Memo To Bernie: You're Wrong

I like Bernie Sanders and agree with him on a number of issues most notably that healthcare in the United States should be a right, I've been advocating it for years. I have no great love for billionaires nor do I believe they are automatically bad because of the size of their bank accounts. I do believe that in many ways the largest corporations in America who have benefited substantially due to simply being created and built in this country, have broken  the social compact with their employees which is crucial to the economic survival of the country itself.

However, in a recent interview Bernie said that he was just one person and couldn't tell his supporters how to respond if he is not the nominee. He said it was incumbent upon Secretary Clinton to convince his supporters to move to her. Bernie is wrong. It is up to him to do exactly what Hillary Clinton did in 2008. She took the high road and with sincerity endorsed Barack Obama and asked her supporters to do the same.

Bernie is banging the "rigged" system drum a little too hard. He knew full well what the rules of the Democratic Party were when he started his campaign. He states it will be a contested contest at the Convention. He intends to try and convince a large number of Super Delegates to switch to him. So he intends to engage in a bit of rigging himself. The facts and numbers are not on his side. Clinton leads him in the popular vote by millions and her pledged delegate lead is substantial. She is in a stronger position right now than was Barack Obama at this same point in 2008 or even once they got to their Convention. Clinton could have turned things into a fight with Obama and harmed the party.

Sanders is not going to catch up with Clinton at this point and he will never sway a large number of Super Delegates to vote for him. If he is not very careful he is going to arrive at that Convention significantly weakened in influence and may find he has no ability to make the platform changes that he  wants, let alone the systemic party changes he thinks should be made.

Bernie Sanders has fought the good fight but in every election there is a winner and a loser. It is time for Sanders to shift from saying Clinton shouldn't be the nominee and focus on his core message and point out why it is imperative that his supporters remain motivated, coordinated and focused on defeating Donald Trump in the General Election.