https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/04/16/sean-mcelwee-interview-aoc-sanders-191702

I guess the passing of the baton (from one generation to the next, not from Bernie to AOC) is already beginning?

«I think there are 50,000 Bernie-to-Trump voters, and they all have Twitter accounts. They’re an incredibly small portion of the electorate.

….

I also think progressives need to focus on building power down ballot. We always complain that Obama failed to do this, but we seem to forget it the second we start thinking about our own movement: This year, a progressive came within four points of beating [conservative Democratic congressman] Henry Cuellar. Every progressive who’s doing an autopsy of the presidential primary should be doing an autopsy of why we didn’t invest more in that race. There’s been an utter neglect of down-ballot work.

….

And we’re going to have to do the hard work of reaching out to non-ideological Democrats who don’t see the world our way. I mean, look at [conservative Democratic congressman] Dan Lipinski, we finally beat him, and that’s great, but he still got nearly 50 percent of Democratic voters—not because he’s pro-life, but because he sits on the transportation committee and works with local unions to represent their interests. We can’t forget about that kind of basic politics. Bernie Sanders always made sure to deliver for Vermont. [Wisconsin Senator] Tammy Baldwin is a great progressive, and she’s got a big interest in single-payer health care, but she also has a big interest in cheese. It’s OK for progressives to care about cheese.»

Not sure how that last part is news, but ok, maybe it is for some people.

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/04/16/sean-mcelwee-interview-aoc-sanders-191702

«I think there are 50,000 Bernie-to-Trump voters, and they all have Twitter accounts. They’re an incredibly small portion of the electorate.

….

I also think progressives need to focus on building power down ballot. We always complain that Obama failed to do this, but we seem to forget it the second we start thinking about our own movement: This year, a progressive came within four points of beating [conservative Democratic congressman] Henry Cuellar. Every progressive who’s doing an autopsy of the presidential primary should be doing an autopsy of why we didn’t invest more in that race. There’s been an utter neglect of down-ballot work.

….

And we’re going to have to do the hard work of reaching out to non-ideological Democrats who don’t see the world our way. I mean, look at [conservative Democratic congressman] Dan Lipinski, we finally beat him, and that’s great, but he still got nearly 50 percent of Democratic voters—not because he’s pro-life, but because he sits on the transportation committee and works with local unions to represent their interests. We can’t forget about that kind of basic politics. Bernie Sanders always made sure to deliver for Vermont. [Wisconsin Senator] Tammy Baldwin is a great progressive, and she’s got a big interest in single-payer health care, but she also has a big interest in cheese. It’s OK for progressives to care about cheese.»

Not sure how that last part is news, but ok, maybe it is for some people.

https://twitter.com/BostonJerry/status/1250449452994789376?s=20

Peter Pandemic (@BostonJerry) Tweeted: If you think everyone in the country is making more than they actually are, you’re less likely to band together and demand a more fair economy. But the truth is everyone in the country is making *less* than you think, and we *need* to band together to make the economy more fair.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/economics-vs-epidemiology-quantifying-the-trade-off-11586982855

Wall Street Journal with the cold-hearted numbers. Conclusion: the lives saved are worth the economic pain, although, as always: can we do it cheaper?

«Federal regulators put the statistical value of a life at around $10 million.

….

In a March paper, Michael Greenstone and Vishan Nigam of the University of Chicago assign a lower value to older people and a higher one for the young. On that basis, they conclude that three months of social distancing could save 1.7 million lives worth $8 trillion.

So much for the benefit. What about the cost? Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal forecast annual GDP growth of 0.9% through 2022. That is down from a forecast of 1.9% in January, before social-distancing measures were adopted. I estimate that amounts to a loss of $3 trillion in today’s dollars. So in this accounting sense, the trade-off is worth it.»

https://twitter.com/substockman/status/1250435816704192513?s=20

«”the great and the good of what remains of the pre-Trump GOP”»

https://www.propublica.org/article/theres-been-a-spike-in-people-dying-at-home-in-several-cities-that-suggests-coronavirus-deaths-are-higher-than-reported

Undercounts. Huh. Who knew?

Drain The Trumps 🇺🇸 (@DrainTheTrumps) Tweeted: Also buried in the Wisconsin election results is a “FUCK YOUR GERRYMANDERING @GOP” referendum that squeaked by with 80% of the vote. https://t.co/zklpvglczb

https://twitter.com/DrainTheTrumps/status/1249858873831370760?s=20

I’m guessing this is the beginning of a 10-15-year journey that will eventually result in the will of the people being enacted, as Republicans deny, deny, deny that this is valid.

https://twitter.com/MollyMcKew/status/1249860887592255489?s=20

This tweet + replies pretty much covers it, I think.

Molly McKew (@MollyMcKew) Tweeted: Ok so remind me all the things republicans don’t get to stand for while POTUS is still head of the party: – states’ rights – fiscal responsibility/debt – morality What else?

https://www.vox.com/2020/4/13/21219715/bernie-sanders-joe-biden-endorsement-democratic-primary-2020

«One concern liberals and leftists have long had with Biden is his instinct for cutting deals means he’ll sell them out to the right to win Republican votes. Maybe so. But what Biden is proving in this campaign is he’s just as willing to cut deals with the left, and his coalitional approach to politics is an opportunity for them to influence him, as well.»