May 16, 2016. Here’s a fair way to start bringing the Democrats back together: a MoveOn petition.
For months, Bernie said “let the voters decide,” not the unelected “elite” superdelegates. That was when he thought he would win the voters and elected (pledged) delegates. But on April 19 he lost the NY primary badly after outspending Clinton.
That evening on MSNBC, his campaign manager said they would fight to win with superdelegates even if the voters decided against Bernie. Then On May 1, at the National Press Club, Bernie said the same thing.
Mary Alice Williams asked, “If you do not secure the majority of pledged delegates, do you still believe that superdelegates should switch?” Sanders replied “Yes,” and added that “the responsibility the superdelegates have is to decide what is best for this country.”
You do not need to be a MoveOn member to sign. It’s super quick — Name, eMail, Zip, and you’re done.
Signing this is safe—you can easily unsubscribe whenever you want. Sign right here (easier) or at MoveOn.org. Early signers make a HUGE difference. —Thanks!!
This petition just asks Bernie not to try to get the superdelegates to reject the will of the voters, like he told Mary Alice he would. It just asks him to stick by his own principles. And it just ask him to do what 600,000 of his supporters signed petitions saying was the right thing to do — “Let the voters decide.”
Of course, until the voters finish deciding, he can fight on. And if the voters decide for him, he can fight on for superdelegates. But if he loses fair-and-square by his own principles, he should conceded. Really, that is not much to ask of anyone, especially someone who prides himself on consistency and following his principles.
The main reason to sign: It’s not just to get Bernie to save his own reputation. The real reason is to save the progressive cause. After June 7th, Jeff Merkley, Bernie’s one endorsing Senator says he should concede gracefully as Hillary did in 2008, and begin unifying the Party for the fight against Trump and to win back Congress.
This is a huge opportunity, but there are also huge risks. Elections can be very hard to predict and we cannot take victory for granted. Bernie and Hillary should both be fighting Trump and not each other in June and July.
And remember the statements will work best to turn undecided voters against Hillary, or discourage Democrats from voting, are attacks from Bernie Sanders. And the Republicans will use those in about a billion dollars of TV ads. We do not need to add another two months of such attacks to their arsenal.
Why use a MoveOn petition? MoveOn is Bernie’s largest single base of support and the press has cited related MoveOn petitions. This one will be more surprising because it is aimed at Bernie. So with enough signers, it should get even more attention. This issue will come to a head on June 7, when the CA primary results come in.
Bernie rejects “Let the voters decide” at the National Press Club,
Mary Alice: “If you do not secure the majority of pledged delegates, do you still believe that superdelegates should switch [Bernie nods yes] and back you [yeah] as in rejecting the will of the voters?
Bernie: Yeah, well you know it’s a funny thing. … I hope that we will win the pledged delegates, but at the end of the day the responsibility the superdelegates have is to decide what is best for this country … if those superdelegates conclude that Bernie Sanders is the best candidate, … yes I would very much welcome their support.” (Watch him say it.)
His only Senate endorser Jeff Merkely (OR) said: Bernie should be gracious like Clinton was in 2008 and concede after June 7, if he doesn’t get the elected delegates.
His own people say the same: “After Winning on June 7th Bernie Sanders Should Suspend his Campaign and …” See the May 12 story in the NY Times
Bernie says he will do all he can to help Hillary after the convention. Instead he should start after the voters decide on June 7. Hillary deserves your signature to help this happen.
Thanks so much to the brave early signers!!
People tend to follow the crowd, so it’s really hard to get things started. But if you think this cause is just and helpful, I hope you’ll do me the favor of signing or sharing. It’s a ton of work to find and write up all the facts and the YouTube clip. But if this flies, the press will eat it up.
All the best,
Steve
