Progressive Bull Moose

Friday, March 6, 2020

Do not tell the approximately 10,000 people that attended the Bernie Sanders rally at the Veteran’s Coliseum in Phoenix on March 5, 2020, that the Vermont Senator can not beat Donald Trump.

With people proudly holding blue and white Bernie signs and loudly chanting “Bernie,” “Feel the Bern,” and “Bernie beats Trump,” the enthusiastic crowd gave the two-time Presidential Candidate a thunderous ovation as he entered the coliseum. They continued to repeatedly applaud him as he made his case against Donald Trump and Joe Biden while presenting his vision for the country.

Setting the Table for Senator Sanders.

As the approximately 10,000 people sat in the Coliseum waiting for the arrival of the Vermont Senator, several guest speakers set the tone for the Presidential Candidate’s address by telling them why supporting Sanders was in the best interests of the country.

Among them was Adiba Khan, an immigrant from Bangladesh who just became an American Citizen. She told the crowd her first vote as a citizen will be for Bernie Sanders. She then challenged everyone in the crowd to knock on doors and get out the vote for Senator Sanders.

Another person who helped get the crowd in an enthusiastic mood was Brian Mecinas, a leader in the organization, Arizona Youth Climate Strike. He told the crowd “with Bernie Sanders, we have a choice to bring real change” in “climate justice, racial justice, and economic justice.”

Hunter Henderson, a retired Marine from the group Veterans for Common Sense told the crowd that Bernie Sanders would not send 18-year-olds into a war that had started before they were born.

The Vice Mayor of Phoenix, Betty Guardado, introduced Senator Sanders, by saying he will fight “for the American Dream for Everyone” and “all of us together will stop Donald Trump.”

Senator Sanders bashes Donald Trump.

Entering to thunderous applause with the song “Dance to the Music” playing in the background, Senator Sanders started his address by telling the people that had gathered:

“You are not only a very large crowd but very loud crowd.”

When the second of three protestors made an immediate disruption, Sanders quickly responded:

“I think you are outnumbered tonight and you will be outnumbered in November.”

Calling this “the most important election in modern history,” Mr. Sanders further said,

“Together we are going to defeat Donald Trump. He is the most dangerous President… We can not leave a person in the White House who is a pathological liar….has not read the Constitution… someone who thinks he is above the law…. In November, we are going to teach Donald Trump a lesson in Democracy and make him a one-term President.”

Sanders then highlighted the reasons Mr. Trump was a liar and a fraud, noting:

“He said he would provide health care to everyone….He lied… Instead, he tried to throw 32 million off the healthcare they have and do away with preexisting conditions.”
“He lied about the tax cuts not helping his billionaire friends.”
“Trust me, I’m not going to cut Medicare, Medicaid, or Social Security. He lied again.”
“Trump is trying to divide our county. We are trying to bring our people together.”

Sanders reaches out to Elizabeth Warren’s supporters.

With the withdrawal of Senator Elizabeth Warren from the Democratic Presidential Race earlier in the day, Sanders called her a good friend and applauded her campaign. He then invited “Senator Warren’s supporters to our cause.”

Joe Biden is an old friend but….

Mr. Sanders, despite boos from the crowd, called Joe Biden an old friend that will be there for him if he (Sanders) wins the nomination and vice versa.

Saying that the differences between him and the former Vice President were small compared to those with Trump, Sanders then pivoted to show how his campaign and voting record contrasted with his remaining major Democratic opponent.

He criticized Biden for taking money and support from billionaires (including the recently withdrawn candidate Michael Bloomberg) and for having a Superpac.

Sanders said that his grassroots support of two million working and middle-class donors has averaged $18.50 a contribution. He expanded on that theme, saying:

“This is a campaign of the working class, by the working class, and for the working class. We are not beholden to Billionaires. Wall Street, the pharmaceutical industry, and the fossil fuel industry.”

Mr. Sanders then went on to pick out some of Mr. Biden’s votes and positions over his 35 year Senate Career. These include his support/consideration for:

The 2003 war in Iraq
A Bankruptcy bill that was more pro creditor than pro debtor.
N.A.F.TA.
The Wall Street Bailout of 2008
Cuts to Social Security

He also criticized the former Vice President for initially supporting “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” for gays in the military and not letting women use Medicaid to pay for abortions.

Presenting his Vision-Program for the Country.

After another protestor was dispatched (both Biden and Sanders need Secret Service yesterday), the Vermont Senator outlined his vision for the country by listing an extensive progressive program that included:

Raising the minimum wage to at least $15.00 an hour.
Women earning the same pay as men
Making it easier for workers to join unions.
Investing billions in our crumbling infrastructure.
“Changing national priorities. Instead of investing in billionaires, we need to invest in education.”
Affordable universal child care.
“We believe in teachers. We need many many good teachers. We need more African American, Latina, and Special Ed. No teacher should earn less than $60,000.”
Free Public Education paid through colleges and universities.
Canceling all student debt.
“Ending the embarrassment of being the only advanced country not to guarantee health care. If all the other major countries can do it, so can the United States, and do it cheaply. We have 35,000 people dying a year because they lacked health care.” He also talked about thousands that fell into bankruptcy because of medical debt. “People are wondering if they have that virus but they can not afford to go to the doctor. Health care is a human right and everyone in this country, including the undocumented, should get it.”
“Passing a Green New Deal with millions of good union paying jobs. Arizona should be one of the leaders in this country. I wlll reach out to other nations because we are all in this together.” After picking on Trump’s genius and his calling “climate change is a hoax, Sanders retorted “I happen to think Donald Trump is a hoax. Our administration will belive in science and we will listen to the scientists We should fight our common enemy that is climate.”
“We are going to fix a broken justice system. We do not want to be the country that has the most people in jail. We are going to end private prisons. We are going to end the war on drugs.”
Signing an executive order to legalize marijuana and “expunge” the records of those found guilty of possession.
“Clear overhaul of the immigration system. I will not accept the continued demonization of the immigration system. On day one, I will sign an Executive Order to restore DACA, end the border policy of snatching babies from parents, and enact comprehensive immigration reform with a path to citizenship.”
“Gun Safety Legislation will be the most sweeping ever. We will not be intimidated by the NRA. We will pass universal background checks and red flag laws, do away with the gun show loophole, and end the sale and distribution of assault weapons.”
After calling the Republicans “hypocrites” for saying their claims of wanting to get government off the backs of people did not apply to a woman’s right to choose, Sanders said he would appoint judges that are pro-choice, work to codify Roe vs Wade, and increase funding for Planned Parenthood.

A Call to Action

Senator Sanders finished his address with a call to action to the crowd.

Saying “A President can not do everything alone,” he told everyone that the political revolution they are trying to launch has to be from the “bottom-up” with people “coming together and getting a government that works for everyone..”

This, Mr. Sanders said, can not succeed unless everyone is active in the cause.

He finished by calling on everyone to vote and get friends and family to the polls as well, saying:

“Let us go forward. Let us win in Arizona and let us defeat Donald Trump and let us transform the country.”

Reaction to the Sanders Address

People that heard Sanders were still as devoted to him after the presentation as before.

Shelly Denny commented after the speech that, unlike Biden, “You know what you’re getting with Sanders.”

Both Brandon Abrahams and Jessica Hansen called the speech “amazing.”

Abrahams went further and said Sanders “stands for everything we all stand for” as opposed to the “establishment, the media, and billionaires.”

Hansen said that if the people 18 to 26 (the part of the population “where the country is going,” show up to support Sanders at the levels they can, “he’ll win the nomination.”

Jordon Sokoll, a person who I work for, also attended the event and said:

“It’s good to see a large amount of people from many different backgrounds here for a single cause……The issues that I have had to deal with when it comes to health care really makes Sanders stand out. Plus many of his stances are stances he has had for a long time.”

Concluding Thoughts

After seeing tonights address to the 10,000 person crowd in Phoenix, there should be no doubt that Mr. Sanders (should he get the nomination,) would vanquish Donald Trump with relative ease in debates and consistently present his progressive case to the American People.

Despite Mr. Sanders impressive address, there were two telling omissions in his speech. They were:

He did not ask his supporters to help reelect a Democratic House and elect a Democratic Senate. This was especially troubling given Mr. Sanders was speaking in Arizona where Democrat Mark Kelly is looking to defeat Martha McSally in their Senate race this year. A President needs a Senate of his own party to do things like confirm his or her Supreme Court Nominations. It can not only be about the Presidency.
He did not tell the crowd how he would pass his agenda, especially in a Senate that has Democratic Centrists like Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin in it.

Despite the above exclusions, tonight demonstrated that if Joe Biden does win the nomination, he can only unite the Democrats and be the next President of the United States by bringing in Mr. Sanders and reach an amicable accommodation with him and the people that are devoted to the Vermont Senator.

It is important that, as Mr. Sanders said this evening, that the loser in this now two-person race, immediately support the victor, unite the party, and as the Vermont Senator said at the beginning of his speech “teach Mr. Trump a lesson in Democracy and make him a one-term President.”

https://blogforarizona.net/bernie-sanders-electrifies-crowd-at-phoenix-rally/

Wednesday, March 4, 2020

Is Joe Biden the 2020 Political Phoenix

All Arizonans should know the story of the Phoenix: a bird that died on a funeral pyre but rose reanimated from its ashes to vibrantly fly again.

Is Joe Biden the 2020 Political Phoenix?

Just one week ago, he was declared virtually politically dead by many pundits after faring poorly in Iowa, New Hampshire, and Nevada.

Some thought Bernie Sanders would provide the final nail in his Presidential aspirational coffin with an upset victory in South Carolina.

Others saw Michael Bloomberg as the only viable Pragmatic Progressive alternative to Mr. Sanders going into Super Tuesday.

Then two events happened to improve Mr. Biden’s political fortunes.

The first was a strong debate performance by Biden in South Carolina. Less than stellar showings by both Sanders and Bloomberg at the same event also helped the former Vice President.

The second was the endorsement of Jim Clyburn, the dean of South Carolina politics, the day after the debate.

These two events gave the financially and organizationally strapped Biden campaign the momentum it needed to achieve a landslide victory in South Carolina.

After that victory, the 2020 Political Phoenix started to rise.

First, the Biden campaign, who languished behind virtually all the other campaigns in cash on hand, saw the fundraising valves turn on and started to raise millions of dollars.

Endorsements from people sitting on the sidelines like former Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe and Senator (and 2016 Vice Presidential Nominee) Tim Kaine, former Arkansas Senator Blanche Lincoln, and the widow of the late Senator Ted Kennedy from Massachusetts helped build ground-up support in those three states.

Then, Amy Klobauchur and Pete Buttigieg, seeing no path to the nomination for themselves, decided to suspend their campaigns just before Super Tuesday. They, along with former Presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke then appeared with Biden at two rallies in Texas to show their support for the former Vice President.

Tonight, on Super Tuesday, the 2020 Political Phoenix seems to have risen to catch and possibly surpass Senator Sanders on the race to earn the 1991 delegates to claim the Democratic Presidential Nomination.

So far, Mr. Biden, who had minimal to no ground presence in some of these states, has won Alabama, Arkansas, Massachusetts (where Senator Warren has finished in third,) Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.

Senator Sanders has won his native Vermont (with only about 51 percent of the vote,) Colorado (on the strength of early mail-in ballot voting,) and Utah (how.)

California and Maine are too close to call.

It is too early to foresee what will happen in the contest for the remaining two-thirds of the Democratic delegates.

A lot can happen.

But for tonight, Joe Biden, the Presidential Candidate left for dead, is the 2020 Political Phoenix.

https://blogforarizona.net/is-joe-biden-the-2020-political-phoenix/

Monday, March 2, 2020

And Then there Were Five Democratic Presidential Candidates; It is important to Unite

With the withdrawals of Tom Steyer on Saturday, Pete Buttigieg on Sunday, and Amy Klobuchar today (Monday,) the Democratic Primary Race has shrunk to five candidates.

Actually, four because Tulsi Gabbard has largely been a nonfactor for several months.

The race for the Democratic Nomination now pits two more liberal progressive candidates (Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders) against two pragmatic progressive candidates (Joe Biden and Michael Bloomberg.)

Klobuchar has already endorsed Biden and is flying to Dallas to headline a rally with him.

Steyer and Buttigieg have not announced who they will now support among the remaining five contenders.

It is a shame in a way because the Democrats have put forth a stellar roster of Presidential Candidates this election season. Many were dynamic, experienced, and progressive voices who ran for the nomination in this primary process. Four of the now withdrawn candidates were Progressive two-term Governors.

Unfortunately, there can only be one nominee (two if one of the individuals vying for the nomination is selected or the Vice Presidential slot.)

When that happens, either before or, if no candidate gets enough delegates, during the convention, it is important to unite behind the nominee.

Any one of the remaining four viable candidates (Warren, Biden, Bloomberg, and Sanders) would be far superior to Mr. Trump in the White House.

It is vital to maintain an open mind during the remainder of the primary process, vote for who individuals think is the best candidate, and band together behind the nominated ticket after the convention to campaign and beat the Trumpists and their reactionary program of nativism, economic and social injustice, and backwardness in as many local, state, and national races as possible.

Election Day (November 3, 2020) is 246 days away.

A United Democratic Party can vanquish the stench of Trumpism-Tea Partyism once and for all.

But only if they do it united and together.

https://blogforarizona.net/and-then-there-were-five-democratic-presidential-candidates-it-is-important-to-unite/

Sunday, March 1, 2020

Trump Fiddled with Modi in India while the Streets of New Delhi Burned

Earlier last week, before Mr. Trump was in the White House Press Room and a later rally in South Carolina spreading disinformation about the Coronavirus (which the experts tactfully refuted) and the Democrats and media reaction to it, he and the First Lady made a State Visit to India.

During that visit, while attempting to get a trade and security deal with India (he did not,) Mr. Trump praised Indian Prime Minister (and fellow Right Wing Nativist Populist) Narendra Modi for promoting religious freedom in the world’s second-most populous nation.

The problem with that assertion is while the Liar in Chief made those statements, Muslims and Hindus were beating and killing each other on the streets of New Delhi and its suburbs. Hindu Nationalist Gangs were also attacking Mosques and other Muslim owned establishments.

The “Leader of the Free World” did not comment on the tragic events going on only miles from where he was having lunch.

That is pathetic behavior from the President of the United States.

The root cause of these horrific acts stems from Modi and his allies in the Indian Parliament looking to advance Indian Citizenship to refugees from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan as long as they are not Muslims.

This legislation along with India’s National Registry of Citizens worries Human Rights Activists because they see it as an attempt to deport Muslim refugees and further isolate members of that community (200 million in India.)

It is wrong that India’s leaders are taking this religious litmus test to determine who should and should not get to be a citizen.

It is wrong that India’s leaders may be using these governing and legislative mechanisms to persecute innocent people just because of their religion.

It is wrong that the President of the United States (who probably wishes he could do what Modi is doing) does not speak out against it.

The people who are attacking Muslims need to be arrested and brought to justice.

The Global Community should make India get rid of these nativist and xenophobic measures.

The American People need to get a President who once again will exemplify the title “Leader of the Free World.”

https://blogforarizona.net/trump-fiddled-with-modi-in-india-while-the-streets-of-new-delhi-burned/

Cartoons of the Week from Blog for Arizona

https://blogforarizona.net/cartoon-of-the-week-317/

SNL Cold Open from 2/29/20

https://www.facebook.com/snl/videos/829739877541033/