Vermont Newspaper Turns on Bernie, Literally Begs Him Not To Run
The race on the left for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination is already underway, and independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders — a self-declared socialist who aligns with the Democrat Party — is widely considered to be among the front-runners to obtain that eventual prize and opportunity to face-off against President Donald Trump.
But all is not well in Sanders’ socialist paradise, as the progressive leftist senator is facing some significant resistance to his potential presidential campaign from various corners of the predominately liberal media, who have suddenly decided some three years after he first emerged as a contender to take a sharp look at him.
Perhaps surprisingly to some, one of the loudest voices thus far to speak out against a potential Sanders campaign is one of his home state’s newspapers — The Barre Montpelier Times Argus — which just published an op-ed against Sanders that was simply titled “Don’t run.”
“Bernie Sanders should not run for president. In fact, we beg him not to,” the paper’s editorial board wrote to begin the rather blunt piece.
“That is an unfavorable opinion, especially among most Vermonters and progressives who support the platform that has come to define him. But at this point, there are more things about another Sanders run at the White House that concern us than excite us,” the op-ed continued.
The primary concern for the editorial board was that a run by Sanders risked deepening the rift that has already formed within the Democratic Party between the more moderate liberal wing and the more radical progressive left, a rift that had been highlighted by Sanders’ challenge in the 2016 primary against eventual failed nominee Hillary Clinton.
“We fear a Sanders run risks dividing the well-fractured Democratic Party, and could lead to another split in the 2020 presidential vote. There is too much at stake to take that gamble,” the paper lamented.
The paper then proceeded to suggest that it was Sanders’ “ego” that could cause a problem, and wrote, “For us, this comes down to principle over ego. It is one thing to start a revolution, but at a certain point you need to know when to step out of the way and let others carry the water for you.”
The Times Argus gave Sanders a nod for the “noteworthy following” he has garnered over the past few years, and seemingly praised the younger progressive candidates who’d run for office “under Sanders’ ‘revolution’ banner” to champion the “New Deal-era” leftist agenda, which included: “Rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure; reversing climate change; creating worker co-ops; growing the trade-union movement; raising the minimum wage; pay equity for women workers; trade policies that benefit American workers; making college affordable for all; taking on Wall Street; health care as a human right; protecting the most vulnerable Americans; and tax reform.”
“As a platform, it is massive. As a candidate, Sanders is exhausting,” the editorial board declared, prior to shifting gears to focus on other, less significant reasons why Sanders should refrain from another run for the White House.
Earlier in the piece, the editorial board had noted that Sanders had all but abandoned Vermonters and missed several key votes in Congress during his 2016 run, and complained that one was more likely to see him speaking on national TV than with reporters and constituents back home in Vermont, though they admitted those concerns were relatively minor.
“All signs point to another run, even with accusations this week that Sanders’ campaign staff, during the 2016 run, engaged in sexist remarks, as well as claims of poor treatment and lower pay for women,” the editors wrote, referencing several articles in mainstream outlets that had delved into the allegations of sexism and poor treatment of women by the 2016 Sanders campaign.
“And while none of the staff accusations have been levied against Sanders himself, his personality is abrasive,” the board continued. “He is known to be difficult to work with. The 77-year-old can be bombastic and prickly. He can be dismissive and rude in his arrogance. You are either with Bernie Sanders or you are not.”
The paper even suggested that Sanders was essentially a leftist mirror image of President Trump, and wrote, “That no-nonsense approach and his politics are endearing to many. But it is as extreme, on the other end of the spectrum in its policy elbow-throwing and idealism, as what we face today from the right in their standard bearer, Donald Trump.”
The editorial board concluded, “Taken together — ego, electoral math, a tired message and a prickly media darling — Sanders is convincing himself that he’s the person who can win the White House in 2020. We are not convinced he should.”
Considering all of the pushback Sanders has recently received from the Democratic Party-aligned media, in conjunction with the manner in which the party establishment had rigged the primary against him on the last go-round, it is a wonder that the senator even still gives Democrats and the liberal media the time of day and doesn’t just launch an independent run for the White House … even if doing so would effectively worsen the growing divide among the left that the Times Argus expressed so much concern over.
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