The Media Doesn't Seem to Be Covering Sanders

[MineralMan]

or inviting him on the talk shows much. Meanwhile, Joe Biden is more in demand. Maybe the media outlets understand the situation better than the Senator does. Or maybe Bernie's not making himself as available these days. No studio in the basement and the like.

It's beginning to look to me like Senator Sanders (I-VT) is running something of a shadow campaign, rather that a media campaign right now. I see his supporters writing about him, but not a lot from the Senator directly.

I hope he's not just waiting to see if Joe Biden gets the virus. That, I think, would be a poor campaign strategy, since Joe is staying away from direct contact with people right now.

[The Magistrate]

1. No Reason For Them To, Sir

"From Bernie’s perspective, dropping out of a race once you have no chance of winning is peculiar behavior that can only be explained by the work of a hidden hand. For most politicians, though, it is actually standard operating procedure. Only Sanders seems to think the normal thing to do once voters have made clear they don’t want to nominate you is to continue campaigning anyway."





"When things are not called by their right names, what is said cannot make sense. When what is said does not make sense, what is planned cannot succeed. When plans do not succeed, people become uneasy. When people are uneasy, punishments do not fit crimes. When punishments do not fit crimes, people cannot know where to put hand or foot."

[MineralMan]

3. That makes a good deal of sense, Sir.

[calimary]

23. VERY good point, sir.

Quite insightful.

[trueblue2007]

33. yeah. that is cuzz he doesn't have a chance in Hell-o to win !!!!!!! He is not a winner.

[Sloumeau]

2. Stay healthy, Joe! :) nt

[msongs]

4. bernie just says the same thing over and over and over nt

[MineralMan]

11. That's certainly true.

Same old, same old. That's what he did in the last debate, too. Joe was on topic. Bernie just fell back on his stump speech. It wasn't even close, that debate.

[Cha]

5. Well.. that's something to be thankful for..

and surprising. Hope it continues.

[TreasonousBastard]

6. What's to cover?

[Mike 03]

7. Just anecdotally, in my small circle where all we used to talk about was

politics, his name hasn't come up since around Super Tuesday. Not a word, not a whisper. We all just want to vote in November and survive the virus. Sadly, Bernie doesn't even seem to rise to the level of an afterthought around here.

[LizBeth]

8. Sanders has been done working on a month now. Now he is only an hindrance.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

9. Why should they? He hasn't said anything new lately.

Actually, he hasn't said anything new since about 1968. But despite the outraged squawks from the bros, there's no reason to pay attention to him anymore. He should make himself useful by returning to the Senate and doing the job the citizens of Vermont hired him to do. Maybe there are still some post offices that need naming.

[Walleye]

29. The bros are busy slandering Joe.

[dweller]

10. you say that like it's a bad thing

✌🏼

[MineralMan]

13. Well, for a guy who says he's "still in it," he sure isn't showing

much right now. Where are the videos from his home studio? Where are the new ads, like Biden issues regularly? If he's not going to be actively campaigning, he should drop out and endorse the presumptive nominee, it seems to me.

Having his surrogates talk about old, fake accusations against Biden isn't going to cut it.

[dweller]

17. i stopped listening to him awhile back

when he came off like the angry get off my lawn guy,
if he was on now i'd turn the channel, just as i do for fatnixon
if he had ads, i'd mute them ... can't take the time or energy wasted to pay attention any longer
there's enough misery out there as it is

✌🏼

[napi21]

12. I think most voters have accepted Joe as the Dem Candidate. Bernie has the attention of ONLY his

supporters. Nobody else is paying any attention to him. I've even had people ask me if Sanders was still in the race? I guess he still thinks he can get some of his ideas into the Dem platform, even if that means sticking around 'till the Convention. Of course, nobody knows how the Convention will happen.

[customerserviceguy]

14. The only thing that is keeping him going

is that he thinks that the current C-19 crisis is the perfect backdrop for his M4A message. It is clear that Joe Biden has rejected that approach for now, and Sanders thinks that he can benefit from the contrast between the two.

If Joe Biden were to swing over to more of a single-payer position, in light of the C-19 crisis, then Bernie Sanders would have his message diluted considerably.

[empedocles]

16. BS will still likely be doing 'his thing' no matter what

[MineralMan]

18. The thing is that this pandemic is going to change the healthcare

conversation after the election. What emerges will not be M4A or ACA. It will be something new and uniquely American, I think. We're going to have lots to talk about in 2021, and that talk may not go in directions it has gone in the past.

I think we're going to see new ideas about how to deliver healthcare, rather than repetitions of the old ones. Everything is about to change, I believe. Our economy. Our sense of what government should be. The nation's responsibility for the well-being of its citizens. We're going to need some new ideas, because COVID-19 is about to wipe out our old way of looking at many things.

We will emerge from this crisis as almost a bankrupt nation, I think, and everything about how we operate is going to have to change. Bernie's ideas are from the 1960s. We need 21st Century ideas. While Joe Biden may not have those ideas in his mind, the people he brings into his administration surely will.

Everything is about to change drastically, I believe. We will either emerge with a new plan, or we will stumble and fall.

[calimary]

25. Depends on how many republi-CONS we can get rid of, on Capitol Hill.

the fewer of them to stand in the way, the more likely we can actually get something like this done.

VOTE, DAMMIT! And DON'T for get down-ballot!

We've not only got to take back the White House, we've gotta clean out the Senate, and fortify the House of Reps! And pick up as many governorships as possible.

BIGTIME housecleaning. We need as many of us to vote as possible!

[peggysue2]

15. I hope he's not just waiting to see if Joe Biden gets the virus

The 'anything can happen' statements from Bernie supporters is exactly that, MM.

Has nothing to do with the primary, per se. Has everything to do with wishful thinking. And a lack of subtlety.

Disruption and stirring the pot appear to be the drivers. That and promoting Bernie's brand.

Just a wee bit of deja vu, doncha think?

[MineralMan]

19. I think you're right. He's staying in based on that hope, as maudlin

as that sounds. That's what I think and that seems to be what Sanders is thinking. Joe has pulled back from public exposure, and wisely so. There will be no "pressing of the flesh" in the remaining campaign. It will be a virtual campaign.

I think, in November, that almost all of us will be voting by mail. State legislatures are already making that possible for later primaries. I think many things are about to undergo a rethinking and redesign.

We're going to be facing a new reality soon. I hope I get to see it.

[thucythucy]

28. If Vice President Biden has to drop out

which no thinking person on earth could want--not anyone with two brain cells to rub together--I don't think Bernie would be the one to benefit. I think Senator Warren would then be the go-to alternative. Warren hasn't made a career out of trashing other Democrats. She hasn't hired Green Party "revolutionaries" to staff her campaign. She hasn't maligned the Democratic base (and therefore African Americans and educated white women), and she accepted her losses with grace and dignity.

So if Bernie is really holding out hoping he'll somehow become the de-facto candidate should Biden drop out, I think this is another of his delusions.

All that said--PLEASE Mr. Vice President, please do what you have to to stay safe.

The entire planet--and I mean all of humanity--is depending on you now.

BTW MM--I love what you do here on DU. Always nice to see your by-line.

[The Magistrate]

24. An Air Of Circling Vultures, Ma'am, Does Hang Over The Whole Affair

'Bernie' still wouldn't get the nomination....





"From Bernie’s perspective, dropping out of a race once you have no chance of winning is peculiar behavior that can only be explained by the work of a hidden hand. For most politicians, though, it is actually standard operating procedure. Only Sanders seems to think the normal thing to do once voters have made clear they don’t want to nominate you is to continue campaigning anyway."





"When things are not called by their right names, what is said cannot make sense. When what is said does not make sense, what is planned cannot succeed. When plans do not succeed, people become uneasy. When people are uneasy, punishments do not fit crimes. When punishments do not fit crimes, people cannot know where to put hand or foot."

[Progressive dog]

20. A lot less coverage but

there still seem to be a few of his staunch supporters advocating m4all because coronavirus.
Bernie is waiting for a miracle of some kind. We'll hear from him eventually, but I'm not looking forward to what Bernie will say. It might take a miracle to get him to drop out. Apparently the rejection of him by the voters is not enough.

[comradebillyboy]

21. Whatever leverage Sanders thought he had is slowly

evaporating. I'm sure Biden and Hillary have compared notes on what trying to placate Sanders might accomplish. Biden should just ignore BS because there is little upside to appeasing him.

At this stage of the game Sanders is no more than a bump in the road.

[MineralMan]

22. Yes, I think you're right.

[The Magistrate]

26. Michael Corleone's Offer To Sen. Geary Comes To Mind, Sir

As a template for negotiations....





"From Bernie’s perspective, dropping out of a race once you have no chance of winning is peculiar behavior that can only be explained by the work of a hidden hand. For most politicians, though, it is actually standard operating procedure. Only Sanders seems to think the normal thing to do once voters have made clear they don’t want to nominate you is to continue campaigning anyway."





"When things are not called by their right names, what is said cannot make sense. When what is said does not make sense, what is planned cannot succeed. When plans do not succeed, people become uneasy. When people are uneasy, punishments do not fit crimes. When punishments do not fit crimes, people cannot know where to put hand or foot."

[comradebillyboy]

27. Indeed it would.

[Aquaria]

30. I bet they are, too

Maybe if BS had conceded graciously and if he, through his worst BSers, hadn’t gone out of their way to lie about the frontrunner and to attack Democratic voters, BS might have gotten a pity-fuck, participation trophy concession or two, but he didn’t do those things.

And there is no upside to giving him anymore concessions. He hasn’t brought anything new to the party but being an even bigger pain in the ass. His {laugh now} youth vote revolution never materialized (as political realists knew it wouldn’t). He didn’t expand his “coalition” any by appealing to any new demographic. Hell, he didn’t bring in any new voters or new ideas at all.

BS2020 was the same old tired BS2016, only with louder yelling and more of that damned finger-jabbing. Personally, I want to break off that damned finger and throat-punch him with it.

The point is: If you don’t have anything new to offer, and you’re an epic fail asshole toward the nominee and the majority of the party’s voters on top of it all, then you can’t get any new concessions.

So the hell with him. I’d tell him to stay away from the convention, because only real Democrats are allowed. He can be there in 2024 only if he puts a D by his name and campaigns for Biden and down-ticket Democratic candidates until the 2024 convention.

Otherwise, rain on him.

[Dem4Life1102]

31. He was on Seth Meyers last night

and on one of the Sunday shows. Doesn't seem like the media is not covering him.

[NurseJackie]

32. Props to the media!

Bernie is old-news... the primary is over, but his campaign is still in "zombie" mode.

I hope he's not just waiting to see if Joe Biden gets the virus.

I think that's actually what's going on.

I'm sure he views himself as the equivalent of a beauty pageant's "1st Runner-Up"... who will take over duties (and the crown) in the event that the winner is unable to fulfill her (or his) duties.

Or maybe he views himself as the understudy of a major long-running Broadway play... but the person who has the lead role is someone who NEVER gets sick and NEVER has laryngitis or a headache or a sprained ankle or cramps.

It's kind of sad. Pathetic.

I see his supporters writing about him, but not a lot from the Senator directly.

That's about par for the course at that late stage of the game. Seems familiar though, no?