Those who frequently criticize senator Bernie Sanders’ campaign love to point to the fact that Sanders’ progressive views would be a challenge to turn into effective policy and law if he were to make it to the White House.
Disillusioned Democrats who had such high hopes for president Obama saw him compromise and face blistering push-back from a Republican congress who were dead-set on turning Obama into a lame duck well before his final year. All this despite the fact that it is clear Obama was a much more corporate character than any of us could have predicted.
But what those critics fail to realize is that what Sanders is calling for isn’t a socialist monarchy of sorts where his sweeping campaign promises will be made effective despite Republican opposition. Instead, Sanders is calling for a revolution. And what that revolution means is that Democratic voters must get out and elect politicians in local, state, and federal government that reflect the same values they are looking for in a presidential candidate. The American people must reach out and take back our Democracy at every level, paving the way for true progressive progress.
You won’t hear about it much on corporate media, but indeed Bernie voters are heeding that call. Not only are people campaigning for Sanders, they are also identifying and organizing behind progressive candidates all over the country. Using the same message and strength they apply to a Sanders campaign, progressive voters are advocating for candidates like Tim Canova of Florida, Tom Breu of Wisconsin, and Jesse T. Smith of Alabama, all of whom are grassroots candidates running for congressional seats.
These progressive Democrats are organized and calculated. They are social-media savvy and make use of that knowledge to reach out, acknowledge, and bolster candidates who vocally support Sanders and the values he espouses.
In addition to their databases, savvy maps, and social media promotions, those same Democrats that have given record donations to Sanders are also willing to hand out a respectable amount of cash to other candidates, as evidenced by the half a million dollars raised by Tim Canova in Florida who is currently running against head of the DNC Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
Sanders supporters are not the feckless idealists that establishment Democrats imagine them to be. Win or lose, the foundation set by the Sanders campaign will rule the Democratic party for decades.
