• Kyrgizion@lemmy.world
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    9 months ago

    Hmmm, seems like we had this type of division before, in 2016. I know history repeats but I didn’t realize the cycle had shrunk to less than a decade.

    • Doc Avid Mornington@midwest.social
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      9 months ago

      When people talk about voting third party in the general election, I always tell them the primary is the time to vote for who we really want - in the general election, we have to vote for the best viable candidate. When you tell them to sit on their hands in the primary, too, what do you think they’ll do?

    • variaatio@sopuli.xyz
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      9 months ago

      Ehhhh. 2016, the year of an open no-incumbent primary? That is not called division, that is called primary democracy working as supposed. Primary is exactly the time, when party membership is under no obligation to show unity. That only needs to happen during the national election stage.

      Also just due to winning primary one isn’t as candidate free to ignore other candidate bases. Not out of any high ideals, but hard political reality. No voter is obligated to show up and voters are emotional beings. Slight them and they might stay home (which is the actual risk, instead of them voting for the other party).

      It might be “self-harming”, but again voters can be emotional instead of rational. One has to play to their actual psyche, instead of the idealistic perfect rational psyche one would want them to have. Atleast if one wants to win and shouldn’t the aim of democratic party be win by near any means begging, promising the moon to its base, being as enthusiastic and energetic as possible for the national good of avoiding another Trump presidency.

      People talk about electorates obligation to avoid another Trump presidency. What about DNCs obligation to go above and beyond to avoid another Trump presidency.

      Which is easier to change? The collective psyche layout of 300 million people or one party’s campaign program and political agenda? It’s easier to fix the candidate/candidates program to match the electorate, rather than fix the electorate to match the candidate.

      So if there is “division” among party base, it is the candidates and party programs job to move to match, cover and repair the cracks. Not out of high ideals, but since that is the one practically fast enough way to fix the issue. Base isn’t going to suddenly change their psyche and emotional state just, because DNC says to do so out of national good. Again emotional beings, not robotic, rational automatons.

      • ganksy@lemmy.world
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        9 months ago

        I know where my emotions will be a year into a trump presidency. It will take another 7 yrs after that to get back to where we are now if we’re lucky.

        • Riccosuave@lemmy.world
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          9 months ago

          It will take another 7 yrs after that to get back to where we are now

          That seems overly optimistic. Obama couldn’t undo most of the damage caused by Bush/Cheney in 8 years.

          if we’re lucky

          If Trump wins, we are going to need a lot more than just luck on our side.

        • Doc Avid Mornington@midwest.social
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          9 months ago

          Yeah, so you should be really mad at the powerful people who are flirting with that, the same powerful people who made high level decisions that lead to the first Trump presidency, not at the voters they ignore.

    • OldWoodFrame@lemm.ee
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      9 months ago

      2016 was not division. It was the huge favorite Hillary and the token Lefty Bernie getting some delegates to influence the party platform. It was not actually close. And it was closer than this primary will be because Hillary was a weaker candidate and not an incumbent.

      And just to say it, Bernie wasn’t the reason Hillary lost, either. He was evidence she was a weaker candidate than we thought.