• Cocodapuf@lemmy.world
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    4 months ago

    We did elect Obama, and look at the reaction that caused… The tea party, a completely obstructionist Congress who refused to consider anything the president touched and ultimately the election of Donald Trump.

    Obama was elected and half the country freaked the fuck out.

    • Monument@lemmy.sdf.org
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      4 months ago

      I remember telling people in early 2008 that racists would go apeshit and our entire political landscape would change if he win the primary/got elected, and being treated as if I was somehow racist at the time.

      In hindsight, I was wrong.
      Yes, what I predicted, and what you said did happen. But we’re wrong because Obama ran as a progressive, and promptly switched into being a milquetoast centrist democrat. What’s more, is that his supporters didn’t extend their support to other liberal causes.
      The tea party would have died on the vine if the Democratic Party let liberals feel empowered, rather than like pawns. And if his die-hard supporters had showed up in 2010, state legislatures wouldn’t have been able to gerrymander away/suppress turnout as much as they did - rendering his next 6 years fraught and an uphill battle.

      There are more liberal than conservative people in the U.S., but the Democratic Party does not engage with them, instead chasing the middle, and hoping the liberals hold their noses and cast their vote.

    • Zaktor
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      4 months ago

      Yes, and those people are a minority and already fully on board with the racist that built his political identity around being racist. Obama not only won, but won reelection. These are issues, but they’re already baked into the two parties, not a prescription for automatic failure.

      • Cocodapuf@lemmy.world
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        4 months ago

        Yes, and those people are a minority and already fully on board with the racist

        They’re a vocal minority that is managing to shift the opinions of the rest of the right, it’s a problem. If you think racism is not currently on the rise in the US, you should take another look.

        • Zaktor
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          4 months ago

          They’re already with Trump. There’s not some deep additional reservoir of hardcore racists just waiting to have a reason to join the explicitly racist party. And none of this is a question of “should we run Kamala or white male Kamala”, it’s Kamala or Joe, and Joe’s problem isn’t speculative and he’s going to suffer from exactly the same racism because everyone expects him to die.

    • ShepherdPie@midwest.social
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      4 months ago

      And Obama was then reelected years after the Tea Party formed and fizzled out. It’s like you’re arguing that only white men should run for president because women and minorities will wind up causing too many problems for the country.

      • Cocodapuf@lemmy.world
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        4 months ago

        It’s like you’re arguing that only white men should run for president because women and minorities will wind up causing too many problems for the country.

        Whoa! I said nothing like that! I think you know that’s a complete misrepresentation. I’m saying that there are too many people in this country (on both sides of the aisle) with racist and sexist leanings (that they may not even be aware of) for it to be likely for Harris to win right now. I think Harris would do a fine job if she did win.

        I just don’t trust the voters of this country to see past their biases. I think if Harris had been the candidate from the start we would have had time to combat those concerns and make her a viable candidate, but coming in late like this she’ll seem like a replacement, like the Democrats’ plan B. And that’s a harder position to win a campaign from, a position I don’t think is viable given America’s many biases.