Socialism and identity politics which divide us are not going to beat Trump. The Democratic Party right now is a dumpster fire. Come on in, Joe Biden.
19
Bernie is a big name among the youth in America and 2020 he will be a front runner from the democratic side. Will he be the nominee may be another question. One point agenda of beating Trump will not go to far and "Medicare for all" will not impress most of America. Bernie's Socialism for everyone else except himself may not catch on. He has a home for every season. Soon people will wonder how a person who did not start a business prospered by being a career politician. Bernie had a better chance against Trump in 2016. In 2020, Trump is no longer the lesser of the 2 evils but a known devil who will be better than an unknown one.
My prediction if it is Bernie versus Trump. Trump will be triumphant and may even win the popular vote.
11
The People are coming, and Trump is worried.
13
“All of our Democrats take the prospect of defeating Donald Trump so seriously that it’s almost like everybody is on the same team.”
Let's hope that continues through after the nominee is selected. Personally, I'll not be jumping onto the primary train too quickly--I'll just bide my time and see who emerges.
That is, to me, the crucial point: are these young and enthusiastic voters going to shake their heads in dismay if their candidate isn't the Golden One who eventually faces Trump? Will they pick up their marbles and go home?
Or will they understand how important their vote is, regardless of the candidate for whom it is cast? See, for me, it comes down to voting Democrat for change, or voting Republican for more of the same.
23
“We may see a hundred-year storm for turnout.”
Cheering the hard work to bring millions more to Vote Blue, the democracy-saving machines are whirring to life. Nothing less than Crushing Numbers is acceptable.
28
Everyone laughed at the GOP clown car before 2016, but it did allow for the survival of the fittest, which by GOP standards meant the nastiest, dirtiest, candidate willing to lie, hurl insults, call names, etc.
Since the eventual Democratic nominee will have to do battle against that same miscreant, they had better be prepared for him and his enablers.
And don't cave on the decision to boycott Fox News for a debate, unless the Republican candidates are willing to have a debate on MSNBC with Maddow, Wallace and O'Donnell hosting.
186
@Pat
Your description of the Republication debates and primary is so spot on. I watched all of the debates and it did seem like they were trying to figure out who was the most horrible person, and they succeeded in doing that.
When it got to the point where they were debating the relative sizes of their genitals and "my wife is hotter than yours," then I knew I was in the wrong party. Thats not how real men behave.
35
Trump only has to beat one Democrat. Whichever candidate is left standing as the nominee is going to have likely flanked far to the left on many issues, mastered the identity politics game and in doing the above turned off many moderate voters who will abhor them by that point. Thus a vacuum that Trump will be ready to fill with his name calling and ridiculing of his opponent (which is his appeal to a vast number of people in this country, believe it or not). The Democrats need to find a moderate candidate who can appeal to the white middle class voters in the Midwest and who can't be easily caricatured by Trump. If they do that they have the White House. If not, four more years of Trump.
10
" ... a good, viable candidate that can beat Trump.” As an Independent voter, I feel this way about the upcoming election, parties aside: "Any Functioning Adult: 2020" Also, I would change the slogan to "Beat Trump/McConnell", including Mr. Trump's main, power abusing enabler.
19
As a 67 year old Moderate Democrat who has voted in every election since 1972, I don't like any of these candidates, Bidden or O'Rourke. Please tell me:
1. With Medicare for All who's going to pay for it and what's going to happen to all the people working at health insurance companies when they lose their jobs?
2. Why does college have to be free? You can go to college and graduate without piling on debt. It just might not be the college experience you want.
3. I like Google, Amazon and to a degree Facebook. Their creators had good ideas, found funding and built huge fortunes by hard work. This principal is what makes this country better than any other. Unless they do something illegal why punish them? And success thru competition isn't a crime.
I've seen this liberal enthusiasm before. It's what gave Nixon a win in 72 and I have a feeling it will reelect Trump.
8
@Pecos Bill Followed by 3 losses in the next 4. Yeah, I remember that too. I remember McGovern supporting college students booing Hubert Humphrey a an event in Philly in 72.
1
@Pecos Bill Not all have those positions. Klobachar is not for MFA. There are more centrist candidates.
1
Here’s what worries me:
A candidate in a presidential election was holding campaign rallies and was getting tens of thousands of people to turn out for them. When his campaign advisers told him that polls showed he was way behind, he scoffed and said he knew that the polls were wrong. For proof, he told them, just look at my rallies!
When election night came, he sat looking at the polls coming in and couldn’t believe it.
He was racking up the worst Presidential election loss in American history.
The candidate, former Vice President George McGovern would later say “I believed that any reasonable Democrat would defeat President Nixon. I now think that no one could have defeated him in 1972.”
So…
I worry that we as Democrats are, just as we’ve did more than once, telling ourselves that our opponent will be easy to beat because no one likes him. That we have all this energy, that all these people are turning up at rallies.
We should all be frightened of losing, of what losing would mean for the future of our country, and we should remain frightened.
Let that fear make us all work VERY hard, top keep working, to not stop working until election day. And above all else, let us remember that the chance of beating an Presidential incumbent, even one like Trump, remains one of the most difficult and rarely accomplished tasks in American politics.
Let’s get to work.
17
CNN reported that Trump has told 9,014 lies since he has been in the WH. Note to Trump backers - please take note of this statistic. I'm sure the WaPo has the same lie count.
5
The enthusiasm and idealism are great, but in the end the Democrats need to pick a candidate who can win Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Pennsylvania and maybe Florida or lose.
4
Anyone who thinks Dems have to walk a tightrope between progressive policies and conservative policies to win over Independent voters is being overly cautious. Look at the voter turnout in 2018, the highest it's been for a midterm in decades. And Democrats grabbed over 40 seats to flip the House.
We Independent voters (who make up 40% of the electorate now) know full well that things like "free tuition for all" and "Medicare for all" make for nice campaign slogans, but are unrealistic promises (just like "a chicken in every pot" from the early part of the 20th century).
Doesn't matter. The goal is to remove Trump and his corrupt administration and cronies from office, and to move the "obstructionist in chief" Mitch McConnell to the back bench and out of the way (if not kick him out of office altogether).
Independent voters are pretty smart, which is why they dropped their party affiliations in the first place and shucked off the herd mentality. Independents want a government that works, and works for everyone. And Independents are horrified at what's happening to this country.
Remember - Trump won by only about 77,000 votes across three key states. It will only require a little more voter enthusiasm in those states to flip the White House back. One of them (Pennsylvania) elected four Democrat women to the House last year for the first time in history!
20
Every commenter here should remember this.
Trump is in the White House because he got about 77,000 more votes than Hillary in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Michigan. Out of almost 137,000,000 votes cast in 2016.
That's a margin of about .0056 %. Hardly a mandate.
The key to the Dems winning in 2020 is to increase voter turnout, particularly among African-Americans whose voting rate in 2016 was down almost 7 percentage points from 2012, and among Independents, some of who didn't vote because of a dislike of both Clinton and Trump.
Any candidate who can re-energize these two groups will ensure a Democrat wins the White House next fall. Simple as that.
19
All the indications are that there will be a recession in 2020. That is, before the election . That would mean that anyone running against Trump - should he actually run - would easily beat him.
7
Every rally for Bernie just increases Trump's chances of getting reelected. Bernie has nothing to offer as far as real accomplishments but he knows how to whip up unrealistic expectations in young voters looking for easy solutions. The Republicans elected a demagogue that waved his arms and made similar promises. Bernie and Trump are symbols of what is wrong with the election process in the US.
8
ATTENTION ALL DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATES: Do not ignore ANY part of this country. Meet EVERYBODY. Talk to people in towns and hamlets that never expected to see you. LISTEN to those people. Don’t talk AT THEM.
LISTEN. Ask clarifying questions - don’t just wait to speak.
Take nothing for granted. Do the work. LISTEN LISTEN LISTEN. LEARN ABOUT US. HEAR US. Don’t ignore us because you’re uncomfortable. You need to be uncomfortable. And we need to feel like you’re listening, hearing, learning and then acting on what we’ve shared with you.
14
I think that were approaching a time when many long time people in politics are leaving. I think it's time for a president who is part of the fresh wave of people in government.
4
This reporting indicates that the best hope in 2020 is not the candidate the Democrats nominate but the anti Trump vote, which may be the strongest reason for a large turn out. In my opinion, Trump won in 2016 primarily because the voters turned against the dynastic Clinton and that she came across as a hectoring female. Hopefully, this time the anti Trump vote will prove at least as strong.
5
I hope all these enthusiastic crowds are made up of individuals registered to vote!! Getting high numbers of voters registered should be the refrain of every single speech we hear, regardless of who says it.
6
Before they put too much political capital into a "Beat Trump" campaign, rather than "Reject Undemocratic Republicanism," Dem leaders should consider the ultimate "Trumpian" deal within the next year that could change everything: "I just made a HUGE deal where Mike Pence agreed to take the incredibly undesirable job of President and I will be free to return to my first love--making money--without any unpardonable offenses hanging over my head or my family. New offices will be in the Moscow Trump Tower. Good luck on extradition NY!. I never get tired of winning!"
1
What I find interesting is that Trump continues to use the same divisive campaign strategy he used in 2016. This despite polling and 2018 election results. In my view, he has never done anything sustantial in order to reach out to anyone but those in his base. In fact, since he got elected, he has done the opposite.
Trump's voters appear to back him no matter how many lies he tells, no matter how many blunders he makes. So, why doesn't he make some gesture to include others, as well? Is he delusional to the point that he believes he can win no matter what he does or says?
6
It you think the politicians are extreme, you should talk with their constituents. Paraphrasing Bill Moyers, this is the key to 2020: it's not about candidates but about the majority of potential voters who are beyond disgusted with celebrity candidates and demanding real change.
Self-satisfied Democratic party elites are being shoved out of the way when they obsess merely about replacing celebrity Trump with another celebrity promising to return to "normal." Times up!
7
Currently the Democrats are a disjointed bunch of rabble rousers and nothing more. The focus on Omar's comments about Israel and AIPAC should not have been the focus of the party. However the Republicans will smear the Democrats with any negative label that appeals to Trump's base. Lost in the anti semitic nonsense is fact that Omar is speaking out about US getting blindly dragged into a war with Iran by people devoted to Israel and Saudi Arabia, Both countries have less than stellar leaders who have shown autocratic and inhumane tendencies. That is the real issue Omar is correct about in her comments but Democrats are unfortunately reacting solely to GOP accusations of anti-semitism and not the issue of a US-Israeli-Saudi alliance.
Democrats seem clueless on foreign policy issues and will eventually have to decide if being tied at the hip with Israel and Saudi Arabia is a winning platform.
2
So if the enthusiastic crowds are turning out to meet the candidates with less name recognition, why does this article - like so much of the just-ramping-up 2020 coverage - focus on already-ran Sanders? Why not report on those running to bring fresh, practical solutions to the issues propelling citizen/voter engagement? Inordinate attention to Sanders, Booker, Harris, etc truncates the selection process. Jay Inslee has been working on serious policy solutions to environmental degradation and renewable energy for decades - and the crowds in Iowa are responding. Why not use the column inches to report more broadly on Inslee and other viable contenders at these early stages?
5
To reference this movement as "Beat Trump!" might be counterproductive. To Mr. Trump this would be empowering and even exciting resulting in an even stronger fight on his part for a second term in office. Better that the opposition party promote itself as having the strongest candidate, the most political acumen, the best knowledge of the Constitution, the greatest understanding of the will of the people. They must be proactive in a positive way that also implies a readiness to lead and to solve the concerns of the citizenry. Is this concept too old-fashioned or has the world moved too far away from these notions?
9
@Marie
Right on! If he leads with major economic reform and steers clear of Trump bashing and social justice evangelism he'll clean up.
5
The most heartening thing I read in this was Booker campaigning in South Carolina. Note to Bernie Sanders: quit the huge rallies in places where you already have a hard-core and vast base, and go to the places (in the South) where you didn't fare well in the primaries last time around. This article claims that so far "events are also doubling as shows of force." Heaven only knows if this is in fact true (I suspect it isn't), but my fond hope is that this time around Bernie can display such "shows of force" in those parts of the U.S. that were not so in his last campaign -- it all depends on his and his team and if they've learned from their past failures.
6
@ChristopherP
Whaaat? He did not fail. Look what he did and was up against. I think what they did learn though was how to break through the establishment control of the primary process, like weakening the influence of Superdelegates. IMO, it would be fully unwise, at this point, to go where his support is weakest (though perhaps eventually needed), as this would be a gift to a hostile media. If we open up the primaries (to new democrats, independents, etc.) Bernie should win pretty easily - as he would have in 2016.
2
2016 made me stop listening to anyone who thinks they know for certain what will happen in the future. Everyone who says, "If the Democrats pick (fill in the blank), they are handing the country to Trump" is not worth listening to any more. These people have no more clue than anyone else. Let the primaries proceed, let the candidates do their best to win voters, and we will all see what happens. In 2020 I will vote for whoever the Democratic candidate is, regardless.
45
@Allison WELL SAID!
1
@Allison . . . this is how, despite over 60% of Republicans actively disliking him, the GOP ended up running The Donald in 2016. How'd THAT work out for us?
Thanks AGAIN, Debbie, for cramming down our throats the one contender Trump had the best chance of defeating.
1
@Allison
Yep. That is my plan as well.
Regardless of who gets nominated, voting for a Democrat sends a clear message that the current Republican platform is unsustainable.
The Democratic nominee may not be everything I want, but he or she will, without a doubt, be better than what we currently have.
3
The early primaries burn out candidates with too much focus on small states that don't reflect most of America. Voters have to be C Span junkies to catch even a glimpse of the candidates and their positions.
9
I quote Chris Arcos: "Do not allow your enthusiasm to go ahead of your ability".
Remember this time in 2016? The Trump campaign launching June 16? All the way to the day up to election day? Please raise your hand if you believed Trump was going to win.
Trump's best case scenario is running against Bernie Sanders. He started his campaign against Sanders the day of the State of the Union. He clearly used Venezuela's communist dictatorship to describe social democracy.
Being that the only discipline that Trump really masters is marketing, the one and only thing I grant him the genius strike, I would not be surprised that candidates that campaign for health care and education for all will be demonized and their government plans will be weaponized.
In the McCarthyism country, an incumbent president who demonstrated great ability bending the law has a clear path to a 2020 victory. Enthusiasm is not enough
4
We remain ever curious as to whom the oligarchs will choose for the rabble to vote for.
15
@vishmael
Sure. But for them, it's still ABB... anybody but Bernie.
3
I'm delighted Bernie has again re-joined the democratic party so he can deign to be our nominee. But he will be a punching bag for Trump.
He has never built a coalition, passed meaningful legislation in the Senate or run anything bigger than his mouth. (Burlington is a town with a population of 3 city blocks in Manhattan). It's great that 19 year olds and senior citizens go to his rallies, but he will cost us the election in 2020.
Biden, Klobuchar, Beto will all be much better candidates. Even Harris gives me hope. But Bernie will be a disaster. And then we will have 4 more years of the Orange-haired mad man.
23
Bernie has enthusiastic support. He is the FDR Democrat and that’s who I will vote for.
3
The GOP and Trump are experts at distraction, out right lies presenting them as truth, playing to issues that unifying their base, but are not relevant to their economic interests or just out right trashing others. Chants of 'lock her up' or email distractions meant little to policy discussions or even the trustworthiness of Hillary Clinton who presented policies that would have helped everyone including people shouting 'Lock her Up''. I am sure Trump has a folder on each one of of the Democratic candidates spelling out their weaknesses. Democrats must be prepared to support the winner of our primaries as they support their favorite right now. We can not afford to be distracted for a moment as Trump and the GOP seeks to divide us once again which has begun already with the Omar debate.
17
Why I would not vote for Kamala Harris:
Her announcement in 2004, within three days of the murder of a police officer, that she would not seek the death penalty (just because the person who shot him was black). The death penalty, she believed, discriminated against poor and black people and would not deter more killing.
But then, as California’s attorney general, Ms. Harris appealed a judge’s decision declaring the state’s death penalty law unconstitutional.
She developed a reputation for caution, protecting the status quo and shrinking from decisions on contentious issues.
Once in office, she declined to take positions on ultimately successful ballot initiatives intended to reduce prison populations — one expanding opportunities for parole, the other reducing many nonviolent felonies to misdemeanors.
She repeatedly sided with prosecutors accused of misconduct, and challenged judges who ruled against them.
Kamala Harris is just another political hack. She is not a “progressive” or a liberal. She is a republicanized Democratic prosecutor who cares only about power. She will never make a good leader because she aspires to political power over people. Kamala Harris cares about herself, her political rise and her image, and not the people of this country. A power hungry individual who will not fight for the poor and middle-class that makes up the vast majority of the people of our country but are the Americans who are constantly forgotten.
6
@David Parchert: Well, in that case your vote will go to the Republican candidate in its entirety or half of it, if Kamala Harris wins the Democratic nomination. I’d vote for the Democratic candidate, whoever it will be. Republicans will most certainly not be better than any Democrat for the forgotten Americans, or any American who is not part of the 1%.
2
And tons of left and right coast people no doubt turned out for R Kelly and Michael Jackson concerts too. There's no accounting for the ignorance of the coastal masses.
3
The passion we are seeing, if sustained, in eliminating the disgrace befallen on these United States -the abusive ignoramus Trump- is a welcome balsam for our current ills. Just don't forget McConnell, the one that makes it all possible, by his complicity in this governmental misrule. Voting them out has never been more important...to save the republic.
13
Within hours of being elected CA senator, Democrats were drooling over her "demographic allure", viewing it as the asset that would propel her to the presidency in 2020.
I don't care if Harris slept her way into top tier, big money CA politics.
I do care that her core values are modest, easily trumped by political expediency, as demonstrated by her unimpressive record as CA Attorney General.
CA Democratic politics has long been unseemly close to PG&E.
The NYT article "The Political Playbook of a Bankrupt CA Utility" https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/23/us/pge-california-politics.html reveals that Harris played a role in the lax oversight of PG&E that resulted in the disastrous CA fires.
As a Senator she voted yes for her first hugely increased defense budget, when time came to vote for her second defense budget she realized that a no vote was more politically expedient.
A President needs more than "demographic allure".
5
The only way any of the old white Democrat guys can hope to win is with a woman of color as VP. That way the stage is nicely set up to deliver the first woman of color to the oval office as the old white guy won't seek re-election. Of course the Democrats don't have a very good track record of VPs going on to win the big chair.
Should the nominee be a woman (or worse yet a woman of color, gasp!) it would likely mobilize every bigot to come out of the cracks to vote for He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.
Sad that these are the party politics calculations that go on in modern day, isn't it? This is why Saunders was undermined in favor of HRC. The Democrats' calculations won with Obama and they figured America was now ready for a woman, not Saunders. The ballot offers only the anointed party picks.
Candidates shouldn't be elected solely in anger to defeat the current POTUS or as atonement for certain genders or races or cultures having been brushed aside.
Candidates should be elected because of substance that can see the broad plan for getting Americans back on their feet and repair the damage that has tarnished our role in the world. Those who stand too far either side of the center can't do that. We need balance, moderation and leadership. Four years of left-wing won't correct 4 years of right-wing.
Maybe its time to ignore the 'don't throw your vote away' nay-sayers and seriously get behind a third party candidate - the ones excluded from TV debates and media coverage.
2
@B Dawson: If part of the Democratic electorate gets behind a third party candidate, this will ensure four more years of Trump. But maybe the Republicans will be smart and nominate Nikki Haley and/or Mitt Romney.
The Dems should quote a lot of Karl Marx. That'll help their chances in 2020.
4
"Powered by an almost desperate yearning to oust President Trump ...."
Nah, I'd say people are desperate.Really, really desperate. Going to take a long time, too, to purge the stain.
10
Democrats need a "battle cry" for 2020!
Obama had "Yes we can"
Trump had the nefarious "Lock her up"
I propose "VOTE HIM OUT" whenever Trump is mentioned at a rally.
27
@............
A prescription for loss, IMO.
We don't need to stoop to that... and the sooner we dismount from our high horses and concede that his supporters were and are NOT deplorable (in general) - the better.
3
It is critically important that Democrats ensure their supporters are able to vote. There should be huge voter registration initiatives going on now, ensuring that everyone can vote despite the Republican voter suppression strategy. Make sure everyone has a photo id with an address on it, make sure that there will be enough polling places so people can reach them, lobby employers to give employees time off to vote, educate voters to ask for a vacation day, and more. Sue to enjoin Republican efforts to eliminate whole categories of people from voting.
NOW is the time for this to take place, not a month or two before the election.
11
The country isn't made up of just college grads. The Democrats need to drill down on what the mid-west folks need and want too. If not it's going to be another coastal race and that's not good enough. It's time to get down in the trenches with everyday folks and win their hearts.
3
Medicare for All and free college education (or vocational school), benefits that citizens of every other first world nation have enjoyed for decades.
I assure you, midWesterners send their children to college. Midwesterners also go bankrupt paying medical bills that their expensive for profit health insurance won’t.
2
I’m a charter member of the Anyone But Trump Club. Then came the 2016 election and my resulting political/spiritual breakdown. Still in recovery, my passion for the club’s mission has only grown over the past two and a half years. The list of Democrats I’ve been asked to select from as Trump’s replacement is truly impressive. Any of them would be a big improvement over the clumsy ego monster now in the Oval Office. I’m delighted with the field and their focus on ideas and solutions to America’s many challenges. I agree with the general strategy that Trump’s his own worst campaign ad and that ‘he who should not be named’ should be allowed to continue to spew ugliness and fawning jingoism. It’s a waste of time to respond to every weird tweet. Most thinking Americans can see through his lies and are repelled by what they hear and see. The Democrats’ job is to offer us a rational, positive alternative to Trump’s dystopian leadership style that doesn’t promise upheaval as much as a return to something approaching “normalcy.” I’m exhausted by the near-constant violation of political norms and institutional values in our government since Trump’s election. I want him out at any cost though I’m not certain I want an extremely progressive version of Trump in his place. However, regardless of which Democrat candidate for President gets the nomination, they will get my full support. Anyone - but Trump. If that means voting “lefter” than I’m inclined, so be it.
11
Wonderful news! This is auspicious indeed re whoever is the nominee. These candidates have many advantages...intelligence, experience, ethics, and no past baggage. But the most revealing of these enthusiastic turnouts reflects back on us, the weary, frightened, and angry American. We read about and hear of the MAGA Trump supporters. They are loud, they are vociferous. But it ends there. They have nothing to offer our society other than disdain for what is equal and just. Their leader exemplifies, indeed, is that hate. We are so much better than this present political Trumpian paradigm. I am regaining that faith and hope for my country that I almost lost.
10
All these people who are turning out for the rallies and town halls of the Democratic presidential hopefuls are most likely going to vote Democrat anyway in the general election, regardless of who the candidate is. It would have been interesting to ask people interviewed for this article how they voted in the last presidential election.
Frankly speaking, the votes of these people are worthless. They are not going to swing elections. The same applies to hardcore Republicans. Independents are the ones that are going to determine how this election plays out. I have yet to see an article showing how these candidates fare with independents, especially with their progressive policies. As an independent who has voted for both Republican and Democratic candidates, I have yet to see a Democratic candidate who speaks to me and won't bankrupt the nation with their policies.
Democrats may want to beat Trump, but without appealing to independents and those who are fiscally conservative in areas away from the coastal cities, this is going to remain a dream.
1
@PK TRUMPS TAX CUTS WERE 10 TRILLION DOLLARS. MEDICARE FOR ALL MAYBE 2 TRILLION. BUT THERE ARE A LOT OF ANCILLARY SAVINGS IN MEDICARE FOR ALL.
ALL YOU REALLY NEED TO KNOW IS ALL DEVELOPED COUNTRIES HAVE THE PROGRAMS DEMOCRATS ARE SUGGESTING. IS THEIR SOME REASON THAT WE NEED TO BE DIFFERENT? DO WE CARE SO LITTLE ABOUT OUR PEOPLE?
1
Reading some self-proclaimed independents’ posts I am reminded of a quote from a British wag whose name escapes me. The original was a comment upon the unrealistically high expectations American women had of their husbands in the era the observation was first published. Paraphrased and adapted to the present political conversation; America’s independent voters expect a level of perfection from their candidates that British women only expect from their butlers.
The brutal fact is, Mr. or Mrs. Independent, that while your vote is important, no viable candidate is going to alienate the mass of dedicated partisan voters to woo your gourmet political tastes. In the end, you’re going to vote for Trump - an imperfect liberal/progressive - a third party outlier - or you can stay home and sulk because no one would give you everything you want. This last option sounds like the m.o. of our current President.
That old saying, "any change would be an improvement" sure seems applicable when we look at something as despicable as trump and/or his supporters.
For me, the greatest difficulty is finding a candidate to support in the current field of so many well qualified candidates.
I do hope trump is the republican candidate for 2020. He should easily carry Alabama and Missiiissipi.
4
@Pete Kantor
Mr. Kantor, you may not have intended your last two lines to be a rallying cry for the left-leaning voters in the Deeply Red Deep South, but I find your words to be very useful. You wrote, "I do hope trump is the republican candidate for 2020. He should easily carry Alabama and Mississippi."
I plan to vote for ANY Democratic candidate for president in 2020, even though my vote will not count if trump [I like the way you didn't capitalize his name] wins the popular vote count. Therefore, I would get behind any move to eliminate the Electoral College. Not gonna happen, I know, but impossible things begin with a dream.
2
I am ready to VOTE today, but I have to wait 605 more days.
May America endure the wait and the damage til then!
There will be much to restore, repair, and build!
9
I think our country needs to get to the bottom of Russia and possible other countries interfering in our elections. I doubt that Trump had a chance to win the Presidency in 2016 without Putin and Russia’s interference.
9
Inslee is the only candidate (so far) that is basing his campaign on the Single Most Important issue we face as a species - namely, the degradation of our Only Home.
In lieu of Inslee, I'll still vote for any Yellow Dog the (D)s nominate.
4
As I recall, the field was very crowded with Republicans just before the 2016 presidential election, and we had to endure listening to all kinds of horrors, before the Repubs settled on one of the worst of them, Donald Trump. So I expect that whoever builds the same kind of Trumpist momentum will take the Democratic primary. The Republicans voted for someone who completely upended their party and wound up surprising everyone in the country by sneaking off with the Electoral College. So don't be surprised if Democrats do something similar. I myself am looking forward with relish to the end of centrist, blue dog Dems. Let Republicans who don't like Trump work on reforming their own party, not co-opting the Democrats.
3
nobody is pushing as effetively for a Democratic nominee as President Trump himself. he may be the best thing that has happened o the Democratic Party in decades. even this early, enthusiasm is high and building. Democats almost always benefit from a strong turnout, and President Trump has made himself into a dream opponent, an odious villain many are eager to see vanquished. meanwhile, it remains to be seen if Trump will fimish out his current term to run again, or if he will leave office prematurely one way or another, changing the whole landscape.
1
The Democratic presidential field is growing like 1989's "field of dreams". We're one year out from the primaries, and already the Dem contenders for the nomination are mobbing the White House gates. Meanwhile, Trump, who has been holding 2020 rallies on our dime since he won the 2016 election, is spraying the U.S. landscape with his lies, promises, and bullying.
No Presidential press conferences now. Sarah Sanders isn't being kicked around by the "Fake News" gaggle in the White House Press Room any longer. Trump's 6th Communications Director (a Fox News star) resigned this week. He shouts "Say it!" at reporters on the White House lawn.
Like the 31 flavours of Baskin-Robbins ice-cream from 1953, we have too many flavors of Democrats to choose from -- progressives, lefties, center-lefties, libertarians, Green New Dealers, Starbuckians. One good one (like Obama) will do the trick. We can only hope that overflow crowds for Democratic candidates these days will translate into the restoration of our democracy, and the downfall of Trump next year.
1
What worries me is affluent Democrats who have decided they can live with Trump as long as they are making good money, and don't want to risk ending the gravy train by electing someone else. The inability of voters to see past their own wallets is what could kill all the "beat Trump" fervor once it comes time to go to the polls, but I sure hope I'm proven wrong.
4
@Mark Lebow you do injustice to centrists when you think they only vote their wallets. I have reasoned and deeply seated objections to socialism. I believe that a radical left candidate like Sanders will wreak havoc on the economy, destabilize the world order, undermine the political culture of the US, and will ultimately be a greater disaster than Trump. Prove me wrong, if you can, but history is on my side. So while I abhor Trump, I will not vote for a socialist out of the sense of civic responsibility, not to preserve my stock portfolio.
The hypnotized masses are finally waking up to what Bernie, Noam Chomsky, Chris Hedges and many others have been saying for years: our country has been taken over by a soft coup of monied elites and complicit politicians and bureaucrats, and it's time to have a progressive renaissance that brings back the spirit of FDR and his progressive hero vice president Henry Wallace.
We've tried Clinton corporate centrism and endured utterly corrupt GOP presidents and congresses who've lied us into war, and who defend the most debauched, greedy, selfish, dishonest, dangerous grifter ever to win the presidency.
Sometimes I view America as the Idiocracy movie come true, but if more and more Americans are backing true progressive populists like Bernie, Tulsi Gabbard, AOC, and Warren, I feel a little hope for this country again.
One other thing: Trump should be impeached and imprisoned long before 2020. We will likely be facing candidate Mike "Handmaid's Tale" Pence in the 2020 contest.
7
The importance of getting rid of Trump overwhelms everything else. The damage inflicted on our government magnifies the anguish citizens suffer daily, force fed lies, travesties and incompetence at a level which horrifies our allies world wide.
Democracy's survival is in play.
6
@notfit
What anguish? The economy is great. The stock market is great, etc.
2
@M: The economy and the stock market are only great for the well-to-do. For the majority of Americans, not so much...
1
Anguish over children in cages. People without health care. People exhausted from working two low wage jobs.
2
Despite all the static in the air, one thing is very clear: the democrats will take another walloping. They have no leaders, no one to admire and follow, no agenda beyond defeating trump, nothing of any great attraction. They also do not understand is that most Americans vote in terms of who looks sweetest, who is tallest, who has a simple name, who is a white male, and who will see that they have a decent income and reasonable health care. All other matters are just pap for the masses. Issues? I guess they look nice in the "news." Think of it this way: if issues were of importance, trump would not be president. Lying and cheating don't matter at all. Such qualities are signs of a real man.
All I can say is Mueller better release his report pretty soon to make it clear impeachment is off the table and get that behind us, otherwise building an entire 2020 presidential campaign on a “beat Trump” drumbeat just proves how little faith Democrats had in the Mueller investigation in the first place and were just after chasing wild hares.
1
There is one thing that scares me a lot. If Bernie is not the nominee, his childish. selfish backers will do what they did in 2016, indirectly to help Trump win. Bernie will again promise the moon and his backers will eat it all up. But sensible people within the party as well as independents might be turned off. Along the way, he will poison people's minds about the Dem party and the other Dem candidates, thus doing Trump's work for him. I m concerned that either way, the path for Trump's reelection is getting smoother. Yes, I do expect, though not asking, to get a reaction from one or more of those rabid Bernie Bros. I used to admire Bernie - long ago when he cared more about issues and how they affects your average Joe, than his own political ambitions!
3
Promise to the moon”? You mean advocating for free health care and college education—available to citizens of every other first world nation for decades? That’s a “promise to the moon”?
2
Ocasio-Cortez, Omar and Bernie just cause damage on the left. The opposition our president faces is not unified. Therefore Mr. Trump will be re-elected (I would his odds at 100%). I bet the Muller report will be an disappointment.
3
So you think most Americans are fine with paying high monthly premiums, high copays (mine just doubled) and prescriptions that cost 4 times what our Canadian neighbors pay.
You think most Americans are happy to see their children graduate college with high interest student debt that will take a lifetime to discharge.
2
One thing about this upcoming election is the number of people running for office. Too many? I look at it this way---all of these applicants have to be covered by the news media, and that gives less time to Donald Trump, unlike the 2016 election, where reporters followed Trump around like puppies looking for a treat.
39
@Pat, for Trump, no news is good news. It might do just the opposite.
@Pat
Yea, it's almost like Trump has bought them all the air time, now that there's such a crowd, all we're gonna hear until the general is about health care, environment and infrastructure. I'm very hopeful
2
@Pat Yes, Trump was entertaining, and got lots of media attention, even from Morning Joe. And, I swear, this is why so many voted for him, he was different and fun and entertaining, even if he had no business running for office.
3
This tries unsuccessfully to downplay Bernie's clear advantage but you can't miss it. It's great that all the candidates are getting good crowds and that everyone is fired up to beat Trump.
23
Voter knowledge of the real issues is a must and registration is key. We have outstanding people who are running some we know very well and some we will understand there policies from attending town hall meeting where voter interaction is key.
. Either these candidates know the issues or they don’t and it will be evident soon enough.
Bernie, Elizabeth Warren have a well honed message, holding policy discussions at their town hall meetings with an understanding of how to get the legislative side done.
In two months if Ms Harris keeps making missteps she might not be a good choice to carry the country on her shoulders Mr. Booker should realize this is fight for democracy and understand if you have nothing to offer you need to stand on the sidelines. Mr. Bloomberg realized that his policies of Stop and Frisk are not going to be warmly received by the rest of the country so he dropped out. It’s early and in a short period of time
We will get to understand the candidates policies and make educated decisions based on facts and legislative votes.
We want the best candidate to move the country forward and with that candidate we will beat the traitor who is currently sitting in the Oval Office at the White House.
We need to get off of social media for our news and grow up. This is a fight for democracy and we all know that we won’t have a country if this GOP gets four more years. For a country in disarray look at England and think about the serious issues facing us.
14
@Tony Which candidates are outstanding? I missed the memo on this. Booker. No. Harris? Many see her as too fake. Bloomberg didnt run because he's not intersectional enough. There's no support for a white billionaire. I like Biden but his age and ethnic background will be a liability as well. Warren? She used to be a moderate democrat. No she's posing as a leftist and it doesnt work for her. And I really dont see an 80 year old socialist winning the election...so who are you talking about?
I assume by diversity, you mean race, sexual orientation, gender, etc. and not thought, experience and motivation. The field of announced democratic candidates for 2020 are all speaking the same language - higher taxes in the trillions, undocumented benefits, free everything, less freedom of speech, more failing education (30% of students don't graduate), homeless rights to camp on the streets, breaking up companies that pay employees who pay the taxes, and forgiving the individual, while blaming the 'man.' The democratic base, as well as the Trump base is all set, but what about the independents like myself who are looking to policy that is 'fair' to everyone, including those who pay taxes, build community and want to know what the politicians are really planning to do, not political mumbo jumbo. In that regard, the field of democrats is not diverse, but just more of the same.
6
@Smartpicker
The party is changing and that transition will take a generation. Independents can be an important part of the end result if they look forward with hope in the younger generation instead of looking back at times past.
4
Guy de Maupassant famously said that “ in the land of the blind he one eyed man is King” .We are definitely in the Trump land of the blind but we need to be warned not to be too eager to find the one/eyed king or queen.So far there is an abundance of men and women who feel,that their talents can improve the governance of this country.Our caution is to,stop, look and listen and not follow the most famous name, to look for the glitzy candidate.Neve before has it been more important for reflection and serious concern for the direction of our country.This is not a contest for the successor to Trump, it is the election of the next leader of the free world.
18
@Janet Michael
Joe BIden/Beto O'Rourke would be an unbeatable team!
take comfort in the fact that any one of the Democratic candidates, so far, would be an immeasurably better president than Trump. in that sense, if we can just make it to the election and not undermine Democratic chances with too much intraparty squabbling, the Democrats can build significantly on 2016's popular vote majority and actually win the election.
2
@Janet Michael
De Maupassent may have SAID it (as have you) in the 16th Century, but the quote is attributed to Desiderius Erasmus in 1500, who was in turn paraphrasing a biblical proverb from the Third or Fourth Century.
I can’t begin to express my elation for the massive movements to have Trump tossed out of office. I can only hope and pray that the momentum continues up to and throughout the election.
I truly hope that whoever wins the primary will garner the support of all Democrats, whether or not their candidate won or not.
The only reason Trump is sitting in the White House is because of the Democratic voters themselves. We have nobody to blame but ourselves. Way to many of us who backed Bernie in 2016 turned their backs on the Democratic Party and refused to vote for Hillary and it is mostly because of Bernie people that Trump sits in power dismantling our democracy and destroying our planet. We allowed this to happen and we need to take responsibility for that and ensure that whoever wins the primary wins the White House.
I really didn’t want Hillary to win, but she got my vote only because I knew what we would be in store for if Trump won, and all my fears became reality. I backed the devil I knew, the lesser of two evils.
The biggest problem was the younger voters, whom like children, stomped their feet, held their breath, and hid in their rooms because they didn’t get their way. That cannot happen again. So please, even if your candidate doesn’t come out on top, whether you feel it was rigged or not, get out and vote and make sure Trump isn’t allowed four more years to reek havoc upon our country and democracy.
And the 60% of our citizens that don’t vote; just do it!
26
@David Parchert,
Over 80% of Sanders base voted for HRC.
A larger number than her PUMA's did for Pres. O. previously.
10% of his voters were Republicans of leaning. They were never going to vote for HRC much less the DNC.
Less than 5% of Sanders primary voters didn't vote.
Please stop with this smearing trope.
It is not uniting, it is dividing.
Unless that is your intention of course...
7
Are you suggesting that of course progressives are not going to get their candidate.
1
The question is who is interested in the primaries. Is it people that correspond to the larger electorate., or people that are fringe.
With the large number of candidates you can see a rerun of republican 2015, where a disgruntled and energized fringe 30% will get you the nomination. And some of the candidates are making some unrealistic comments in front of crowds that are up there with build the wall.
A loopy candidate will also put in play the swing district house sears.
The key failures in 2016 was lack or turnout for African Americans and the switch of the white working class vote. Obama thread the needle in that he was a non-intersectional minority politician.
2
The faces in this Times photograph are the future citizens of Our nation. I am a parent of 3 children who are Millennials, a generation who are growing up in the age of social media. They along with their friends are angry and fired up.
I have been privy to many conversations and these young adults are paying close attention and are critical thinkers. They are acutely aware that the 2020 election sets a course to a future they will live. I have heard little conversations that speak to a loyalty of party line. Loyalty will been found in the candidate.
djt's seat in office has sparked a wakeup, a revolution of sorts. This is what happens to our democracy when one sits on the side-lines.
I am optimistic that 2020 will be the beginning of the long journey bringing our democracy back to the middle.
24
@mary
Let's hope it isn't that long of a journey!
4
The Democratic Party better heed the lessons, anger and messaging delivered in 2016. I'm a life long democrat in my late 50's and spent 30 plus years watching "The Party of The People" sail away from the working middle class of the U.S.. Prior to Trump, Democrats occupied the White House for sixteen of the last twenty-four years. What happened?
They need to come back to their roots and stop pandering to the professional classes (lawyers, financiers, doctors, engineers, etc.) and start listening to the working and middle class people who they turned their backs on for three or more decades and deliver on their promises and serve their constituents.
“If the Democratic Party got out there and deployed a left version of populism to counter Trump’s fake version, it would win. The right-wing populism, it’s a fake. It’s an imitation of a past left-wing movement. The problem is that the party of the left isn’t interested in being the party of the left.”
- Thomas Frank, Author of Listen Liberal (2016)
If this doesn't change, or they can't understand this simple strategy, they will be doomed yet again.
14
Please don't repeat your 2016 trivialization of Bernie's campaign.
You cite Bernie's "ability to muster supporters," and follow it up by neglecting to mention the number at Navy Pier (more than 12,500), while being quite specific about the numbers at the smaller venues.
8
@SYMBA
Frankly, "Bernie" is too old.
3
"it's almost like everybody is on the same team! " Apparently this sentiment was expressed somewhat incredulously. Guess what: the Democrats had darn well better be on the same team, and vote with overwhelming numbers against all Republicans in 2020, no matter who may emerge as the nominee.
16
Which candidate will best Trump in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota?
8
@Ken Wynne a candidate who campaigns there, for a start.
4
Ken Wynne, many could. Trumps popularity on all those states as his tariff war have hurt farmers and many manufacturers in those states. The GM plant in Lordtown just closed as have others,
4
I read that Trump is going to cut back on domestic spending and put more money into military spending. Is that growing the economy? I think not.
14
LOL. "packing into gymnasiums, churches and exhibition halls" with 1000 - 2000 people. Trump must be soooo worried. Bernie Sanders is the only Democrat who can consistently pull a large crowd. I remember Hilary could barely get more than 500 people to most of her rallies.
7
Bernie's moment passed two years ago. It ain't comin' back.
Harris, Klobuchar and the rest are carbon copies of each other.
Except that Warren found a way to capture that same annoying shrill Hillary-quality in her voice, when bellowing. At least Harris is nice to look at.
Booker is the only one who distinguishes himself from the crowd. And he shows it, with guts like co-sponsoring the Israel anti-boycott bill when not one other candidate will. He is the closest thing we can get to an Obama 2.0. Although, in my opinion, he is more measured and centrist than Obama.
3
I love Bernie Sanders, but he is too old to run for Office of the President of the United States.
He will be 79 if get sworn in on January 20, 2020 and 83 when his first term is finished.
Age should not a disqualiying factor, but I would save him from the strain, worries and stress of being a president.
There is only one person who did not become grey when he was “president”, but orange.
6
@Dr. Vulcan
Ageism is one of the most pernicious, pervasive forms of prejudice.
In intelligent cultures, older people are revered for their wisdom and experience.
You may live long enough to experience ageism.
You won't like it. So don't practice it now against the most FDR-like presidential candidate since FDR!!!
4
It's the conservative, religious black vote in the South that Bernie needs to cajole. If early polls show him turning that around I think he could be the Democratic nominee. To be honest I'd like him to run as a Green Party Candidate or Independent or social Democrat.....IMHO the DNC too centrist.
2
jazzme2, you do realize, if Bernie ran as a Green Party candidate, Trump would be re-elected. Why would you want someone to continue in office who gets rid of necessary environmental regulations, fail to address climate change and support polluters?
1
Let's see what happens in the special elections on Tuesday because I'm very nervous. I've been tracking results and they haven't been good. Maybe Dems are just focused on the Presidency and that's why the Republicans have been stronger on the state level.
Yes, Dems are energized but do you really think this is going unnoticed by Republicans? The GOP will point this out to their base to energize them. The big problem for the Dems is who to nominate. If it's a moderate like Biden, I think he will beat Trump. If it's a progressive Dem who supports clamping down on free enterprise, reparations, Medicare for all, unlimited and unrestricted immigration, etc., my sense is that even someone like Trump will win. It will be interesting to see how the GOP reacts. They may move, for example, to increase the measly $10K cap on local/property tax deductions. The other thing to remember is that the popular vote doesn't count. Our system uses the Electoral College system, like it or not.
9
Like you, I believe that Joe Biden, despite the knock on his age, is the Democrat most likely to beat Trump in 2020. The main focus of the Democratic Party should be voting Trump out of office. Former Senator Biden has broad middle class support and comes across as a genuine person.
2
Even without Trump's extreme ways (and their easy and exploitable vilification), we would see this surge in grass-roots activity and left-leaning candidates and issues. We can thank Bernie Sanders and his movement for removing the stultifying effects of Superdelegates which, insidiously, present us 'party insider' candidates and their 'establishment' issues - that the people have little need for these days. Just do the thought experiment of what would be going on RIGHT NOW if garnering (and revealing) Superdelegate backing was still part of the process.
8
And just think what the candidates and issues would be like if the democratic primaries/caucuses were OPEN to newly registered Democrats, Independents, etc.! 'Build it (right) and they will come'. The primary PROCESS is everything. Forget about the general election - that only reduces the options from 2 to 1! Because of the all-important SEQUENCE of primary contests (whose results should, in theory, be INDEPENDENT from one another) AND the extra-low voter participation in primaries, the American president is selected by just a handful of party faithful from both parties. Maybe if the process wasn't so profoundly CORRUPT voter participation in both the primaries and general election would be much higher. Of course, mainstream media will not address this because they make and break our presidents for us - and nobody would give up power like this... freely.
2
Democrat's take over of the Congress was mainly the result of capping the state tax deduction to $10, 000. If Republicans had at least put this cap at $20,000, they probably would have won in many suburban seats. Many people who live in suburbs are paying higher tax as a result. Most of these people are Republicans and middle class. At the same time many people living in large cities are paying lower tax and they are democrats. If Republicans had listened to leaders like Peter King, they would have most likely kept their majority. They may have to reconsider this cap to regain the people's trust.
3
It was also the threat of having their health insurance taken away. That has emerged as one of the biggest issues for voters, and Republicans have no answer to it.
10
If Trump is not defeated in 2020, Americans will begin to feel what third world country life is like.
Dictatorship has long been Trump’s goal.
Only the very foolish believe otherwise.
66
@Carmine Cantu First of all, to become a dictator in the mold of other country leaders, Trump would have to modify the constitution so that he can serve more than 2 terms. I seriously doubt that is going to happen. If Trump decides to take the military route and maintain power, he is going to quickly find himself behind bars because the Army takes its oath to defend the constitution very seriously.
If a progressive Democratic candidate wins the presidency, then you will begin to feel what a third world country like is like as this person spends money we don't have and bankrupts our nation.
Partisans like you are going to vote for a Democrat no matter what. Your vote doesn't really count in the general election - it's the independents that are open to both sides that will determine who wins.
1
Although I have reservations about Amy K. I think Bernie should pick her as his running mate. Her attributes would solve the geographical, ageism, gender, and racial concerns of those living in the Mid-West.
10
@Phil M But Bernie's still too old.
6
@Phil M Bernie is an old-time, old timer social democrat. Fine, but not now. Not a solid enough executive to lead the country.
Let the Big Blue Wave of 2020 pick one of the young guns with better skills.
3
@Phil M
Amy K is too much the usual Democratic hawk on foreign policy. Sadly, I think it would be a good insurance policy for Bernie to have a running mate with a similar, less militaristic foreign policy. That would make it less easy for the Foreign Policy "deep state"/CIA to off Bernie like they did JFK.
I suggest Congressman Ro Khanna CA as a running mate.
Again, sadly, the woman candidates all are instinctively hawkish; perhaps because they evolved in a mostly male political arena, they felt it necessary to show strength meant being very pro using military force.
2
And meanwhile, Donald Trump is working hard to demonize the democrats. That may turn out to be his "deplorables" mistake!
13
There are too many Democratic candidates already. Democrats need to put forth Elizabeth Warren or Bernie Sanders (though his age is a concern). These others like Booker and Harris are marginal candidates. If Biden gets into the race then he’s an interesting possibility. The truth is, the Democrats could probably run a mannequin and win at this point.
6
@Mike L -- I am sorry to see that you underestimate the simple and wrong-headed thinking of much of the country. Most will never vote for anyone who uses the word social in any way other than with the word media. Biden will not get people to vote and, I hate to say this, but with the electoral college, you need to ensure that the states that can swing (and there are not that many) are your sole targets. Not places like NY or CA as that is a waste of effort. If the Democratic Party puts up someone who is middle of the road and does NOT make such a big deal out off all the Republican dog whistles, beating Trump is easy, as you say, but if you put up a smart East-Coaster (as we both agree we are as are Bernie and Liz), we could lose this again. And then you would wonder why and I would know why.
2
@Mike L Warren and Sanders are divisive candidates across the country. Not good executive skills. Booker and Harris are mainstream Democrats with much political skill and much in accomplishments.
1
Look at it this way: all the candidates have to be covered, thus giving less space and video time to Bald Donnie.
1
Hate is a powerful political motivator, and Democrats are not unfamiliar with its utility.
6
I have my fingers crossed, so to speak. The need for cohesion and detail about the way forward looks murky at the moment. The oponent has many tricks up his sleeve as if anyone needs to finally know this. Hope full but watching for touble from the master distractor in chief.
10
For god sake NYT’s Tusi Gabbard interview her give her some air time. The people will love her.
1
@Independent voter She visited Bashir Assad a couple of years ago and, on Morning Joe recently, explained that she was opposed to U.S. being in Syria and couldn't understand, really, why we're there...…..
1
Bernie and Biden should just go away
5
As a Trump supporter I can tell you that when I watch his speeches and hear what he has to say...Trump knows the language of conservatives, he understands their worldview and speaks directly to the heart of the issues, and they love him for it. Trump supporters are for the most part not on the fence...they are fully behind him. I dont see a candidate in the Democrat field who has this kind of universal, broad support. Just as one commenter here lamented..."...lets hope the NY Times covers Bernie's campaign accurately this time around", Trump supporters feel the same about the media's coverage of Trump. They don't see Trump as perfect, but for them, its about conservative values of Classic Liberalism, not the man who may or may not be an imperfect messenger. We obviously dont buy into the anti Trump fever any more than you bought into the anti Obama fever. We also dont see the Democrat platform as particularly strong. So, when you strip away the ad hominum attacks on the man, whats left?
5
Let’s start with intelligent care for the environment, concern for human rights, reproductive rights, and access to quality medical care. That’s what’s left, and more. Oh, and let’s throw in concern for the earth we are leaving to our children.
I never voted D but I am onboard with getting rid of Trump and my reasons are simple. Here in farm country, soybean sales are down 95% entirely due to Trump's "easy to win" tariff war.
The subsidy help farmers needed were delayed because of Trump's 35 day shutdown.
The European economy is slowing thx to Trump's disruption of 70 years of a solid alliance.
China's economy is slowing due to Trump's poorly thought out tariffs.
Income inequality is worse due to Trump's tax cuts for the wealthy.
Despite his boasts, Trump has accomplished nothing with NK.
Intellectual property theft by China is no longer even discussed because Trump finally recognizes that China is not going to change their state owned model.
Climate Change is being ignored, in fact, Trump's policies are exacerbating the problem. Cohen's depiction of the WH makes the Trump organization look like organized crime.
There's talk of Trump rejecting the next election if he loses.
I didn't serve 5 years in the USMC to stand idly by and watch this liar wreck my country.
225
@Paul C They're not Trump's policies, they're Republican policies. I am surprised that you've never voted D. It's time you do.
13
Excellent comments, well put. Trump is a clear and present danger to the US and the world. Thanks.
20
@ Paul C
Thank you for a robust comment that highlights Trump’s economic malpractice. Voting for Democratic candidates is the only practical corrective available to repair the genuine damage caused to Iowa and the rest of America by Trump and his GOP enablers. Should sanity not be restored to the governing of our country by ousting Trump in 2020 then the future state of the nation will be grim.
17
Trump must be defeated soundly in 2020, as must every Republican senator. The latter won't happen, of course, but how close can we get them to zero? A lot closer with a presidential candidate who espouses the appropriate elements of both progressivism and mainstream capitalism as well as having visible intelligence and charisma. This means sorting out the field quickly and then unifying behind the candidates who can win. Truly, the future of democracy in America is at stake. The continuation of trumpism is both unthinkable and terrifying.
26
I’m excited for the large, BRILLIANT Democratic field of candidates! Sure it will be an intense debate, battle and there will be hurt feelings! We are human! However, America is watching!
Reminding folks, that IF you enjoy clean water, if you enjoy clean air, if you or your parents have Social Security, Medicare, Voting Rights, Civil Rights, the ACA “Obamacare” .....Medicaid, you’re laid a Minimum Wage at $15 which you have in all Blue States...THANK the Democrats!
One more thing....don’t fall prey to the Republicans strategy of fear, lies, hate and division!
Ask yourselves, what have the Republicans done for America?! Zip.
36
Meanwhile, Trump supporters and newly converts to him because of the left turn Democrats have taken know best to KEEP QUIET and tell no one!!
Because even saying you like a single thing Trump has done one is liable to be punched in the face by a self-proclaimed, "open-minded" liberal.
So here it is: the NYTimes setting another stage for a "[Democrat Nominee] Can't Lose" series of articles featuring polling data as proof.
This Clinton voter has seen this before.
6
I literally laughed out loud that The NY Times — notorious at this point for its single-minded hatred of Bernie — tried to denigrate his rallies as “showy” and, somehow, evocative of Trump.
Get that: His rallies are “showy.” :)
14
@Thomas D. Yes, there is a lot less to Bernie than one imagines.
1
@Thomas D.
Bernie Sanders supporters would do well to drop the victim posturing, which actually is evocative of Trump. It isn't an attractive quality in a candidate and it makes his supporters appear childish.
7
The NYT should not get ahead of itself, remember Hillary?
14
This remarkably biased analysis lacks an obvious key element: How will Democrats make up for all the Jewish voters they lost this week in the antisemitism debacle they suffered because of Rep. Omar?
4
Trump acts like a mobster boss. The democrats are wimps. There is a strong possibility that Trump will be re-elected. We are
3
Here we go again. If to didn't learn in 2016, the NYT is again championing Democrats over purely objective reporting (this story....and questioning why Paul Manafort received only four years is for the opinion section, not the main story reporting on the actual sentence). Of course Democrats have always poured out in great numbers (the big D.C. rally after Trump's election) but it means nothing. Unless they circle around Joe Biden, the only candidate who can beat Trump, it will be another four years of Trumpville. Would be nice if the NYT reported on this objectively and accurately, instead of favoring a single party.
5
Press reports that over hype growing “fervor” remind me too much of 2016 when the poll and press hype started predicting Hillary’s victory. Sorry, to quote the Kingston Trio, “I don’t trust anybody very much.“
6
Folks let's do whatever it takes ! On the other hand we're Democrats and we always seem to be capable of "snatching defeat from the jaws of victory" ......
7
And they are going to lose to Trump and Republicans
2
Complete puff piece. No substance, just like all of these candidates. Constant droning on about diversity, as if it matters. The left wanted an old white guy in 2016 and hated the woman. So tell me what diversity gets you.
The left now openly despises centrist Democrats. Well that’s just fine with me. Good luck winning in 2020 without us. If Harris, Sanders or Pocahontas is the nominee, I’m voting third party. Just remember, liberals, you were the ones insisting nobody should have any allegiance to the party.
4
I understand your frustration, but that still doesn’t justify voting for a gangster (which a third party vote would be, in effect) over someone sane. The latter would still give us a president more responsive to the electorate than this madman.
8
What a pipe dream. There isn’t a single one that Trump couldn’t wipe up the floor with—with only one exception Beto because of his youth and good looks. Otherwise he’s a loser, too.
3
@Edward you are way out there, Trump is going to likely be indicted at some point and won't be running at all. It's time to clean out "the swamp" of crooks currently inhabiting the White House. Let's see, how many have already been indicted?
4
@Edward
If voters were interested in (youth and) good looks, we would not have Trump.
6
Why should Bernie Sanders trust the DNC not to submarine him again in 2020 ? Just like when Lucy says to Charlie Brown "C'mon Charlie Brown you come up and kick the football and I promise not to pull it out this time." The DNC knows that a Socialist could never win in a National election so they will take care of Bernie again only they won't be using E mails this time.
2
@P McGrath Bernie got 13 million votes starting from zero name recognition combined with the heavy DNC thumb on the scale and negligible coverage and then wholly negative coverage. It ill be the same this time. What a sweet victory it will be if the voters elect him anyway. It will be an additional victory for the DNC and the mainstream press to be proven irrelevant. Then maybe they'll represent the electorate instead of just thinking they do.
3
Dump Trump and Make America Great Again.
14
Trump will be re-elected.
3
Turnout will indeed be very high in the primaries and general. However, I would caution that not all states allow for paper ballots and those should be the fact based back up for every election. WIth a president who has not done anything to make our elections safer, we have to do it at the state and local level.
9
I would hate to be a spoiler but this article does nothing more then send a straw in the wind to a trump re-election. So many candidates no clear winner equals the nomination of somebody who will be to niche oriented to break into greater support. the left is not the majority in this country and thanks to modern media it isn't as easy to tread back a central theme after a race to see who can be the most far left. Not everybody will take it as nicely as Bernie did when they find out their own party is knifing against them. A no collusion Mueller report and lots of inaction in congress compiled with a problematic democratic candidate spells another trump win to me.
7
That’s what you’re hoping good luck with that buddy
2
@Tony, Bernie Sanders has no "party" to "knife against them." There are two parties, the GOP and the Democratic Party. Agree, though, with your comment about the fear of a no collusion Mueller report and the fractured Congress; the spectre of a Trump win does loom.
3
While I know that Donald Trump is unqualified to be president, and that he is a despicable person, I believe that he is likely to be re-elected.
Why?
The Trump "base" will find Sanders and Warren to be too far 'left'. And, tbh, I do think Sanders is too old to win.
They will dismiss Booker and Harris, because, obviously, they are qualified and also they are not white.
Fox News will give them reasons to dismiss any other Democratic candidate.
1
The "Trump base" is about 25% of the electorate and would not vote for any Democrat. Changing the message to appeal to them would be a big mistake
20
@Karen Lee
Barack Obama won the presidency in the 21st century. And he easily won reelection. Democrats and MSM really do have to get beyond accusing a large swath of the American electorate of racism, misogyny, and homophobia; it does nothing to advance the cause. Booker and Harris will not win the nomination because their politics are too far left; not because of the color of their skin.
1
@Karen LeeThe Trump base is too small to re-elect the president. Democrats will win if they retain the coalition that won them the House on 2016.
5
Turnout is very important, but it is not the only factor to consider. The effect of the media on political opinion is huge. In order for the opposition to win decisively, Republican voters must be courted. Many Trump supporters want what Dems do, but they believe the media messages they are fed by right wing news. The current narrative from the Republican message machine is that Trump is delivering on his promises, and nothing else matters, even breaking the law. Trump appealed to justice starved middle class voters by promising a few easy things. Mussolini did this in Italy, and even today, there are those Italians who comment on how he "fixed the roads and got the trains to run on time". In reality, he did neither, and this is the parallel. He did, however, have great messaging. Messages become facts, rather than facts turning into messages. Propaganda outlets are effective and it is high time that some major news networks are called out on their slanted, fact light reporting. A 13 candidate Democratic field is confusing, and in reality, the message contained within that field is that Dems are confused and have no leadership. That is also true. The depth of Republican control is also a problem. It is no longer just Trump who may affect the next election, it is McConnell, a right wing Supreme Court, and various billionaires. Turnout cannot be the only plan, because this is not 2016.
8
Yes, there is a fervor among many Democrats to beat Trump and it would be a huge mistake to underestimate the chance that Sanders will emerge as the nominee in a crowded field. At the end of the day is the general election. I recall the fervor of the McGovern campaign at a huge rally at Madison Square Garden with Peter, Paul and Mary and Simon and Garfunkel. I was convinced we could not lose to Nixon. We did and badly. Democrats should cull the field quickly and unite or Trump could win. His tactics are predictable. The enemy will be socialism, not Bernie.
9
The D party is setting itself up to lose. We already have one controversy splitting the party to have a member of the party apologize. It seems that's common. GOP members say outrageous things daily and never do they apologize. Then you have fractured loyalties already surfacing for the 2020 election and it's just March of 2019. What will that look like by November of 2020? As usual, the D party has no one candidate that the whole party will support and unite behind, nor do they have a simple message they can repeat daily 24/7. 90% of GOP voters are united behind DT, and pick your simple message from MAGA to "Build the wall." DT reads articles like this and is sitting with a Big Mac in his hand and smiling. The D party will never get it. Never.
6
Trump lost the 2016 nationwide popular vote by nearly 3 million votes and won the electoral college by what amounted to less than an NFL stadium full of voters in three states. This in spite of running against a highly qualified but deeply flawed candidate that was forced upon voters by the DNC.
I'm looking forward to a primary season where Democrats have a real vetting process instead of a coronation.
14
President Trump will be re-elected if the Democratic nominee fails to do two things:
1) Explain and counter everything that Trump has done. Issue by issue.
2) Present a credible case and plan to get 270 Electoral votes.
Any deviation or excursions on issues that won’t matter in a general election will be a waste. Primary candidates should avoid one upmanship with each other and instead focus how they will achieve points 1 and 2. Whoever does that most persuasively and best should be the nominee. Then everyone must unite around the nominee, even if your candidate didn’t make it.
6
As an independent I view this race as paramount. A race of good vs evil. And a last chance to save this nation. Never have I seen such a blatant Shanghai of the Constitution. The republicans have indeed lost their minds. I will vote against the republicans until they get there act back together and remove McConnell , Grassley , Graham and of course Trump. The Republican Party has lost its moral compass by electing Trump, lost its fiscal responsibility by tax give sways to the rich. They lie to the American people they cheat the American people and steal from the American people! My father fought for this country my son and daughter did too and now my youngest two are in this great military. They don’t need to be sent to guard the boarder, this is a lie. Indeed I will vote for who ever is running against Trump to save my country and then hopefully the ship can be corrected. I’m no liberal or conservative I’m an American who knows what’s right and what’s wrong.
25
an army of mediocre candidates without platform but merely to beat the other team?
1
Bernie had almost 29,000 people turn out when he announced his run. And thousands more at each subsequent rally. #Bernie2020!
5
@Veda Bernie is too.old. His charisma and speeches do not turn back the clock. The eighth decade for every human offers few health advantages. Dementia, stroke, loss of agility, loss of hearing and sight are a fact of life, near death, for a man or woman approaching that time of life. We need health, vigor, sharpness for a president.
1
Mr. Ember would be best served by getting a writing position on the SCI/FI Channel. Great imagination!
I fear Trump will have so many helping him cheat and his supporters turning a blind eye that he could win .I still ask why Ivanka received a patent from China for voting machines?? Maybe a small thing to some , but every opportunity from Trump to win will be exploited , even if dishonest , maybe especially if dishonest.
We must all vote that want our Country back .
9
If the Democratic Party is smart they will narrow their field to only a few that appeal to both young and old, male and female, poor and rich and independents.
Good luck with that, but this is what will be needed to beat the Liar in Chief.
4
Trump's consistent 40-plus-percentage favorability seems to have energized his opposition, resulting in a 60/40 split the Democrats are hoping to take into the 2020 election.
And they'll need it. Trump's lies, spins, and exaggerations don't seem to deter his followers, they just don't, primarily those who are dogged at getting the vote out, and primarily those opposed to a Women's Right to Chose.
These individuals flock to rallies, book signings, and town-hall gatherings. And Trump's handlers are savvy to the phenomenon, staging his rallies with optics showing Trump at the podium surrounded by placard carrying supporters encouraging him no matter how much he lies and spins. The result is Trump scoring massive credibility points and it's contagious, fueling his base over and over again.
The Democrats will have a tough time come 2020 if they don't get the vote out in record numbers like they di to get Obama elected.
18
Just a couple of observations from "across the pond..."
Bernie Sanders, while clearly an accomplished campaigner, is too old realistically. By the end of a second term he would be 87. Look at your own close relatives at around this age and ask yourself are they able to handle the workload now that they could handle ten or twenty years ago? I look at my own parents and the answer is definitively no. His presence is distorting the campaign at this stage. He should be rallying for the party - but not actually standing for office.
And when the result comes, it will be decided overwhelmingly by people who are not attending these rallies - people who are undecided, but who mostly last time voted for Trump. For these people, the Democrat candidate needs to overcome one of their biggest taboos and get themselves a realistic policy on immigration - one that cannot be so easily be derided by Trump - one that is definitively not "open borders".
18
It looks like the Democrats are facing another Deja-vue moment again, Millennials flocking to Bernie-rallies, bent on getting their student loans absolved and rekindling all that talk about free college educations at the state level.
Well, we saw how that turned out when Sanders didn't get the nod in 2016, his supporters thumbing their noses and not showing up at the polls.
Sanders' support is going to have to become more hard-edged this time around or we'll have four more years of Trump. Remember, Trump's likley to get indicted but avoiding jail-time only while in office.
13
@merc,
Why the lie?
Over 80% of Sanders voters pulled for HRC. More than her PUMA's did for Pres. O. previously.
10% went to Trump; those that were Republican 'n leaning.
5+% went to Stein.
This constant smear of Sanders and his voters isn't winning any of them to your cause.
Or is that the idea?!
Sanders will bring in his voters. It is a question of what will the moderate 'n centrist et al do.
If...if he gets the nod.
Maybe less accusation and disingenuousness and a little more uniting eh?!
Or is that not desired?!
2
Dems be careful here. More than likely they won't be running against Trump. The Republicans will switch gears and nominate an upstanding, reasonable-sounding, moderate to appeal to moderate Repubs, Independents, and "centrist" Democrats, & continue to push the corporate/gorge the Rich policies. Democrats must be Democrats and run for the New Deal and progressive values the country needs and against the toxic Republican agenda. Republican lite won't cut it.
9
I think I speak for a lot of Americans who will vote for whomever the Democratic Party nominates, not because we agree with any specific policies, but because the incumbent is a clear danger to humanity.
22
If I had a crystal ball that could tell me how the economy will be doing in November 2020, I could tell you right now if Donald Trump will be reelected president. Most of the Democrats who have announced their candidacy to date appeal to people who were not going to vote for Trump anyway. The question for the voters that really matter is whether or not they are better off in November 2020 compared to November 2016. Time will tell.
4
To be sure, women will decide this election, as they were instrumental in giving the Democrats the House in 2018. But I really hope Democrats don’t lose touch with the pragmatic notion that we must nominate someone who can beat Trump. Sanders fees he can win but can Sanders win back the Reagan Democrats and suburban white women?
My Republican friends fear most a ticket of Joe Biden and Amy Klobuchar. Why? Because those two candidates can speak to people in middle America. But Klobuchar’s former staffers insist she is a monster and Biden is considered yesterday’s news.
But that’s what I mean about the Democrats. We can be such purists sometimes while the Republicans are pragmatists who elect people you wouldn’t invite to dinner, but those people make laws that affect our lives. That’s because elections matter.
13
It, of course, isn't just Trump. It's the memory of Paul Ryan's acquiescence, it's the 'Get off my lawn' we just got from Mitch McConnell, it's the 'Never Roe' state legislatures across the country, and even a little bit of Vladimir Putin. It's the six White House Communications Directors, the Zinke flag over the Interior Department and, of course, the Wall that Trump is finishing. It's even the challenge that Trump has issued to Mexicans to dare to 'break into' the U.S. When immigrants hear "You can't come in." The first thing they want to do is 'break in'. So hopefully the Trump Administration will keep up their antics and go down to defeat.
3
@Richard Mclaughlin
Here's another one: lots of people still seem to think the Trump Tax Bill is what the Republicans call a "tax cut", when in fact it is a deep reach into middle class pockets that takes away standard tax deductions on house property, and it will increase taxes for most (not the rich) AFTER November 3, 2020.
5
I belong to the ABT movement, it stands for Anyone But Trump. I'm neither a Democrat or Republican, I'm an American who loves my country and in my wildest dreams I could never imagine a more disgusting/despicable person being the president that Trump has shown to be.
35
Well....I guess you can certainly thank Trump for one thing can't you? He's done something a bit unexpected (at the beginning) hasn't he? He's done something that the political cognoscenti have complained about for years. There has been any number of conversations and political discourse out of their ranks about the lack of focus in politics, the tendency towards apathy in voting, by the Majority. He certainly seems to have woken that beast up, hasn't he? And for that we should all give thanks.
Now.....now that all that energy is awake and swirling.....what it needs is focus, FOCUS. It needs an individual, a creed, to concentrate it so to execute a plan that removes the source of its awakening from all the privileged seats of Power currently occupied all across the land. Starting with the POTUS on down.
John~
American Net'Zen
1
I'm sure that the "Beat Trump" fervor is encouraging; it should be. But much of the electorate is also listening to Democrats like Omar and AOC and are not enthusiastic. Democrats like that could just be the best asset that Trump (or any other Republican if Trump can't run) could have. They scare and offend many people with Omar's anti-Israel remarks and AOC's support of the anti-Amazon crowd that chased out 15,000 good jobs from NYC. I'm sure the Trumpsters are thinking " Keep it up girls; you are the gift that will keep on giving". You can be certain that voters will be reminded of this.
5
It is encouraging to see the diversity of the Democrats newly minted congressional members and it is exciting to see the outpouring and enthusiasm of citizens who are aghast and disgusted at the lies, bullying, incompetence and wanton destruction of the ideals and principles this country stands for. But, unless the party comes together and decides on some type of middle-ground economic platform addressing the folks who still lack jobs, real vocational retraining programs and legitimate tax reform, then the same result and frightening fate looms - four more years of a corrupt, mean-spirited, destructive and incompetent stint with a POTUS who will continue to drag this country into the swamp he has created.
4
Democratic enthusiasm reminds me of an article I once read in defense of not voting; when everything is going fairly well, there's no need for change. It's when things are going wrong that it's time for new lawmakers and new leadership and voting is the only way to get it.
2
There is no doubt Trump fatigue is extreme. Almost two thirds of the country believes he has committed crimes. Even most Republicans I know want to see the back of him.
6
@John Your experience certainly differs from mine. Every Republican I know is talking about the vibrant economy & how they've benefited from the tax cuts. If Trump is on the ballot, they'll vote for him again.
2
As with 2018, register, help others to register, vote and help others to vote.
Then do it again in 2021, 2022, etc.
Fixing our current mess will take a decade or more. It will require items all up and down the ballot.
8
That's great, but the only competitive candidate against Trump is Joe Biden and I'm not sure he'd win the DNC Nomination for president. The rest are too darn liberal or just outright socialist. Everyone forgets the millions of white middle class union workers who are reliably democratic voters but were completely ignored by Hillary Clinton who turned her attention to undocumented immigrants and LGBTQ groups. That's how Trump won and how he will win again, if Joe Biden is not the nominee. People living in NYC or LA often forget that the true majority of the party's Democratic voters are moderates, not hard left liberals.
From the Washington Post;
A recent Harvard-Harris poll (see Table 95) finds that the percentage of Democrats who think of themselves as “Obama Democrats” (49 percent) or “moderate Democrats” (38 percent) vastly exceeds those who think of themselves as “progressive Democrats" (22 percent) or “Democratic socialist” (13 percent)
4
Will these young idealists sit out the election (again) in 2020 as they did in 2016 when the Dem nominee didn't ignite their fervor? Their absence at the voting booth, along with many minority voters, are as responsible for putting Trump in place as Trump voters.
Or will they learn from their 2016 mistake?
Do they truly understand Bernie Sanders' platform?
Will their movement carry over into putting Dems in place in state legislatures and other congressional seats?
Excuse me if I am somewhat cynical about assuming a 'yes' to the above questions.
2
Unemployment is down to 3.8%. Virtually everyone who is employable and wants a job can get one. In fact, in order to attract more talented new employees, employers must offer better compensation or benefits to those already employed. This is driving up wages.
Barring a complete economic collapse, Trump is a shoo in. In my memory, I do not recall any other candidate who has tried so hard to deliver on his past campaign promises.
Other than the sizzle of public appearances, exactly what are these candidates offering, other than the fact that they are not Trump? That was Hillary's strategy last time, and she lost.
8
You’re living in a bubble. People hate Trump and with good reason. He did not win the popular vote last time, he will not win this time, and we will win the three states – Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania – that put this miscreant in the White House.
The economy is healthy because it has been recovering from the recession since 2008. That is thanks to Barack Obama’s stimulus, as well as the rest of Obama’s economic policies. The tax break for millionaires and trade regulations imposed by the Donald Trump are slowing the economy, and that will be more evident by 2020.
Trump’s 40% plus approval rating includes Republicans who would vote for a rat in a red suit if it meant money for the wealthy, or anti-choice evangelicalism. It also includes white working class racists and bigot’s - and those three groups - the rich, evangelicals, and white working-class bigots and racists - are the Republicans’ base constituency.
Fortunately, they are outnumbered. That is why voter suppression is the Republicans’ new gospel.
Trump is in the White House due demographics. Three states with low Democratic turnout tipped the balance. We won’t make that mistake again.
5
@RCT
Under our Constitutional system, the nationwide popular vote does not determine a winner. In 2016, the Clinton margin of victory in California was greater than the entire nationwide popular vote difference. Which means, exclude California, and Clinton lost the popular vote in the remaining 49 states.
California is never contested in recent Presidential elections because it automatically goes into the Democratic column. So neither party expends resources to campaign there.
As for living in a bubble, anyone who is under-educated and unskilled, or a minority, or has a non-violent criminal record, can now find employment. If you, or no one you know, fits into that category, you are in the bubble.
2
I hope these primary voters don't doom us by nominating that garrulous joker Joe Biden, the one who loves his Republican cronies in the Senate.
7
Yes it is true, however it is traditional whenever somebody in the WH is either term limited out or unpopular like Trump when you get a surge of candidates.
This is good but don't ask for what you want, you may get it.
Democrats do not nominate an identity obsessed, social engineering east coast liberal who never met a war, Wall Street banker, trade agreement I did not like, elect me president because I am a woman candidate like Hillary.
If you do, you are more likely than not to give the ego maniac demagogue Trump another four yrs.
Nominate a moderate democrat male, female, black or white who does not run on identity obsession and campaigns for progressive things that most Americans are for like universal health care, infrastructure spending, rust belt job losses etc.
4
I might actually vote for a yellow dog to beat Trump.
The yellow dog presumably wouldn't have a twitter account.
5
@Ann, I would vote for a yellow Labrador Retriever.
Better demeanor, and more intelligent, than Donald Trump.
3
I will not vote for Senator Sanders because he is a Russian asset. Doesn't show his taxes, same as Traitor Trump, and won't vote for sanctions against our permanent enemy. Sanders is the ENEMY WITHIN.
2
“Hopefully the excitement continues and we’re able to get a good, viable candidate that can beat Trump.”
Yes definitely, let the excitement continue; although, rather hope the Democrats are able to get a good, viable candidate that will win regardless of the GOP candidate, as it's hoped the Republicans will "fire" Trump in their primaries.
There will be a lot more at stake than just "beating Trump." Being able to restore what was lost international as well as getting Congress to address our many domestic issues, the next president will need to be so much more than just able to "beat Trump."
2
One of the myriad reasons Hillary lost in 2016 was because Bernie didn’t quit until very late in the primary, took a long time to declare support for her, and never energized his base sufficiently to get his voters to the polls to vote for her. Bernie fell in love with himself way too much on the campaign trail.
My fear is that this happens in 2020 not only with Bernie but with many of the other Democratic ego-trippers who’ve declared for the presidency. It is imperative that all candidates NOT do a Bernie; they must not eat each other alive on the campaign trail, must drop out when their numbers reveal the writing on the wall for their campaigns, and they must immediately and wholeheartedly do everything they can to support the eventual Democratic nominee.
The Republicans will be out playing every dirty trick in their arsenal to suppress the Democratic vote, so voters supporting Democratic candidates must unify behind a single candidate and maximize their efforts to get to the polls. No Jill Stein, no Bill Weld or other third-party candidates, please!
Vote pragmatically in 2020 or face four more years of Trump and his disastrous policies.
16
@ALB,
Over 80% of his base voted for HRC.
A larger number than Hillary's PUMA's did for Pres. O. previously.
It was HRC's job to get out the vote.
Sanders did over 40 rallies for Clinton during that election. More than she did herself. Including the swing states she didn't even campaign in. That SHE lost.
As for length of campaign...Sanders stayed in just as long as Clinton did with Obama. Just as long as all the previous primary campaigns. Quit with this old smearing trope.
You aren't helping your or our side.
Quit sniping and try uniting.
2
A Warren or Sanders nomination means 4 more years of Trump: Unthinkable.
3
If the Republicans witness the repeat of the midterms even in the 2020 contest they should blame only Trump and their own docility and even meek submission to him.
1
Without the right candidate a flawless campaign strategy and execution that can win certain purple states, none of it matters. Dems are their own worst enemy.
5
Sidney Ember wants to spread the "Bernie Glow" to Centrist candidates. Good luck with that.
Bernie has 600,000 people pledging monthly amounts to his campaign.
His first week's haul was $10 million.
And the "flood the field" ploy tried by the DNC in NYC's Public Advocates Race failed spectacularly last week.
31 individual entrants. 17 on the ballot. DNC funding 2 lavishly.
The result? The feared Progressive Jumaane Williams blew everybody and their corporate moola away.
Come after Bernie as hard as you want. So far, I like his chances.
6
As always- but most especially at this moment in our history- It's the Supreme Court Stupid. Let RBG put out the word that she intends to retire after next year's SCOTUS session and there'll be absolutely no excuse for Democrats to sit this out regardless of who gets the nomination.
2
I have so little faith in the unfocussed Democratic leadership that I think Trump will beat them again, using bribery, voter suppression, ballot stuffing, crooked judges, lying media and excellent propaganda. He's a hardball criminal with backing by greedy billionaires and criminals in Congress, while the pink-hatted Dems are scatterbrained, nice and naive, committing venial sins to compete with GOP mortal sins, high crimes and gangsterism. The GOP is zeroed in on money and power, while the Dems are watching the squirrels, thinking about new gun laws and low cost abortions. Except for Bernie.
2
Beating Trump is a laudable goal, of course. But a close second is to get rid of this sickeningly pro-rich, spineless Senate. CorpoRat McConnell should not be allowed to further damage this country. Many candidates (Beto, Hick, Abrams, Bullock) would better serve the country by running for the Senate.
5
All of this enthusiasm will not matter if and when Trump is beaten in 2020 and refuses to vacate and cries foul of a rigged vote.
We all know he wont go quietly - because he’s got SDNY investigations and indictments waiting for him. He knows as long as he can keep the presidency he’s safe.
3
Trump's success has made him an even bigger target for his opponents. Nothing incites like success when it comes to partisanship, and Trump has quite a few successes under his belt.
Democrats have to convince everyone that the economy isn't strong, that there's no immigration crisis and their leftwing isn't really crazy. They have their work cut out for them.
3
Success is in the eye of the beholder.
1
@AACNY, when offering a free, endless all you can eat buffet, no convincing is often necessary. Personally, I’d taste first before I dove into the bowl of creme brûlée.
If the Congressional Democrats will just not give away our advantage, we should be able to send this gallant fellow back to golf and cheeseburgers in Florida forever. And if Mr. Schultz becomes a fly in the ointment, well. . . Dunkin has better coffee anyway.
2
What a wonderful time to be a Democrat, or at least a non-republican, able to browse a menu of intelligent, motivated, and service oriented candidates. On the other side, you all have to keep making pathetic excuses for the narcissist-in-chief who will never get the hang of public service because it just ain't in him.
3
Not “an almost desperate yearning to oust Trump.” There is nothing almost about it. We are desperate, period, to oust the selfish ignorant fool who puts us all in great danger and who is ruining our sweet democracy.
7
Do the math. Clinton won the popular vote by 3 million votes. Trump won by narrow margins in Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and bu a larger margin in Florida. That is why he is sitting in the White House, disgracing our country and committing daily constitutional violations.
The white working class Trump voters will never abandon him. He is the symbol of their tribal solidarity and, as he himself has said, could commit a public murder and retain their support. They are not our constituency. Forget them. They are lost.
Democrats need to win a few thousand additional
votes in Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania and hold the states that Clinton won in 2016. Florida is on its way to being a red state. I have relatives in Florida that supported Trump, and there is no way that most will abandon him. Trump is stupid and inept, as they are thought to be by elites, and so makes them feel visible and powerful. Florida also recently rejected a qualified African-American gubernatorial candidate for a white racist. Florida is gone.
Yet Democrats do not have a steep hill to climb. A victory in three battleground states and a turn out similar to 2016 in the rest of the nation would defeat the monster in the White House and his corrupt family.
When I volunteered for Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012, we volunteers were told that the key to victory was voter turn out. Democrats did not do that effectively in 2016. That is our challenge in 2020.
11
The 2020 presidential election will be decided in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin and (maybe) Arizona and Florida. What matters is what the voter in those states think, not what the Democratic elites on the coasts think.
1
Democrats need a person who can a) win the rust belt states AND b) turn out millennial voters AND c) inspire the base. Each of the currently declared candidates can do one or two of these. Pete Buttigieg can do all three.
The Blue Wave begins to gather itself again. Nice.
5
I'm really sorry Sherrod Brown withdrew.
6
Yeah, I saw the same fervor in 2016 which ended on Nov. 4th with the election of Donald Trump (he goes straight to the voters' heart.
EXPECT A REPEAT IN 2020 NOV. 3RD
1
NY Times with some more subtle disdain and smear towards Sanders once again. They purposefully mention the big size of Harris's crowd and then mention the SMALLEST of Bernies last like 100 rallies, which most get like 20-30k especially in 2016 and the Brooklyn one i think had 15k.
3
One more supermajority turnout for 2020.
We need to win and put an end to Gerrymandering, voter suppression, and Citizens United; we need as a country to move towards greener, renewable energy sources so we can once again lead the planet towards sustainability.
71
It is amazing that the same voices who told us Bernie was too left in 2016, who used every means to make sure centrist Hillary Clinton was the nominee, are now telling us daily that a centrist is needed to beat Trump. Some are also saying we need a centrist to attract the 36% of hard core Trump voters.
Democrats will never sway the most ardent Trump supporters, but the large majority of the country is made up of Americans who can't wait to see the Trump family busy focusing on grifting in the private sector again. (too much to hope that they all wind up in jail?) We need candidates who are strong,have vision, and are prepared to clean house like never before. This is a time for bold action and bold thinking- that is what will win in 2020.
105
Warren cannot win (and I live in Boston!), and neither can Bernie (why is he running?) or Beto (why is he running?) because of a simple and sad truth: they will never sell their message beyond the base.
They are beloved by their own.
Certainly there are points in their message (not very different), that really need to be taken seriously.
But these are most certainly the wrong messengers to reach what the Democrats need to win.
I have family and friends down South and in the Middle and I can assure you— these names are a non-starter with more folks that the D’s need than can be ignored.
30
@Greg You win. Your points are the crucial points. When and how can we get voters to think beyond their fave sons and daughters? Candidates in their later years are toxic to new policies, even though their rallies and charisma are vibrant. People are charmed now - but they need to be thinking of the next decade.
1
I'm paying attention early too, and there are many strong candidates. But the strongest IMO is Pete Buttigieg. A 37 year old mayor seems like a non-starter, right? But check out his interviews with Pod Save America and Preet Bharara.
Having said that, I'll vote for whoever ends up with the nominee.
81
@Susan
I am hugely impressed by him too. Would love for him to have a crack at it. Check him out with Colbert as well. Deeply impressive man, wise beyond his years, the opposite of the old ignorant fool we have now, a breath of fresh air.
8
Funny, he went for a beer and was carded. Haven't really heard much on his Policies yet.
1
Here's my prediction: Klubochar for president and O'Rourke VP, the reason I put it in this order is that I don't think O'Rourke is ready for the presidency, VP will get him ready. I really like Klobuchar, warts and all. She starts out slow, and warms up to get right to the point. The rest of the field should be placed in cabinet positions, Warren secretary of state, etc... they are all great.
23
Emotions will be high on both sides. I assure you, there is an equal level of fervor to continue the Trump agenda beyond 2020. The key will be where the various zealots reside. Eight million New Yorkers, half a million Iowans and 10 million Californians all exhibiting ‘Anti-Trump fervor’ means nothing. Those States are lost to Trump regardless.
30
Noppy, from IOWA and tRump is losing ground in this state.
1
@William
Fervor in progressive coastal states is to be expected. Plus, there's always their self-delusion factor. They still believe "Hillary won."
The opposition to Trump has stiffened the spines of his supporters. They will show up on Election Day and send another message.
3
I wish that Sean Bagniewski's words were prescient - that democrats are starting to believe that "everybody is on the same team" to defeat Trump. Instead, what I see, is electable centrists dropping like flies because they are calling for widescale Medicare expansion instead of the election-killer "single payer for all" that will splinter the party into unelectable bits when voters realize that single payer means giving up their private insurance.
Define single payer now - explain that means giving up private insurance - and run real polls. This election matters.
18
@common sense advocate
You realize that Medicare For All polls at 70%?
5
@common sense advocate: Single payer does not mean giving up private insurance. Even in Great Brittain, one of the few countries with single payer, people can have private insurance for extras that their NHI does not cover. It’s probably the Republicans who are spreading that fallacy. That being said, single payer may be a bridge too far for the USA, but universal and affordable coverage is a must, however that will be achieved.
7
@Anna - I understand what you're saying - but if you are correct, then that needs to be explained loudly and clearly - because any barrier to private insurance will lose us the election.
3
The US presently has a president who spends his days do these repetitive activites - watching FOX News on TV, Tweeting hate filled messages, screaming 'Witch Hunt' and "No Collusion' at every opportunity, violating the Emoluments Clause also at every opportunity, re-purposing the White House as a family business, going about the very odd business of pretending he knows what he is doing because 'gut feelings', and finally boasting that he is the greatest thing in existence. Yes, there is a fervor to make a change and it is is very very broad, very wide, very deep, and very anxious to make it happen as soon as possible.
126
@Jim Sande, unfortunately, MANY voters find Trump's behavior to be exactly what they want in a president.
Is that rational? Of course not.
I believe that Trump's behavior, including the strange flag-hugging and saying how much everyone loves each other, will get Trump re-elected.
4
@Karen Lee Four years ago the idea that Trump would win was preposterous. Now we know better. It's going to take a lot of work and coordination to get rid of Trump. No one has ever been more deserving of being voted out of office.
7
@Karen Lee
To paraphrase a comment above: As reckless imbecility is, reckless imbecility does.
Just that simple,like the mind of a trump supporter.
2
What the democrats need in order to win is what they don't have. They don't have a candidate who doesn't polarize their own party let alone the US voters. They do have some very old candidates that their young members wont vote for ( Sanders, Biden and Clinton if she can still walk and talk). They also have some crazies that the older members and sane young members will not vote for (of course the conservative republican and independents will not vote for them either). Take away message- its looking good for Trump and he owes it to the progressives who make him look better than he actually is .
8
@Dixon Duval
You think young voters won't vote for Sanders?
3
@Dixon Duval
Perhaps you are unaware that Bernie was and is the favorite among young voters -- indeed they were his main weapon against Hillary.
3
@Dixon Duval: Young Democrats will overwhelmingly vote for Sanders and Clinton won’t run this time, unless it’s Chelsea. And Biden is anything but polarizing. Personally, I’d vote for any Democrat if Trump wins the Republican nomination, which still remains to be seen. I think the knives may be already out for Trump in Republican backrooms...
3
When you dismiss all those Bernie crowds, recall last week's Quinnipiac Texas poll--yes, Texas--which found 47% for Trump vs. 46% for Biden. Again, 47% for Trump vs. 46 for Bernie. That was one point better than Beto's 45% against Trump's same, unchanging 47%. If Bernie basically ties Trump in Texas, as conservative a state as Alabama or Idaho, that implies that Bernie would beat Trump easily in FL, GA, NC, and VA, not to mention throughout the Rust Belt, including OH and PA. The pundits may well turn out to be as stupid in the 2020 cycle as they were in the 2016 one. My own guess is that Biden will be 2020's Jeb, with Bernie being 2020's Trump. Cory and Kamala will help Bernie tremendously, and hurt Biden, by splitting the black vote in the SEC primaries that Wall St. and Hillary used to stop Bernie in 2016. And anyone who thinks Biden is closer to Rust Belt workers' hearts than Bernie simply has not been paying attention. It should all be very interesting.
15
@Fred White We have the numbers, Fred.
1
@Fred White hi Fred I live in FL and I still don't know, the politics here is, well just....coming from MN I never even knew corruption like this, let's hope you are right.
2
"A ‘Beat Trump’ Fervor Is Producing Big Turnouts for 2020 Democrats"
Might as well use that.
The Democrats have nothing substantive to offer, and their party has gone so far left that they have no hope of winning the presidential election on their own merits or policy platform.
14
If the Democratic Party is seduced by energetic enthusiastic "progressives" with radical agendas it will assure another 4 eyears of the current obscenity in the White House and his supine chorus in the Senate. Pray that progressives come to their senses and recognize that nothing is more important than winning electoral college votes where "progressives" are scarce, in the areas of Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia among others where SCUMPf's success was signed sealed and delivered. The opportunity is there, it just requires a little sanity.
14
@NRoad
Sanders is strong in the Rust belt. It is claimed that Biden would also be strong there, but I think he has significant baggage that would make him flame-out.
2
@K kell
He may be popular among Democratic voters, but its inconceivable that he could win a presidential election there. Though I'm a native New Yorker, I lived and worked for 30 years in Pennsylvania, ranging from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh, and provided services to much of western and mid PA and adjacent areas of Ohio. Bernie? Not at all likely.
For that matter, many of Bernie's ideas and those of other "progressives" are naive and flimsy and they show no evidence they could implement them and make them work.(His are also antique: a pallid reworking of his parents' 1930s Marxism, which was very prevalent then in NYC prior to the realization that Stalin's USSR was our enemy) For example, health care for all is an important goal, but "Medicare for all" is a terrible idea because the current and recent past performance of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services has been abysmal by any measure and it would take enormous restructuring and greatly expanded staffing and competence to make it work. For matter, the only way to really contain health care costs is to develop a level of aggressive, universal preventive care to reduce the prevalence of advanced chronic diseases like heart attack, heart failure, stroke, morbid obesity and type 2 diabetes.
It's very encouraging to hear from a Democratic Party official in Iowa, "All of our Democrats take the prospect of defeating Donald Trump so seriously that it’s almost like everybody is on the same team."
Let's keep it that way as much as possible. Of course candidates will try to set themselves apart, but let them do so by exhibiting their own strengths and not by seeking to discredit other Democrats, which would cause some candidates' supporters to turn away from the ultimate nominee in resentment while strewing the ground with weapons for the Republicans to pick up and use in the general election campaign.
Maintaining team spirit will become all the more difficult, and all the more important, as the field narrows and "the one to beat" begins to emerge. Those candidates who manage to do so can expect an outcome that would make Falstaff weep with envy. They can be heroes and thereby extend their political lives to fight another day.
10
@Longstaffe - excellent comment-this should be a New York Times Pick!
2
The issues are what already beat Trump, because he lies about them all. It’s just a matter of which candidate presents the best approach to the widest range of, and most applicable of those issues, to ALL the American people. There’s just no sense in trying to beat a liar.
3
Way too many candidates. They will scratch each other’s face. Trump will win again.
11
"A ‘Beat Trump’ Fervor Is Producing Big Turnouts for 2020 Democrats"
Yes, but that's now. On election day, after 20 months of non-stop fear-mongering and hyperbole, how many people will still care? The 2016 election took a staggering 19 months. This one is longer. I cannot help but think that these endless presidential elections only serve to inure us to campaigns to the point of revulsion. As we saw last time around, they inhibit public participation. They become same-old/same-old background noise. I, for one, will not pay attention till the middle of 2020 at the earliest. I saw too many people go 'round the twist in 2016. Their candidate losing the election shattered them.
https://emcphd.wordpress.com
3
@Rev. E. M. Camarena, PhD: England has six week elections and no dark money. I'd like no longer than six month elections and no Citizens United money. Who and what do these non-stop campaigns help? TV media.
We don't need two year runs for the presidency. It's insane.
4
@sophia: Agreed! As Les Moonves, late of CBS, said last time: "[The Election] may not be good for America, but it's damn good for CBS."
Moonves called the campaign for president a "circus" full of "bomb throwing," and he hoped it continues: "Most of the ads are not about issues. They're sort of like the debates," he said. "Man, who would have expected the ride we're all having right now? ... The money's rolling in and this is fun."
How. Pathetic.
https://emcphd.wordpress.com
1
“ Real power is never yielded, it must be taken.” My mantra. The fourty hour work week that we have and children not having to work in factories. Do you think this came about because the Trump robber barrons of that era wanted to do what is right ? Workers died for those changes. African Americans acquiring basic human rights to drink out of a public water fountain and to sit where they please on a bus. Do you think those rights were gained because the Trump robber barrons of that era just wanted to do the right thing ? Folks died fighting for those basic rights. My point is that meaningless blogs are just that. Just as in the past, there must skin on the line, to make changes in a system controlled entirely by the same type of Trump clones, as in the past.
8
The senate is as important as the presidency.
20
@Mathias, yes, if the senators will actually do their jobs.
btw, opposing the appointment of Garland to the Supreme Court doesn't count.
I’m concerned that the field is so split that Bernie will squeak by with 14% of the primary vote. I know, I know, Bernie has an impeccable voting record. But he has sponsored pretty much no legislation beyond naming post offices.
https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/bernard_sanders/400357
If we are lucky, we will have 50-51 Democratic senators in 2020. How is he going to pass anything? I fear he’ll be like Jimmy Carter — purity means you can’t make the sausage.
Now take a look at Klobuchar:
https://www.congress.gov/member/amy-klobuchar/K000367
First, we need to beat Trump. Then we need 8 years of Democratic dominance, 12 if we can get it. That means we need a legislator.
I also like Inslee, who as a governor has very applicable experience for the presidency. His top issues are climate change and the national debt, which both reflect the legacy we plan to leave our children. I hope people will check him out.
10
So who decided that the article would mention only three declared candidates, Bernie, Liz and Kamala, one who has already declined to run, and two who haven’t thrown their hats in the ring?
Why nothing about the other candidates in the race? Is it because they aren’t drawing big crowds? Or is it because the political editors have already chosen who the Times will cover, and who they won’t? It seems that the Times’ political coverage is already leaning decidedly left, when there are already at least a couple of viable progressive- moderates who ultimately may decide the fate of the Democratic Party in 2020.
Isn’t is a bit premature for such decisions.
8
@PaulB67, I really hope we don't see a repeat of 2015-16, when a completely unqualified individual got much too much press coverage.
Of course, I don't know how many of Trump's "base" reads the New York Times.
By Democratic Spring 2020, there will be only Senator Bernie Sanders vs. a stop-Bernie candidate, be it Biden or Harris or whoever--One major Socialist candidate vs. one Capitalist candidate--One candidate supported by tens of millions of small donations vs. one supported by billionaires, the Clinton machine & the media . . . . If the Democrats deny the nomination to the Socialist, the corporate suit candidate will lose to Trump hugely. An enraged Democratic rank and file will then take over the Party, leaving the Clintonites behind like the Blairites in the UK. In ten years, there will be no Democrats or Republicans, only Socialist vs. Fascists in the USA. Which side will you be on?
7
If this is truly what will happen, my choice will be easy, socialist, and not the socialist-communist conflation that you are suggesting to scare moderate voters.
2
I think many Democrats are revved up to defeat Trump and many are exited by the democratic socialist message of Sanders that other candidate are also adopting. It appears many Democrats really do want the US to be the next Denmark or Sweden. For individual candidates big crowds can be deceiving. In 2016 Sanders drew large crowds everywhere it seemed but Clinton got far more votes. He spent several weeks in California giving speeches to big crowds and still lost by a big margin. So I think it is important to be cautious when trying to interpret the meaning of big enthusiastic crowds.
13
Because Trump’s always been cautious about crowd sizes, huh?
I haven't seen where Denmark or Sweden have decided that their government is so bad due to the democratic socialist policies that the population has voted it out all these years.
2
I wonder if the event turnout reflects more people or just a more fervent response from the most attentive people.
I have never missed a vote in 35 years of eligibility, and I pay more attention to politics than most. The difference for me this cycle is that I’m attending more candidate events, which I’ve never done so early. I’ve already been to hear/see three candidates, and I don’t even live in an early primary state!
14
Many of these candidates, Bernie, Warren, etc cannot win the Electoral College. I hope Dems don't fail this time.
11
@BMD You obviously paid no attention to the incontrovertible evidence of the exit polls in the Rust Belt in 2016, which showed with crystal clarity that if Bernie had been the Democratic nominee, instead of the detested Hillary, he would have crushed Trump throughout industrial America. Would voters in the states Hillary won really have either voted for Trump or stayed home instead of voting Dem and Bernie? That seems pretty suicidal and preposterous to me. Bernie would have crushed Trump nationwide, as I hope he does next year for real.
12
@BMD,
Sure.
Lets run another centrist, pandering to undecided Republicans.
That worked out well last time.
Maybe she/he will campaign in those swing states this time.
But no worries, Dems can always blame the guy not in the election.
For another loss.
Again.
3
Interesting. I believe people said the same of Trump in ‘16. #StillSanders
3
One thing about the Democrats now as opposed to the Republicans in 2016, is that they all have something to offer with the ultimate goal of beating Trump. Whoever gets the nomination will be the best to beat Trump and will represent all of their visions.
29
I do hope your right! Right now, I am praying for a very damaging Mueller’s report!
2
@DSS. You can’t possibly think Lizzie would beat Trump.
Yeah dems are going to beat DT. There's going to be grief and hand-wringing, but unless dems and reps alike have all collectively decided to live in the twilight zone, on voting day people are going to step up.
12
It's my suspicion that the unity the author mentions may be accurate. To be sure, Democrats of all stripes are excited by numerous and variable motivations, but I can't escape the notion that tens of millions of Americans feel as I do.
It's not what Trump does. It's what he IS. And that's revolting. No thesaurus I've ever seen contains enough adjectives to fully describe the monstrosity now occasionally frequenting the White House.
137
Who he is and what he does. All of it is revolting, and dangerous.
@CPMariner
9
Warren's idea to break-up tech companies is fundamentally flawed, the only thing that will achieve is to give more market share and power to Chinese tech companies (or at best case scenario another US based one), all the while sooner or later another company will rise from the ashes to take their place, or the same company will end up picking itself up again, Exxon Mobil style.
When we talk about social media companies, it's even more childish to think the break-up will have any worthwhile effect, because these companies need to be big to have any value, people want to flock to those that have their friends, family and a lot more people with similar interests, etc, a broken-up Facebook is useless for people to participate in, it will take a small amount of time for one the mini-Facebooks that come out of the break-up to become a proxy-monopoly again. What we need is actual oversight and regulation, not populist anti-business policies.
15
I agree. Write her and explain your concerns. She is a good watch dog against corporate corruption if we can help guide her.
4
I am glad to see the high levels of enthusiasm and excitement that greets the Democratic candidates. I can only hope that this will not fizzle out when the time comes to actually vote in November 2020. Remember it was voter turnout (I know that many will argue that HRC was a weak and tarnished candidate, and that surely was a factor) that was a huge factor in what happened.
So, please do not burn out and lose steam; we need to keep up this level of involvement for 20 more months.
32
"We're gonna need a bigger boat". It is so encouraging to see this kind of turnout at this early stage but we must remember to differentiate ourselves from the gumball rallies of the Trump cult. I like the fact that the chants are BER-NIE not "lock him up" and the fact that there are Q and A forums instead of one idol and his idolaters chanting two year old meems. The thing that really sets Democratic crowds from Trump's is the diversity. Look at the picture of Kamala Harris and the people around her. For that matter, look at the children, who wouldn't be safe from the hate at a Trump event. We may not be ascendant, in charge or a majority but I would be proud to stand with all (young, old, white, black, brown, christian, muslim, jew, male, female, gay, straight, native born or naturalized citizen) those that make up this American quilt. See you on the hustings folks. I'll be the one with the big smile on my face.
54
@Rick Gage. Diversity doesn’t mean intelligence or accomplishments.
1
@jackson,
But homogeneous angry white people shouting "lock her up" two years after the 2016 election personifies intelligence ? Who are you kidding?
Trump's supporters are too dumb to know they're being lied to and hoodwinked. I'll take diversity over homogeneity any day.
8
@Jackson
Why not?
5
bernie sanders looks young and vibrant while joe biden looks like a high school science experiment. joe biden will not run as a peoples choice, he will run in the same manner clinton ran, to prevent the inevitable FDR moment.
23
@Eray,
Sanders looks young and vibrant? Are you kidding? He looks like a nearly 80 year old man, which is what he is. And I might remind you that Bernie voters got us into this mess, as ten percent of them voted for Trump over Hillary Clinton.
https://www.npr.org/2017/08/24/545812242/1-in-10-sanders-primary-voters-ended-up-supporting-trump-survey-finds
I suspect we're in for a second temper tantrum from Bernie voters in 2020, and I doubt this nation can survive two Trump terms. Heck, we might not even survive one.
16
@Eray - Amen. There is no political paradigm with less juice right now than "New Democrat" Clintonism, especially among under-40 voters who have been burned so very many times by Democratic party hypocrisy.
Clinton and Obama voters were more than patient in the long aftermath of the recession, and what did the mainstream Democratic party have for them as their lives and their neighbors' lives crumbled? A very small slice of cake.
Let's not forget that in 2020.
7
@Donegal,
Your own link shows that those Sanders-Trump voters weren't Dems.
You blame Sanders 'cause HRC couldn't win over Republican leaning voters?! SHE turned off voters. All by herself. Nothing Sanders could do about the dislike HRC and the DNC had in that election.
Sanders was a true cross-over candidate for many that wanted change; not a incremental, status quo rehash.
Why don't you mention the 10 million reg. Dems that flipped to Trump?!
Why don't you mention the 10's of millions of Dems et al that Clinton couldn't get to the polls?
Why don't you mention the swing states that HRC forgot to campaign in? And LOST!
No, typical pointing of fingers and attempted scapegoating, rather than look to your own candidate.
Much less your own link.
8
Democrats need to avoid one of the biggest mistakes of the 2016; i.e., not getting the 100 million who could have voted to vote. Most of them were neither Democrats nor Republicans.
We need to have at the top of the ticket the candidate who can enthuse those citizens by giving them something they feel inspired to vote for.
Bernie Sanders did that in 2016. And he is beating them all other contenders thus far in terms of crowds, fund raising and # of active supporters.
Kamala Harris has a good chance of doing that.
The others are great in their own right (especially Warren) but catching up to Bernie in those three areas I mentioned may not be easy.
Beto, if he runs, might. But he'll fail if he doesn't pass the boldness test.
And Biden would need to widen his appeal way beyond centrist Democrats. I don't how he would do that. If he runs, his record of helping us get saddled with Clarence Thomas and his vote for the Iraq war will cause many to not give him the slightest consideration. Those were bad judgment calls IMHO.
It's still early days.
19
We absolutely need what the Democrats are proposing:
Medicare for all, free day care, and free tuition at public colleges.
We need what the French people already have!
So what if the French government takes 48% of total national income....let's just soak the rich!
Or am I missing something here?
3
Finally, some good news in these dark times for our country.
19
@William S. Why is it dark times? Can’t find one of the 7 million jobs?
4
@William S. How is this good news? The Dem Party is extremely divided and will be completely unable to rally around a single candidate. Whoever ultimately gets the nomination will alienate either the left wing or the centrist wing of the party and lose those votes and allow Trump to sail to an easy victory in 2020.
@Jackson I'm comfortably retired, so I'm not looking for a job.
4
I've been underwhelmed by the Democrats success in special elections this year. So far the Republicans have flipped 5 seats. Not what happened last year so however many are turning out for prospective candidate's rallies they are not showing up to vote or are being swamped by Republican voters.
4
I maintain that the newly-elected Democrats in the House, almost all of whom are flying the banner of progressivism, should be heard. But all elections are won in the center—Democrats need to remember this—or lost to the hard right—because their eyes were not on the prize.
All of the thus-far contestants hail from left of the political center. These campaign rallies—a year removed from the blinding lights of town halls and television lights on debate stages—are fool’s gold, particularly with so many people running. Yes, the turnouts are catnip and the media dutifully follow along, their tails wagging appreciatively. Which the Republicans want.
Donald Trump is likely to be the GOP standard-bearer in 2020 but he can’t be allowed to become the focus of the Democrats’ ire now. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris and Corey Booker and Amy Klobuchar must drive home the many points about income disparity and a disappearing future that the Republicans are trying to swallow from the rest of us.
The backdrop for these candidates cannot be sideshows in which culture war issues raise their heads like MacBeth’s ghosts. Republicans have nothing to run on but when an out-of-line Democrat brings up an issue unrelated to, say, health care, they jump all over it and obscure their passion for the one percent and, in turn, distort the substantial messages that Democrats need. In short, they must be disciplined and turn away from the tempting fruits of Trump’s baiting.
15
@Red Sox, ‘04, ‘07, ‘13, ‘18
Democrats will lose, even to Trump, AGAIN if they push yet another Third Way New Democrat. They. Will. Lose. I'm praying that those with influence behind the scenes do not push a Biden or O'Rourke. Please have learned something, Dems.
3
The national motto of Indonesia is "Strength in unity." The Dems need to take a lesson from this playbook and not scatter their cannon fire with a crowded field of mediocre primary candidates. Put the strongest 3 out for polling and tell the others to stand down. Just because you can run for office, doesn't mean that you should! Don't stoop to Trump's level; dial down the angry rhetoric, study Obama's campaign strategy and win.
6
I say let any Democrat who wants to run, run. Listen to all their ideas and policy proposals. Ask tough questions (like, where will the money come from), and demand straight answers. Ignore the media. Take your time deciding which candidate you want you support - it's only 2019! In 2020, go to your primary or caucus and vote! And then, whoever the nominee turns out be, VOTE FOR THAT PERSON! We have a large and diverse field of candidates. Let them have the opportunity to make their cases. It's way too soon to be deciding who the front runner is. This is the vote of a lifetime - don't blow it by rushing to judgment, and don't blow it by staying home!
95
@Patricia
A well-contested primary is healthy, and I'm glad to see it. Now if the talking heads on cable would just put the axes away, we voters can look at the candidates and their positions then make our choices.
10
I remember the thrilling, giant rallies for Bernie in the 2016 primaries. My daughter and her friends - plus 25,000 other people from Portland, Oregon, filled a stadium. This sort of enthusiasm is what is needed to carry whoever it is over the finish line.
My hope is that it's Bernie!
28
@Ellen you are exactly correct, I was one of those 25,000, and Bernie is the only candidate bringing ALL the right issues to the fore in 2020.
15
Was Oregon where St. Bernie won the rigged primary among maybe 25, 000 and then got crushed in the non-binding referendum among 250, 000 a couple weeks later, or was that Washington?
I forget.
By the way, it’s really kinda dumb to believe that your guy’s not just right but perfect on every single issue.
3
@Ellen Fine. But everyone needs to vote for the DEM nominee and not sit it out from pique if their fave isn’t chosen. I was all in for HRC and regret that I didn’t support Bernie in the primaries. The primary goal is oust DJT and get this country back on track. Am tired of 2016 whiners. Support whoever you believe is best in the primaries. But VOTE for the DEM in 2020.
2
"Beat Trump"?
THAT'S the imperative (to save our nation), and that should be the Dem's campaign message and campaign slogan at ALL levels of campaigning!
Keep the focus where it belongs, Dems! Save our nation!
15
We need candidates who can win back white women from Trump
His racism and misogyny should lead to large and very strong turnouts of minority male and female voters
But something has to reverse Trump’s majority support from white women to offset his massive white male support.
11
The best candidates are being ignored by the NYT. Tulsi Gabbard is one. I would like to see the Times cover the whole field. This is an important moment in American history. To save our democracy we need a true people's candidate, not just another media-created personality who pays to play.
6
Well they can't all win the Nomination.
Will the NYTimes please refrain from endorsing
any of the Democrats until the Convention has
provided a Nominee.
I think Governor Sherrod Brown would have been
the best candidate for the Democrats, but they
seem intent on nominating another McGovern.
9
@John Brown Exactly! Nixon won in a landslide back then despite the darkening clouds over his White House. History will repeat itself if the Dems cave in to the left wing of the party. I would have preferred Sherrod Brown as a candidate also.
1
@John Brown: Sherrod Brown is a senator, not a governor.
3
There is a rapidly growing number of former Sanders supporters who see an opportunity of vindication, if for nothing else, than to shove it down the Democratic establishment's throat that Bernie can achieve what Hillary couldn't: defeat Donald Trump.
And if Biden had any sense of decency, he would not run; but if he did, Trump will win, because the split in the Democratic Party will be fatal.
7
Bernie and Joe are much too old - they will be approaching 80 if elected. Not a desirable age for the toughest job in the world.
23
we all know Sanders has massive support. i mean, you need only open your eyes and look at his 2016 rallies and debates (brooklyn, baby). but how many millions of voters are going to be purged this time?
7
Let's hope the blue wave we saw last November will be even bigger next year. We need all the energy, enthusiasm and will we can get not just from Democrats but also from young people who are witnessing the carnage this administration is doing to their country like a scorched earth policy. We need independents, farmers and workers who have been conned, cheated and left out by this President. A con artist who is into this for himself and whom the GOP is protecting every step of the way. I am a Democrat through and through. I grew up in Europe where we believe in social values. My country of birth, France, has universal healthcare and retirement benefits. Most people in my country of adoption, the USA, want social fairness, universal healthcare, gun control and so many other things that make society run more smoothly. As long as the GOP and this administration of fools, corrupted and inept men govern us we will lose the America that was built along democratic principles over two centuries ago. Why does it have to be so hard to get Democratic values back on first base? Why does it have to be so hard to welcome immigrants from all over, no matter the color of their skin or their religious belief? Why does it have to be so hard to want universal healthcare for all and background checks for purchasing guns? The Democratic field is crowded. Next year we will have one candidate whose primary duty will be to defeat Trump. That is what counts the most to save this country.
20
Wouldn’t it be great if 2020 turns out more voters than ever before? Plus Dems win?
65
Guys - Don't take anything for granted. Do not seem threatening to valuable segments of the Democratic franchise, such a moderates, suburbanites, Democratic congressmen from red districts who must be extremely careful if the Democrats are to retain their seats, Jews, who have been consistently loyal to Democrats and who vote in extremely high numbers, Seniors who feel that medicare will be threatened if medicare for ll is not transitioned slowly, and yes, wealthy Democratic donators. Keep your eyes on the only prize which can be realistically obtained i.e. a sweep of the Presidency, the Senate and the house in 2020.
8
I was excited back in November after seeing the blue wave. I felt that America was making a statement vs. Trump and we were embarking towards a more rational, sane and better future, leading to electing a Democrat in 2020.
But now after seeing AOC celebrating Amazon leaving NYC, Omar attacking Obama, and Warren trying to break-up tech corporations, I am not sure what the Democrats will stand for. We need to support business and people, and work together in doing so
I will wait and see how things shape up in 2020. But if I see then that there is too much divisiveness and anti-business sentiment among Democrats, I may sit in re the elections.
9
@Gian Piero You mention a few items that leave you less than happy with the Democrats. But do you think that there is no valid argument against Amazon in NYC? Even more, do you not think there is a valid argument against the giant tech companies intrusions into our privacy? Because I certainly do. And what I most importantly think is the the opposing party, the GOP is rabidly corrupt, dishonest and immoral. So if and when you "sit in" or sit out the election than you're basically contributing to the hugely, rabidly corrupt and dishonest Republican party.
24
@Gian Piero Awesome! Thank you for your vote for Trump in 2020! You can then join the 46% of registered voters who didn't vote in 2016 who are probably overjoyed with Trump's SCOTUS picks.
16
No one is perfect, not the Democrats. We are not anti-business but anti-greed! Isn’t time to step up and help the Middle Class or Working Class? Our Economy won’t survive if we allow things to continue as they are! Do some research of countries like Denmark, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, etc. You will find that though the pay high taxes, they have a much better quality of life!
19
Kudos to all the Candidates! I love a big pool but want to it winnowed down October-November this year. The DNC has a responsibility to work with all the Candidates up until that timeframe. After The Autumn of 2019 only REAL electable Candidates need be supported. I genuinely look forward to each contender claiming their message and space.own
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@Schimsa
My apologies for typos...my puppy hit the keyboard!
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I hope we get a once-in-a-lifetime turnout in 2020 (beyond that I will gladly settle for just enough to win). That would make a huge difference in Texas and quite a few other states, maybe enough to take back the senate and bring back fact-based governance instead of government by the highest bidder.
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@Three Bars: With you all the way - hoping that Texas benefits from record turnout and that Texans deal a death blow to Republican corruption in the state. Things are far too cozy between government and big donors here.
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@Three Bars Good point. The presidential election is getting all the attention but the Senate matters just as much. Also the House, which will still be gerrymandered in 2020. They aren't as exciting, but nothing happens for Dems unless we have unified control of House, Senate, and presidency.
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The Democrats need a non-polarizing presidential candidate to capture the "swing" voters. While many in the pool are good people, their views don't play well in middle America.
Biden - O’Rourke 2020
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@cretino: Any view is better than the Trump view. It's like, Democrats believe motherhood is good and Republican's want to prove them wrong. We are better off with any Democrat over Trump.
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@cretino
I see Biden-O'Rourke 2020 as a losing strategy - incremental, corporate Democrats a winner?
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@cretino No. If the Democrats move towards the centre, they will find it deserted. The Republicans will have moved further to the extreme right and there will be no "swing" voters to be won over. Any Democrat, no matter how moderate, will be called a radical leftist. There will be no such thing as a non-polarizing candidate and voters, forced to choose between Trump's extremist agenda and someone who seems to have no clear policies to offer, may very well choose Trump or stay home. Conventional wisdom has it that elections are won at the centre, but the 2020 ones will not be, just as the 2016 ones were not.
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TFW an entire country finally wakes up. Pretty great, isn’t it?
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They're gonna need a better message than beat trump if they want the middle.
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@ep "Beat Trump" would be the worst message possible because it would involve acknowledging him as an adversary. The man should be mentioned as rarely as possible, and any message he might try to put across should be treated with a shrug as "just Trump making Trump noises." Democrats, no matter what Trump says or does, don't treat it as relevant or deserving of counter-argument. Just shrug and move on as quickly as possible to YOUR substantive policies. Treat his message as what it WILL BE: mere "sound and fury, signifying nothing." And don't let your wish to appear moderate stop you from having clear policies and presenting them forcefully.
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@ep: Listen to all the messages, they are all good. However, beat Trump has to be the bottom line. This is not 2016 when we thought logic could win.
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@ep: Exposing Trump should do the trick.
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YANGGANG COMING 2020!
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@Vladimir
yang is a sabotage candidate promoting welfare for all. anyone dumb enough to think wefare is going to be expanded deserves to have their hopes dashed. no yang.
Sure.
And it’s starting to take root.
The GOP’s ‘2020 Relect Trump’ has been solid for years now.
A couple kids getting into it now against entrenched solid voting block, is not going to happen.
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If I were American I would be attending events as well. Talking heads and print news and a very long and intricate oversight process while necessary and admirable only goes so far. Actually attending a rally is something concrete on a personal level one can do to counter and protest Trump. Then of course the vote. The same will be true on the opposing side once the election heats up.
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I fear that republicans will sense an impending resounding defeat and Trump will face a primary challenge. The challenger will win the primary, and suddenly democrats have a left leaning nominee while the republicans have fielded a moderate along the lines of Kasich. Sorry, my mother always said I was a born worrier.
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@PJM - "have fielded a moderate along the lines of Kasich."
We can only hope. John Kasich was by far the smartest of the 15+ candidates that ran for the nomination in 2015. He would make a terrific President.
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@Midwest Josh . Kasich a moderate? Only by radical right standards or lack thereof.
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@Midwest Josh: I wish everyone would stop being fooled by John Kasich. Look at his record as Governor of Ohio (especially pertaining to women's issues). He is a wolf in sheep's clothing!
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Hopefully the Time’s coverage of Bernie’s candidacy will be more reflective of reality this time around.
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@Jonathon Cunningham
You mean how free stuff is super appealing to 30 somethings? How rallies ignore realities and conjure a "feeling"? Politics are like a cult, be it Trump or Bernie. Does no one think about issues in a fact based manner anymore? Where are Bernies tax returns? He isn't even a Democrat. He's an independent and a self described socialist.
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@Jonathon Cunningham
Jonathon - I would like to think that the corporate media and DNC will keep their thumbs off the scale, given what we all endured last time around. But I wouldn't bet on it. Dealing with income inequality in any meaningful way will mean serious pushing those who care - which should be most of us.. That said, so far I'm for Bernie 2020,
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He’s a niche candidate who can’t capture the middle. I think you’re right – The NY Times could do a better job reflecting that reality.
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Make no mistake, our country is continuing to be hurt by Trump and his mob associates. Because Trump is likely to be charged and arrested after his presidency is over, he must do anything legal or otherwise to win in 2020. So he will likely enlist the Russians and other crooks to sabotage the next election while yelling that the Democrats are cheating. All of this means that the Democrats need to create a strong pull on as many voters as they can before the election. This may paint a slightly different picture for a full field of candidates.
We need the best person to go head to head with Trump and beat him at his own game. When you know he is going to lie and cheat as usual, plus enlist foreign assistance, you cannot play a slow game even if focused. There is a price to pay for electing Trump, and it will come due at our next election.
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@Paul Raffeld Sorry, you don't need anybody to go head to head with Trump. You need a candidate who is good at dismissing him as the lightweight he is. Having a coherent, feasible, clear set of policies would help, too.
Hillary treated him as a force to be taken into account and his voters as "deplorables." A successful Democrat should go the other way around: treat all voters with respect and Trump as nothing much.
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@Paul Raffeld One could argue that leftist Democrats pose a far greater risk to this country than Trump. In fact, the whole mob associates rhetoric and the country is being "hurt" and we're being "torn apart" and other meaningless comments do nothing to advance your cause. They translate to, I don't like the current democratically elected president, with absolutely no insight that Trump was elected for a reason, by voters who liked him and continue to like him. Your view is very myopic in this way because you dont care to figure out why he is so popular and will continue to be so. Democrats think he somehow tricked the right into voting for him. That is not the case. Trump is a lens focusing and reflecting conservative values...long held beliefs going back to the founding. He won't need the russians or anyone else. His support on the right is unwavering.
1
It's encouraging to witness energized Democrats as they gear up for the 2020 elections. However, it's freshman Democrats like Ilhan Omar that could ruin everything. Her history of anti-Semitic comments have been an embarrassment to the party and the radical left wing just might be playing into the Republicans' hands.
Big turnouts at rallies for Bernie Sanders and Kamala Harris won't matter if suburban Republicans and Independents are turned off by Democrats like Omar and Rashida Tlaib. These ladies seemed determined to be the gifts that keep on giving.
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I don’t think people care of hoopla happening in DC. These ladies have gone to challenge the status quo and they are doing what they are supposed to do. Like I, there are many here who are more enthusiastic to vote Democratic Party in 2020 given the way they were treated by media, Democratic establishment and Republican. Also since Trump will be a nominee in 2020, I doubt people care about these Petty things.
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As an unaffiliated 52 year old voter, I take offense to your comment. I support these women and their courage to articulate a stance against the current Israeli government. They are not against Jews but against Israel’s prime minister and his policies that harm Palestinians.
I suppose I’m anti Christian because I oppose the Trump administration?
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@silver vibes it’s a fine line; I like AOC and I hope the future of the party is more like her than like the Clintons. There are major initiatives that are “left” but are necessary; curbing/ regulating greenhouse gasses, breaking up some of these giant corporations, supporting/ promoting worker’s rights generally, the list goes on and on.
That being said, getting caught in identity politics traps like the Rep. Omar/ anti-semitism debacle and the trans-gender bathroom debacle a few years ago will only do great damage in winning over Independents and sane Republicans. The freshmen in congress need to understand that if they don’t play a form of “long game” their time in Washington will be short and it will all be for naught. Over-reach is a real thing (for some reason it just doesn’t seem to apply to Mitch McConnell).
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As a person who has voted in every election since eligible and parents who always voted I'm tempted to say it's about time. I went years with friends and co-workers who didn't bother and didn't care, explaining the purpose was met with a shrug. Do we thank Trump for bringing citizens to the polls?
Yet it's so exciting to see. It shows democracy is alive and well, that when it needs protecting, it will be. Yes, awful things going on within this administration but our country has always been up for a challenge. All people and institutions have to re-evaluate occasionally to take the next step forward.
We are not losing our place in history, we're finding it in a new and different way.
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Excellent comment, Kathy. Inspiring and encouraging.
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@Kathy
Yes it's exciting to see the enthusiasm, but let us keep in mind what Stalin said, and what I believe Putin and Trump believe, "It's not the people who vote that counts, it's the people that count the votes." Can we trust Trump?
4
Wow. Beautifully optimistic!
1