GOP Embraced this "Doctor."

[Res Ipsa]

I voted for Bernie, yes. Absolutely. And for Tulsi.

Tulsi is a Republican trying to pretend to be Democrat. Bernie Sanders stands for virtually everything you're against.

Tulsi is not a Republican. Not even close.

[K Graham]

Tulsi is a Republican trying to pretend to be Democrat. Bernie Sanders stands for virtually everything you're against.

Tulsi is not a Republican. Not even close.

Is Tulsi Gabbard the GOP’s Dark Horse?

As the former lawmaker and darling of the Bernie Sanders-supporting left has shifted right, she’s brought her supporters along.

Before she left Congress last winter, the former Democratic representative Tulsi Gabbard introduced two bills: one restricting abortion; the other, banning trans women from participating in women’s sports. The bills, which had no chance of passing, nevertheless sent a message: the onetime darling of the Bernie Sanders appeared to leave Congress intent on cultivating a right-wing following.

Now her move to the right is just about complete. Gabbard, appearing on Fox News channel’s Hannity in November 2021, declared that the Democratic Party’s social-spending bill, known as Build Back Better, was part of a deeper problem. The government was “too powerful and too big even as it is, and this bill is only going to make matters worse,” she said, echoing common Republican talking points. The comments earned her praise from the Fox host Sean Hannity, who called her “definitely a conservative”.

Gabbard didn’t object on the air to Hannity’s claim. And she didn’t have to. She’s fostered a cult of personality among her supporters, who either refuse to acknowledge that Gabbard holds right-wing positions or, more often, go on to adopt those positions themselves. Lately, Gabbard’s pivot to cancel-culture pundit, complete with undertones of worries about anti-white “racism”, has inspired her followers to take on the same pet issues. They’ve gone from iconoclastic left-leaning upstarts to “American patriots” without a blink.

Gabbard and her followers belong to what’s loosely referred to as the “post-left,” a group of disaffected liberals and progressives who have done a complete 180 into right-wing agitation, but have kept the linguistic framework of the left. These figures share a loose ideology, rooted in their belief that the Democratic Party is as corrupt and dangerous as the GOP. The pragmatism of the progressive lawmakers who rode the lefty wave to prominence — including Democratic Representatives such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib — in choosing to cooperate with President Joe Biden and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has alienated people who believed that Sanders’ “political revolution” promised an end to established power structures, rather than a reorientation of the Democratic Party to a more progressive politics.

[Gadianton]

Kevin, there is a flavor of Sanders supporter that Binger fits neatly into

I disagree. I agree that Sanders is a "populist" and there have been left-oriented "occupy" movements, but the actual issues do matter. Bernie has been nothing but pro vaccine and mask, while Binger has been strictly anti-vaccine and mask. Has Bernie been joining hands with Rand Paul praising the truckers? If so then you could say there is some overlap, although that issue takes a backseat to the pandemic.

All the populist positions Binger has supported have been right-wing populist positions. If the hand that moves the puppet really is a Bernie supporter, then the puppet is revealed as nothing but a troll, and the hand is a terrible friend for expecting his in real life friend to give privileges to a puppet that is just trolling and not even sincere about the positions rule breaking.

[Binger]

Kevin, there is a flavor of Sanders supporter that Binger fits neatly into

I disagree. I agree that Sanders is a "populist" and there have been left-oriented "occupy" movements, but the actual issues do matter. Bernie has been nothing but pro vaccine and mask, while Binger has been strictly anti-vaccine and mask. Has Bernie been joining hands with Rand Paul praising the truckers? If so then you could say there is some overlap, although that issue takes a backseat to the pandemic.

All the populist positions Binger has supported have been right-wing populist positions. If the hand that moves the puppet really is a Bernie supporter, then the puppet is revealed as nothing but a troll, and the hand is a terrible friend for expecting his in real life friend to give privileges to a puppet that is just trolling and not even sincere about the positions rule breaking.

But, I am not anti mask and I am not anti vaccine, so your entire argument lacks foundation.

Try again, Gadianton. Maybe you will get this someday.

[K Graham]

Yes, Trump postures himself as an anti-establishment populist. But neither Trump nor the GOP has exclusive rights to anti-establishment populism. It's an ideology that includes people on both the right and the left.

In my lifetime, I have voted for lots of candidates with whom I had serious disagreement on some issues, including both Clintons. Bernie Sanders isn't a prophet that requires his acolytes to adopt every position he articulates. Even his strong supporters get to disagree with him on issues. If one is anti-establishment, what a candidate is against can be more important than what a candidate is for. And, as presidential candidates go, Bernie is about as anti-establishment as it gets.

The political spectrum isn't just left/right or pro Trump/anti Trump. It's multi-dimensional.

My point is that if he wanted to go with an anti-establishment guy then he is more likely to go with the guy whose views on crucial issues are more aligned with his own. In what sense does Binger agree with Sanders about anything? I'm not saying anyone has to agree with everything with the person they vote for believes. Of course not. But Binger is at complete odds with Sanders on virtually every political subject that has arisen on this forum. The fact that he supports Tulsi Gabbard today speaks volumes, because, and I know you disagree, but she's been carrying the water for and pandering to Republicans for quite some time now.

[K Graham]

I disagree. I agree that Sanders is a "populist" and there have been left-oriented "occupy" movements, but the actual issues do matter. Bernie has been nothing but pro vaccine and mask, while Binger has been strictly anti-vaccine and mask. Has Bernie been joining hands with Rand Paul praising the truckers? If so then you could say there is some overlap, although that issue takes a backseat to the pandemic.

All the populist positions Binger has supported have been right-wing populist positions. If the hand that moves the puppet really is a Bernie supporter, then the puppet is revealed as nothing but a troll, and the hand is a terrible friend for expecting his in real life friend to give privileges to a puppet that is just trolling and not even sincere about the positions rule breaking.

But, I am not anti mask and I am not anti vaccine, so your entire argument lacks foundation.

Try again, Gadianton. Maybe you will get this someday.

You're not against masks or vaccines, you're just against private companies having the right to mandate that their employees get vaccinated, or that people in their immediate workplace wear masks. You're also against the government mandating these things even though it has a history of doing so because it is completely Constitutional. You call what's Constitutional "tyranny." What's the point of being "for" vaccines if you're not "for" any measures that would get those vaccines into the American people?

What's the point of being "for" black people getting equal treatment if you're not supportive of any measures that could see that happen?

What's the point of being "for" liberty when you're dead from COVID? How much liberty do you have when you're dead?

[K Graham]

Incidentally, Tusi Gabbard is also a Neo-Con type Hawk on when it comes to terrorism. If she were President she'd be sending troops everywhere she felt there was an Islamist threat.

Tulsi Gabbard Is Not Your Friend

Tulsi Gabbard is hailed as a progressive champion. But her views on Islam and support for far-right leaders suggest otherwise.

[Binger]

But, I am not anti mask and I am not anti vaccine, so your entire argument lacks foundation.

Try again, Gadianton. Maybe you will get this someday.

You're not against masks or vaccines, you're just against private companies having the right to mandate that their employees get vaccinated, or that people in their immediate workplace wear masks. You're also against the government mandating these things even though it has a history of doing so because it is completely Constitutional. You call what's Constitutional "tyranny." What's the point of being "for" vaccines if you're not "for" any measures that would get those vaccines into the American people?

What's the point of being "for" black people getting equal treatment if you're not supportive of any measures that could see that happen?

What's the point of being "for" liberty when you're dead from COVID? How much liberty do you have when you're dead?

Gosh. You almost took a step in the right direction, and then, you didn't. You still don't have it right and you are still just making crap up. Are your feelings soothed, however? You must feel better now that you think you are so right, that you are a victim of so many people's wrongnesses, and that everything you do not like is someone else's fault.

Keep trying, K. That small step almost taken in the right direction gives hope. Try again, k K?

[Marcus]

...Most of what you say about me is nonsense. Your conclusions, as usual, are unfounded. If I am a bogeyman mascot for you on this forum, great. You are welcome. That does not make your assumptions or conclusions factual or accurate.

The chances of me ever agreeing with any politician, on every issue, is exactly zero. The chances of me wholly agreeing with any party is exactly zero. The chances of you accurately deducing where a person stands on everything based on online discussions about a few things is likely to be closer to zero than 1 (100 percent).

This is an astonishing level of understanding for you, albeit a little coarse. A fascinating aspect of development is the point at which you begin to realize that if these things hold for you as a person, then obviously they hold for others as well. An even more amazing level of development would be if you were able to act on that knowledge.

Let us know if you ever get there.

[canpakes]

The chances of you accurately deducing where a person stands on everything based on online discussions about a few things is likely to be closer to zero than 1 (100 percent).

This is an astonishing level of understanding for you, albeit a little coarse.

Not that he even considered this possibility when he launched his 2000-post crapfest across this board upon arriving last year. And I’m not so sure that he believes it yet today.

But, we can hope for baby steps, I guess.