Ready For Bernie

Conventional wisdom says Hillary Clinton is a shoe-in for 2016.

She has a resume that is unrivaled, with decades of experience as a lawyer, first-lady, senator and secretary of state. Of course she has her haters, but Hillary is a true political rock star, arguably the most famous woman on planet Earth.

In the polls, she is light years ahead of just about every Democrat in the field. A recent Real Clear Politics poll had Hillary at 62.2%- more than 49 points ahead of her closest challenger, Elizabeth Warren (12.7%).

Anytime word surfaces that a Democrat might challenge Hillary, they are more or less laughed at. You can't beat Hillary. Stop wasting your time. Why are you even trying?

I admire Hillary. She is smart, qualified and a great leader. If she wins the Democratic nomination for president I will gladly vote for her over whomever her Republican opponent might be.

But the presidency is not a birthright. It must be fought for. It must be won by someone who proves to the country that they are the best person for the job. It is not a crown reserved for the next in line just because it's their turn.

The challenges we face today are daunting. Income inequality is out of control. The middle class is being wiped off the map. Climate change is threatening our very existence.

We must elect a leader in 2016 fit for the times, a FDR for the 21st century who will stand up to the millionaires and billionaires who've hijacked our democracy, protect the most vulnerable and save us from environmental doomsday.

That leader isn't Hillary Clinton.

It's Bernie Sanders.


SEARCHING FOR AUTHENTICITY

Watching Hillary on the trail, I must admit that I have been impressed. She has taken on a more populist tone and focused much of her attention on helping the middle class, ending mass incarceration and fighting for marriage equality.

All of these positions are commendable. But one must wonder, is this truly what Hillary believes? Is it really her? Or is she capitalizing on a growing populist movement, doing her best Elizabeth Warren impression?

This is the problem with Hillary. Despite all of her great qualities, she never seems authentic. She comes off as scripted, eternally swayed by the political winds, tweaking her tone and words based upon the crowd she's speaking to and what's popular at the time.

In many ways, Bernie is the anti-Hillary.

Unlike Hillary, you always know where Bernie stands. He is not secretive or wishy-washy. He is consistent in his views and beliefs. He does not flip flop, even when it's politically advantageous.

As Matt Taibbi wrote recently in Rolling Stone, "[Bernie] is the rarest of Washington animals, a completely honest person. If he's motivated by anything other than a desire to use his influence to protect people who can't protect themselves, I've never seen it."

It's great that Hillary has adopted a populist message recently, but Bernie has been preaching it for decades. He's was decrying income inequality before it was trendy. He was lobbying for a single-payer health care system back when it was taboo. He's been railing against big banks and the consolidation of wealth in the hands of a select few since the 1980s when he was mayor of Burlington.

In a similar vein, I'm glad Hillary is fighting hard for marriage equality, but it's important to remember that she used to be against it and only "evolved" her views recently. Not Bernie. He voted against DOMA and has always been a staunch supporter of LGBT rights and marriage equality.

Recently, Bernie told the New York Times, "I'm not evolving when it comes to gay rights. I was there!" 

And, oh yeah, Hillary voted for the disastrous Iraq War. Bernie voted against it. 

TAKING ON THE BIG ISSUES

Two weeks ago, at a campaign round table in Iowa, Hillary unveiled the four goals of her campaign.

1. build the economy of tomorrow

2. strengthen families and communities

3. fix political dysfunction by getting money out of politics

4. protect the US from threats like terrorism

All four goals are commendable. Unfortunately, she didn't leave any room for fighting climate change.

In fact, Hillary rarely, if ever, discusses climate change or global warming. She won't even take a position on Keystone XL. It's an issue of monumental importance yet she gives it almost no attention.

Meanwhile, Bernie Sanders is a long-time champion of the environment and a staunch opponent of Keystone XL. He is one the few politicians who has consistently shined a light on climate change and the threat is poses not only for America but for mankind.

In addition, he's crusaded against the Koch Brothers for profiting off the destruction of our planet. He's also gone after climate deniers like Senator Jim Inhofe, calling his know nothing stance on climate change "dead wrong." 

Standing on the precipice of climate doomsday, do we really want to elect a leader who rarely ever broaches the subject of climate change? Are we really going to put our faith in someone who largely ignores the greatest threat to humanity? And offers no solutions to fix it?

Absolutely not.

Instead, we must elect a leader who understands the severity of the climate crisis we face, a leader who will take serious, bold action to prevent environmental doomsday. As Bill McKibben wrote recently, that leader is Bernie Sanders.

But it's not just Bernie's environmental stance that puts him ahead of Hillary. It's his economic agenda as well.

At a time of unprecedented income inequality, do we really expect Hillary Clinton- a longtime Wall Street supporter and sympathizer- to take on the big banks and push for real, meaningful reform?

After all, as Ezra Klein recently pointed out, Hillary's biggest donors are all banks, while Bernie's biggest donors are all unions. Is Hillary going to break up the big banks after accepting millions of dollars from them? No way.


BERNIE 2016

The middle class is dying. The planet is in peril. We need a leader fit for the times. A leader with a backbone of steel who is consistent, authentic and always says what they believe, even when it's not popular or politically advantageous.

In any other election, Hillary Clinton would be a fine candidate.

But today's challenges are too big, too daunting and too severe to simply hand the presidential crown to the next in line.

We can't afford to elect a pro-Wall Street moderate who is swayed by the political winds and turns the other way in the face of climate doomsday.

We need a bold, progressive thinker with a proven track record; a leader with real integrity who never wavers in their defense of the most vulnerable and has the courage to take on the Koch Brothers, break up the big banks and fight climate change head-on.

We need Bernie Sanders.