other time. I have gained so much insight into topics that I had no background in; she explains issues so that I can understand and retain the information. She does appear a bit centrist to me, but so am I, and so is MOST of this country.

The far left candidates have almost no hope of being elected...I know you all don’t like to hear that, but after tRump, people are going to want what seems to be “normal” and safe.

Anyway, if I had to vote today, it would be a Harris/Warren ticket.

[dark_crystal]

I thought Castro, Warren, and Inslee performed well. Booker said a lot of good lines, but he just does not seem like a grownup to me.

A lot of tweeters praised de Blasio's performance. I have not really looked into him bc he did not have the air of viability to me. This morning on a hunch that his record is too recent, too verifiable, and too compromised to help him, i googled "de Blasio record"

New York Post: Does de Blasio really think it’s a good idea to run with his record? By Michael Goodwin

Earlier this year, de Blasio summed up his politics with a ­salute to socialism: “Here’s the truth, brothers and sisters, there’s plenty of money in the world. Plenty of money in this city. It’s just in the wrong hands!”

For once, he was being honest, because de Blasio sees wealth, success and even public order as enemies of the people. He has held that view for most of his life, with him and his wife sneaking into Cuba for their honeymoon, followed by his work for the Nicaraguan Sandinistas.

That the Castros and Sandinistas were anti-American was not incidental to their attraction.

De Blasio hid his radicalism for years as he toiled away in the City Council and as public advocate. He was a go-along, get-along nobody until he pulled off a stunning upset in the 2013 mayoral primary.

He did it by doing a left-end run around better-known candidates, becoming the harshest critic of the NYPD and Mayor Michael Bloomberg. He courted Al Sharpton and made a TV ad famous for the large Afro of his mixed-race son, Dante, efforts that got him nearly half of the crucial black vote. He won the general election in a landslide.

Thus, in a matter of months, de Blasio ripped off the center-left mask he wore for a decade to become the far-left “progressive” we see now.

That background might have national appeal if his mayoralty were a success. But despite vows to attack income inequality, he is a disaster for those who depend on public services.

His school policies offer a prime example. Unable to move the needle on the racial achievement gap, de Blasio wants to impose quotas on top schools.

The plan is hitting strong opposition from Asian Americans, who could lose 50 percent of their seats in high schools where admission is based on a single test. That success comes despite the fact that many Asian students are among the poorest in the city and grow up in immigrant households where English is not spoken.

But instead of trying to duplicate that miraculous achievement among black and Latino students, de Blasio wants to abolish the entry test.

Conspiring with unions, he even wars against charter schools that prove race and class are no barrier to academic success. The mayor also makes it nearly impossible for schools to suspend unruly and violent students.

In schools and elsewhere, de Blasio never lets facts get in the way of ideology. He has decriminalized more and more crimes and wants to close Rikers Island to redistribute criminals to low-security “green” facilities in residential areas. He aims to add 90 homeless shelters to spread around that pain, too.

I don't know if this article helped me assess de Blasio's national chances, but...

it was QUITE an enjoyable read, on a petty level, just for the right-wing whining. That writer sounds like an asshole, and he's hissing and spitting like a wet cat, here. This sparks joy.

[Andrea]

We watched Jeopardy in the third quarter instead of the debate so I may have missed some interesting or important stuff but the following is my take:

- 10 people debates are useless.

- Warren speaks well, has actual plans for how she will implement the many changes I am interested in seeing, and she has a very strong background of having worked towards changes in the past.

- Booker seems to be only focused on his current small world and didn't seem to be able to expand concerns for the whole country.

- de Blasio..... He may have good ideas but I wouldn't know. Every time I see or hear about him, I think about how his wife "used to be a lesbian" and I spend time working through that.

- Castro is a very strong candidate and I think he would make a good president. I feel like he gets lost in the male candidate pack though.

- Klobachar and Gabbard both speak well but I can't get past personal information about each of them.

- Delaney seemed shocked each time he was called on like maybe he was daydreaming and not paying attention.

- The other three white men? They must have been on stage but I don't remember them.

Currently my fantasy is a Sanders/Warren, or Warren/Sanders, ticket because I really like where they are pushing us and because I like how they plan to accomplish getting us there.

[kittygrrl]

@ this moment i like Castro/Harris..but @ this point, i'd vote for the boogey man rather then another 4 years of trump

[C0LLETTE]

I'm hoping a candidate will be picked who can :
" #MakeDonaldDrumpfAgain " (courtesy of John Oliver )

[Martina]

Asked what's the first and possibly only thing they'd do, Kamala says middle class tax cuts, and Bernie says take on the special interests. That tells you EVERYTHING. Kamala, while I like her, is another corporate liberal. Bernie is a true progressive. He never loses sight of what's important. That moment said EVERYTHING. There really is no one else to vote for. Bernie is by far the only one who has not bought in to corporate rule of our country.

Bernie's closing was the same. About what is fundamentally wrong and what change means.

Kamala did well, obviously. She was great on race. She kicked Biden's ass. She did a good job.

Mayor Pete was great, but if it's true that many African American voters won't vote for him, we can't afford his candidacy. He's young. He can wait a minute. I think he's amazing though.

Another good debate, I thought. I was never a big fan of Gillibrand, but she got my attention re standing up to Mitch McConnell.

I thought it was not a great night for Biden although he fought hard. His policies seemed -- and are -- behind the times. He looked old. Sort of strange really. Too much makeup?

Marianne Williamson is a trip, but I thought she made a great point about chemicals causing health problems.

I thought Rep. Swalwell did really well, especially on guns although Mayor Pete handled his defense well. A good showing.

But Bernie showed why he is the one to beat Trump and offer us a future, IMO.

[charley]

Originally Posted by Martina

Asked what's the first and possibly only thing they'd do, Kamala says middle class tax cuts, and Bernie says take on the special interests. That tells you EVERYTHING. Kamala, while I like her, is another corporate liberal. Bernie is a true progressive. He never loses sight of what's important. That moment said EVERYTHING. There really is no one else to vote for. Bernie is by far the only one who has not bought in to corporate rule of our country.

Bernie's closing was the same. About what is fundamentally wrong and what change means.

Kamala did well, obviously. She was great on race. She kicked Biden's ass. She did a good job.

Mayor Pete was great, but if it's true that many African American voters won't vote for him, we can't afford his candidacy. He's young. He can wait a minute. I think he's amazing though.

Another good debate, I thought. I was never a big fan of Gillibrand, but she got my attention re standing up to Mitch McConnell.

I thought it was not a great night for Biden although he fought hard. His policies seemed -- and are -- behind the times. He looked old. Sort of strange really. Too much makeup?

Marianne Williamson is a trip, but I thought she made a great point about chemicals causing health problems.

I thought Rep. Swalwell did really well, especially on guns although Mayor Pete handled his defense well. A good showing.

But Bernie showed why he is the one to beat Trump and offer us a future, IMO.

Yes, indeed, I did like Kamala and Bernie. But, I think Kamala was the only one who really showed that she could take on the Republicans. She won the night.

My take on Bernie is that he seemed out of place in the midst of all the other candidates, and I think it is because of all things, his platform indicates that while some refer to him as a socialist, a progressive, the main thing is that he is not a capitalist (just like me - chuckles). And all the other Dem candidates are capitalists, just like the Republicans, only the difference between the two parties is a question of degree. Of course, the Republicans are so far out in right field that they seem to have forfeited any sense of humanity. Bernie would have no chance of winning an election if he had been elected to run against Trump, because of his stance and because most Americans believe in capitalism - the American dream. So, yes, I agree with you, Martina, when you said that Bernie "is by far the only one who has not bought into corporate rule of our country." However, I don't think the Dem electoral peeps are prepared to accept Bernie's position. It would be a fantasy to imagine that most Americans would accept a pov that seems to attack capitalism in any form.

I liked Biden less and less...

I do not trust Pete, even though his ideas are engaging. But, as Mayor, he could easily fire his Chief of Police and fight for and force the adoption of a more sensitive agenda regarding race relations in his home town, but that particular position might place his own mayorship in jeopardy. It just seemed that he holds his position as a politician in his own home town because he knows how to play the political game, just like Biden - which means nothing to me personally.

I am just beginning to be curious to see who wins this Dem nomination.

As an aside, there is one thing I don't understand, and that is why Pelosi doesn't run herself.