As the 2016 presidential election wears on in the United States of America, members of the Democratic party have become split between the two running candidates. On one side lies pragmaticism heralded by candidate Hillary Clinton. Clinton is very much the establishment candidate in the race, favoring compromise with the opposing party to create slow, non-risky change. On the other hand, however, is Bernie Sanders, a self-proclaimed democratic socialist who believes that the democratic party needs to fight for change and draw the line in the sand. As the two candidates have radically different ideologies on how to accomplish change and on just how much change is necessary, the inevitable did occur and the lines within the party have been set:
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Bernie Sanders is a former mayor of Burlington, a House of Representatives congressmen representing Vermont, and was elected to the U.S Senate in 2006 ("Meet Bernie Sanders."). To start off with, we must talk about one of Sanders strongest traits: consistency. Often advertised as a principled candidate, Sanders finds himself on, looking retroactively, the right side of history on numerous occasions. Marching with Martin Luther King, and even being arrested, during the Civil Rights Movement, voting against the Iraq War, which most inside the United States was a bad decision now that the dust has settled, and being a long-standing ally of the LGBTQ community from as early as 1972 being just a few examples of how Sanders has shown that the values he holds today are the same as he had when first approaching politics (“BERNIE SANDERS…”). Sanders does not advertise himself simply as a democrat, but as a democratic socialist. In this classification is a very important and telling view into the goals of Sanders. Democratic socialists believe largely in utilitarianism, or the benefit of the majority outweighs the benefit of the few, and this most certainly shows with the platform positions that Sanders has shown. Oftentimes defined as a radical or idealist, Sanders has looked to our neighbors across the sea, namely the Scandinavian nations, and proposed that we implement similar institutions. Among these …show more content…
Whereas Hillary Clinton’s supporters are more likely to vote along party lines and support whoever holds the nomination in the coming general election, Bernie supporters hold no such ties, as they are predominantly independent and will vote for whoever holds more liberal positions (“Iowa Entrance…”). The lines have already been drawn in the sands by many Bernie supporters, joining under the flag of the Bernie-or-Bust movement. This movement essentially states that regardless of whether Bernie wins the nomination they will vote for him, which is a problem for the Democratic party. Every single vote that goes towards a third party candidate, which is what Sanders would be at that point, is not going towards the Democratic candidate in the election. Continuing on with this analysis, the Bernie-or-Bust movement truly illustrates how fed up those who identify as strongly liberal are with the run of the mill politicians and that they will not support more candidates that claim to be progressive and follow up with a career of moderate legislation. Just how devastating this type of movement can be to a candidate is shown by the effect Ralph Nader, a liberal third party candidate, had on the 2000 presidential election between Al Gore and George W.
Bernie Sanders is a former mayor of Burlington, a House of Representatives congressmen representing Vermont, and was elected to the U.S Senate in 2006 ("Meet Bernie Sanders."). To start off with, we must talk about one of Sanders strongest traits: consistency. Often advertised as a principled candidate, Sanders finds himself on, looking retroactively, the right side of history on numerous occasions. Marching with Martin Luther King, and even being arrested, during the Civil Rights Movement, voting against the Iraq War, which most inside the United States was a bad decision now that the dust has settled, and being a long-standing ally of the LGBTQ community from as early as 1972 being just a few examples of how Sanders has shown that the values he holds today are the same as he had when first approaching politics (“BERNIE SANDERS…”). Sanders does not advertise himself simply as a democrat, but as a democratic socialist. In this classification is a very important and telling view into the goals of Sanders. Democratic socialists believe largely in utilitarianism, or the benefit of the majority outweighs the benefit of the few, and this most certainly shows with the platform positions that Sanders has shown. Oftentimes defined as a radical or idealist, Sanders has looked to our neighbors across the sea, namely the Scandinavian nations, and proposed that we implement similar institutions. Among these …show more content…
Whereas Hillary Clinton’s supporters are more likely to vote along party lines and support whoever holds the nomination in the coming general election, Bernie supporters hold no such ties, as they are predominantly independent and will vote for whoever holds more liberal positions (“Iowa Entrance…”). The lines have already been drawn in the sands by many Bernie supporters, joining under the flag of the Bernie-or-Bust movement. This movement essentially states that regardless of whether Bernie wins the nomination they will vote for him, which is a problem for the Democratic party. Every single vote that goes towards a third party candidate, which is what Sanders would be at that point, is not going towards the Democratic candidate in the election. Continuing on with this analysis, the Bernie-or-Bust movement truly illustrates how fed up those who identify as strongly liberal are with the run of the mill politicians and that they will not support more candidates that claim to be progressive and follow up with a career of moderate legislation. Just how devastating this type of movement can be to a candidate is shown by the effect Ralph Nader, a liberal third party candidate, had on the 2000 presidential election between Al Gore and George W.