Bernie Sanders enters Presidential race, raises $1.5 million:

http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/01/politics/bernie-sanders-fundraising/

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders (I) has entered the Democratic primary as a presidential candidate, providing frontrunner Hillary Clinton with her first challenge so far. Within 24 hours, he has already raised $1.5 million for his campaign, more than any of the current GOP candidates were able to achieve in the same time frame. According to the article linked above, Sanders had been worried about whether his campaign could raise the necessary amount of money to compete with the well-funded Hillary Clinton.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/us/elections/2016-presidential-candidates.html?_r=0

A self-described "Democratic socialist", Bernie Sanders enters the Dem. primary as a more liberal alternative to the more moderate Hillary Clinton. For that reason, he'll probably have the support of the Democratic Party's more progressive members and voters who distrust Clinton. That said, he's very much the underdog against Hillary, who's very much the establishment candidate.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/01/us/politics/bernie-sanders-on-the-issues.html

Sanders has taken up a traditionally leftist view of several key issues, including the economy, immigration, climate change, and same-sex marriage.

He is a climate change believer, and supports actions taken to delay global warming. He's called on the Supreme Court to legalize gay marriage. He wants government spending to increase jobs and infrastructure, as well as raising the minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10. He takes a more liberal view of heath care, wanting a "Medicare-for-all single-payer system". Sanders has also been an outspoken critic of bankers and Obama's Trans-Pacific trade deal with Asian nations, believing it would cost the U.S. jobs. For more information, see the above link.

Personally speaking, Bernie Sanders is my ideal candidate. I agree with him on virtually every major issue, and I'd prefer him to Clinton. That said, I don't see him winning. But if nothing else, Sanders could possibly force Hillary further to the Left on certain issues, so that's something.

Your thoughts?

He won't win, as America would rather vote for Hillary than an anti-gun out and proud socialist (plus the guy is 73), but I agree that his presence will force Hillary to reconsider a few of her less liberal stances, even if the reconsidering is only for show.

While he won't win the primaries, I am still quite happy. Finally someone to expand the stupidly compressed communist-socialist-liberal spectrum in the debates.

I love me some Bernie Sanders but the Dems will sacrifice him in order to nominate Hillary/win the general in '16, so i'm not getting too attached. Its good for Hilary though, Bernie will force her to be on her A-Game and it will help shape the overall message the Dems are going to run on for the better, I think.

As a libertarian, I despise communism in all its forms, and I don't agree with socialism necessarily as a system that can work in the American political system as it stands now. That being said, Bernie Sander's voting record is actually better than any other Democratic candidate in my opinion. While I don't agree with him on everything, he would be my ideal candidate to come out of the primaries, not that it would happen.

As a social-democrat leaning towards even leftier positions lately, he's the only US candidate I'd possibly vote with any conviction.

Of course, I am lucky to live in Europe where "liberals" are describe parties in a centre position, not the most left-wing group allowed to exist.

God said:

He won't win, as America would rather vote for Hillary than an anti-gun out and proud socialist (plus the guy is 73), but I agree that his presence will force Hillary to reconsider a few of her less liberal stances, even if the reconsidering is only for show.

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I know very few people, liberal or conservative, who would consider voting for Hillary. I know the far left thinks she's too establishment. A lot of people on all sides are suspicious of her. Conservatives think she's an outright criminal. I personally dislike a lot of positions she has taken in the past, including supporting the individual mandate back in the '08 election (Obama opposed it, though eventually it ended up part of the ACA anyway). She also seems to be making one of the main points of her campaign the fact that she's a woman, which to me says she has few worthwhile points to make, and a lot of the college leftists who support her do so purely on the basis of her being a woman.

Personally, I think she's far less electable than Sanders, though I don't think Sanders is particularly electable, either (though I personally like him). Honestly, I can't see many of the current D candidates being elected.

Stormbringer said:

I love me some Bernie Sanders but the Dems will sacrifice him in order to nominate Hillary/win the general in '16, so i'm not getting too attached. Its good for Hilary though, Bernie will force her to be on her A-Game and it will help shape the overall message the Dems are going to run on for the better, I think.

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This is the tea
The only way he'll get elected is if youth voters (especially minority youth) turn up in incredible numbers as older voters who typically lean right continue to die off, but I don't see that being like, actually possible. It's like you said "the Dems will sacrifice him" because more of the upper-middle class middle aged moderate/left leaning voters will go for Hillary. Sanders is just too left for that group and too left of an option for the general election, though I prefer him way more.

twocows said:

I know very few people, liberal or conservative, who would consider voting for Hillary. I know the far left thinks she's too establishment. A lot of people on all sides are suspicious of her. Conservatives think she's an outright criminal. I personally dislike a lot of positions she has taken in the past, including supporting the individual mandate back in the '08 election (Obama opposed it, though eventually it ended up part of the ACA anyway). She also seems to be making one of the main points of her campaign the fact that she's a woman, which to me says she has few worthwhile points to make, and a lot of the college leftists who support her do so purely on the basis of her being a woman.

Personally, I think she's far less electable than Sanders, though I don't think Sanders is particularly electable, either (though I personally like him). Honestly, I can't see many of the current D candidates being elected.

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I think many people will ultimately end up voting for Hillary simply because she's so big name and the only Democratic option with a viable chance of getting elected, regardless of their suspicions and disagreements. Plus, as you said, there's the obvious factor of her womanhood - the chief gimmick in her strategy.

Although I very rarely read anything from the WSJ, this article seems to sum up our feelings. She's untrustworthy, she's a criminal, she's not leading with the percentages one would expect, etc. But on the other hand, she has the namebrand of H I L L A R Y C L I N T O N, has been perceived as an inevitable president since at least 2011 and her only realistic opponent on the Democratic stage is 'an old Socialist.'

> "Socialist"

Hehehehehe...yeah, I'm gonna have to say "no thanks."