Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum got his words thrown back in his face as former Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm pointed out he was paraphrasing Bernie Sanders. This is how Progressives must fight.
Jennifer Granholm intelligently gets the Progressive message out
Rick Santorum thought he was harming Democrats by calling the Democratic Party the Bernie Sanders Party. He was not expecting Jennifer Granholm’s interjection.
Jake Tapper pointed out that Santorum wrote a book that discussed attracting the white working class voters even before Donald Trump. He then asked if he thought the Democrats could attract these voters.
“The problem with that is that is that the Democratic Party has become the party of Bernie Sanders,” Santorum said. “They are the Progressives. That’s who controls. To say there is a substantive difference between Perez and Ellison; there is not a substantive difference. I mean it was a style difference, sort of a connection difference. On philosophy, this is Bernie Sanders’ party. And as striking as the Republican transformation under Trump is, it is even more striking in my opinion from a policy point of view, the transformation of the Democratic Party to be the party of a Vermont socialist who has been out there ‘on’ the far reaches of the Democratic Party — now is the central figure of their party. That to me is something that is really remarkable.”
Jennifer Granholm responded perfectly.
“But, wait a second,” Granholm interjected with surprise. “Aren’t you the person who was talking about making sure that trade is fair? I mean, haven’t you been raising these same issues? You and I have both been raising these same issues. So Bernie Sanders has been raising those same issues too. That economic core issue is a Democratic issue. You can brand it all you want, but you have been raising that issue too.”
Santorum’s lame comeback lacked credulity of course.
“If I have been raising that core issue then it is not a core Democratic issue,” Santorum replied. “Obviously it is something I have been raising. And if you recall, the last president to put in tariffs was George W. Bush who put it steel tariffs.”
“So you are in alignment with Bernie Sanders,” Granholm rightfully pointed out again. “is all I am saying on that.”
“On the issue of trade,” Santorum acquiesced. “there is alignment, but just on about everything else there isn’t much.”
Now picture Santorum and Granholm in an open forum. Enumerating each of Bernie Sanders and the Democratic Platform issues and questioning folks like Santorum issue after issue will ultimately prove that except for taxes and regulations, they dear not object. Sadly, very few Democrats ever make the assertive case for their policies.