I have seen more than a dozen Bernie campaigns. All clean. All honorable

[cali]

Every blasted one of them. Never a hint of sexism or racism or even insensitivity, toward women, people of color or anyone else- unless you call blasting the 1% for greed, insensitive.

Bernie may be a curmudgeon, but he's not in any way shape or form a sexist or racist. He would NEVER EVER FUCKING EVER use tactics that stooped to exploiting racist or sexist sentiment. How do I know? As I said, I've seen all his campaigns- some more up close than others. I know people who have worked for him. Here's the worst I ever heard: Bernie (gasp) can be brusque.

It should be axiomatic that we NOT judge a candidate by a handful of supporters- or even thousands of them. I'm not going to get into specifics here, that's just divisive.

I feel sad that I feel compelled to write a defense of Bernie Sanders character on DU. He's not perfect, of course, but the evidence of who he is as a human being, campaigner and politician is overwhelming. If you don't believe me- and really, why take my word for it?- you have the whole wide internet at your fingertips to do research, and as long as you vet sources, it's a wonderful research tool.

And check your biases: So eager to believe that the Clinton Foundation has been up to all sorts of nefarious stuff that you'll post fucking Rush Limbaugh on it? Bias. You want to believe the worst. We all have to fight the impulses to believe what we want to believe.

And that's it. That's the end of my rant.

[gotj90]

1. Bernie has repeatedly said he won't run a negative campaign

and he has avoided many chances to attack Hillary over the past year as he has gone around the interview circuit. He's going to make his campaign about the issues and where he stands.

[seabeyond]

2. and we as supporters certainly should not be using sanders to be bigots. for sure. i could not

agree with you more. we supporters need to make sure that we are welcoming to bring in the vote. not send out messages that are going to repel people from sanders.

[cali]

7. Again, judging a candidate by a supporter or handful of supporters is WRONG

why are you still focused on this? ONE person did something stupid and ugly and your reaction, to be very kind about it, was overblown.

I won't continue to discuss this with you. As far as I'm concerned- again to be kind- you made a grievous error in judgment and continued to defend what you had done throughout a very long thread that should have been locked much earlier. You refused to change the op title which inferred that the Sanders campaign was involved in that image. I believe when you make a honking big mistake, you apologize.

With supporters like the person that created that ugly image and you, who needs opponents?

[seabeyond]

18. and yet, you have condoning and excusing in this very thread and still, you come back to me.

you are right, with supporters like that....

why an i still focused. i dunno. cause you started a damn OP. oh, and it stands. no meta here fold. no sir.

[smokey nj]

21. cali neither condoned nor excused anything.

[seabeyond]

22. yet when you have a poster right below this one doing that and say nothing, ya.....

[smokey nj]

23. Grow up seabeyond.

[seabeyond]

25. omg. you guys can just throw out what ever insult. feel insulated? nt

[smokey nj]

26. You're making disgusting and baseless accusations

about a DUer. Stop it.

[seabeyond]

27. no. i am not. but you two certainly have. and continue.

[smokey nj]

28. Yes, you have.

[seabeyond]

29. really? this back and forth. just the need to be the last with an empty accusation? gotta have it?

[smokey nj]

30. Your post speaks for itself, I didn't have to make an accusation.

[seabeyond]

31. well, even not having to make accusations, you did, insults. ya, my posts do speak for themself.

but the wonderful thing about the ability to actually ignore what is said for agenda.

[smokey nj]

32. What's my agenda, sea?

[seabeyond]

33. your posts speak for themselves, smokey. really. this is silly. and i am done. nt

[smokey nj]

35. They do and I'm proud of them.

[seabeyond]

36. as am i. i will always stand up for the social issues. nt

[smokey nj]

38. As do I.

[RiverLover]

3. And Bernie's supporters are able to recognize irony when they see it

using rational thinking, rather than using no thought & looking for putdowns against large groups of people when there are none.

[HereSince1628]

4. DU primary season: Hope for the best, expect the worst, live with what happens...

A time when DUers of like mind can unabashedly enjoy the freedom to be enthusiastically obnoxious within the certainly of the superiority of their clique.

Think of it as akin to Carnival with competing bands of dancers... only this lasts for MONTHS!

[Buns_of_Fire]

17. "enthusiastically obnoxious' -- I like it.

It's like a licence to be rude, crude, and socially unacceptable in the defense of truth, justice, and the American Way. Sort of like cheerful berserkers.

Then we can all go back to kitteh pictures and wondering how many more chins Mitch McConnell can grow before he stops looking like a turtle and morphs into a bullfrog.

[sabrina 1]

45. Some DUers, not all.

A majority seem to me to be able to discuss things fairly rationally. I've seen some nice interactions between Hillary and Bernie supporters.

[JonLP24]

5. I have concerns about the Clinton Foundation

It is nothing personal against her, I want her to be something better especially on the foreign policy front but taking money from the House of Saud & the King of Morocco you know they aren't interested in world peace unless the world peace benefits them. They certainly could use a regime change but it is more than likely economic alliances some capitalist control of the market place

WikiLeaks cables accuse Moroccan royals of corruption

Morocco's royal family is using the institutions of the state to "coerce and solicit bribes" in the country's lucrative real estate sector, according to a leaked report from American diplomats.

Information about high-level corruption involving the rulers of Washington's closest ally in north Africa was brought to the attention of the US consulate in Casablanca, Morocco's commercial capital, by a businessman in 2009, leading diplomats to describe "the appalling greed" of those close to King Mohammed VI.

According to the US report, decisions involving Omnium Nord Africain (ONA), a holding company owned by the king, are made only by the king and two of his powerful associates. "To have discussions with anyone else would be a waste of time," the head of the company is quoted as saying.

Royal involvement in business is a hot topic in Morocco but public discussion of it is sensitive. The US embassy in Rabat reported to Washington in a separate cable that "corruption is prevalent at all levels of Moroccan society".

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/dec/06/wikileaks-cables-morocco-royals-corruption

Aside from the "donation" to the Clinton Foundation they have spent massive amounts in lobbying efforts in the US

Lobbying & PR efforts


Obama administration FY 2015 Budget Requests


http://www.al-monitor.com/lobbying/morocco

The King of Morocco dominates the phosphates trade & also wants his occupation of Western Sahara recognized so clearly giving money to the Clinton Foundation is in hopes that in case she is elected President she is friendly to him. Morocco is also part of the Saudi coalition bombing the shit out of Yemen.

I think the bias would be in seeing somehow the money coming from him is good or unlikely to sway her but overall with the corporate money & anyone else clearly can buy influence which is why I think Bernie Sanders is running. The way he runs his campaign will come across as refreshing & will be a game changer not anywhere near the doom & gloom scenarios people are predicting but me personally I care about issues -- if Bernie Sanders was out there supporting the wrong policy or pushing the wrong policy I'll throw him under the bus but he is the only one I can trust at the national level with his experience that I know he is in it for the right reasons. Not for a political career & connections.

[cali]

14. so do I, Jon. I'm just pointing out that any accusations we make

shouldn't be linked to crap from the right

[smokey nj]

24. I agree, cali.

[Agschmid]

19. So let's play this out...

Bernie is President, he won

It's 2018, for two years the Moroccan government has been continuing to lobby let's say at the rate of 3million a year, not chump change but I don't feel it's a massive amount. For the past two years (2016-2018) USAid has given annual grants equal to that of the Obama 2015 budget.

Do you still see it as corruption or something "fishy"?

Also what was the aid amount when Hillary was SOS, giving the 2015 amount seems odd as she had very little to do with this.

[JonLP24]

43. The Moroccan King very recently gave a $1 million donation to the Clinton Foundation

The Lobbying was to show the effect it had on US policy gaining favorable treatment.

[stonecutter357]

6. I will vote for the Democratic nominee for President

what about you?

[cali]

8. I've said that I would, dear. Do you want that written in blood?

[MannyGoldstein]

9. Both Clintons have run highly-negative campaigns when their efforts are in trouble

And negative campaigns work.

New Englanders don't run negative campaigns, the rest of the country does. But we need to learn how to do it in self-defense or we'll never have one of us in the White House.

[cali]

10. No. Just no. I do not want to see Bernie stoop to that.

[MannyGoldstein]

11. Me neither

But would we rather see him lose?

[cali]

12. Manny, the statistical probability of bernie winning

Is tiny. I want to see his issues brought to the fore.

[1StrongBlackMan]

15. +1 ...

If the original OP is true ... I have never really paid attention to the tone of Bernie's campaign(s) ... then, a Bernie/HRC primary would likely not be negative; though, I suspect their "supporters" would make it so.

[RoccoR5955]

13. Bernie's honest will win him the presidency.

As well as his reputation for honesty, and not taking corporate money.

[Dawgs]

16. It's one of the big reasons I think he can do well.

He doesn't bring politics into any discussion unless it's a disagreement about policy.

[Orsino]

20. He's a US Senator, not an angel.

However, if even a tenth of what you say is even half-true, he's also my candidate.

I'd assumed his candidacy wouldn't even get off the ground. That he's come as far as an announcement is gravy to me. Looking forward to voting for him more than once.

[NCTraveler]

34. DU primary season is on.

Woo hoo.

[awoke_in_2003]

39. Pass the beer

[awoke_in_2003]

41. Jack Daniel's Single Barrel

may be in order

[NuclearDem]

42. Alright, I've got an icepick. Who wants to stab me in the eye?

[joshcryer]

44. There are some things Bernie needs to bring up.

The most foremost issue needs to be TPP. I think on most issues Clinton will agree with Bernie, but on TPP she'll have the most stark difference.

And I think if he uses "negative" campaign ads on TPP it can bolster him.

Not conspiracy style crap, talking about hidden money or anything like that, that's below him.

But a straightforward "Clinton was instrumental toward drafting TPP and we need to know where she stands" type of ad.