Never Trump For RealAlex Law, a progressive reformer, is running for Congress in a South Jersey district dominated by the worst of the corrupt Democratic bosses, the Norcross Machine. He is also a leader of the Bernie for President movement in New Jersey and is all in for Bernie as the June 7 primary appraoches, but last night he acknowledged that "While Hillary Clinton is a flawed candidate, she would still make an excellent President. As Robert Reich has said, Clinton would be the best President for the system we currently have and Bernie would be the best President for the system we deserve. I agree with that sentiment. Donald Trump has proven himself to be a racist, sexist, bordering on fascist leader and is preying on the fears and insecurities of those who have been displaced and left behind by corruption in government. He is making wild promises that would be an absolute impossibility to fulfill and has buoyed his candidacy by being the best school yard bully from a pool of bullies. A President Trump would be a disaster for the United States and would undo all of the progress President Obama has made. We cannot allot that to happen." That's the kind of language you would expect to hear from the progressive wing of the Democratic Party as the dangers posed by a Trump presidency come to the fore.Yesterday, though, Politico ran a piece about the right-of-center Democrats-- all Hillary backers, of course-- from red and red-leaning states who say they'll be able to work with Trump if he wins. According to ProgressivePunch, North Dakota's Heidi Heitkamp has a 42.11 crucial vote score this session, the worst of any Senate Democrat. She and Claire McCaskill (MO) nseesaw back and forth weekly on who is the least progressive Democrat in the Senate. McCaskill's score is currently 42.67. The only other Democrat voting more frequently with the GOP against progressive initiatives than Heitkamp and McCaskill is Joe Manchin (WV), although Blue Dog Joe Donnelly (IN) and Mark Warner are close, respectively with 52.63 and 56.0 scores. They're the 5 most right-wing Democrats in the Senate and they are all Clinton backers who are also ardent anti-Bernie crusaders. In fact, they seem more comfortable with Trump's "ideas" than with Bernie's.
If Donald Trump is elected president there will be a great opportunity to sit down and have a conversation about what that agenda looks like,” explained Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.), who has long backed Hillary Clinton. “If he’s president, we’re going to have disagreement. But we’d better all figure out how to come up with an agenda for the American people.”...“I believe in the 80-20 rule... Let’s find the 80 percent that we agree on and work to focus on that, and set aside the 20 percent and we’ll worry about that later,” said Sen. Tom Carper of Delaware. “Work with a President Trump might be a little more challenging. Might be 20-80.”
Nevada's crooked Democratic senator, Harry Reid, who's been losing his mind since he was badly beaten up and forced to announce his retirement, refuses to even imagine, he claims, Trump winning the presidency. "I can’t even discuss such a disgusting idea, OK? No. You’re saying if he’s elected president? Oh, I’m not going to talk about that," he brayed at Politico. "I can’t imagine something so horrible."Like Alex Law, Oklahoma City's Tom Guild is both a congressional candidate and a dedicated and committed Bernie supporter. "I fervently hope," he told us yesterday, "that whatever series of events necessary to lead to the nomination of Bernie Sanders for President comes to pass. I just saw a poll out of Georgia today that shows Bernie winning the state by 5 points, with Trump beating Hillary Clinton by 4 percent. Bernie winning Georgia and other longtime red states would be a profound game changer. It could lead to a landslide and a revolution the likes of which American has rarely experienced. However, if Bernie doesn’t win the Democratic nomination in 2016, Bernie has strongly stated that beating Trump is job #1. Trump is not only misogynist, xenophobic, and racist, but also crass, rude, crude, and ignorant. He acts like the spoiled child of the billionaire class… which he is. Clinton is not my ideal candidate. However, she is well versed on the issues and much better than Trump on women’s rights, immigrants, racial justice, disabled people’s inclusion, and more welcoming by a mile than Trump. She is experienced and understands the need for diversity that strengthens America. If push comes to shove, I’ll support and vote for Hillary in the general election. I love Bernie and want him to be President of the United States with every fiber in my body. However, we can’t trust the childish and erratic Donald Trump on a vast array of issues important to our country’s future. If need be, and despite the incredible and unprecedented success of Bernie and Bernie’s supporters efforts, I’ll be ready for Hillary in November. Our country is too fragile and the stakes are too high to let a charlatan and con man take the reins of power in our beloved America and destroy all progress we have made over the years. We can’t let an arsonist have his first book of matches. I feel the Bern, but I don’t want to gamble on having to feel the Donald’s burn!" Bernie won Oklahoma 174,054 (51.9%) to 139,338 (41.5%) and Hillary didn't do well in Guild's district-- 50.1% in Oklahoma County, 39.1% in Seminole County and just 37.5% in Pottawatomie County. Nor did Trump do that great. Rubio won Oklahoma County with Cruz second and Trump a distant third with 25%. And Cruz took both Pottawatomie and Seminole counties.
In interviews with Democrats, long-term fiscal problems generated the most enthusiasm among centrist lawmakers as areas of collaboration with a President Trump. But equal motivation may come from the idea of throwing away preconceived notions and entrenched partisan bickering that has defined the past six years in Washington.Manchin, who represents a state in which Obama is very unpopular and that is poised to be a landslide for Trump, said his constituents are eager for someone that understands what’s become of manufacturing cities and coal country.“My people are really hurting,” Manchin said. “They don’t believe this administration or Barack Obama really cares about them.”And while Manchin is one of Clinton’s most vocal backers, she was just throttled by Sen. Bernie Sanders in the West Virginia primary. Manchin said he’s ready to deal with Trump should things go the other way-- and he thinks Trump is ready to as well.“What you see in the campaign and if he would be elected at that level, what you’re going to see is a little different,” Manchin said. “He didn’t get to where he got to by making a lot of bad deals.”
Up in Syracuse, New York, Eric Kingson is clearly focused on where the greatest threat to America lies "We are in the midst of the most perilous presidential election of our times," he told us. "A dangerous and disingenuous demagogue is the presumptive Republican nominee. By words and deeds, Donald Trump has positioned himself far outside the boundaries of decency and democracy. We Democrats, and the nation are fortunate to have two excellent people-- Senator Bernie Sanders and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton-- vying for the Democratic nomination. I am a strong Bernie Sanders supporter, but if he’s not the nominee, I will work hard to elect Hillary Clinton. Like Bernie, she has a positive agenda and will take strong stands, political and personal, against the politics, fear, divisiveness, and disregard for working families and the poor that is so evident among today’s Republican Party."And in the L.A. area, Lou Vince, who's running against Trump-supporting Steve Knight and a wishy-washy Democrat the DCCC is trying to inflict on the district, told us he sees Trump as "one of the greatest threats that has ever faced American democracy. Not only would his presidency be a disaster for the United States's image abroad, his presidency would be devastating on domestic policy. With the Democrats likely to gain control of the Senate, it is unlikely Trump will be able to accomplish anything in the next four years-- leading to stagnation and a halt to any progress, not to mention losing the chance for mainstream opinion to gain control of the Supreme Court. While Bernie has my vote June 7th, and I will continue to support him as long as he stays in the race, I will not have a problem voting for Hillary in November. She is a far less dangerous alternative to Trump. While Hillary isn't perfect on the issues, she is a lot closer to Bernie than Trump will ever be and much better for the future of America."Please consider contributing to the campaigns of Alex Law, Tom Guild, Eric Kingson, Lou Vince and the other Bernie Democrats who are ready to make sure Trump is never elected to the presidency and that right-wing Democrats like Heidi Heitkamp and Joe Manchin are aware that there is still a vibrant Democratic wing of the Democratic Party.
UPDATE:A Member of Congress e-mailed me today after reading the post, somewhat disappointed in the conservative Democrats like Heitkamp and Warner for making nice with Trump in the press. "I can tell you that there is A LOT of unspoken hostility among House Republicans toward Donald Trump. It shows just how far these Dems have their heads up their asses that they feel that they need to capitulate to him in advance."