White Lightning
Banned
After a brutal Democraric Primary, Bernie Sanders finally conceded to Hillary Clinton right before the DNC. But there were still plenty of sore feelings and recriminations. The Bernie faction despised everything Hillary stood for and vowed never to vote for her even after Bernie endorsed her. He finally did unequivocally endorsed her at his speech in the DNC.
But let us suppose he had more nefarious purpose or maybe even had a bout of sanity and realized that Hillary and Trump were peas of the same pod, only one is much worst of the same corrupt lobby that he stood against. Let us suppose that he had given Hillary's team an advance copy of the speech he planned to give.
But instead of giving that speech calling for party unity (which is kind of specious since he is not a Democrat) and endorsing Hillary, he decides that only he could halt the rampant corruption of the political system and the complete Corporate takeover of the democratic system itself. He instead gives a fiery oratory along the lines of a William Jennings Bryan and denounces the malfeasance of both political parties and declares before tens of millions of Americans watching that he plans to run as a third party candidate.
First what would be the reaction of the Hillary team in the moment? Do they cut off his mike? Drag him off the stage kicking and screaming? If they feel that is too much a display and Bernie is able to deliver his speech in full, how successful would his campaign have been given that he had just thumbed his nose at both parties and in a way at the entire political establishment that is so hated by the majority of the American people?
Trump was able to win over huge swaths of white working class voters by denouncing privatization, free trade and economic disparity. The very ideas Bernie had espoused for his entire political life. With a more authentic messenger for the working class, does his candidacy affect Trump or Hillary more? And finally is there any way he wins the election as a third party candidate given the long odds against him?
But let us suppose he had more nefarious purpose or maybe even had a bout of sanity and realized that Hillary and Trump were peas of the same pod, only one is much worst of the same corrupt lobby that he stood against. Let us suppose that he had given Hillary's team an advance copy of the speech he planned to give.
But instead of giving that speech calling for party unity (which is kind of specious since he is not a Democrat) and endorsing Hillary, he decides that only he could halt the rampant corruption of the political system and the complete Corporate takeover of the democratic system itself. He instead gives a fiery oratory along the lines of a William Jennings Bryan and denounces the malfeasance of both political parties and declares before tens of millions of Americans watching that he plans to run as a third party candidate.
First what would be the reaction of the Hillary team in the moment? Do they cut off his mike? Drag him off the stage kicking and screaming? If they feel that is too much a display and Bernie is able to deliver his speech in full, how successful would his campaign have been given that he had just thumbed his nose at both parties and in a way at the entire political establishment that is so hated by the majority of the American people?
Trump was able to win over huge swaths of white working class voters by denouncing privatization, free trade and economic disparity. The very ideas Bernie had espoused for his entire political life. With a more authentic messenger for the working class, does his candidacy affect Trump or Hillary more? And finally is there any way he wins the election as a third party candidate given the long odds against him?