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The right question to ask about the Bernie 2020 campaign is whether it offers a different and better model for organizing voters before November and public pressure after November… Early signs point to yes.
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Beyond public opinion polls, the Democratic candidate's fate in November will depend on the ability to either swing middle-of-the-road voters or mobilize new committed voters. To go the latter path means massive numbers of volunteers and/or grassroots organizations.
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The Sanders' campaign has a different relationship with unions and grassroots organizations than nearly all others: a bilateral one. huffpost.com/entry/bernie-sanders-campaign-strike-picket-lines_n_5cdecf96e4b09e057802f44c
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Sanders campaign staffers unionized and the campaign reached a contract with them. npr.org/2019/05/08/721560528/sanders-campaign-workers-ratify-union-contract
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In turn, the campaign proposes major moves to expand collectively bargaining and enable union contracts. vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/8/21/20826661/bernie-sanders-union-plan-labor-worker-rights-2020
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Collectively organizing new voters contributed to Sanders' victory in Iowa. thenation.com/article/politics/sanders-buttigieg-new-voters/
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An outreach strategy that mobilizes voters of color has powered Sanders nationally, in Texas, and in California. nytimes.com/2020/01/31/us/politics/latest-democratic-polls.html
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Back in 2016, this was the "we are going to need a political revolution in this country" vision: that a candidate isn't enough to shift the political culture. In 2020, that has become a key campaign message. Witness this 2min ad: youtube.com/watch?v=OADlaeggv14
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Or this one, which is basically a postcard for the very concept of solidarity. youtube.com/watch?v=OythsfCi6JA (music by my dear friend @liarosemusic)
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@liarosemusic The anti-progressive talking point, against both Warren and Sanders, is that these candidates won't accomplish their radical agenda in 2021 because of Congressional opposition. Interestingly enough, it is Sanders who has a plan for that.
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@liarosemusic Sanders in 2019: "the essence of my politics … is that we need an ongoing grassroots movement of millions of people to pressure Congress, to pressure the corporate establishment…"
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"… so that we can bring about the changes that this country desperately needs. So that’s why I have said that I will not only be commander-in-chief, I’m going to be organizer-in-chief." theintercept.com/2019/10/20/bernie-sanders-ocasio-cortez-rally-interview/
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Sanders in 2020: "So to me, what my administration is about is not sitting with Mitch [McConnell (R-KY)] in the Oval Office or wherever it is, negotiating something. It is rallying the American people around an agenda that they already support." He promised to start in Kentucky.
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Background on the Obama organizing machine, which powered a 2008 White House bid, but downshifted after November of that year: newrepublic.com/article/140245/obamas-lost-army-inside-fall-grassroots-machine
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It's almost unfair to try to compare Bloomberg with Sanders on these metrics, but in case it's necessary: @daveweigel/1228901898708635650?s=19