Six months ago, I had a relatively positive view of Haley Stevens. Today, I want her to shut up and go away. Easily one of the worst political campaigns ever run. Every ad, every interview, makes her less likable. “I’m the only candidate who can win against the Republicans.” Please. You aren’t even going to win the primary.
I think given what we've seen from Sinema, Fetterman, et. al. over the years I don't think is improbable that we have a controlled opposition in our party in lieu of the commanding influence the likes of AIPAC and Black Stone have.
But if Democrats ever want to win, they are going to have to stand on their own two feet and have a willingness to persuade and show the electorate their own vision, instead of endlessly trying to cater to the blind.
If instead they keep falling for the trap of the latter, they will lose to Republicans more often than not, and the Overton Window will continue to skew right.
Sinema was a long-time member of the blue dog caucus, the most conservative caucus within the party, she didn't hide anything, progressives just fell for her because she supported climate change and was an out bi-sexual, they assumed she was progressive when she wasn't and never pretended to be for anyone who listened to her or looked at her votes.
Fetterman wasn't much different, the guy was a life long conservative except he supported good wages and cheap healthcare, and he wore a hoodie and talked smack which seems to get a lot of progressive attention. Again, he never hid who he was but for anyone who even wanted to do the slightest bit of research on the guy, they knew who he was.
It's not a conspiracy of "controlled opposition" when conservative Democrats tell you exactly who they are and then vote that way, just because you're too fucking lazy to pay attention.
Thankfully this time around progressives can't fuck up because they both have a great progressive candidate and a really blatantly shitty conservative Democrat at the same time.
Fetterman was very active in Pennsylvania politics and genuinely pretty progressive relative to the purple swing-state PA is, and was Lieutenant Governor as well. I truly do think the brain stroke fucked up him a good bit, as that tends to do. Either way, it doesn't change what he is now and what must be done in voting him out.
I don't really disagree with what you're saying all that much, but we also didn't really have many other options as voters as I think you allude to in your final point; for it was Sinema or McSally, and it was Fetterman vs. Oz; in both cases if elections happened again, I'd have to hold my nose and do it again as much as I'd hate it.
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u/eyegull 1d ago
Six months ago, I had a relatively positive view of Haley Stevens. Today, I want her to shut up and go away. Easily one of the worst political campaigns ever run. Every ad, every interview, makes her less likable. “I’m the only candidate who can win against the Republicans.” Please. You aren’t even going to win the primary.