Confused about the flurry of news in the presidential race? Here’s what it all means
WASHINGTON — That sound you hear is the collective exhale of the Democratic establishment after Joe Biden’s landslide victory in South Carolina.
The 2020 Democratic campaign has undergone a radical makeover in the 48 hours since Biden’s win. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, and billionaire Tom Steyer hastily exited the race. Klobuchar and Buttigieg endorsed Biden on the eve of Super Tuesday, a potential inflection point in the race as 14 states and one territory cast their ballots. More than 1,300 delegates will be handed out, making it the biggest day of the nomination battle so far.
Biden’s victory unleashed a flood of endorsements by party fixtures and card-carrying members of the old guard — former Virginia governor and DNC chairman Terry McAuliffe, former DNC chairwoman Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida, former Sen. Barbara Boxer of California, along with dozens of mayors, state legislators, and sitting members of Congress. The New York Times reported Monday night that former Texas Congressman Beto O’Rourke would also endorse Biden less than 24 hours before voting began in the Texas primary.
The Democratic field is now down to five candidates: Biden, Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Mike Bloomberg, and Rep. Tulsi Gabbard. One way to organize the field is into two camps: the progressive flank (Sanders and Warren) and the moderate establishment flank (Biden and Bloomberg). Going into Super Tuesday, there is a leader and secondary figure in each flank — Sanders for the progressives and Biden for the moderates.
Klobuchar, Buttigieg, and O’Rourke’s endorsements of Biden is the clearest sign yet that the establishment plans to coalesce around Biden in hopes of denying Sanders the nomination. Call it Operation Bernie Block.
There’s a whiff of desperation to this move. It’s not hard to see why: If Sanders, who leads in the delegate count, performs well in delegate-rich states such as Texas and California, he might be unstoppable on his way to winning the nomination at the convention this summer.
That’s an unacceptable outcome to a powerful bloc of the Democratic Party. It’s why Buttigieg and Klobuchar have moved so quickly to endorse Biden. It’s why Sanders opponents started Super PAC called the Big Tent Project to run advertisements criticizing Sanders as a radical who would lose to Trump. (Sanders responded to the ads by saying, “The corporate elite is getting very nervous about our campaign.”)
The question at this stage is how Sanders and Biden grapple with the secondary figures on their respective flanks. On the progressive flank, Warren has no plans to drop out of the race anytime soon, according to a strategy memo released by her campaign on Sunday. Instead, she is betting that none of her opponents will win the 1,991 delegates needed to secure the nomination by the time of the Democratic convention in July. Even if Sanders or Biden were to win a plurality of the delegates, Warren’s campaign does not plan to concede and will fight for the nomination through the convention.
“In the road to the nomination, the Wisconsin primary is halftime, and the convention in Milwaukee is the final play,” her campaign manager, Roger Lau, wrote in the memo. “Our grassroots campaign is built to compete in every state and territory and ultimately prevail at the national convention in Milwaukee.”
There’s even more uncertainty on the moderate flank. Mike Bloomberg has poured more than half a billion dollars into his campaign, betting his candidacy on a strong Super Tuesday performance. Will his investment pay off? Or will it prove to be the most expensive flop in American politics?
If Bloomberg does well, then we’re in for a months-long battle between him and Biden for the support of the moderate flank. If Bloomberg tanks, then Biden can lay claim to the moderate flank and the race will likely come down to Biden versus Sanders.
Insider versus outsider. Establishment versus revolution. Sound familiar?
Chris Matthews Retires From MSNBC Show, Apologizes: Younger Generations "Ready To Take The Reins"
Chris Matthews announced Monday night he will be leaving his nightly MSNBC program "Hardball" after a litany of criticism over incendiary remarks about Bernie Sanders, confusing black lawmakers, and prior treatment of women in the workplace.
MATTHEWS: Let me start with my headline tonight: I'm retiring. After conversations with MSNBC, I’ve decided tonight will be my last 'Hardball.' Let me tell you why. The younger generations out there are ready to take the reins. We see them in politics, the media, they have proven in the workplace. They grew up with better standards, fair standards. Compliments on a woman's appearance some men, including me, might have once incorrectly thought were okay were never okay. Certainly not today. For making such comments in the past, I'm sorry.
After a break, a surprised Steve Kornacki took over hosting duties:
With your whole 539 posts, I think you should just climb down off your cross and toughen up a little if you want to play in here. AND FYI, I only pound somebody on their religion when they preach at me or come at me. Go back through all your posts and you will see that. Dropping my name in your negative comments will make me come at you though, so if that's what you are after just keep doing that. But you don't get to cry after, so toughen up first.
You come after people like your grandpa came after that speed bag.
If you can give me a post number and thread title from a post of mine where I made a dogmatic statement about my faith that was before your attack on Christianity on February, I will apologize and admit I was wrong. I've only been posting since about the ninth, so it shouldn't be hard.
refs swept them after I got sent to camp.
None of my posts from 2/9 or 2/10 were deleted. I wasn't talking religion then, I was talking political issue, ie Sander's litmus test for Anthony Vaught and abortion. No preaching on those days at all. I didn't start preaching until another poster showed up with "another Gospel"
so show me where I preached before you went all anti Christian.
I was talking about racism, and Swish called Christianity "trash". He also used profanity against forum rules.
“To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public.”
I was talking about racism and swish brought up religion. Go back and you will see that it was he who changed the topic to religion by calling my religion trash
Show me where I mentioned religion before Swish called my religion trash. Therefore HE brought it up. Maybe read context?
I was talking about racism and swish brought up religion. Go back and you will see that it was he who changed the topic to religion by calling my religion trash
Show me where I mentioned religion before Swish called my religion trash. Therefore HE brought it up. Maybe read context?
That conversation was over - as all other parties have refrained from entertaining your post.
You then keep brining it back up - trying to get that talk going again.
I was talking about Bloomberg and Sanders when you reintroduced religion. And I never made any positive affirmations about religion in this thread. Check and see
They're not going to let Biden win anything. People hate corruption more than socialist programs. Just saying.
So - with Mueller the Trump faithful cried and cried that it was an investigation in search of a crime. Clearly many sane people looked at the unprecedented lying about Russian connections/contracts by all and sundry around Trump (multiple times in some occasions) and the Russian interference in the election aimed at helping Trump and disagree - none the less the popular mantra spewed by Trump and then his followers was "an investigation in search of a crime" ..... And here we are with Hunter and Burisma (already investigated and cleared btw) and we have no crime, we have a load of Trump BS and rhetoric and we have an investigation!!! LOL.
Personally if Hunter has done anything wrong - I hope they prosecute. But man - talk about double standards. But then, why should I be surprised.
The more things change the more they stay the same.
please joe. just go retire on some tropical island, man.
i dont like looking at people slowing rotting away in front of our eyes like that. its depressing. you had a phenomenal run, let it go.
“To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public.”
I was talking about Bloomberg and Sanders when you reintroduced religion. And I never made any positive affirmations about religion in this thread. Check and see
You said 'bye' like 4 pages ago...
"I'll take your word at face value. I have never met you but I assume you have a face..lol"
I was talking about Bloomberg and Sanders when you reintroduced religion. And I never made any positive affirmations about religion in this thread. Check and see
You said 'bye' like 4 pages ago...
I Replied to posts. If they keep lying, I’ll keep replying. If they keep accusing, I’ll keep perusing and infusing. I also mentioned Bloomberg and Sanders. , and Willy brought up religion. Then said I was talking about religion. Do a fact check
I’m concerned that the candidates left on the Democratic side can beat Trump. They just needed a solid person who could show they could work with both sides to get something done. Apparently, their voters want more gridlock and they are going with the least electable people among them. Great job. We could very likely get for more years of orange. Unbelievable.
I tend to agree with you. Sadly I had to vote for my what would have been my third choice only a few days ago. What seems to be missing by many is the down ballot. In the end, who is elected president isn't as important as many seem to make it out to be. Each state has two senators. As such, if the views of your candidate are so extreme that those in many states simply wish to stop his power, there will be a huge backlash in the senate votes.
If you actually wish to run a candidate that some red states and swing states think they will work across the aisle and have realistic goals and views, it may help swing the senate in your favor.
I understand how that works in the big picture scheme of things and realize that if extremism is the route the Democratic party goes in this election, it will create total gridlock as a result.
After thinking this all through very thoroughly, my decision is that total gridlock would be better than four more years of what I've seen.
But that won't really accomplish anything and as you stated, will only enforce the fact that Trump's odds of victory will increase.
Intoducing for The Cleveland Browns, Quarterback Deshawn "The Predator" Watson. He will also be the one to choose your next head coach.
Some people would be dashing in no matter what others warn.
They keep talking to me then cry and whine when I reply. Super Tuesday should be called “Super Binky Day
The Tantrum forums
Welcome!
You heard of water boarding?
Welcome to the world of Browns Boarding!
Sanders will almost certainly get the nomination. This election will be monumental. Our country is really at stake this time. Sanders would be the most destructive president ever
I was talking about Bloomberg and Sanders when you reintroduced religion. And I never made any positive affirmations about religion in this thread. Check and see
You said 'bye' like 4 pages ago...
I Replied to posts. If they keep lying, I’ll keep replying. If they keep accusing, I’ll keep perusing and infusing. I also mentioned Bloomberg and Sanders. , and Willy brought up religion. Then said I was talking about religion. Do a fact check
... and then you said toodaloo... only to keep responding. Kinda weird to say goodbye and not leave.
"I'll take your word at face value. I have never met you but I assume you have a face..lol"
I was talking about Bloomberg and Sanders when you reintroduced religion. And I never made any positive affirmations about religion in this thread. Check and see
You said 'bye' like 4 pages ago...
I Replied to posts. If they keep lying, I’ll keep replying. If they keep accusing, I’ll keep perusing and infusing. I also mentioned Bloomberg and Sanders. , and Willy brought up religion. Then said I was talking about religion. Do a fact check
... and then you said toodaloo... only to keep responding. Kinda weird to say goodbye and not leave.
Not if people keep ringing your phone like you just did.