The Joe Biden performance at the Democratic debate that the corporate media is trying to prop up foretells a forthcoming implosion that is sure to propel progressives. Artificially inflating centrists like Michael Bloomberg, Deval Patrick, Pete Buttigieg, or Amy Klobuchar will not do.
After the Democratic debate, MSNBC’s Chris Matthews attempted to malign both Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren while interviewing Amy Klobuchar who joined him by pushing the Republican “free-stuff” trope. Lawrence O’Donnell had a more accurate story as he detailed one of Joe Biden’s many gaffes of the night.
To be clear, Biden had several other gaffes. Like using the punching metaphor when talking about violence.
The Common Dreams article explains the real fear of a few Democrats in the article “OK Obama… Time to Cancel Radical Centrism” which is probative.
So-called “centrists” are terrified that if the Democratic nominee is far to the left of Biden and Obama, they will be forced to coalesce around a candidate who represents a threat to the establishment of which they are a part.
As we gear up for next year’s presidential race, the only political class in the United States that may be as terrified of losing power as the Republican Party is that of centrist Democrats. Former President Barack Obama embodied this fear in his recent remarks at an event for wealthy liberal donors when he said, “The average American doesn’t think we have to completely tear down the system and remake it.” It was a not-so-veiled reference to the rising chorus of demands for a “Medicare for All” health care system, a climate action plan like the Green New Deal or taxes on billionaires that redistribute some of their obscene wealth. …
Presumably, Obama feels threatened by not just the vocal left flank of his party’s base, but also by the two most popular presidential candidates who generally embody leftist politics: Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who consistently draw more cumulative support in polls than the centrist front-runner, Joe Biden, Obama’s former second-in-command. Obama’s view is the reason millennials have adopted scathing retorts like “OK Boomer.” They are tired of being told to shut up about injustice.
Centrists are terrified that if the Democratic nominee is far to the left of Biden and Obama, they will be forced to coalesce around a candidate who represents a threat to the establishment of which they are a part. The unflappable Sanders brushed aside Obama’s criticism in an interview with The New York Times, saying, “When I talk about raising the minimum wage to a living wage, I’m not tearing down the system. We’re fighting for justice.” On the health care front, he added, “When I talk about … ending the embarrassment of America being the only major country on earth that does not guarantee health care for every man, woman and child, that’s not tearing down the system. That’s doing what we should have done 30 years ago.” His words resonate with the millions of Americans who are struggling every day, but they grate on the nerves of those who have thrived in our unequal society.
The thing is, Centrists have nothing to worry about. Progressive policies are all-inclusive. It will simply halt the ongoing class and generational theft.