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Where does this "Bernie can't beat Trump" rhetoric come from?

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Deleted member 42484

Banned
Apr 21, 2018
6,969
Someone please explain to me.

To me it just seems like another last-ditch effort to discredit Sanders.

Has someone done an intensive study on the polling in the swing states or something that I'm missing?

I'm hearing lots of democrats spewing this. Where does it come from, and what is the best response?
 
jml

jml

Member
Mar 9, 2018
4,783
Conventional wisdom that says you need a moderate to get swing voters. That's basically it.
 
samoyed

samoyed

Banned
Oct 26, 2017
15,191
When your worldview depends on thinking that you're the smartest person in the room, it becomes very hard to admit being wrong for, uh, the last 20 years, since Clinton basically.
 
Psamtik

Psamtik

Member
Oct 27, 2017
6,834
1.) He couldn't beat Hillary.

2.) His numbers with older voters suck, so he'll need young voters to show up. Young people do not and have not ever voted in the numbers he needs.

I hope he wins, both because I like him (outside of his historical weakness on gun control) and because I have no contingency plan for a second Trump term. But he does face certain demographic challenges.
 
Chopchop

Chopchop

Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,171
It's probably a way to harm his chances of winning. Build apathy in those who would support him, so that less people actually vote.

It's a soundbite/meme, and it's a way to harm public perception through mindless spam because you can see it everywhere, but most people likely won't put the effort into checking if it's true. And regardless of whether or not it's true, the apathy it instills only helps Trump.
 
Noog

Noog

▲ Legend ▲
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May 1, 2018
2,856
I think it comes from the idea that if a moderate like Hillary Clinton can't beat Trump, someone potentially more divisive like Bernie Sanders doesn't have a shot.
 
Doober

Doober

Banned
Jun 10, 2018
4,295
The thinking is that Sanders will only amp up young voters - who may or may not show up on election day - while terrifying the rest of the electorate with sOCiAliSm.
 
Meg Cherry

Meg Cherry

Member
Oct 25, 2017
7,252
Seattle, WA
jml said:
Conventional wisdom that says you need a moderate to get swing voters. That's basically it.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Yeah, that's kinda the whole ballgame. And conventional wisdom isn't always right - but it's also still worth considering. Sanders is still fighting to get a majority of Democrats onboard with his message - a majority of the country is an even bigger challenge.

Personally, I think Sanders can still win against Trump - but he'll make a stronger case if he can bring a more 'accepted' progressive like Warren or Castro onto the ticket.
 
Aurica

Aurica

音楽オタク - Comics Council 2020
The Fallen
Oct 25, 2017
23,457
A mountain in the US
Moderates and old people will tell you that young Americans historically don't vote in the numbers that older people do, and older people don't like Bernie.

I always argue that people won't come out to vote for someone that they're not excited for. We saw it in 2016. We are also seeing four years worth of newly eligible voters this election cycle, and they're all young or new citizens... demographics that quite like Bernie. The concept that he can't win just isn't based in our reality.
 
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