Winning three Democratic caucuses in Washington State, Alaska and Hawaii by wide margins, 74-year-old Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) exposed growing cracks in the Democratic Party. Democratic front-runner former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has dictated the narrative that she’s already wrapped up the Democratic nomination. Hillary’s story papers over deep divisions in the Party, propelling Sanders further than he thought possible. When Sanders won Michigan March 9, Clinton’s PR team dismissed Sander’s win as an aberration, citing her formidable delegate lead, especially among pre-committed super-delegates. Yet Sander’s message continues to resonate with young people struggling to see how they’re suppose to fit in the vanishing American dream. Hillary asks voters to trust her experience while Sanders asks young people to dream again.
Whatever Hillary’s delegate lead [1,712 to 1,004] with Sanders, her losses in Washington State, Alaska and Hawaii expose deep divisions in the Party, especially over Hillary’s negatives, summed up under the heading she’s not trustworthy. Say what you will about Bernie, he’s trusted by the lion’s share of Democratic voters. When asked about voters’ reservations about her trustworthiness, Hillary responds she’s not a natural politician like her husband former President Bill Clinton or blames the matter on unjustified right wing attacks. “There is a path to victory,” said Sanders thinking that the primaries ahead in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and West Coast offer rich delegate opportunities. Sanders dug himself a big hole in the Deep South, where Hillary showed her lock on African American voters, making it difficult for Sanders to level the playing field with his better-known rival.
When Sanders declared for president April 30, 2015, few voters knew his name, let alone his progressive policies. Generating buzz because of large rallies attended by young people, Sanders built a formidable grassroots organization and fund-raising apparatus, contrasting himself sharply with Hillary for refusing a Citizen’s United SuperPAC, taking unlimited cash from corporate donors. Sanders often talks of the “broken” campaign finance system, pointing fingers at Hillary for taking Wall Street cash. Hillary accuses Bernie of “smear tactics” when he points out she takes campaign cash from Wall Street’s most powerful players. When CNN’s Anderson Cooper asked Hillary Feb. 4 during a Town Hall meeting about taking $675,000 from Goldman Sachs for three short speeches, she flippantly responded, “That’s what they offered.” Cooper’s question exposed Hillary’s mercenary side.
Hillary denies that any campaign cash influences her positions on any political issue. Yet Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s (D-Mass.) 2001 book “A Fighting Chance,” showed Hillary changing her vote on the 2001 Bankruptcy Bill, first opposing it, then supporting it, something backed by Wall Street’s banking industry. Bernie’s hasn’t raised concerns about the Clinton Foundation or Clinton Library taking millions from Saudi Arabia or the Gulf States. She’s been on record as Secretary of State backing the Saudi proxy war in Syria trying to topple the Shiite government of Bashar al-Assad. While Hillary dismisses Bernie’s three big wins on “Western Saturday,” the real impact exposes cracks in the Democratic Party. Hillary’s quick to point out how the GOP, led by 69-year-old front-runner Donald Trump, can control its internal squabbles. Judging by Sanders’ wins, the Democratic Party has its own problems.
National polls showing one GOP candidate or another matching up poorly with Hillary in November mean nothing at this stage of the campaign. Republicans haven’t taken into account Hillary’s negatives, something the GOP hasn’t completely exposed yet. Losing five-or-six last primaries and caucuses, Hillary’s campaign diverts attention away from the reason, citing her sizable delegate lead. Whatever the current delegate count, voters have rejected her resoundingly. “I think one of the biggest things is free tuition fro students,” said 24-year-old college student Savannah Dills. Bernie’s supporters are drawn to his idealism about changing the system, something for which Hillary calls Bernie a dreamer. Listening to Bernie talk about the wealth disparity and shrinking middle class resonates with young people fearing they’ll never get a fair shake of the American Dream.
Hillary’s whopping primary losses to Sanders are no fluke, exposing real cracks in Democratic voters. Most folks know that voting for Hillary is a vote for the status quo. Most voters don’t believe that Hillary can work with the GOP on Capitol Hill, where the bitter partisan divide under Obama left the country in gridlock. Telling voters that she’d work differently with Congress than Obama makes no sense. “This is the first time I’ve ever felt that kind of belief in a candidate, that they mean what they say and that they are not saying what they think people want to here,” said Kirsa Hughes-Skandijs, voting for Bernie in Juneau, Alaska. Unlike Hillary, Bernie brings out thousands of young voters wanting to believe they have a future. Bernie’s recent victories show that large numbers of Democratic voters don’t believe Hillary can bring about the kind of change needed to fix Washington.
