Democratic Primaries
Related: About this forumTomasky: It's great to see Dems falling in love w/ Warren - & terrible to see them hating on Biden
Michael Tomasky's a Warren supporter.
His new column in the Daily Beast:
https://www.thedailybeast.com/its-great-to-see-democrats-falling-in-love-with-elizabeth-warrenand-terrible-to-see-them-hating-on-joe-biden
Then why am I feeling a little sorry for Biden lately?
Ill tell you why. The hatred of him among the liberal-left intelligentsiathe Twitterati, some people who show up regularly on MSNBC, and so onis way over the top. I mean, people despise him. They talk about him as if hes a right-wing Republican. I know that all these people desperately want to see Donald Trump lose the election, but they sometimes talk as if Biden being president would be nearly as distasteful to them. Its staggering to me.
And the adulation of Warren is excessive, too. Some people write and talk about her as if shes some kind of demigod. I think I get why. She is sociologically tailor-made for the liberal-left intelligentia (of which I suppose I am a certified member, no denying that, but I do try to be able to examine my own species as I examine others). Shes super-smart. Shes wonky. Shes passionate about the central facts of American life that people like me care about most, economic inequality and the concentration of wealth. Shes just, you know, like us, culturally; if life hadnt made her a superstar, shed be the kind of person wed have to dinner parties, or run into at Whole Foods surveying the sustainable fish options. For these and perhaps other reasons, she clobbers Biden among college-educated Democrats.
As I said above, I love all those things about her, too. But I think a lot of people in the circles I travel in are blind to her electoral weaknessesor they ignore them, or they just dont want to think about them because they complicate the story people want to tell themselves.
-snip-
But I do know this: Biden might be the Democratic nominee. In fact, hes the favorite to be the nominee. Remember how I said above that Warren clobbers Biden among college-educated Democrats? Well, he clobbers her among non-college-educated Democrats. If youre a Warren partisan, you might give some thought as to why that is, actually, and remember while youre doing it that non-college-educated Democrats outnumber college-educated ones two-to-one. Remember also that Biden has far greater strength among African-American voters than does Warren (or any of the rest of them), and black turnout might be the single most important factor next November. By the way, Biden also leads Warren in Massachusetts. The most recent poll from there was within the margin of error, but still, Biden led.
So come next April or May, Biden may well have clinched the nomination. And people are going to need to be for him. Not grudgingly. Not well, Ill vote for him, but I wont go knock on any doors for him. Not just against Trump. For Biden. And if influential liberals spend the next seven or eight months savaging the guy, their followers and readers will get the message loud and clear that Biden isnt really worth supporting.
Just rememberthere are a lot of rank-and-file Democrats, folks whose interests people like me purport to be defending, who like Biden fine; even some who love him. They dont know as much as we do about policy, but they just might know some other things that we dont. So lets try to be self-aware enough to know that our little bubble is just that.
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
JI7
(89,249 posts)if Biden is the nominee most will easily support him.
i'm not sure why you posted this but it doesn't help biden at all.
primary today, I would vote for: Undecided
highplainsdem
(48,976 posts)He can see it even though he supports Warren.
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
emmaverybo
(8,144 posts)over liberal commentators criticizing Obama continuously, war against him using proxy Reverend
Jeremiah Wright, a pretty great guy.
I think Tomasky was just being objective and fair here despite his own preference. Respect.
Thanks for bringing us this point of view, highplainsdem.
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
JI7
(89,249 posts)democrats.
primary today, I would vote for: Undecided
Cha
(297,211 posts)Warren supporter.. and he's obviously run into this enough.. probably on Twitter and in his circles.. oh yeah and on TV.. to warrant writing about it.
But clearly it's not just who he's referring to.. so many are doing this and specifically because Biden is the front runner.
I can't speak for highplaindem.. but I doubt if she posted his article thinking she was going to help Biden and hurt Warren.
I for one am glad she posted it.
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
Kahuna7
(2,531 posts)the offending camps nameless.
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
Cha
(297,211 posts)I first read him when I got into politics online.. back in '02!
This is exactly what I've been thinking about the insidiousness of the toxicity of the smearing of Biden. And, I'm not talking about honest critique.. it's the palpable hate.
If Biden is the nom.. it's really hard for some to come to terms with thinking about the big picture of getting trump out of the WH and not hanging on to the hate they immerseved themselves with in the primary.
Thank you so much for this, highplainsdem!
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
jaysunb
(11,856 posts)primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
blue-wave
(4,352 posts)among democrats. It's like when I tried explaining to my ex-wife, " I am not your enemy, I'm your husband." Alas, that didn't work.
But I do hope Democrats understand that we are not enemies of one another. We have more in common than not, we are brothers and sisters together in this battle.
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
OKNancy
(41,832 posts)It's the electoral college my darlings
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
Kahuna7
(2,531 posts)they will cast their votes for who they believe will be the most electable in the general election.
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
Gothmog
(145,231 posts)primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
aikoaiko
(34,169 posts)Some people feel the same way about others and it shows when they post about them.
primary today, I would vote for: Undecided
Celerity
(43,353 posts)primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
Gothmog
(145,231 posts)Link to tweet
This sounds like a pretty interesting story. Instead, frontrunner, but is a common refrain. Consider the new Axios-NewsWhip 2020 tracker that found Biden has been bombarded by negative coverage. Of the 100 stories about Biden that got the most social media attention, 77 were negative. Presumably, the same is true of cable news.
Even with the magnification of Bidens gaffe-du-jour and the flow of media admiration of Warrens surge both of which reflect a true story Bidens backers are the most committed. Nearly 65 percent of his supporters say theyll definitely support him, as opposed to just 34 percent of those who support other candidates.....
Why is it so hard for people to grasp that Biden isnt just the most electable but, rather, the candidate with positions most in line with Democrats preferences? His platform is made up of policies that poll incredibly well and his supporters arent masking their love for progressives in favor of a safe bet. They like Joe.
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
Tarheel_Dem
(31,234 posts)Keep in mind that many of the talking heads will probably lose their shows when a Democrat is elected. It's just a fact of life that when your party wins the White House, people feel like they've done their duty by removing the opposition, and they feel the job's done until the next presidential election, and they tune out. I'm convinced that many of left's "intelligentsia" would be just as happy to see another four years of tRump because they don't have to work hard. They sit behind their desks, and pick apart the latest outlandish tweet for an hour, or they pontificate about what their rivals over at Fox are talking about. No real footwork required. Mark my words...if a Dem is elected, Fox News ratings will explode, and MSNBC's will implode, and many of the lower rated shows will be on the chopping block.
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
RhodeIslandOne
(5,042 posts)Since when Obama was in office and Hillary seemed to be cruising to victory at least.
I think the attempt for the GOP to rehabilitate themselves when the Trump fart cloud clears the room will be fascinating TV.
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
RhodeIslandOne
(5,042 posts)And I accept there is a good chance he will be our nominee.
It's unfortunate that ALL supporters cannot remain positive and not bash others. That goes for everyone.
I support whomever the voters choose.
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
LiberalFighter
(50,925 posts)they should be identifying why their candidate is the better candidate. If all they can do is attack then it shows their candidate is weak. It is what happen in 2016.
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
peggysue2
(10,828 posts)Thanks for posting it. I probably would have missed it otherwise.
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
Cha
(297,211 posts)primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden
JackFrost
(37 posts)A dirty filthy game and always has been. If a candidate can not withstand the shit flinging in a primary. The candidate can't withstand what will be much worse in a general election against a seasoned lowlife and dirtbag like Trump.
primary today, I would vote for: Undecided
myohmy2
(3,163 posts)"A dirty filthy game..."
...no one hates Joe, and Elizabeth's just the flavor of the month...
...no one's been more maligned than Bernie...
...
primary today, I would vote for: Joe Biden