Kevin Fobbs
Will Hillary's election chances crash if Sanders stages contested convention?
By Kevin Fobbs
Not a single soul in America should be surprised if Vermont's socialist senator Bernie Sanders takes his new voter revolution all the way to the democrat July convention. The question that front runner Hillary Clinton has to be worried about is just how much damage can Sanders' loyal forces do if they disrupt the nomination by engaging in massive protests. Will it be 1968 all over again?
After all it was the 1968 democrat convention in Chicago which millions of television viewers saw the Windy City's finest combatting hundreds of anger rioters outside of the convention hall. Many political pundits of the time surmised that the daily lawless display, riotous behavior, coupled created contempt amongst the silent majority of Americans and helped seal Richard Nixon's presidential win that November.
Will history repeat itself for the 2016 GOP candidate Trump?
Earlier in the year, there were constant predictions that the GOP Cleveland convention would be ground zero for a delegate revolt. Of course the liberal pundits and the mainstream press were literally foaming at the mouth in anticipation of manufacturing hour-by-hour accounts of how delegates were in open revolt against Trump. They were literally itching for a second, third or fourth delegate ballot vote.
Hate to disappoint, but Trump ended all of the suspense after sending both Texas Senator Ted Cruz and Ohio Governor John Kasich to the presidential political showers with his Indiana primary win. Now, with the majority of the republican party coalescing behind the candidacy of the billionaire mogul, the convention suspense has evaporated.
On the other hand, the political warfare on the democrat side of the aisle may become an inferno, with or without a Bernie Sanders' California primary win. Two national polls currently have both Sanders and Clinton in a literal dead heat in the state, she and her husband the former president are spending time in California campaigning and pouring precious millions into anti-Sanders commercials.
Sanders on the other hand is campaigning as if the California primary is merely the tune up to a showdown at the Philadelphia convention. He has already made it clear that he wants the convention to reflect the face of his supporters and indicated that there may be certain repercussions if it does not.
According to the AP he stressed, "Democracy is not always nice and quiet and gentle but that is where the Democratic Party should go." He added, "But if you want everything to be quiet and orderly and allow, you know, just things to proceed without vigorous debate, that is not what democracy is about."
A potential precursor to what millions of convention viewers may be seeing at the democrat convention could be found in the recent Nevada democrat state convention. It was there that Sanders supporters became visibly angered by what they felt were rigged convention procedures Hillary supporters had engineered against Sanders. National democrat leaders and mainstream media pundits were quick to attack Sanders and his Las Vegas convention attendees for their so-called raucous behavior.
Sanders dismissed the party officials comments and their portrayal of his supporters as engaging in riotous behavior. He stated, there may have been some inappropriate behavior and booing, but it did not turn violent.
When the city of brotherly love welcomes the democrat delegates to their convention, Sanders not Clinton may hold the fate of the general election in his hands. Democrats have to be nervously wringing their hands wondering if the downtown streets will be engulfed in rowdiness and revolt during the roll up to a Clinton ascension to the official nomination.
If it does happen, let's see if the mainstream media will spin it and blame it on Trump and a vast right wing conspiracy. Anyone taking bets?
© Kevin Fobbs
June 7, 2016
Not a single soul in America should be surprised if Vermont's socialist senator Bernie Sanders takes his new voter revolution all the way to the democrat July convention. The question that front runner Hillary Clinton has to be worried about is just how much damage can Sanders' loyal forces do if they disrupt the nomination by engaging in massive protests. Will it be 1968 all over again?
After all it was the 1968 democrat convention in Chicago which millions of television viewers saw the Windy City's finest combatting hundreds of anger rioters outside of the convention hall. Many political pundits of the time surmised that the daily lawless display, riotous behavior, coupled created contempt amongst the silent majority of Americans and helped seal Richard Nixon's presidential win that November.
Will history repeat itself for the 2016 GOP candidate Trump?
Earlier in the year, there were constant predictions that the GOP Cleveland convention would be ground zero for a delegate revolt. Of course the liberal pundits and the mainstream press were literally foaming at the mouth in anticipation of manufacturing hour-by-hour accounts of how delegates were in open revolt against Trump. They were literally itching for a second, third or fourth delegate ballot vote.
Hate to disappoint, but Trump ended all of the suspense after sending both Texas Senator Ted Cruz and Ohio Governor John Kasich to the presidential political showers with his Indiana primary win. Now, with the majority of the republican party coalescing behind the candidacy of the billionaire mogul, the convention suspense has evaporated.
On the other hand, the political warfare on the democrat side of the aisle may become an inferno, with or without a Bernie Sanders' California primary win. Two national polls currently have both Sanders and Clinton in a literal dead heat in the state, she and her husband the former president are spending time in California campaigning and pouring precious millions into anti-Sanders commercials.
Sanders on the other hand is campaigning as if the California primary is merely the tune up to a showdown at the Philadelphia convention. He has already made it clear that he wants the convention to reflect the face of his supporters and indicated that there may be certain repercussions if it does not.
According to the AP he stressed, "Democracy is not always nice and quiet and gentle but that is where the Democratic Party should go." He added, "But if you want everything to be quiet and orderly and allow, you know, just things to proceed without vigorous debate, that is not what democracy is about."
A potential precursor to what millions of convention viewers may be seeing at the democrat convention could be found in the recent Nevada democrat state convention. It was there that Sanders supporters became visibly angered by what they felt were rigged convention procedures Hillary supporters had engineered against Sanders. National democrat leaders and mainstream media pundits were quick to attack Sanders and his Las Vegas convention attendees for their so-called raucous behavior.
Sanders dismissed the party officials comments and their portrayal of his supporters as engaging in riotous behavior. He stated, there may have been some inappropriate behavior and booing, but it did not turn violent.
When the city of brotherly love welcomes the democrat delegates to their convention, Sanders not Clinton may hold the fate of the general election in his hands. Democrats have to be nervously wringing their hands wondering if the downtown streets will be engulfed in rowdiness and revolt during the roll up to a Clinton ascension to the official nomination.
If it does happen, let's see if the mainstream media will spin it and blame it on Trump and a vast right wing conspiracy. Anyone taking bets?
© Kevin Fobbs
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