I always new I was going to make news, but never knew that it would be on the new york times in a picture with Vice President Biden. To God be the glory!
4
A new Georgia poll has Biden with an 18 point lead over Sanders and Bloomberg, and this is post primaries.
https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/exclusive-channel-2-poll-finds-biden-with-large-lead-georgia-presidential-primary/523MBVBEZFC6DHI5RK5LS6GLAY/
Biden still leads in swing states.
1
Thank you NYT for the great coverage of Days of Nominations following Days of Impeachment.
For a political junkie like me - this can't give me any better high.
I liked one succinct observation below.
For all Democrats focusing on South Carolina - they have a zero chance of winning it in the general election.
May be Joe can use that line when he does not win the primary there.
As a Republican - I also can't stop and wonder that our POTUS was just impeached because he supposedly sought help from Ukraine for his election.
But here are reports - and appears well documented that Democrat candidates are specifically either paying or promising certain things to the blacks - for their votes.
As Mr Dershowitz famously said in defense of POTUS - if POTUS does something for his election on the premise that a larger good of the nation is at stake.
There is nothing to impeach about.
And I agree.
And I suspect so will Democrat candidates and the black leaders and the black community in South Carolina.
2
You know there are women running, right? Maybe they deserve coverage too?
5
The great pretenders. Biden is trying to conceal the fact, obvious for all to see, that he is already retired, at least mentally. There is a reason that Biden never gained traction in previous runs for the White House. His lifetime tenure in Congress with no accomplishments of any consequence. Sanders has a similar career non-record. Each of them would have the American people believe that the Presidency would suddenly transform him overnight into a Superman of effectiveness, despite all past evidence to the contrary. Buttigieg pretends that he was an effective mayor of a small city and that this qualifies him to attain his level of incompetence. Bloomberg is trying to shapeshift himself into a left wing, progressive, despite having spent his entire life in opposition to the causes he now embraces. Klobuchar pretends that she is the only nice person in the race, but she was outed by those who work for her as the boss from hell. Warren is crashing out now because practically everyone is now onto the the fact that her entire life has been a sequence of one fraud after another. Or as the local endorsement termed Warren: a gifted storyteller.
5
The Biden campaign is painfully evaporating into a non-issue for the Democratic presidential primary. Case in point here in CA: Today's lengthy SF Chronicle article about Democratic candidate campaign strategy in CA paid barely a passing glance to Mr. Biden. It only mentions that he has 20 paid staffers in the state, while speaking in length about the remaining Democratic candidates.
The larger question for me is: How can the fractured Democratic Party possibly defeat President Trump in November? Mr. Trump won the 2016 CA Republican Primary with only 7 paid staffers in the state, but an army of 15,000 volunteers. The Democratic Party seems to have no chance of matching the organization of the Trump Machine.
2
Democratic primary voters and caucus goers should be asking themselves one question before they cast a vote: Which candidate has the best chance of beating Trump in Michigan? There is only one candidate. It's Bernie Sanders. His message has been clear and consistent that the benefits of our economy have been unfairly distributed upwards. I think he'll win the nomination and there will be a fight between him and Trump over the hearts and minds of Midwestern, working-class voters. The sooner Democrats get behind Sanders, the better chance they will have at winning in November.
1
Something that should be said over...and over...and over again is that Mr. Biden has been in an appointment or elected office for more than 44 years. Why now should any voter, especially those of color think he is going to bring some sweeping progressive changes? History is there for reference and he has never been a champion of anyone but himself.
8
Hunter surely appreciates the boost, don’t forget...
3
At this point it seems that it might be time to stop obsessing so much over whether the other candidates can win African-American votes and ask the opposite - why doesn't Biden appeal to Caucasians? Is there, perhaps, something he can do to appeal to them and win their trust?
1
Nothing comes to mind, sorry. Sanders is my president though. He’s already transformed the country so we can even discuss the corruption and climate change and healthcare access as a human right...
4
@dave
I’m not sure it’s a case that he doesn’t appeal to all Caucasians (raising my hand here as one who loikes him), so much as he’s one of many that appeal to them (this is from poll results). He gets a bump though from the POC block where he has less competition. I think he would help his case by thinking more about the future and his goals as president and developing those into new talking points. More forward-looking speeches.
2
I just checked some states on 538. Joe is going straight down everywhere. It is not so much that Bernie is gaining strength as it is tat Joe's numbers are plunging. He is still a couple points up in SC but that looks very shaky.
Joe is now way behind in California. He needs to withdraw before he gets humiliated. He also needs to give the rest of the moderates a chance to gain some ground.
man, I have been for Joe all along but he has run a really poor campaign.
6
I like Joe Biden and I'm glad he's in the race. He does get credit from Black folks, including me, for his years of honest service and for his work with Barack Obama. Yes the Black vote is competitive. No we're not a monolith, but most of us appreciate people have plans to work on the issues that are unique to us. He may or may not win the Black vote, but he is deserving of respect.
2
I don’t think Biden has a chance. He’s been in politics for so long that if he was a serious contender, he would have come in first or second in New Hampshire. He wouldn’t have been beaten by Buttigieg. He should suspend his campaign and endorse the candidate with the best chance of beating Trump. I believe that’s Bernie Sanders.
3
Blacks are pretty much equally divided between the poor, the working class and the middle class. The poor are dependent on government benefits and will vote for whoever best secures these benefits. The working class often earn a little too much for food stamps, Medicaid and the like, and will be more likely to latch onto race spefic issues, like voting rights and civil rights and housing rights. The middle class have a wide array of interests depending on their own particular stories. They cannot easily be categorized.
Analysts have a history of oversimplifying the allegiances of the bottom 50%. They tell us that blacks will vote for Biden because he was Obama's VP. And they tell us that the working class don't know their own interests. But the truth is that they almost everybody votes for the candidate that is likelyto do them the most good. Which is pretty obvious but for the fact that the pundits are so confused and talk so much nonsense.
2
What’s annoying about this is 1) South Carolina is almost certainly going to vote for Trump and 2) the faulty assumption that the African Americans in that state are representative of African Americans as a whole. The black communities who will really make a difference in this election aren’t the southern ones but the ones in Milwaukee, Detroit and Philadelphia - the voters who turned out in large numbers for Obama but largely stayed home in 2016 because the DNC gave them the impression that their vote didn’t matter - when actually they could have put Hillary over the top if Hillary had bothered to ask for their vote. Unlike their southern brethren, these northern urban blacks are not afraid of systemic change and don’t hold the kind of prejudices that would prevent them from voting for Sanders just because he’s Jewish or Buttigieg just because he’s gay.
I’m sorry but until South Carolina turns blue, which is definitely not happening this year, there is no reason to consider this state as significant to the Democratic contest, and to do so just because of its significant black population is to be reductive, insulting and misguided.
4
Be kind and let him step out of the running gracefully.
7
Why no mention whatsoever of Elizabeth Warren? Did you not ask anyone their views of her - or of Amy Klobuchar?
Biden's supporters give it up for him. And now, they and everyone else mostly just want him to give it up.
2
Joe is too old; so is Bernie; so is Mike
2
I run half-marathons and I can’t keep up with Bernie. Don’t you worry about him. 80 is the new 50, with Bernie! Maybe because he’s never had to feel guilty about anything in his life...
3
Have I missed something? For what was Biden expecting waves of black support at the polls?
4
What is the "Black Community". I would believe all Black people make up this community not just the few self appointed leaders. It is shameful that black and white politicians see a "lump" of possible voters.
1
Let's see. Hillary Clinton, most dispised candidate, enables Trump to win, but blames it on Sanders and the Russians, and "deplorables." Biden, the Democrat establishment candidate, will lose, and..blame it on Blacks and Sanders? Meanwhile, Trump thanks DNC for services and laughs all the way to 4 more years.
3
AR, don’t worry. Sanders isn’t so easily blocked out this time. We’re ready.
1
Joe’s had it. Can’t even get his running mate Barack Obama to endorse him. Unclear to me who these black voters are that love Joe and why they love him. He’s never won a thing on his own other than Senate seat 50 years ago. To quote Mr Trump “he’s past his expiration date”
5
If we are to objectively evaluate Joe Biden by his debate performances, then we should give him perhaps a D, and if we are to objectively evaluate him based on how he has called "liars", among other characterizations (like "lying dog-faced pony soldier"), people who have said things he did not like, then we should definitely give him F as this sort of behavior is an abject failure.
Joe Biden is not a viable candidate, period!
17
I used to think that the Democrat establishment liked Biden because he represented a centrist approach. But I see now that their embrace of Uncle Joe actually betrays an insane fear of young people: of their ideas, their power and their passion. In that way our Old Guard is in bed with Republicans. Neither party wants to let go of the status quo. Young people mean radical change, a certain comfort level with democratic socialism, with race, with women, with drastic climate change options and an energy that is fearless.
What else could explain why so many state party leaders would back the guy who not only has 36 years of congressional track record to pick on (some of it indefensible), but who was also the VP of the man Trump supporters (and Republicans in general) love to hate and rally against. Republicans will get whipped into a passionate frenzy, while our side yawns in complacency, loses the passion of our youth and rolls over to go back to sleep till January of 2021.
Even though Biden would mean certain defeat for the Democrats it will also mean the utter obliteration of the current DNC establishment. That, in itself, will be one positive outcome. We need youth, energy, passion and a totally new direction. Biden fails massively in each of these categories.
10
@S Jones First of all, you're not a Democrat and second of all we don't need your opinion about what the Democrats should or should not be doing or who they should or should not be voting for. You gave yourself away with that silly "Democrat establishment."
1
J. Faye Harding, Progressives, Independents and Gens/Millennials are the largest voting block and we’re out to make sure Sanders, the only true Democrat, in the spirit of the most beloved FDR and Theodore Roosevelt, is going to help us increase democracy and raise the quality of your life too, don’t you worry. You don’t have to support us, but we care about everyone.
4
I'm African American and Biden has never been my first choice. Also, even if he should somehow win the primary in South Carolina, one state isn't going to cut it. He missed his best opportunity when he didn't run in 2016 (and even then, he wouldn't have been at the top of my list of candidates). Time for him to tap out and give his support to someone who can win. His time has passed.
19
Biden is really starting to look like toast. I like him okay and he would be infinitely preferable to the current monstrosity.
If we could go back in time and run him in place of Mrs. Clinton that would be wonderful. I think he would have had very good chances against Trump, definitely better than Clinton's chances.
But now it looks like time has passed him by.
Who can unite the party?
15
I must not be the only one to notice that Blacks and their concerns have so far been almost entirely absent from the Democratic intra-party debate (a polite way to say Democratic Civil War). In response to this, one could expect Democrats to protest that they are as committed to Black needs as they have ever been, but the perception (I think correct) is that the present discussion within the party has nothing to do with Blacks, it's a contest between extreme left v. moderate left, an almost all White contest. Of course, Black votes will be wanted on election day, but unless somebody finds some way to energize their interest they might sit this one out in big numbers, and some of them, without saying it, could actually defect to Trump who is preaching the gospel of strong economy, music to many Black people's ears. If this happens it would be fatal to all sorts of Democratic candidates at all levels in many states. Democrats, beware!
8
@Ronald B. Duke Who are the Blacks? Blacks and their concerns/ black needs, nothing to do with blacks, black votes, black people's ears. Just stop. By the way, trump has nothing to do with the economy except taking credit for President Obama's hard work.
3
Oh surprise! The Sanders attack mob, the Trump voters in disguise, and the bought Bloomberg fans are all out in the comments I see.
You can tell who they are as their attacks are always over-the-top when it comes to Joe Biden.
For the better part of a year, the first two groups, aided by further agents of disinformation, foreign or domestic, have spent considerable amount of time, resources, and energy TRASHING Joe Biden on social platforms in violent, virulent, vitriolic fashion... Something that Hillary Clinton also went through... And coincidence, she too happened to be running against Sanders in the primary and Trump in the general.
This is what politics boils down to now and it's scary. Immense fortunes or organized online attack mobs and or both.
And the more extreme, polarized, nasty, and foaming at the mouth a candidate is, the better it seems now too. Appeals to reason, decency, and mediation are a no-no.
Can anyone imagine if Sanders win? Those very same attack mobs materializing... IN THE STREETS when they inevitably fail to "enact change" and radically "transform society" electorally because a Sanders win will mean surefire electoral losses in the House and Senate and legislation gridlock. Sanders never passed important legislation he authored in his long political life.
In short, Trump, Sanders, Bloomberg... bleak.
There are better alternatives for America and that's been the core of Joe Biden's message and African-American voters long understood it...
3
@Eric Funny. Every other politically oriented column has comments that a definitely abti-Trump, yet here you are saying this is being mobbed by Trump voters? Wouldn't they be all over those other articles, too?
There is growing recognition that Biden needs to retire from the race, and that's based on ability to perform, not just politics.
1
I like Joe Biden, but I had hoped against hope that he would not enter the race for president. I felt his time had passed when he became vice president. Bloomberg and Steyer are spreading cash around to all the "right" people, and other candidates have exposed weaknesses in Joe's campaign that he has not recovered from. Joe, and other democratic candidates, are entering South Carolina looking very weak, and there's too much at stake to expect black people to stick in and nurse a floundering campaign back to health. At the end of the day, everything is becoming secondary to a candidate's ability to defeat Donald Trump in the general election.
3
Last time around people only really started appreciating Joe when it was clear he wasn't going to be in the race. That will probably happen again -- remorse, after people realize someone with 8 years of solid experience in the White House under Obama is gone and no longer an option. Trump isn't in Ukraine looking for dirt on anyone else, and there's good reason for that.
3
@Joe
The reason is that Joe Biden was the only one who was vice president and withheld a billion dollar aid package unless the Ukraine president fired the prosecutor investigating Hunter Biden's company.
3
In yet another spectacular failure in the career of the stable genius, he is now impeached for abusing the power of his office to have a foreign government announce a phony investigation of a opposition candidate who is now basically out of the running after only two primaries.
Trump has secret dossiers prepared by a former foreign spy that provide details of wrongdoing by not only the Democrat Presidential candidates but also Democrats in Congress. They will be anonymously released next September. Everyone will believe these revealing reports just as they believed the one that accused Trump of collusion with the Russians.
1
@William McCain You will be foiled in tracing the origin of the Trump campaign 'oppo research' because it will be concealed as a payment from the RNC via a 'law' firm. You poor fools.
1
I loved how a Bloomberg spokesperson said Bloomberg's comments on stop and frisk weren't who he is.
He made the comments. They came out of his mouth. If he didn't believe what he was saying, why did he say it? And how do we know when he says something in the future, he really means it?
7
@Steve
Let go. Move on.
He is more now than all the others to undo Trump.
The headline of this article should read: "Bernie Sanders now leads all Democratic candidates in support from non-white voters, new poll shows." From a February 11th Monmouth University Poll.
9
I never heard of Joe until Obama picked him. That is probably not true since I was an adult when He was cross examining Anita Hill. I never took notice of him before Obama picked him.
I have not been impressed by him and what I have learned about him makes me dislike him.
I fear he doesn't have anyone close to him able to tell him no whom he will listen to. I fear he is going to flame out like Mohamed Ali did in those last 3 fights he should never have taken.
7
@magicisnotreal. George Foreman got resurrected and won his last few fights.
Karen of the Bay Area,
I think you are the one who is selling black people short. They know when they are being used and both Mike Bloomberg and Tom Steyer are the culprits. I know a number of blacks and they like President Trump. They will vote for him in 2020. He has helped them enormously and been on their side. They have never had it so good under this president. Their employment numbers are the best they have seen. He has not bought their support but is genuine in his care for them.
Hillary Clinton spent a fortune on her campaign but it did not win her the election. President Trump spent little on his campaign and he won. Why? He was not pretentious and spoke the truth. People liked that and he is doing it once again. People like his sincerity which is rare in politics. He asked for the black vote and said what do have to lose? They gained under him and will continue if he wins once again. I think he will and all races will benefit.
4
I wouldn’t want anybody to reduce me to “a Jewish voter”. I AM Jewish but I would never vote for Sanders and am very lukewarm toward Bloomberg, the two Jews in the race. So why is it assumed that there is a monolithic “African-American” vote? I believe African-Americans are as diverse in their political opinions as anybody else. Will a black middle-class suburban professional vote for a socialist? Will a black mother whose son was killed by a gang member vote for rolling back community policing? Will a black factory worker vote for open borders and immigrant cheap labor? If it’s true that many black voters are moderate, why should they vote for Biden who is so clearly a has-been? They have a great choice of centrist candidates in Mayor Pete, Amy Klobuchar and even Bloomberg. Reducing a large segment of the electorate to their skin color is a subtle form of racism.
13
Blacks failed to vote their interests in 2016. Their judgment is suspect.
3
Try not to despair, or god forbid, be patronizing. It’s the candidate’s job to INSPIRE the electorate to get out the vote! Join us! Sanders for the first Jewish President of the US!
1
@David Henry
Exactly right.
They voted for Democrats in 2016.
Hopefully, that’ll change this November.
1
South Carolina is no different than the preening for attention states of Iowa and New Hampshire. SC is now the supposed representative of black Americans, when if you know anything about the south, education standards are low and racism is plentiful. SC just wants to be the first, predominantly black democratic state to matter.
Too bad Mike Bloomberg is not on the ballot, but he is smart enough (and rich enough) to know to play chess, thinking 5 moves ahead.
Pick Bloomberg. He has the money, big city experience, he's a safe made man - not like that bald, orange spray tan, traitor, dictator that's currently in the White House.
Democrats at the national level took the votes of people of color for granted in 2016. HRC believed she was entitled to the black vote. She clearly was not, and many people of color chose to stay home in November of 2016.
Joe Biden also seems to believe he is entitled to those same votes. Tom Steyer and Pete Buttigieg both know they have to earn those votes. So do Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren.
I don't know which candidate will get the most support from the voters, but Democratic Party leaders need to listen and pay attention this time. If they once again decide that we get the candidate they have chosen for us we'll end up in the same place we did in 2016.
4
The DNC cheats in every primary and caucus by allocating more delegates to right-wing areas and by artificially capping the delegates from college towns. Pete and Amy lucked into this DNC rigging after Biden cratered.
When delegate rigging isn't enough they challenge the credentials of the Bernie delegates. It's hard for young people at their first county or state convention to stand up to the powerfully corrupt forces out to cheat us.
And when that doesn't work the MSM oligarchs shut down the exit polls so we can't see what games the DNC is playing with the voting machines.
4
The nomination was Biden’s to lose, but it appears he is turning ball four into strike three. As a voter of color who has never missed the opportunity to vote since eligible, because of those before me had to endure so I could exercise that right, I’m very particular about who I vote for in reference to the implications of minority citizens. Buttigieg fails to instill confidence due to his complete unawareness of problems between law enforcement and minority citizens of the town he was the mayor of. Bloomberg also has way too much baggage with minorities. I find it quite insulting he is now draping himself in black voters while attempting to purchase the presidency, and somewhat disheartening that prominent black officials are allowing themselves to be bought. I like Sanders due to the fact that what he said 30 years ago, he is saying today. I find Mr Steyer quite intriguing due to his lack of negative baggage with minorities, and his willingness to at least have the conversations that need to happen.
There are those who will say Bernie hasn’t really passed any significant bills, but from my personal vantage point, neither have they. Right now my dream would be to see Sanders and Steyer find some middle ground and compromise, and run on the same ticket. The fact that Sanders being called a socialist like a dirty word could work to his advantage. Most are underestimating the power of his message, and are not cognizant of the many who are being left behind
11
It’s obvious who the Trumps want to run against... Bernie. They’ll bury us with ads showing Soviet and Venezuela style socialism. Most people don’t know or care about the difference. We need a moderate to bring in the independents. Bloomberg can do it with Harris or Klobuchar.
2
@Gary C Bernie brings in the independents more than anyone else, the polls show it clearly. Another moderate will fail for the same reason Hillary did.
1
As a "late in the game" Democratic voter I think the alarm & panic modes are a bit overdone. The primaries will be able to choose a nominee, but that may take a while. One Trump quote that actually comes in handy is; "we'll see what happens".
5
Biden couldn’t win the nomination when he was in his prime and much more robust.
Now he’s lost a step or two, and the world has changed radically around him, to the point where he is woefully out of touch.
A nostalgia candidate is not going to cut it against Trump, and Biden was a fantasy from the beginning. Time to move on to those who actually have a chance to win.
9
I am confused as to why the article mentions a Fox News poll. Are those accurate? Are they biased? Does Fox News polls report whatever their right-wing wacky agenda dictates? I don't trust Fox News.
2
@Bill R Strangely enough, Fox News polls are highly rated for accuracy. They are actually respected pollsters. Just do a quick Google search and see.
3
Did you forget the highly accurate New York Times poll that showed that Hillary Clinton had a 92 percent chance of beating Trump?
1
@Bill R A fox news poll is probably more reliable than a NYT poll. The NYT has only one acceptable result..Trump is bad and the people we want (Sanders and Warren) are good.
1
Come on Joe. It's clear you don't have the support you need. Why not be the bigger man and go to work to help elect a more viable candidate. BTW, although it doesn't appear you didn't violate the law in Ukraine, unlike Trump and Giuliani, you showed very poor judgement - optics are important.
8
Maybe the media should stop pretending that the black community are imbued with unique moral powers, taking their time to weigh every decision, but are in fact swayed by traditional advertising and name recognition like everyone else. Bloomberg is up with black voters and so is Tom Steyer. What do they share in common? Massive ad buys.
People say Biden should stop using the black community? Why don’t the media stop using them to harangue candidates they don’t like (Buttigieg), while ignoring their minimal support for the ones they do like (Warren and to a lesser extent Klobuchar), implying that black voters have deeply considered who they will support, often even more so than voters of other demographics.
There is no election in recent memory where it has become more obvious how elite urban whites will pay lip service to caring what the black community thinks when it helps the elite but ignore them when it does not.
7
@Matt Well put but you will probably be accused of being a racist. Only Trump voters not have uniwue moral powers according to te wokee.
I completely agree that a high voter turnout from the Black community will assist in electing the POTUS, but I do not beleive that a "Blue" vicotry depends solely or completely on the aforementioned community. Victory in November, and ejecting Trump from the Oval Office, will require a Democaratic candidate to sway (bring together) ALL so-called minority groups, e.g., the Black community, the Latino community, the Asian community, the LGBT community, etc., to come out in numbers and in support of the ticket. THAT, along with many others, will triumph and begin the process of restoring the Nation we love, and which we have seen severely diminished under Donald Trump.
1
Biden is making the same mistakes HRC made. Being presumptive. Compounded by expecting to run in and be the anointed White Knight. While his ground game versus HRCs is too weak. I like Joe, but he speaks like the old white guy we roll our eyes at when he starts in with the "in my day, we did it this way, we were better at X and Y." The "back in my day" schtick isn't a winning one.
10
“A new poll (from this article) showed that Biden’s support fell from 49 percent to 27 percent.”
This backs up what I have been thinking all along. A lot of Biden’s black support came from his perceived electability, NOT necessarily his policies.
(This is because black people have much more to lose from another Trump presidency!)
Now that Biden’s electability is in question, so is his black support.
So don’t vote for Biden solely based on his “black support.”
5
Black voters are like the rest of us #NeverTrumpers. They want someone who can win, and it's becoming obvious Biden has little enthusiasm going for him among Democrats. His contributions are also drying up, which tells you pretty much everything you need to know about his prospects.
4
Biden on Obama: “I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy,"
5
Go enjoy your millions made from being a ‘public servant’, Joe. Sanders has this one.
5
I hope we stress test Sanders so there are no surprises going into the general so all y’all can feel confident that we will OUST the most DANGEROUS president in our history!
1
Although we do not underestimate Mr. Trump, no one can push Sanders off message. I hope you take a look at Sanders’ actual policies, as whether you support him or not, they will raise all boats, yours included. Sanders cares about everyone, not just the wealthy. Take a look at how we are increasing democracy and maybe join us! Thank you in advance for your time!
1
Two words: Anita Hill.
6
Black failed to vote in 2016 and they now have two Trump racist judges on the Supreme Court. And elsewhere.
It's a little late to undo the damage.
3
@David Henry Racist judges??? Some how anyone a Democrat disagreees with is a racist. See howthat worked in the last election or are 63 million Americans racists??
1
Black democrats are like any democrats, they look at the news, they watch the debates, they listen what volunteers of any campaign have to say, they go to candidates meeting or watch them on TV... They surely see like everyone else that Biden's campaign is fading and are looking for other option.
Biden takes their vote for granted but he is going to have a very bad surprise... I don't think he has much chances to survive after the Super Tuesday...
7
OMG We need to all wake up and see that Biden is the candidate that can beat Trump! America is yearning for someone like Biden but once again Trump is muddying up the waters, conning us into believing Biden isn't what he is -- the only way to restore the soul of America. Please South Caroline, wake up and bring Joe back!!!
1
Honestly it is pathetic, Biden's whole approach. African -Americans will save him. Nothing will save him. Even if he wins S Carolina, that will just prolong the agony. And Tom Steyer? What are you kidding? The person that has made the most inroads with Black voters, that is the ones who actually are paying attention at this point, is Bernie Sanders
7
Didn’t anyone even watch the Anita Hill insult to Black women? There’s a generation of Black men in jail because of his ‘war on drugs’. No one lives on a plantation anymore, but maybe Joe missed that memo. Trade policies he proposed gutted this nation and brought us to our knees. Why would .anyone. vote for more of that whole... situation?
9
@Hunter
Blacks in congress supported the 1994 crime bill. So blame them too. And besides, if you don't want to get arrested, don't walk around with drugs in your pocket or use them or deal them. It's really quite simple.
1
I have no interest in blaming anyone! We who volunteer for Sanders for President are in the business of inspiring people to have hope and contribute to our democracy!!! We have the policies to create a just, civil society and you are free to join us too!
1
Because he's White. He could promise reparations, free cars for everybody and free healthcare, and a significant portion of black voters wouldn't vote for him. For as much as people deny it, nearly everybody is racist to some extent, it isn't limited to the US or just White People. World wide it's common. Reading the comments section of the NYT would lead you to believe that all Republicans are racist, but there is NO difference between Republicans and Democrats.
4
As Obama told him, “ you don’t have to do this”.
9
Why would anyone waste their time on Steyer? He's annoying and has nothing to add. He's distracting and pulling votes away from the contenders. He needs to get off the stage! Talk about buying your way in. At least Bloomberg has a shot. This is a vanity project for wimpy little Steyer.
5
Great work Pelosi - Your impeachment gambit gave Trump a 5% bump, and nuked poor Uncle Joe.
Now you have a Sanders vs Bloomberg match up that will rip the party in 2.
3
Bloomberg is free to actually contribute and purchase Fox News.
3
@Tom
The irony is that neither are really Democrats. We started with over 20 Democrats to choose from and may end up without a Democrat in the general election because no one was good enough. It's may be for the best.
2
There is good reason Joe Biden has not done well in primaries so far. Throughout his political career, Biden has reliably served corporate interests, including the banking industry. Some of Biden’s ‘accomplishments’ include: changing bankruptcy laws which excluded former college students, burdened with large student loans they cannot pay back from bankruptcy protection, supporting the ‘war on drugs’, mass incarceration of black people, 1990s welfare “reform,” job out-sourcing (NAFTA), financial deregulation, which lead to taxpayer-funded $ multi-trillion bank bailouts and 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force in Iraq. These policies have enriched the wealthy- proverbial ‘1%’, while further impoverishing the poorest segments of US society. Background on ‘Joe, see-
1. No Joe! Joe Biden’s disastrous legislative legacy By Andrew Cockburn Letter from Washington Harpers Mar, 2019; Link: harpers.org/archive/2019/03/joe-biden-record
2. Here Comes Joe Biden and It's Worse Than You Thought. The former vice president is eager to stake out the middle of the road, between ultra-predatory capitalism and solidarity with working-class people by Norman Solomon Common Dreams Mon, Mar 11, 2019; Link: www.commondreams.org/views/2019/03/11/here-comes-joe-biden-and-its-worse-you-thought
4
“The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race.”
-Chief Justice John Roberts
Always race and identity politics with these Democrats.
Always.
Pathetic.
5
@Reality Check John Roberts is a Democrat? News to me. I think you need a reality check.
1
"Black voters." What is that? Do all (or most) black people vote the same way? Do they not think for themselves? Or do they all think the same way. The whole pandering premise of this discussion is racist.
10
The first two states had about 10% non-White voters!
For sure, it'd be better if Nevada and S.C. were first so we'd have a more broadly representative electorate.
However, Biden's comment is laughable.
“99.9 percent. That’s the percentage of African-American voters that have not yet had a chance to vote in America.”
Well, guess what, Uncle Joe? 99%+ of white voters haven't had a chance to vote in the primaries, either!
Furthermore, most urban dwellers, progressives, moderates, suburbanites, Latinos, activists, lounge lizards, couch potatoes, well-educated, low information, working class, professionals, and politically savvy voters haven't had a chance to vote yet, either!
We all need to be very attentive to the misrepresentations, poor reasoning, and even outright lies by the candidates. I don't like Buttigieg for many reasons, but Klobuchar's repeated smarmy one-liner about his preferring cartoons to watching impeachment is a complete fabrication and distorts what he said. In fact, he said the exact opposite — that the Republicans were hoping people would watch cartoons, but that voters shouldn't fall for it!
See the brilliant expose by William Saletan over at Slate.
“The Deceptive Attack that Saved Klobuchar’s Campaign”. Also titled,
“How Klobuchar Saved Her Campaign:
By twisting the words of her opponent.”
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/02/klobuchar-saved-campaign-new-hampshire-buttigieg-attack.html?via=taps_top
3
Just as Trump took black voters for granted with his "What do you have to lose?" quip (Answer: Everything), so too Biden believes he is entitled to the black vote. The black community isn't stupid. It wants to elect a winner, and the gaffe-prone, stuttering and senile Biden doesn't fit the bill. Afro-Americans and other minorities are just as afraid of Trump's reelection as is everyone else suffering from 3 years of hardship and humiliation. Biden doesn't stand a dog's chance of winning the Democratic primary, so he should urgently get behind someone who does.
4
@Hamid Varzi Last I checked Black unemployment is the lowest it has ever been in the US.
1
If I was a black voter, I would be personally insulted at Biden's claim that the black and Hispanic vote belongs to him. Assuming a vote from anyone, or any racial or ethnic group, is somehow owed to you demonstrates your own self delusion and sense of political entitlement.
11
Three (3) things come to mind: 1. Joe Biden is just "biding his time" until he can suspend his ill-conceived run. He knows he can't get out yet; it's too early- so he'll get out as soon as can tell his dwindling supporters that "now is just not his time". 2. When I see Joe get to the microphone, I begin to cringe with the thought of what will come out of his mouth- from his "hairy legs" anecdote to his latest, "a lying dog-faced pony soldier". 3. Now, since it was Joe himself who brought up the equine species, I would add that his performances of late remind me of the old children's folksong " The Old Gray Mare Ain't What She Used to Be". That's the pony-faced truth!!
11
Who cares what Joe Biden is counting on? He's finished. Let his name be spoken nevermore.
5
Your headline is wrong- black voters are the savior we ALL need. And while we're at it, I hope Bernie's supporters don't whine and stay home either.
1
@Linda Jean Bernie supporters were more loyal in 2016 than Hillary voters were in 2008, despite the fact that Hillary did nothing to reach out to his supporters whatsoever. Hillary deserves all the blame for her own loss.
2
I hope you take another look at Sanders. We welcome all y’all into our campaign for our next president of these United States.
2
@Merriwether Can we clear! A capitalistic country is not going to elect a democratic socialist. All the voters would see is the word: socialist and freak out. Trump already called Sanders, a communist. Whenever I see or hear Sanders, I see a old crusty white man who is mad at the world and has a record in the Senate of not passing any legislation under his name and is not known as being a person others want to work with. Sanders would lose a national election...his time, like Joe Biden's has passed. Sanders dreams of being president. That will never happen. Medicare For All is a doomed ship set to sink. America will not go the socialism route and Bernie is especially not the poster boy to carry it. He comes across as mean and snarly with a tone that is almost bitter as to what happened to him with Hillary.
1
Let's beat trump … Bloomberg has the resources and the ability to do it … Let Mike Do It!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
1
The NYT just can't help itself apparently. As the article notes Biden's faltering support, they point to Steyer, a guy who is dead last in polling as someone siphoning off support. Then they mention Buttigieg, who while surging in Iowa and NH, has drawn so little support from blacks and Latinos that it might be considered OPPOSITION,not support. And then FINALLY, as if there is no other option, they mention Sanders, who is not only leading in most polls, but also rising specifically in polls of non-white voters.
I guess this could be a good example for journalism students to see how to report the "news" by distorting the news.
4
Joe Biden’s disgraceful treatment of Anita Hill disqualifies him from the Democratic nomination. He’s just another old, rich, white man who believes that he is entitled to be President.
5
Rereading NY Times
"Young Black Voters to Their Biden-Supporting Parents: ‘Is This Your King?’
By Astead W. Herndon Sept 20, 2019
5
The degree to which the NYT can't let it go with Biden is unbelievable.
I've tried to post comments highlighting some of Biden's gaffs that show he's not just insensitive but likely in the early stages of dementia.
None of them get published. Not when I include links to back up the gaffs. Not when I have no links. Has happened on this story as well.
In the past few months, we've had the "lying dog-faced pony soldier" incident, the "record player" incident (as part of an incoherent and racist rant), and the petting of the face of a man in a wheel chair.
I hope the NYT will stop stifling the comments for readers who think Biden is past his prime.
8
Bloomberg is buying them off
2
Please! Why does NYT think Black and Brown people love Biden? They are people just like everyone not some outlier
8
Hillary Clinton won the 2016 primary in a large part because she won the primaries in the south, states which had no chance of going to the Democrats in the general election.
She lost the general election because she lost the rust belt, which she took for granted. And who won the primaries in the Rust Belt, and would have won them in the general as well? Bernie.
13
Bernie Sanders will do better than expected in South Carolina because his economic justice agenda to restore the American Dream for the majority of Americans in the middle and lower working classes by reversing our government’s long-held embrace of supply-side economics is the best prescription for what ails African-Americans in this country. It is precisely where the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was when he developed his economic agenda for his planned Poor People’s Campaign just before his tragic 1968 assassination. It also helps Sanders’ case that he was one of the few white political figures to endorse Jesse Jackson for President in 1988 and he has a strong history of civil rights activism during the movement’s 1960s heyday, even attending the 1963 March on Washington.
15
Biden's statements about how he will win in South Carolina raise identity politics to a level that no one should be comfortable with. His argument is essentially that he should be the nominee because he is the only candidate that African Americans will support. Not only is this premise wrong, the idea that that African American support is the key to victory, while possibly accurate in the democratic primary in South Carolina, certainly does not apply across the country where, as far I know, African Americans are still a minority. Democrats should not nominate a candidate who cannot garner the support of white Americans too.
16
African American voters have a big say in choosing a Democratic nominee but little in who is elected President. That means choosing someone who is acceptable to themselves and will be acceptable to the rest of the citizens. If they choose a candidate who will satisfy everything that they want, they risk getting a President who offers them nothing that they want. This is because they remember racial discrimination goes back to when the practice of lifetime slavery was limited to Africans and their descendants. It’s a bitter legacy which is extremely important and is expressed by the bitter reactions of Black Lives Matter and the demands by many to virtually eliminate prosecution and punishment by those who feel that it is just intended to deprive minorities of decent lives. Those are extreme proposals which will not be acceptable for a general campaign that will be successful.
2
@Casual Observer
"If they choose a candidate who will satisfy everything that they want, they risk getting a President who offers them nothing that they want"
Funny - I always thought the African-American community was in favor of the lowest unemployment rate in history..
Oh well - guess not - good luck with Biden or Mayor Pete etc...
2
Currently, mainly based on his connection to Obama, Biden has the most black support.
But this is rapidly changing.
He has lost almost 50% of this support since December and that is before Mike Bloomberg got in the race.
Now he is down to 27% with Bloomberg at 22% and rapidly rising, according to the most recent Quinnipiac poll.
We all want to get rid of Trump. Formerly, it was thought that Biden was the person to do this.
That is no longer the case. Coming in fifth in Iowa and NH with likely major loses in Nevada and then the collapse of his firewall in South Carolina only weakens his case.
Trump is a racist who has a special animus towards blacks.
They, as all of us, want to take the psychopath out.
Mike seems the best bet at this point.
4
@Simon Sez
These are a lot of assumptions based on one poll. There was another national poll, released yesterday from Economist/You Gov, that also shows a significant gain for Bloomberg among black voters (3% to 17%) compared with two weeks earlier, but shows only an 8% drop for Biden (dropped from 46% to 38%). Warren also showed a 7% drop, so it appears Bloomberg's increase came from more than one candidate.
Anyway, this reflects a post-Primary dip. It's too early to know if this is long-term trend and also how the recent news about Bloomberg's comments will affect future support.
1
In another article today in the NY Times, Bloomberg henchman Howard Wolfson explains Bloomberg's statement on the just discovered audo tape that gave his rationale for stopping and violating the constitutional rights of more than 4.5 million black men and Latinos during his mayoralty.
That story quotes Wolfson saying it does not "reflect who he is or what is in his heart".
Then why, Mr. Woflson, did he say it?
We say things we mean. People running for president sometimes can't have it both ways. We can't let them.
Was I running against Bloomberg, I would buy all the TV and radio time left in South Carolina, probably -- not much given the deluge of Bloombucks into the primary campaign there -- with one purpose:
To play over and over and over that audiotape, the one that reveals the real Michael Bloomberg.
8
I like Joe, I'd like to see him as President...a good antidote to that criminal currently occupying the WH. HOWEVER...I believe Democrats will not win if there is poor turnout from POC, Black and Latino community. They are the future and have been long ignored. So, I will pay close attention to SC and NV. I vote on Super Tuesday and will vote for whoever has the support from this particular block. Health care, student loans, and the climate are very important issues but the #1 issue is for Dems to win back the Senate and the WH...hands down. We need to save our Republic.
9
On the day Joe Biden drops out, that's the day Trump pops the champagne. And all you out there, who hate Trump, and are on here saying Joe should drop out, are the same ones who will jump all over Bloomberg for a"stop-and-frisk" program that saved thousands of lives, mostly minority, are the same one who are working very actively to hand Trump a second term.They will truly get what they deserve.Ignorance is bliss.
8
@Lonnie Can you imagine Joe in his current state trying to debate Trump? He would blow it completely, he can't even deliver a rally speech coherently. Trump would wipe the floor with him.
7
The powers to be in the DNC have to signal who is most likely to beat Trump. I doubt it is Biden and I know it would never be Sanders. Help us! Give us a clue.
2
There’s an app for that
1
You seem confused. In America, the land of the free and the brave, the American people get to decide whose policies they like and vote for who they want to win to represent their best interests. I realize this isn’t what the Clinton DNC and msm trained you to think, so I just thought I’d give you a helpful reminder. I LOVE that Sanders is increasing democratic participation. I’m voting for Sanders. You get to vote for who you want. That’s what a democracy is. If you like that idea, join us. Cheers!
2
@Philip W
Bloomberg.
Biden is sunk if he's depending on the black vote as his firewall. When Bloomberg ran for his third term for mayor of NYC against an African-American Democratic candidate, he received the endorsement of many black political leaders using the hefty weight of his money to convince them.
Steyer has already started this in South Carolina and Bloomberg can outspend him many times over.
1
A small glitch for Mr. Biden might be that many plain old American women and some men, too still remember the name of an African American woman: Anita Hill.
13
Yep!
2
I'm reminded of those Roman Emperor wannabees who would run out into the public square and try to get support for their cause. Usually it got them a one-way ticket to Hades.
The Dems are becoming ever more prone to magical thinking. Politics is what happens when you've prepared the ground and marshaled your troops. Democrats seem to looking for someone else to provide a parade that they can lead.
6
Joe embodies the trade deals why millions of Americans are on their knees in poverty and no access to real healthcare or in jail from a war on drugs. Why would anyone, not just the minority that has a generation in jail because of Joe’s policy preferences, want to vote for that whole situation?!
11
I am so tired of the false narrative that the Black Electorate is the pivotal bandwidth in elections especially the 2020 Presidential Election.
Such a faux belied targets the Black Electorate as villains and scapegoats when the pundits and forecasters misfired. it is an insult as well to only value the opinions of Black voters once very four years as well.
More importantly it is the White Electorate that created the Trump Era of America
Facts still matter in America even during the election cycles in America
BLM
6
@Thrasher Black voters generally vote for any democrat 90+% of the time. Of course white voters elected Mr. Trump. They represent the majority of the country at the present time. Blacks voters are neither saints nor sinners. The Democrats need to pander to them because without the 90+% support they lose every time. They will promise anything..reperations, elimination of bail, elimination of parole, race based admissions and promitions, you name it. But guess what..it never happens and never will as long as Black voters vote 90+% for anyone with a D after their name.
Biden was out before he started.
5
As a native South Carolinian with many family members across the state, I am reminding them of Biden’s record: $68 billion into states to build more prisons which decimated African-American communities for a generation through the 1994 crime bill, which he wrote (it was a sad joke to see him talk about criminal justice reform in his shaky speech in Columbia after he fled New Hampshire); his terrible treatment of Anita Hill as Chair of the Judiciary Committee; his support of the 1995 Welfare Reform bill which took food out of the mouths of black children; his constant “gaffes” which people laugh off but are really an underlying belief system: remember his words about black children not being as inherently smart as poor white children or when he declared that Mitt Romney would “put y’all back in chains.” I will be reminding my relatives and their friends in South Carolina about Biden’s dismal record re: the black community and remind them that they don’t live on Joe Biden’s plantation.
21
You completely nailed it.
5
Sanders could win SC. Steyer's done a superb job of peeling away blacks from Biden, and now Biden has Bloomberg's pocketbook to contend with, too. Meanwhile, Sanders is the big favorite of Millennials SC blacks, just like whites. Biden could easily come in fourth in SC. Let's hope he still limps into Super Tuesday, so he can help Bloomberg, Klobuchar, Buttigieg, and Warren split the vote of the "others" vs. Bernie. That could easily result in none of the "others" getting 15%, giving Bernie every single delegate in CA, etc.
8
Biden's adviisors hoping on his South Carolina's black "firewall" should themselves be scorched. Black voters there, like throughout the Deep South, are about family, church, work and sports. Prediction: Mayor Pete will not do well with the church folk because of his marriage. This from someone who spent much of his life in The Palmetto State and knows its people. What gets me is that the TV talking heads seem to want to prop up both Biden and Pete -- but the reality is that both camps will be disappointeed after SC.
12
Let’s get one thing out of the way. Mr Steyer is a non factor.
Polling at 2% nationally means he has even less chance than Pete, Amy and Warren. Is he expecting a miracle? Because that is what he needs, a miracle. And it’s not happening. He and Tulsi are wasting time and effort, neither will happen. Go home.
Biden has Anita Hill to answer for. Her also has the record number of minorities he and Obama jailed, no one will let him forget that. He also has to answer for the 5 million people he and Obama deported, and the fact that 8 years later not a coma was changed in immigration, a huge button for Latins. Yet he believes he can show up and the same people whose families he jailed and deported in record numbers will embrace him. Fool me twice …
Just call it. Sanders is a socialist, the DNC does not like him. Warren is on free fall, she uses lies to get ahead in life and she got caught. Pete and Amy, the country is not ready for them. Love Bloomberg, but the DNC does not.
Joe only needs the Super Delegates and he is in.
Look for the fix at the last minute. Mark my words, the DNC will make him the candidate at the end. By miracle of course.
2
People: It is time to give Joe Biden a farewell song, a nice dinner and a pat on the back. Joe is not up for the rigors of this campaign against Trump. He is acting as if this is a favor that he is doing to his deceased son. Joe does not inspire me in the least. His time has come and gone but he refuses to recognize it. It is as if Joe Biden is saying to the black voter: "Hey, you guys, save my bacon out of the fire. You are my firewall...don't leave me now!" Sorry Joe....we are not your firewall. Graciously move over and don't embarrass yourself in the upcoming primaries. Have some self respect. For any and all minority voters, women and independents and disgruntled Republicans, vote out Trump, the consummate con man and liar who has no conscience and wants to be a monarch.
13
Thank you for your service Joe Biden but you are living in another era and it's time to go home and spend time with your family.
11
The strong support of African American voters in Southern states enabled Hillary Clinton to win the 2016 Democratic Party nomination over Bernie Sanders, but on November states gave all their electoral votes to Trump. Democrats should nominate someone with strong support in swing states,
6
According to the Pew Research Center, 32 million Latinos will be eligible to vote in 2020, compared with 30 million African-Americans.
I am genuinely curious - why the dearth of insightful reporting and exploration of the LARGEST voting block after whites?
7
@SteveRR
If I had to hazard a cynical guess, it's because the majority white candidates don't know how to access them.
They can't simply show up to a few prominent churches, or reach out to local representatives that have held the same office for decades. The Latino voters exist, but the current political framework in the South has virtually excluded them entirely.
1
@SteveRR Because Latino is a meaningless designation. It encompasses people from many different races, backgrounds and countries. Cubans aren't Puerto Ricans aren't Mexicans aren't Guatemalans etc.
If I asked you who would win the Irish vote, or the Italian vote, would that be helpful? Latino is a stupid categorization and should be eliminated.
Clyburn said only yesterday that he already knows who he will endorse and will do so the day before the primary. Sure, Clyburn's son is on the Mayor Pete team but at the end of the day the only thing that will come out of his mouth will be " Biden."
Yes, NH and Iowa are very white. So what.
He is not appealling to a large demographic, which is bad. Remember, Trump won with all white votes.
Second, what does it mean if Biden wins in South Carolina, as the blacks are a large part of the Democrats, but a Democrat is not going to win that state. So, if Biden sweeps the south, he should be the nominee of the Democratic party?
10
Biden has never won a single primary in any of his numerous campaigns for president. As a matter of fact, he has never even come close to winning a primary. And that will still be case whenever he drops out this time around. He's a crummy candidate and always has been.
10
I plan on voting for Sanders on Feb 29. I had originally wanted to vote for Booker, but I don't think the other candidates that were in his lane have the same authenticity, which I think pulls in the types of voters that would otherwise tune out and stay home.
Steyer has been everywhere. I get a flyer in the mail 6 days a week from his campaign. I feel like Biden's initial polling numbers were inflated because he had the most recognizable name. After months of constant advertising, Steyer is becoming just as well known.
I know there is a lot of focus on South Carolina as a bellwether for minority support... but the just remember that the swing states needed to win aren't likely to hinge on that same demographic. I know SC will vote overwhelmingly for Trump, and that won't stop me from voting anyway, but it's something to keep in mind when using our primary as a litmus test for Biden's chances.
18
Could we please stop reducing the entirety of African American opinions and experiences to some perceived monolithic and mythic “black community” in the state of South Carolina? Biden is by no means every African American’s choice. The black political landscape in the Democratic Party is much more diverse than these discussions allow. And, regardless of ethnicity, Biden is not the one to tackle anyone’s issues today or tomorrow.
213
@EJ Well said, and finally.
8
@EJ Well said! Nonetheless, I hope South Carolina Democrats, including the mythical monolithic black voters, will send Biden a clear message that he's no one's savior and should get out of the way to leave some space for more viable moderate candidates.
5
@EJ
EJ: I have been thinking the same thing, i.e., how does one categorically make a unitary "bloc" of one major ethnic group which, by it's sheer number, MUST be as diverse as any other grouping of the same size? I am white, older, and the product of the traditional "middle class." Yet I hardly think of myself as just part of a "bloc" of like-minded, middle class white voters with a college education. My opinions range as wide as my thinking and ideas...picking a candidate to represent me is a challenge, not a given. So too with the individuals making up the Black community as well, I would say.
9
Hey, what happened to Biden being the most electable, and mostly likely to beat Trump?
Then it was Buttigieg,
Then it was Klobuchar,
Carville was convinced it was Bennet,
now it seems to be Bloomberg.
I wish moderates would make up their mind, they are only hurting themselves... The election is upon us.
I think the person most electable is the person that actually wins elections.
20
"...blacks,African Americans are the backbone of the Democratic Party. And we desire good schools. We desire safe neighborhoods. We desire good jobs. We desire the same thing that most people desire and need and want to live in America....And African Americans are Americans, and we desire to have our priorities as part of someone's platform." Henry Davis Jr. Speaking on DemocracyNow! 2/12/20
So well said, and as a white American voter, how do the blacks,African American voter get more of this message out to other African Americans, political candidates and all other Americans that do have and share these concerns, and get this message out further into the corners of the American political debate...honestly to include their voices so much more in the process.
3
Even if Biden can win a primary in South Carolina, the can't win South Carolina in the general election against Trump.
He's looking to that part of the Democratic Party that lost in 2016, and looking to repeat the things that lost last time.
7
@Mark Thomason
This isn't about winning South Carolina in a general election. This is about seeing how candidates do in the South, in states with a diverse population. Other states like Florida or Texas might be winnable.
While it's true that Democratic candidates have taken for granted support from people of color, and while it's true that candidates now are pandering to them, and while it's true that the Republicans will do anything to block people of color from voting, this is also true: African-American voters must not stay home on Election Day, even if they are disenchanted with the Democratic presidential candidate.
African-American voters didn't turn out in 2016 because of their disenchantment with Clinton, which enabled Trump and his mob to win the election.
Everybody, Get Out and Vote like your children's and grandchildren's lives depended upon it!
14
Joe,
Thank you for your long service to America. Now go home and enjoy your retirement. Your energy level is low and you’re stuck in another era. It’s been obvious since you first contemplated running that you were ambivalent at best. You should have followed your instincts and stayed out. You and Elizabeth need to drop out now and make way for Pete, Amy and Mike. Staying in is hurting the Democratic party’s already slim chances of defeating King Donald.
110
@Marc
You were on target until you included Warren. She is high energy, forward-looking, talented, and highly committed.
She was hurt by the gratuitous, smarmy, and unfounded attacks by Mayo Pete and Tyrannical Amy, whose own health care plans would leave Big Pharma and health care conglomerates in the driver's seat — and not make the much-needed improvements in Medicare. They both embrace the neoliberal principle of choice rather than health care justice.
Klobuchar's repeated line that the Sanders-Warren plan is designed to throw 149 million people off their health care is an outrage, leaving the impression that people would lose their health care entirely. She knows better. She's also repeatedly lied about Mayor Pete's statements about impeachment watching, See https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/02/klobuchar-saved-campaign-new-hampshire-buttigieg-attack.html?
19
@Marc
Wow. Do you really think "Stop and Frisk" Mike with his uninspiring and inautthentic voice is going to beat Trump? There's a reason they don't put it on his ad much!
Amy's record on mistreating minorities is almost as bad. And, in my eye, she exudes meanness and unempathy which may explain how she's landed on the list of worst bosses, with the highest rate of turnover!
I do love Pete and would certainly vote for him but I still think Biden's the best candidate to bring us back from the devilish depths of Trumpism.
9
@Marc
Bloomberg is a Republican who is against everything I believe in.
If the Democrats nominate this lying, manipulating billionaire, who is only a little less rude than Trump, I will take it as complete and total surrender by the Democratic Party to the global billionaire oligarchy.
Vote for Bloomberg if you never want me to vote for another Democrat ever again.
4
Being associated with Obama "might" get you in the door - but Biden must put forward policies that don't mince words but demonstrates he is forcefully supportive of addressing many wrongs systemic racism has caused to black people to the consternation of well-meaning white people
5
An entire generation of Black people were raised by their grandparents because the neoliberal policies Joe represents put their parents in jail. Why would anyone vote for more of that?
1
If African-American voters want a president who can fight for those social and economic issues that most affect them they had better question who is most likely to make it to the White House after November. Can those who have great affection for Obama's loyal VP actually imagine Biden in a one on one campaign against Trump? If Biden could not come out of Iowa and New Hampshire with more than 15% of the Democratic vote How can he win a national election against Trump?
8
Remembering that there's still a large white voting bloc in the party, Biden couldn't get those votes in either Iowa or New Hampshire. Remember, Biden introduced his candidacy as the one who would get the white-guy vote that got away from Clinton. So if he's not getting that, and not necessarily getting the black vote, at least in South Carolina, then whose vote exactly is making him the "most electable"? And if Steyer is making inroads on the black vote in SC, maybe blacks aren't quite as unlikely to vote for the rich white guy who spends a lot of money on his campaign. I know, Bloomberg has baggage that Steyer does not. But he has also been elected (three times) and has devoted much of his fortune to fighting for the issues much-prized by the progressive Democrats: gun control, the environment, school safety, affordable medical care, preservation of the ACA, preservation of Medicare and Social Security, etc. Steyer has been on the angels' side of those issues, as well, but it comes down to what it has always come down to: One can see Bloomberg effectively taking the fight to the Republican nominee in the fall, certainly better than Steyer, and also better than Bernie, Pete or Amy. Being as New York-style confident, combative and strategically shrewd as that other guy desperately pretends he is.
3
We all appreciate Joe. Now, many of us want him to step aside. Take one for the team. We will continue to appreciate Joe.
241
Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth...
Unfortunately, Joe’s the best shot the DNC has.
Iowa and New Hampshire are equivalent to mile 1 of a marathon
Keep swinging Joe!
12
@Davidr
But more want him to stay in.
3
@Paul
Hmm mixed metaphors.
Maybe reflecting Biden's mixed record.
Let's see how he does. But his heart doesn't seem in it. And how could it, knowing he's risked his son's fragile sobriety by getting into the race; he had to know the GOP would hit him at his tender spot and rake his son over the coals.
3
We're reading an awful lot into the horse race aspect of a state the Democrats have zero chance of winning in the general.
63
@Paul
Indeed. SC is one of the most reactionary states in the country.
1
@Paul So what odds are you offering? I know there's something about such a bet being illegal so we'll have to use an off-shore server.
If you make it worth my while I'll investigate how to proceed.
BTW I don't expect infinity-to-one odds. Maybe a million-to-one?
I wouldn’t want to vote for the neoliberal who was part of jailing an entire generation of my people with his failed ‘war on drugs’. I’m outraged he’s even expecting to use. Blacks as his fall back, in solidarity with my fellow Americans. They don’t owe him a darn thing. We can do better. Nina Turner and Cornel West just told us on Monday in New Hampshire, “Brother Bernie is fighting for racial justice and has been for decades.” We can all do better than the neoliberal‘moderates’ who created this catastrophe.
113
@Lilly
I have long admired Sanders and ardently caucused for him in 2016. Then I ardently campaigned for Hillary Clinton who I deplored. Why? Well, how about the dangers presented by Trump and the entire GOP agenda.
Bernie saw that and still does. Many did not and even now, amazingly still don't. Now that takes some powerful self deception. Evidently the Supreme Court et al still means less to them than their grudges and purity tests.
People shouldn't be playing into Trump's hands in Sanders' name. Bernie deserves better than the 'bros'. Even such an eminently cranky bro as Brother West.
Many people created this catastrophe. It will take many people to solve it. We need to unite behind the Democratic nominee. Eyes on the prize.
10
@Lilly
I have long admired Sanders and ardently caucused for him in 2016. Then I ardently campaigned for Hillary Clinton who I deplored. Why? Well, how about the dangers presented by Trump and the entire GOP agenda.
Bernie saw that and still does. Many did not and even now, amazingly still don't. Now that takes some powerful self deception. Evidently the Supreme Court et al still means less to them than their grudges and purity tests.
People shouldn't be playing into Trump's hands in Sanders' name. Bernie deserves better than the 'bros'. Even such an eminently cranky bro as Brother West.
Many people created this catastrophe. It will take many people to solve it. We need to unite behind the Democratic nominee. Eyes on the prize.
3
@Lilly … Bernie may have been fighting but his fight was into hot air … he never passed any legislation … and he allowed the NRA to grow! How does gun violence affect the Black Community? … yes, we can all answer this question.
Biden’s announcement that he is dropping his bid for the nomination will be a sad one for me. This Philly voter has been a fan since his earliest days in the Senate, barring some cringe worthy gaffes, disappointments, and huge blunders like Anita Hill. But Joe is a pro and knows how elections work and I think will soon be closing another chapter in his life and the history of the party. Sad but necessary.
33
@Bashh
Really said a lot about Joe during the debates when he reached out & hugged Bernie Sanders. Yes he is a fantastic fighting campaigner but his big heart in that one moment was all about defeating Trump regardless of whether he personally was doing well in the polls. Joe could be unifier at the convention. Also don't forget, somebody needs to be Veep too.
3
Both Mike Bloomberg and Tom Steyer are using their fortunes to gain voters especially blacks in many of these Caucasus. They are buying these voters and their elections. This is not how the real world works. These candidates are using these voters. If they should win the nomination and ultimately the election, they will quickly turn their backs on them.
President Trump has been a true supporter of the black and minority communities. Unemployment numbers have reached a new low and he is looking out for these voters. He does care for the lives of these people. It has been said that his polling numbers for blacks and minorities is higher now than in 2016. He should win many of these voters in 2020.
4
@KMW , Pretty harsh insult to Black voters that their votes can be "bought." In truth, Black people see this as an existential battle to defeat trump. Rightfully, they are wary of trump, his cabinet, the GOP senate, a trump-owned Justice Department, and all the armed MAGA voters and supporters across this country. This liberal white lady from CA shares their wariness, and in my case it is outright fear-- of the losses we all face if trump and his cronies are somehow reelected. My vote can't be purchased-- what makes you say these black votes can?
1
...but, buying voters and elections is how the "real" world works. Then, when deals are sealed, the "real" winners get to occupy the Royal mansion. As a native New Yorker of past tense, the art of deals in the city were notoriously rotten and were great media headliners.
I am an old white lady, so what do I know?
Nevertheless I am sure SC voters are paying attention to this election. And they want their votes to count.
So if the poor track record of Biden, based on his finishes in Iowa and NH, is causing people to take closer looks at other Dem alternative, that will help us all to get a better sense of which standard bearer would be best for November.
Every vote is sacred. And my only advice here is: vote your conscience now. And come together for November.
18
@TheraP
"Vote your conscience." Exactly right.
I have a Masters in Political Science, and I don't know who most people will vote for.
I know who I think will be the best president, though, so that is who I will vote for.
Don't try to guess who everyone else will vote for. Just vote for the best president.
Voting for lesser politicians because you think they can win, puts lesser politicians in office.
Trump isn't president because anytime thought he works win. He's president because everyone that wants a king voted for him, even though they thought he would lose.
The election is not the time to give things away. The election is time to go big.
Negotiations start when the legislation is being written, and if you gave away everything during the election, you have nothing left to trade during the actual negotiations.
Biden is the main victim of the Trump impeachment hearings. Was the "whistleblower" an agent for Trump, whose goal was to bring Biden's Ukraine corruption issues - or appearance of corruption - out into the open? It certainly seems that way given the way things have turned out.
3
No one wants to vote for Joe because of Joe. Russia didn’t make Clinton lose either. No one wants to vote for the same policies that created this catastrophic nightmare.
8
Biden is the establishment, and he is very low energy. He might appeal to the older folks in the black community, but I doubt that he holds that same sway with younger blacks. I hope he drops out soon, be cause he is a distraction and I don't think he'll get close to nominated. Youth are looking for enthusiasm and ideas beyond just beating Trump. St eyer is that, Bernie is that, Pete is that. Still I will pull the D lever regardless of who.
14
I came to America because I was told this country has democracy. I am so disappointed.
15
Join the Sanders campaign. We are all about increasing representative democracy.
15
Why am I thinking that the monolithic black vote (i.e., the ridiculous notion that all black people vote the same, like drones) was never there? What, exactly, was Biden offering black people that wasn't being offered better by Sanders?
I suspect that Sanders will run all 50 states (even Iowa, assuming they count it fairly). And I suspect that the dnc power elite and the Clintonians are running around trying everything and anything to keep their personal spot at the trough in perpetuity.
You realize that if Sanders wins, it means the whole system of crony politics is going to end, right? And that's bad news for the New York Times, too.
30
@Alex black people do not vote like drones, but they do vote in a block; usually >90% for democratic candidates. check it out; not once in the last 50 years has a democrat received less that 90% of the black vote in a presidential election. cubans immigrants are the inverse; they vote >90% for republicans in presidential elections.
1
As a white voting man in LA if I saw a headline that the white California vote will save candidate so and so as if it were a foregone conclusion regardless, I'd probably vote otherwise just to not be typecast and insulted by the inference.
22
@John Doe , glad you brought CA up. CA is an open primary, and we have more voters than any other state, by far. My bet is that Republicans and Independents will strategically vote for Bernie and with that, Bernie becomes the democratic candidate. Bernie then loses in a landslide, and since he has no coattails, nor any interest in campaigning for any one other than his personal "revolooootion," we will not win the senate, and we will-- if lucky-- hang on to the house by a thread. Then it's truly game over, in a second trump term. Bernie is not electable.
Please Mr Biden pass the torch. The Democratic Party needs to focus on one mission. And it is not splitting the vote.
10
2016 - South Carolina cast 300,000 more votes for Trump than Clinton.
Biden, the press, and the Democratic nomination formula controllers want us to think South Carolina is important to electing a Democrat President. Any readers see 300,000 reasons Biden, the press, and the Democratic formula formulators are wrong?
14
@stewart bolinger
It's a primary. Living in a state where our vote will never count in the national election, this is our one shot at being included in the process.
Biden will be retiring soon.
That is good for the Democrats as well as for him.
10
What is Steyer’s angle here? He must know by now that he’s polling too low to have a real shot at the presidency. I was watching him interviewed by MSNBC, I believe the morning after Iowa, and he was absolutely giddy at the prospect of a blown open, muddled race. Does he understand this isn’t good for Democrat’s prospects to defeat Trump?
8
Black voters have historically not been as reliable as candidates hoped they would be. Hillary Clinton's experience is a good example. It is probably unwise to target any racial or ethnic group as one likely to deliver strong voting on election day. That Steyer is doing well with Blacks in SC does indeed not portend well for Biden but Biden's campaign seems so wounded at this point that loss of Black voters may be among its final blows.
8
What is special about Black voters? Democrats ignore them until their votes are needed. For example, during the Obama Administration, no special spending was done for “shovel ready projects” in minority areas and to employ minorities. This opportunity by a minority President was lost.
5
@William McCain you do know that for 6 years of his presidency that Obama couldn't do much of anything because the House and Senate was controlled by Republicans? His first priority was the Affordable Care Act and it was only passed because the Democrats were in conrol between 2008 - 2010 (the ACA passed in 2009). I am sure you are aware that Congress controls the purse. If you didn't now you do.
Someone please check that the phrase "lying dog faced pony soldier" is not a long forgotten racial insult aimed at blacks.
Biden and Warren are done. The power of the black vote is vastly overblown as well. Blacks, like any other group are not monolithic in their thinking and have other factors that influence their political choices. This includes gender, sexual identity, age and educational level just to name a few. Many are disgusted by the endless attacks on Trump and see the late entry of Bloomberg as not in their best interests.
The Dems will really be in a conundrum if black Americans come out en masse for Biden and he doesn't get the nomination and someone like Bernie or Major Pete does.
Identity based politics can cut both ways and the Dems need to couch their thinking and proclamations lest they set the value of the black vote back more.
You would think they would learn by now but they never seem to do so.
7
@Norville T. Johnston
Did you watch the video? The student who asked the question was white. Biden starts answering by telling her that it's a good question, and the tone is friendly. I don't know the term, but it was obviously meant as a joke.
@Norville T. Johnston I am going to assume that you are black. Therefore, just to let you know as a Black woman my circle and your circle is very different because no one in my circle is disgusted by the endless attacks on Trump. So please stop using the term "many" because this is not true.
1
@Chris I did! I don't want a person who calls people a lying dog faced pony soldier having access to the nuclear codes. Let see if others feel the same way.
3
I never bought the whole "Joe has very strong support in the black community" narrative
Joe's numbers with African Americans were only due to name recognition, just like his poll numbers across every other group.
Bloomberg has spent a fortune on ads targeting African American voters and it's paying off in a huge way. I predict he becomes the favourite of African American voters.
Bloomberg-Harris is my dream ticket.
3
Are people going to vote for a nut case who thinks the world is coming to an end, soon, but has enough money to buy a lot of ads? As opposed to a long term sensible friend?
Biden is a nice man. But does he really have a feel for his African American community? Is he that aware? He was VP for an African American President but is he any more tuned in? Really I think that he is not all that much in tune in as any of the other candidates.
3
@David Binko I am confused on why Obama is referred as African-American. He is not. He was the first black president (since he self identifies as a black person). His father was Kenyan and his mother was white. Therefore he is not African-American.
Okay, so Biden wins South Carolina primary because African Americans come out to vote for him. Here is the more important question: will SC voters vote for him over Trump?
7
Black voters. Not a stereotypical monolith, but just like we whites, some poor, middle class, wealthy, politically connected, running businesses small and large. But the one thing that is...a monolith...is the resurgence of open racism, and an unequal economy. That is the enemy, for all of us,
Who will fight hardest for change? Real change. In finance, antitrust, bankruptcy, immigration....all the lobbyist-inspired laws, regulations that created today’s realities. Campaign finance reform, voting reforms, needing more than just changed laws, who will fight for the needed Constitutional Amendments?
And who will compromise, listen to backers, push change down the road, again. And again. All good people running- so hard to decide. But I hope South Carolinians, all of them, vote for- fighters. And the losers....should certainly end up somewhere in a New Democrat administration.
3
The moment South Carolina becomes a factor in the general election is the moment I’ll begin to care about South Carolina.
10
Last week at the debates Joe Biden said the Democratic Party should stop taking the Black vote for granted. Yet, he is down in South Carolina, hoping and praying he will win the state because it is his "fire wall."
Biden has a long record and with it comes a lot of baggage and frankly, despite his association with Obama, it will not save him.
The only B-candidate worth voting for is Bernie.
11
Joe Biden is a nice guy but was never a good candidate (even going back to 1992) and is way past his "best by date".
Pass the torch Joe.
6
Donald Trump is going to win re-election and it’s all because the Democratic base can never fall in line behind a candidate. Biden isn’t a flashy candidate with the sexiest policies, but his platform is the most realistic and he has had the best head-to-head polling against Trump. That alone should have been inspiration enough to vote for him.
Instead, we get giddy pieces from the Times pronouncing his candidacy as all but dead and gleeful comments from supposed liberals ripping apart a fundamentally good man with the experience and compassion necessary to heal this country.
8
Compared to IA and NH, SC is a much better state to measure our candidates but I have one problem with the state. The Democratic electorate there has failed to deliver the state to Democrats since 1976 when it went for Carter. Perhaps the decision as to which states vote early should include an assessment of whether they have historically delivered. States like IL and obviously CA have significant African-American populations and still come through in general elections. If we ever got rid of the Electoral College, the need to start in the larger and bluer states would be even more so.
1
I suppose whatever financial advantages Steyer has in being able to fund his own campaign, so does Bloomberg. If it is true that people respond to effective advertising then both Steyer and Bloomberg are going to be around until Super Tuesday.
2
People of color will turn out to vote for Bernie. He has a long track record of working for civil rights. Biden's only claim is his association with Obama, but since Obama didn't give him a hearty endorsement (meaning he may have liked Biden, but doesn't see him as a fit president), I don't think his vice presidency means much. Bernie is the only candidate unsullied by corporate influence. MANY more young people will vote in the general election if Bernie is the candidate.
19
I watched Joe on tv the other night when he showed up in SCarolona- he rambled on and actually made no sense. He was thanking people for what I don’t know- it was actually embarrassing and sad to watch. Reminds me of what George Will said - anyone who is attracted to politics really shouldn’t be there, meaning they’re there for the wrong reasons and in Joe’s case they can’t ever leave the scene. It’s time to wrap it up already - it’s over.
14
At this point, it's time to think about Trump getting a second term through the Electoral College.
Tom Steyer is not going to save American democracy.
5
This circle of candidates, like players of poker, all bluffing hands, while there is one who has the cards- true experience, political skills necessary for the rebuilding. Joe Biden waged into a campaign with a relaxed manner, but he is in a war being fought with aggressive political machines, think Blitzkrieg. America's best hope for recovery, now needs your primary vote. Don't look for firebrand revolution now. Pair him with Warren to enact a restraint on corporations. Elect an executive and the potential executive, they are populists, not Populists like Trump and Sanders that want total control.
I fear that Black voters may be thinking 'who'll fly with White voters' while White voters are thinking 'who'll fly with Black voters'.
Folks, we're in this together. And when we unite, we'll win this together.
Over decades as a campaign volunteer, the script seems to have changed from 'let's do this' to 'I hear you' - a change from shared action to personal identity.
Whatever our different pasts, aren't our shared goals the priority? Eyes on the prize.
4
Biden is not creating enthusiasm and that's what's needed to win from Trump. Elections in the US are won by mobilizing voters. If the DNC and liberal media insist on a centrist, Trump II is the guaranteed outcome. There is not a single one better than Clinton in 2016 and Trump is more popular this time around.
5
Hearing certain politicians voice their confidence in support from African American as they demonstrate no sincere interest in the issues that affect them shows exactly what can be expected if they are actually elected. Glad to see Biden at the bottom of the polls. On the other hand, we have Sanders who doesn’t always talk about the black vote but is constantly talking about issues that lead to the inequality we see.
9
Here's Biden and Steyer talk about "blacks" during the debates has made my skin crawl. The idea that there are identity groups that can't think for themselves. That have to vote in a bloc. That can be counted on by candidates for one reason or another.
We have to get away from identity in this country and, sadly, the Democratic party is taking the lead on making sure that does not happen. Yes, polls and statistics may show that one or another identity tends to support one or another candidate. But we have to start thinking about people as individuals and we need to force candidates to treat their constituents as individuals...this is the only way we can ensure that leadership will do things that make the most sense to the most people rather than simply pandering to influencers in each community and expecting the followers to mindlessly follow.
11
@SJG
We have to think of We the People as political equals under the law as the Constitution demands.
It is not Democrats or the Left that invented identity politics.
Look at Republican mayor Bloomberg for example, who said "Ninety-five percent of your murders - murderers and murder victims - fit one M.O. You can just take the description, Xerox it and pass it out to all the cops. They are male, minorities, 16 to 25." This is treating every young monthly male as a criminal based on their appearance. THAT is identity politics, and unconstitional according to the courts.
This is what the Right always does. They take your physical appearance, and decide that your appearance means that you are a criminal, and accuse you of crimes with no evidence.
Africans didn't call themselves "niggers" and demand to use separate bathrooms or to be beaten up or lynched.
People that have sex with their own gender did not call themselves "faggot" and ask to be beaten up, fired, or dragged behind a pickup truck.
Mexicans didn't ask to be called "beanners" and accuses of being rapists and murderers.
Native Peoples don't ask to be called "injuns" killed, chased from their land, or forced to live on reservations.
Just because those who are attacked and abused by the Right join together to defend each other from attack (both by private mobs and corrupt law enforcement) doesn't mean that they invented identity politics.
It's the Right that tries to divide Our Union assist itself, not the Left.
I don't underestimate black voters, but a a small percentage of the voting public I do not overestimate there impact either. Joe Biden is a good man, I would vote for him especially with a strong running mate. He should have run instead of Clinton 2016. He appears frail to me but still sharp and with tons of experience. I hope an pray that the democrats find someone who can go toe to toe with trump, squash him, replace him, so we can all wake up in the mornings more relaxed.
1
Tom "Obsessed with Reparations" Steyer will not only, almost certainly, lose to Trump, but he's another rich person with a buy-the-election strategy. Though unlike Bloom, he at least did more than JUST spend vastly more money than all the "mere millionaires." What Steyer will do that Bloomberg won't is tear the country in half along racial lines. Well, tear it in quarters, technically. Either way: complete disaster.
I'd vote for Sanders over Steyer any day of the week, not that Sanders won't also be a polarizing populist candidate himself.
I'm almost certain that, if Biden crashes in these primaries, a dis-united Democratic party will lose to Trump. The risks of a "broad diverse coalition" it seems. It can join left-leaning parties across the western world in seemingly self-inflicted dysfunction.
4
The talk about the "black vote" bothers me because black voters, like all voters, are different people with different views and different interests. Yes, the criminal (not-justice) system very disproportionately affects black communities, but it is an issue for all of us and not the biggest issue for all African-Americans. Black voters, like all voters, have varied beliefs and world views. And I think it does a disservice to talk about them as a voting bloc.
21
Give me a break, Biden slammed Anita Hill.
19
Well, Joe Biden's chances aside, the real issue here is that the Party can no longer allow two almost all white states to winnow the field.
Turning to Joe, I have been for him all along but his campaign is a disaster. If Jim Clymer will not endorse him, then Joe's looking at a humiliating result in SC.
Joe needs to resolve that. If he is not going to get the endorsement, then he should withdraw and allow the younger moderates a clear field.
At this point, quite frankly, this looks like boiling down to Sanders v Bloomberg and pretty damn quickly, too.
7
@Lefthalfbach
Ok,
How about Sanders / Bloomberg?
Unite the both sides and conquer.
The purist only want Sanders, the pragmatists would prefer Bloomberg.
Would a ticket with both work?
It would for me.
@AutumnLeaf
Sanders means catastrophic defeat. Read up on 1972. We ran a Sanders Equivalent. We lost 49 states. To Freaking Nixon!
And do not tell me that Sanders can win the General by bringing out new voters and firing up the base.
That is not even working for him in the primaries.
To date BS has failed to turnout new voters. In both Iowa and NH his numbers fell by more than half compared to 2016.
1
Meanwhile, MSN reports this:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/elections-2020/republicans-urging-gop-voters-to-vote-for-sanders-in-south-carolina-primary-report/ar-BBZEkTj?ocid=sf2
7
@MaestraZ
Thanks for sharing the link. I wonder if this had any impact on New Hampshire too, and whether there's a way to cross-tab previous party affiliation with independent voters who voted in the Democratic primary. There would be no way, of course, to identify good or bad intent.
@MaestraZ It'd be pretty funny if that backfired on them.
5
The Democrats need to rally round some coalition candidates NOW - someone(s) who won’t be perfect in everyone’s eyes, but committed to working with and for all the interested parties objectives, AND can appeal to enough people to beat Trump. Bernie HAS pushed people more left, eg - good for him. But if another candidate can get elected more easily, isn’t it better for the good of all to get them elected at all, then work the differences in those policies. Keep the eyes on the prize. Maybe not Biden, but then maybe Klobuchar and / or Bloomberg.
7
@Science Teacher
Wonderful advice. I hope it’s listened to.
@Science Teacher
If the goal is to win, why don't we just focus on who wins the primary contests in the swing states?
Honestly I don't know who is winning, but those are the only states that will realistically change anything from 2016.
1
This Black voter narrative wants unpacking and is in some ways suspect. What we're seeing is a breakdown. A breakdown that closely mirrors the one between conservative older white Dems and young people anxious for change, who cannot afford to marry or have families, who are accumulating no wealth, and face the prospect of working late and retiring with few or no benefits.
The fact that their elders don't hear their anguished cries is painful, painful indeed. The scorn one can discerns in crys of "Okay Boomer" are very real. Their elders are more comfortable, more cocooned, and not a little anaesthetized. They are also fixed in front of televisions sucking down the tribal pablum from FOX, CNN, and MSNBC, becoming low-information looking-glass images of each other.
26
You know his math doesn't add up, but Sanders keeps proclaiming "free", and no one calls him on it. Life is tough, but there is no free. After paying Medicare payments for 40 years, it kicks in at 65. By that time considering inflation, pensions and SS may be livable. School taxes just don't stop. Get it, 70 olds today can't support you. We brought about a revolution, but today we need 4 years of rebuilding. You think it's boring, but better to have a Dem elected by the Red States that is not radical. Get busy working to overturn some Senate seats. The pied piper just wants it his way, just like Trump.
1
Biden, while surely competent and qualified, is really sort of a "blast from the past"... and not much of a real blast at that. Thinking that voting for him will be "going back" to a safe alternative is probably not a good idea. You can't ever "go back."
We are faced with a rapidly evolving political situation, some might say a deteriorating situation. It will take the energy that the other candidates are displaying to energize the electorate and get the results we need.
And, as so many others have indicated, whoever lands the Democratic nomination is who I will vote for.
38
@Joseph Gardner
He's arguing to go back to having a government with integrity, principles, and respect. He's in favor of moving forward on issues like climate change, pre-k, and expansion of ObamaCare. His policies really aren't that different from the other moderates in the race.
1
Trump changed the game, the idea that we can go back is, I agree, delusional. We have all watched as a craven con man who betrays nearly every value those under the age of 40 were raised with is venerated by a cult of supporters who have his back no matter what. Young people don’t want to settle anymore, the status quo is broken and the GOP is actively reshaping the way government functions. The left needs to be a part of that conversation and a driver of that change. Older moderate dems need to understand that and get on board if a progressive gets the nom. I am more worried about them not supporting a progressive than I am Bernie/Warren supporters not supporting a Bloomberg or Biden.
2
The college student voting for Bernie reminds one of how Biden supported laws that were very harmful to students with loans, for example making them unable to discharge a bankruptcy for a student loan, while Bernie consistently voted for the students vs the banks.
167
@foxy I am certainly no fan of Biden or Sanders, but the banks are where the money is. No bank twisted the arm of any student to accept a loan and the terms of the loan. This bunk about forgiveness of college student debt which was willfully assumed by the students, is another indicator of growing fiscal irresponsibility in America, and a willingness to blame somebody else for your own economic failures.
10
@foxy
Most student loans are federal loans, which have generous repayment options such as income based repayment, forbearance, and public service forgiveness. Why should you be able to shirk your obligations to the government.
Private student loans are only a small fraction of student loans, but probably wouldn’t exist if they were dischargeable in bankruptcy. What bank is going to loan that much money to someone without a job and no credit history.
Sanders and his supporters keep spreading lies and disinformation. The Orwellian newspeak is shameless.
5
@foxy
How will the forgiven loans be repaid to the lenders?
3
It is not as complicated as this article suggests. Setting aside daunting issues of election integrity, Biden has support across diverse voting groups, and with the wise choice of an appealing running mate, he will stand in stark contrast to current POTUS and help win downticket. Steyers should be a non-issue and is doing a disservice to the causes he stands for if he doesn't drop out before Super Tuesday. Backup to Biden is Bloomberg, or Bloomberg spending tons to get Biden across the finish line. The good news is that current POTUS is burying himself in lessons-not-learned post-impeachment. Barring unrestrained lying in debates, he has not expanded his base and his track record with working people is indefensible against any of the Democratic candidates.
18
As usual, the pundits and pollster's reports underestimate the impact of Black votership, which to a certain extent also underestimates Joe Biden by not letting the race play out in its own time.
This is not to say that Biden will be victorious among the wing of the Democratic Party that always comes out to vote, but it is to say that the Black electorate is not a monolithic one, and it's foolhardy to think they will vote like one no matter who the frontrunner is -- or was.
That said, it's best to the chips fall where they may, safe in the assurance that most of us will not be voting for Donald J. Trump.
16
Except for the Joe Scarborough crowd what has happened to Joe Biden's run for president has been obvious his entire career. He's a presidential lightweight and always has been. How does he even have the audacity to run having never finished higher than 4th place in any presidential primary he ever entered. All he did was destroy the entire Democratic field by entering this race. Now I'm looking around for someone to vote for and suddenly the pickings are really slim. Bloomberg? not on my death bed with the promise of life. Buttegieg or Klobuchar, please. Just what we need another version of Republican lite as our Presidential nominee. No thanks. Thanks a lot Joe and Dr. Biden. You fractured the party.
46
@Fred
Biden didn’t fracture the party. It’s not a bad thing or unusual for there to be a few candidates in the race who are well-qualified. The fact that your favorite candidates are gone are mostly due to two factors:
1) for most of the season, there were 20-plus candidates, making it almost impossible for anyone to stand out, and creating a field that was daunting to future voters.
2) a lot of the media coverage focused only on 2-4 candidates at any given time, leading to the situation we’re in now, where unvetted and untested candidates are suddenly getting momentum.
7
“Not on my death bed...” that is how we ended up with President Trump, W before that to be honest.
Support of African American voters is essential, but so is the support of left-leaning millennials, swing voters, and baby-boomer middle class, white Americans. Biden’s a worthy American politician but his qualifications lie in America’s past and voters are looking to the future now more than ever. In order to protect his legacy, Joe Biden’s going to have to endorse one of the younger moderate Democratic candidates. And the quicker he does that, the better it will be for the Democratic Party in this election.
22
There is no one ready to step in but Biden. He should announce He would clean up Trump's mess for 4 years and choose Warren as a VP for succession. Sanders created a cult, but none of his ideas are sound. He has messed up 2 election cycles and soon AOL will be messing up more. We need your votes, but not the risk.
1
Tom Steyer is growing as a candidate. He built his business on smarts and keen assessments of opportunities and challenges. The last 10 years has been focused on finding the key change elements and changing them whether it has been voter registration, propositions or banking opportunities for underserved communities or initiatives. The reason most American’s didn’t know him was because he was more focused on purpose than praise.
He deserves a title more adept than “billionaire” - maybe the press should try on “activist” as it is a more astute description. He is committing his resources to fuel change.
8
@Linda Russell Steyer has made his points, for years. Points taken. Now he and other very long shots are distractions from the unity needed to get resources aligned and take us across the finish line.
21
Bloomberg has devoted as much funds to gun control and climate protection as Steyer's entire wealth.
@Ramba more to what Linda is saying, nobody around here has heard his points "for years" and are just getting a chance to hear them this election cycle.
One salient fact about Joe Biden as a presidential candidate. In his three campaigns so far he has never finished better than fourth in a primary or a caucus. He is certain to do better than that in SC but that's a low bar. Readers might be also interested in the results from the New Hampshire Republican Party in which about 150,000 voted (about half the number in the Democratic race). In that primary Trump scored only 85.7% with some 129,700 votes. Coming in second was William Weld, former governor of MA, who obtained 9.7% at 13,800 votes. A slew of other candidates totaled 5.6% and 7,000 votes. In other words, in a state where Hillary Clinton's margin of victory was 2500 in 2016 over Trump, over 20,000 nominal Republicans decided to cast a protest vote against Trump on Tuesday. Even if 85% of these protesters return to the Republican fold in November, this is still terrible news for Trump in New Hampshire this year.
47
@ReallyAFrancophile Those protest votes that you describe are laughable at best. Those people will easily hold their noses and vote Trump before they vote for any of the Democratic possibilities. Trump is on his way to a very lopsided victory this election. Wait and see.
5
Joe Biden is a national treasure, and always will be regarded as one. He has led a life of principled and committed service to the country as a Senator and for 8 years as Vice President. Along the way he raised a family from the ashes of profound personal tragedy. He deserves a happy retirement, and should take the opportunity to pass the torch to voters to choose another nominee to lead the Democrats to a sweeping and unmistakably strong victory over Trump. Now he should retire, relax and enjoy some golden times and golden years with his wife, children and grandchildren.
176
Biden made millions for himself and his family through supporting the neoliberal agenda that brought millions to their knees and gave us Trump.
3
obviously, Biden's support has always been as non-existent as his abilities and honesty. watching him get humiliated, after having to listen to "summer of recovery" chanted endlessly, is almost enough to make up for the 0bama presidency. ALMOST.
16
I wonder what African-American voters in SC will decide. Bloomberg and Buttigieg's administrations have dismal records with their African-American communities-and Buttigieg's is not well known. Buttigieg's removal of South Bend's only African American department heads in his first year was just a start. Hiring to new positions, retaining African-American employees, policing, contracting with African-American owned business, were all pain points for Buttigieg's tenure. Yet reporters have interviewed just a few leaders and reported only parts of this record, with the result that many do not know how bad it really is. Here's a series that The Root called "unassailable" https://medium.com/@rkle/the-buttigieg-era-african-americans-and-accountability-part-ii-a1b844801f23
29
@max
You are wrong about Bloomberg. He does not have a dismal
record with the African-American community. Yes, stop and frisk was controversial but he was trying to save lives and Mike has done more than anyone else running to curb gun violence, which disproportionately affects minorities. Furthermore, his Greenwood Initiative plan for Economic Justice for Black Americans is completely on target.
This is why so many African-American leaders, including the mayor of Columbia, S.C., have endorsed him.
31
I would argue that the media has ONLY reported on the negative aspects of Mr. Buttigieg’s record. The majority of elected officials of color in South Bend who have endorsed anyone in this race are supporting him. Several of his surrogates have said that they have given interviews to multiple news outlets, only to find that their voices were not included because “it doesn’t fit the narrative.” Of course he has loud detractors, just like any leader will, but they have gotten a disproportionate amount of the press coverage. I would stack Pete’s record with regard to race up against Amy’s or Bloomberg’s any day.
If anyone perusing these comments is interested, here is a list summarizing Mayor’s Pete’s efforts while in office. No, he did not solve systemic racism in his 8 years as mayor - but don’t dismiss these efforts or silence the voices of his supporters of color.
https://medium.com/@JS_M/a-comprehensive-list-of-pete-buttigiegs-efforts-to-promote-racial-justice-and-equity-in-south-bend-f36195648f04
https://peteforamerica.com/the-record/
3
@Doug M Stop and frisk was not "controversial" in the Black community. It was condemned, as close to unanimously as any policy has ever been.
6
Biden is now on his third failed presidency bid. Worn out, befuddled, losing a grip on 2020 reality (witness "lying dog-faced pony soldier"), he is incapable of campaigning in a fulsome and engaging manner. His time has come and gone. He needs to stop wasting time and resources, and withdraw.
232
@KennethWmM
Exactly correct. I cannot imagine what is driving Biden at this point in his life to subject himself to the endless rigors of a Presidential campaign, but he was not an effective candidate in the past and is even less so now.
26
The DNC might just make a puppet and walk it around if it’s the only way to keep Sanders from winning representative democracy with millions of Americans who have finally peeped around the iron curtain of myth telling us this is the best we can ever expect from America.
22
@KennethWmM
Actually I kinda liked "lying dog-faced pony soldier" - it reminded me of Will in The Newsroom.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMqcLUqYqrs
"And you—sorority girl—yeah—just in case you accidentally wander into a voting booth one day, there are some things you should know, and one of them is that there is absolutely no evidence to support the statement that we're the greatest country in the world. We're seventh in literacy, twenty-seventh in math, twenty-second in science, forty-ninth in life expectancy, 178th in infant mortality, third in median household income, number four in labor force, and number four in exports. "
8
So, because Biden lost badly in Iowa and New Hampshire it’s because the states are not representative of the country. It has nothing to do with a candidate who has failed to convince willing voters to vote for him. You can’t win an election blaming states for their particular composition. And you can’t win an election spinning your electoral defeats.
91
@Purple Spain This election would have been a different story if it had started in a diverse state. The wannabes would have been weeded out instead of energized by the fake sampling of Iowa and NH. Biden might have emerged on top, but now I'm betting on Bloomberg. If you doubt him, look already at the wise choice he made to sit out the first two useless states.
2
Joe embodies the trade deals why millions of Americans are on their knees in poverty and no access to real healthcare or in jail from a war on drugs.
11
@Purple Spain So, the whitest states in the nation selected a gay man and an aging self-proclaimed socialist (who is also leading national pools) is a problem with diversity?
You end up insulting voters that Democrats need in the general. The self-selecting Democrats who vote in primaries appear to be more progressive than the general population or the general Democrat who doesn't vote in primaries.
That is going to be a national problem, whichever state votes first. Those with a strong opinion are more likely to vote; while those who are Democrats in the general election but not that interested in the current races (who may lean more centrist) are going to stay home.
1
I still like Joe Biden and his acute sense of humor. I don't mind occasional gaffes. Let people be themselves. He's a sweet guy, so much more attractive than the present incumbent whose name I hesitate to put in print.
But I can see that Bernie Sanders now enjoys the support of many gentle souls and people of integrity( Danny Glover and AOC). People of courage who've not been afraid of addressing injustice. That's a good sign. Not the I, but the "we" counts, not the "presidential" hype. I think Sanders is more about the hum drum issues of everyday life, not about strutting the world stage like a maniac. Or kissing Kim Jong ill. Michael Moore supports Sanders, too, what moore can I say?
43
Black people, like any other group, will discern the best choice according to unfolding events and their needs and interests.
Biden has assumed, patronizingly, that their supposed loyalty to him and/or Obama is fixed and unchangeable.
He is in for a surprise.
179
@Cousy
I say there will be a Biden meltdown in SC in a couple of weeks when voters there author his swan song. Biden and the Democratic National Committee are both full of beans...Taking black voters for granted in South Carolina will become a case study for political scientists in the years ahead. They aren't monolothic. To treat black voters as a herd willing to be fed nothing substantive beacause of their perceived "loyalty" is itself a crime of 21st Century political hurbris.
21
Mike is now number two, just after Biden, in black support according to the Quinnipiac poll released this Monday.
In December, Biden registered 51% black support. Due to Bloomberg he has dropped to 27%. Bloomberg is now 22% and surging. All other contenders are behind him.
Dems want to beat Trump. That is our priority.
Who does it is not the main thing, I believe, except for the Bernie people who want Sanders at all costs.
Mike has shown that he can do this and do it better than anyone else around.
He has made it his number one priority to defeat Trump. He is sparing nothing to do this.
It is an existential issue and must be done in order for America to heal and go forward.
The man is an engineer. He approaches this as a trained scientist. His motto: “Trust in God, but everyone else bring data.”
Mike will get it done.
35
@Simon Sez
Speaking as a Black person, let me be the first to remind you that Michael Bloomberg is not the first choice of many who still view his "Stop and Frisk" policing policy and the comments he made in support of it, as entirely racist.
Especially those of us here in NYC who lived through the unprecedented three years of his Mayoral tenure.
I disagree with you and the premise of your opinion completely.
25
When people say “Mike will get it done,” what they are really saying is “Mike’s money will get it done.”
Why could he not have spent this exorbitant sum helping a younger, more inspiring messenger take the White House? Why not buy key Senate races (unseat Mitch McConnell!) instead of continuing this egomaniacal bid for the highest office?
I would take literally any Dem left in this field over Mike.
13
@Simon Sez Mike will not get support of Bernie/Warren supporters. You think a racist billionaire who buys his way into the election, will get the vote of progressives. Party unity should work both ways. The establishment is trying to sabotage Bernie, and will not stand with him, but his supporters have to stand with the establishment candidate. Is this a joke ?
4
Joe’s toast...he appears to lack the energy of a viable candidate and certainly the tenacity to go head to head with Donald Trump. Joe had a good ride and can take pride in that. Now we need a fighter who can finish the round. Let’s not waste South Carolina over it.
64
Old Joe needs to withdraw from the race and retire. Has everyone forgotten how President Obama had to follow him around with a broom to clean up after his gaffes?
63
Tom Steyer’s rise in S.C. is interesting and muddles the race even more. I have been impressed with things he’s said in the debates that none of the other remaining candidates have. He will make climate change his number one priority. The only candidate who also did so was Washington Gov. Jay Inslee. Steyer gets that this is the most important issue of our times. He also speaks bluntly about the history of racism, race relations, and why reparations are needed. I don’t understand why every single member of the Times editorial staff has given low grades to Steyer in their post-debate comments. Yes he has no government experience, but unlike Trump he’s smart, open-minded, will learn, and will surround himself with very capable advisors. Steyer should be part of the mix if only because he’s willing to talk forcefully and directly about critical issues the other candidates are not as focused on. That said, I hope Elizabeth Warren can somehow make a miraculous comeback.
22
@Eric
Steyer is wrong about climate change. It is a real phenomenon, but very slow and gradual (about 0.01 degree C per year), and not a problem that needs solution.
3
@Eric I have liked Steyer since seeing him in the debates. I respect him for doing what Bloomberg has been unable to do in two election cycles now where his name has been floated as a candidate. That would be to make up his mind in time to announce at the beginning of campaign season,get into the debates and enter the initial primaries. Steyer gave people who didn’t know him a chance to see him in action. Bloomberg is playing Cinderella, late to the ball and hoping to steal the prize.
But either of them would get my vote. There is no purity test for me when it comes to getting rid of Trump. He has to go.
1
Just like everyone else, you have to earn the black vote. Joe has been arrogant believing that black people will just vote for him because he was VP for Obama. Just like in Iowa and New Hampshire, his case to be president will be seen as weak, his support will collapse, and we will see someone like Bernie Sanders win because his campaign is actually trying to reach out to voters of color and offer something that can materially benefit them.
81
Looking forward to Joe Biden's third-place finish in South Carolina and incoherent withdrawal speech.
Joe Biden is not a Presidential contender....and he never was one except in the distant fantasies of disconnected voters clinging to the past.
263
@Socrates
Just in case you don't know it's called SCHADENFREUDE.
And it's not a pretty look -- especially at a time when we should be making sure that Donald Trump is the one who withdraws.
18
@Socrates Right. They said Trump was not a contender and he had neither the experience nor the support Biden has. Not everyone is eloquent and some people stutter (think Bush, Reagan, Carter at times). But devoting decades to public service and being a stand-up guy has to count for something in this dystopian nightmare. Seriously, having a mixed record on issues of diversity and civil rights is not a disqualifier if you learn from your mistakes. It's an amazing thing to watch a candidate rise to the occasion once they get their confidence back. My fingers and toes are crossed the Joe steps it up in S. Carolina and Nevada. The only other choice is Bloomberg or Bloomberg spending tons to get Biden and the right VP choice across the finish line.
13
@Ramba The logic that Trump was deemed unelectable too cannot be applied to establishment candidates.
7