Bernie Sanders joins Hillary Clinton for Democratic nomination

Hillary Clinton and the Bernie Sanders vying for Democratic nomination  

Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) have both declared they are seeking the nomination to run for president on the Democratic ticket.  The Democratic National Convention is July 25-28, 2016 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and is over a year away allowing Democrats a substantial amount of time to decide whom they want to lead them to presidential victory. The realities of winning a national election and political altruism will surely meet in these two highly qualified Americans.   

Sen. Sanders is a serious candidate bringing decades of political experience and a jubilant liberal progressive following comprising the far left of the Democratic Party.  The Vermont Senator and Hillary Clinton differ on important issues, which give delegates at the convention in 2016 two distinctly different choices as candidates. While Clinton has been incrementally publicizing her stance on issues representative of Democratic Party values since announcing in April, Sanders is well known for being direct and emphatic as an advocate for the Middle Class and poor in the Senate and now as a possible presidential nominee.

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Sanders and Clinton on the issues

On Sanders’ website he has declared raising minimum wage to $15 per hour, which is what many across the nation are calling a “living wage” capable of elevating workers out of poverty, not merely an attempt to keep pace with inflation.   On the other hand, Clinton according to The Center for American Progress, which is reportedly privy to her views, has suggested raising it to $10.10. And she could support a Capitol Hill initiative to push it to $12 by 2020, according to a report in Washington Post comparing the candidates. 

Campaign finance reform is at the top of list for most Democrats, and both Clinton and Sanders have advocated reform. They support a constitutional amendment to reverse Citizens United Supreme court ruling. "Billionaires own the political process. That’s a huge issue," Sanders said in announcing his candidacy.

Gun control issues pit Clinton and Sanders on different planes.  Clinton favors stricter gun control and Sanders’ voting history reflects the constituency of Vermont.  In 1999 he voted against increasing the waiting period for gun purchases.  In 2005 he voted “yes” on prohibiting product misuse lawsuits on gun manufacturers.  And in 2007 he voted “yes” on prohibiting foreign & UN aid that restricts US gun ownership.  In 2013 he voted to prohibit the sale of assault weapons, limitation of firearm magazine capacity, and Public Safety and Second Amendment Rights Protection Act. Amid the quaintness of being the home of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, Vermont is a gun-owning state with estimates as high as 70 percent of residents owning guns, which makes it the most gun-friendly state in the country.  Sanders the presidential candidate versus Sanders the Vermont Senator will collide on the national stage regarding the national sway on gun control, which has moved toward increasing gun control.  

The Transpacific Partnership (TTP) is another area where Clinton and Sanders part in support of President Barack Obama’s trade deal that is yet to be approved or garner Democratic support. Both Sen. Sanders and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) have been outspoken in opposition to the TPP.   Trade deals have been "abysmal failures," Sanders wrote in the Guardian. "They allowed corporations to shut down operations in the US and move work to low-wage countries where people are forced to work for pennies an hour; and they are one of the reasons that we have lost almost 60,000 factories in our country and millions of good-paying jobs since 2001."

While Clinton has been cautious in supporting trade deals in the last few years, she supports the TPP—well sort of. Reports say she is watching the crack down on currency manipulation, which is China.  Also, she favors environmental and health protections, and promotion of transparency and open new opportunities for small businesses to export overseas, according to one of her aides.  Foremost the TPP needs to protect US workers and raise wages and strengthen national security for her to support it.

Clinton has not made a definitive statement about her stance on banking which some believe is because of her ties to Wall Street. Some of Clinton’s longtime supporters work on Wall Street and would pull their contributions if she were to speak out against them.

Banks “too big to fail” depend on the federal government to be rescued in the event of economic collapse, which Sanders et al argue is asking the American people bail out banks when they engage in risky behavior.   

"If they're too big to fail, they're too big to exist," Sanders said Thursday.

On Israel, Sanders’s leftwing base views the country as a marauding human rights abuser; however, Sanders has been working on peace in the Middle East, i.e. Israel and Palestine, for 50 years.  He has faulted Israeli “overreaction” in Gaza, and has issued criticisms of Israeli conduct over the years and has questioned the Israel lobby over its opposition to Palestinian statehood initiatives at the United Nations. Sanders maintains the conventional mainstream view of the conflict, in which Hamas is to blame, the Palestinians leadership is not a partner, and Arab countries are bad actors. A view he has held since 2009.  And when pressed about Israel’s conduct, he says Israel is a defense against 7th century religious fundamentalism embodied in ISIS. 

Even if Bernie Sanders does not have the moneyed interests that Mrs. Clinton has, he can impact her candidacy and the final Democratic platform developed at the Democratic Convention in 2016.  He is important to refining and defining the values that Democrats embody.

Mrs. Clinton has expressed no desire to be in a hurry to take a stand on controversial topics.  Candidates generally take ideological positions in the state primaries before migrating to centrist views for national appeal.  With Sanders as a formidable nomination opponent, however, she could be forced to speak out on issues about which Sanders challenges her in areas like the economy and foreign trade.  If she is not forthwith, there is a risk of losing grassroots involvement, border line liberals, and alienating swing voters.

Why are challengers so important? Having a field of candidates dilutes the opposing party’s criticism.  When Clinton was the only declared nominee, Democratic strategist Joe Trippi, who was behind former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean's insurgent bid against favorite John Kerry in 2004 said, "They'll all be taking shots [at Clinton],” reported in Business Insider.  Jeff Bechdel, a spokesman for the anti-Clinton PAC America Rising, which is devoted to blanketing the public and press with criticism of the candidate, as vowed to keep her on the defensive.

Additionally, Clinton will have the progressive base to deal with who have casted her as not left enough—while many hard line progressives still long for Elizabeth Warren.  

Bill de Blasio, the progressive mayor of New York, spoke for the “undecided” when he was noncommittal on endorsing her candidacy in April, saying on NBC's "Meet the Press" that he wanted to hear Clinton's vision for the country.

Mrs. Clinton’s “vision for the country” is being revealed slowly, perhaps too slowly for Democrats who are eager to know and support her.  She has clearly gone after the women’s vote as mother and grandmother, which is exhilarating for many of us; however, it’s not enough. Sen. Sanders’ appeal focuses on his transparency and outspoken advocacy for the Middle Class and income inequality. He does not hedge on political positions and is candid and sincere when asked about his values and beliefs.  

Clinton is bound to be encouraged to at least match him in areas that are historically representative of the Democratic Party; therefore, delegates to the national convention will have a clear sense of who they want to be the nominee.   Domestic policy: Working class people, living wage, strong unions, maintaining federal programs like Society Security, Medicare and now the Affordable Care Act.  Foreign policy:  US leadership in the UN, but reserving the right to disagree; engage with China but loyal to Taiwan; maintain relationships with Japan and Asian Pacific countries; focus on diplomacy to solve international conflicts and embrace the new with persuasion not a bully pulpit; leadership in Africa for humanitarian and economic rights. 

Resources
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/13/us/politics/hillary-clinton-enters-2016-presidential-race.html?_r=0
http://www.economist.com/news/united-states/21648005-she-has-no-serious-rivals-yet-democratic-nomination-voters-still-have-plenty
http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2015/04/21/401123124/a-timeline-of-hillary-clintons-evolution-on-trade
http://thinkprogress.org/election/2015/04/30/3652790/bernie-sanders-announcement/
http://thinkprogress.org/election/2015/04/10/3644602/hillary-clinton-foreign-policy/