The assault has started on Bernie Sanders 2

LBJ on Medicare

Yesterday I posted on Hillary Clinton's attack that Bernie Sanders couldn't match up to Barack Obama's drive for the Presidency in 2008 because he "can't galvanize the African-American vote and he will not dominate caucus contests." I went on to show how he was well on his way in both cases. And then we talked about the Democratic establishment and how the hardliners are fighting him in favor of Clinton. Like Debbie Wasserman Schultz handling of the debates.

Today it's the media and its attack of Sanders' single-payer plan for universal healthcare which says he is  "...proposing sweeping policies that defy political realities." Further, it calls his approach on immigration incomparable. The MSNBC piece does give Bernie credit for getting his message on revolution across and almost bringing Hillary Clinton to her knees. Further, "But the substance of his proposals easily crumble under scrutiny."

Sanders senior policy adviser Warren Gunnels admits, “It’s going to take a political revolution to pass single-payer {health care} for all Americans.” But didn't it take something of a revolution for Lyndon Johnson to pass Medicare and for Harry Truman to bring us social Security? No one says the single-payer plan is perfect, but, then, Obama didn't pass the Affordable Care Act thinking it wouldn't need tweets. All great welfare programs have gone through this scrutiny.

And don't we know why there has been no immigration reform passed? A GOP Congress that has ideologically blocked every program President Obama has put before them just because it is...Barack Obama. Bernie's plan for immigration is considered overly optimistic when it comes to immigrant coverage for healthcare, but many believe making at least some coverage available will alleviate emergency room visits and could bring health care costs down.

The assault has started on Bernie Sanders

First Hillary says Bernie Sanders is no Barack Obama from 2008 because Sanders can't galvanize the African-American vote and he will not dominate caucus contests. To begin with, he is leading in the Iowa caucus and in one recent month his ranking in So. Carolina jumped 17%, the latter heavily populated by African-Americans. So the battle begins between two fully qualified opponents with only one with the right mandate.

And then there's the Democratic establishment, "As he faces the toughest onslaught of his political life over the next 11 days before the Iowa caucuses, Sanders will have to go it nearly alone," says Alex Seitz Wald on MSNBC.  So far he hasn't needed this group of die-hard party hardliners. Bernie Sanders' supporters are not the kind who listen to the establishment so this palaver will fall on deaf ears. And wherever they are coming from, new ones are added daily.

More on this tomorrow.

Bernie Sanders Sayings

Re. Oligarchy: The poor are disenfranchised, not by law, but in fact. The young think that voting has little to do with them or their prospects. Ordinary citizens have decided that the political process is likely to fail them, and so they vote in even smaller numbers.

Millennials rule and they are for Bernie Sanders

There are 71 million Millennials and 41% of them support Bernie Sanders and stand 50/50 on going to the polls in November. That's almost 30 million voters tops, 15 million minimum going in the gate. Sanders opponent, Hillary Clinton, is losing voters under age fifty, trailing his 41% at 35%. But it would seem that the enthusiasm we have seen during Bernie's rallies is likely to bring out the majority of his supporters to the voting booth.

Clinton "has lost significant support among Democratic women, with her lead over Sanders shrinking from 45 points to 19 points in that group. Her support went from 64%-19% last month to 54%-35% now." With approximately 52% of the American electorate female, that puts another significant group in Bernie Sander's corner. As an example, there are 688,450 Millennials in Iowa of which almost 49% are women. The question is, how many of these are evangelical?

Of course Sanders can't depend on just these demographics to win the primary. And if he doesn't win, the hardcore Democrats are fearful Bernie's supporters won't come over to Hillary's side. After all he did call for a political Revolution and that does mean a fight against the Washington establishment, and Clinton does represent that faction. Considering the fact that the Bern did bring all these young voters out of the shadows, the Dems certainly can't afford to lose them.

The only answer is to nominate Bernie Sanders as the Democrat's candidate and elect him to the presidency in November.

Concealed carry permit holders responsible for over 800 gun deaths since 2007

According to the Violence Policy Center, "...Concealed handgun permit holders are responsible for at least 849 deaths not involving self defense since 2007, including 29 mass shootings that killed 139 people. That's close to 100 gun deaths per year from those cowboys who think they are protecting the public. It's time to put on the brakes and start limiting concealed carry to only those with a special need. I have talked to several of these people and they consider this a right given under the 2nd Amendment and it is not.

The VPC exclaims, “Our research makes it clear that allowing more guns in public places is making us less safe.” The organization's  Legislative Director Kristen Rand states, “It’s also clear that state lawmakers who weaken concealed carry laws increase the risk that even more of these tragic, fatal incidents will occur.” Like Arizona, where the only requirement for a concealed carry permit is that the person must be a warm body. Pathetic.

Bernie Sanders Sayings

An oligarchy is a form of government in which a small group of people hold power. It seems that a smaller and smaller group of citizens are determining our nation's future.

Sen. Claire McCaskill is nuts

Sen. Claire McCaskill

It's not enough that Hillary Clinton is disparaging her opponent, Bernie Sanders, but now the Democratic establishment is organizing to defeat the Bern. Sen. Claire McCaskill said, “I think it would be absolutely impossible for a self-declared socialist to win states like Missouri,” adding Indiana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania to the lot.But a 2010 Gallup poll reported that 36% of Americans had a favorable view of Socialism and that has improved measurably over the years.

 And just 9 percent of a select group of Millennial voters say Sanders' description of himself as a Democratic Socialist makes them less likely to support him. YouGov says that 36% of Millennials as a whole have a positive view of Socialism. In October 2014, a Rasmussen poll found that the Democratic Party views Socialism on a 50-50 basis with Capitalism. All of which makes McCaskill's "absolutely impossible" statement both dumb and ludicrous. But if the Dems do decide to mount an all out campaign against Bernie Sanders it will just piss off his supporters even more.

The Senator from Vermont seems to be ahead in both Iowa and New Hampshire, and that does not register well with the party's die-hards. Sanders committed a mortal sin by becoming an Independent to begin with. Then came the next egregious offense, at least as far as Debbie Wassermen Schultz was concerned, by daring to run in the Democratic Primary to oppose her favorite, Hillary Clinton. In other words, the Bern upset the establishment and that is what he is all about.