Throughout his political career, Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont has proudly described himself as a socialist. Now that he's running for president, he has slightly altered that and now calls himself a Democratic Socialist (even though most of us socialists know that it is an economic system that can only exist in a democratic system of government). Unfortunately, most Americans don't know that. They see socialism as being the same as communism -- thanks to many decades of right-wing propaganda in this country.
Sanders may think he's making it more palatable to most voters by calling himself a Democratic Socialist, but he's just kidding himself -- and so are his supporters who believe that. All most voters hear is the word socialist, and they think that is something bad (even though most don't even understand what it is -- thinking it refers to a tyrannical form of government).
All you have to do is look at the chart above to see how poorly the public perceives socialism. Only 25% see it in a favorable light, and that goes for all demographic groups except Blacks (with those under 30 being split on the issue, and the difference being within the margin of error of the poll). Perhaps more important, Independents (the group that will decide the next election) have more than a 2-1 unfavorable over favorable view of socialism.
Sanders' supporters don't see this as a problem. They believe voters will look at the policies he supports (which are very good) and ignore that he calls himself a socialist. They are wrong. For the most part, Republicans have not attacked Sanders yet, hoping that he can win the Democratic nomination (because they believe he will be easier to beat than Hillary Clinton).
But that will end if he gets the nomination. One Republican (Donald Trump) has already called Sanders a communist -- and if Sanders wins the nomination, you can bet that socialist/communist will be every other word coming out of their mouths during the campaign. It would not surprise me at all to see them picture him as standing beside Stalin and Chairman Mao. The fact that it's not the least bit true won't bother them at all, since lying is one of their primary campaign tactics.
I like Bernie Sanders a lot, but I don't think he could win a general election. And one of the primary reasons is because he has the albatross of socialism hanging around his neck.
The chart above is from a new YouGov Poll -- done on October 15th and 16th of a random national sample of 1,000 adults, with a 4.3 point margin of error.
I love Bernie and I'll vote for him in the general.
ReplyDeleteThe problem I have with his call for a revolution (other than the fact that he's a reformer, not a revolutionary) is that these things can't start at the top. You can't just try and get one smart guy in the White House to correct our problems.
The movements that have really gotten somewhere - the Populatsts, the Progressives, the Civil Rights movement, the Tea Party movement - have started locally and built up their base and moved up the line. That way you've got a foundation set up and people feel comfortable with you by the time you get to the top.
It's the only way it's ever worked in this country.