cross-posted from: https://lemmus.org/post/1017989
Video on subject, The Hill:
Cornel West DEFECTS From Green Party, Goes INDEPENDENT; Americans DESPERATE For 3rd Party: Poll
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHaebD64izY
Sabby Sabs will be talking with Jill Stein (Staff of Dr. Cornel West 2024) in an hour on the update:
JILL STEIN JOINS w/WEST NEWS, KEVIN MCCARTHY OUSTED, NINA TURNER NEW GIG, KAISER STRIKE WI WINS
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5SH4uYk0hY
“I’m running as an Independent candidate for President of the United States to end the iron grip of the ruling class and ensure true democracy!” West wrote on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
West may not be the only independent or third-party candidate positioned to influence the 2024 presidential contest. Current Democratic presidential contender Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is widely expected to launch an independent or third-party bid next week. And the centrist group No Labels is actively securing ballot access for a yet-to-be-named candidate.
While 3rd party candidates aren’t even remotely viable until we get ranked choice voting; Anything that helps to pull centrist dems left is a good thing.
The national Democratic Party is the farthest left it’s been since before Watergate, and Biden has presided over the most progressive presidency since the Great Society. That’s due largely to the work of dedicated progressives and activists in the Democratic Party. A West run will tilt the election towards Trump and fracture the left for ten years or more. These were lessons that were all learned 23 years ago.
Pre-primary 3rd party candidates have their place. They can attend debates and can force their opponents to concede to popular ideas for fear of losing votes. Past that, yes they are just spoiler votes in our two party system.
Are you really blaming Nader for the 2000 shitshow?
Edit:
The national Democratic Party is the farthest left it’s been since before Watergate
That’s still not left enough for me.
Still not left enough for me either but don’t let perfect be the enemy of better
I’d pretty strongly disagree with that, if you mean actually causing centrist Dems to not vote for Biden.
I’d remind you that if all Green Party voters in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Michigan in 2016 would have instead voted for Clinton, those states would have flipped, Hillary Clinton would be President right now, Roe v. Wade would still be intact, and many many many things would be very different.
Now, I won’t pretend that these kinds of hypotheticals are super meaningful (the Libertarian party obviously exists as a factor, for instance), but the fact of the matter is that voting for the Greens in a tight state can and has contributed to very real harm to people. Second-order effects really aren’t that complicated to understand.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_United_States_presidential_election#Results_by_state
If all Stein voters had voted for Clinton (which, even if the Green party weren’t running, they wouldn’t all have), then maybe Clinton would have won Michigan, and final EC result is still 290:248. The contests elsewhere either weren’t close enough, or didn’t have enough Green voters to matter. The Libertarians had a much bigger impact.
I don’t mean it’s good for them to ride the whole race out, that is just a spoiler vote. But at this early point it’s good to have left leaning opponents out there to force democrats to answer questions that may be popular with the public but they wouldn’t ask themselves if they were running opposed.
Absolutely not helpful for Democrats or democracy. This is a spoiler ticket that will help trump get elected. ,
obviously it’s not helpful for democrats: he’s running against them.
Is he crazy? There is a real danger he’s going to split the Green Party vote, and cost them the White House!!
That’s assuming the Green Party had a chance in the first place. It didn’t.
EDIT: I’m being told that this comment was sarcasm. I’m a dumbass.
Thatsthejoke.jpg
Oh. Sorry…
I struggle with recognizing sarcasm and irony (…which in itself is ironic because I’m a sarcastic twat). Especially in text. And especially when it comes to politics. People holding brain dead political takes for real are not hard to find.
Anyway. I’m an idiot. Sorry. :|
We’re all dumbasses from time to time, it’s all good :)
There’s no way he’ll be able to make the ballot in enough states to mount any kind of successful run. As a Green candidate, he would have had automatic ballot access in many states, but as an independent not so much. This is a net positive for Biden, and still allows West the pedestal to try and push the political dialogue to the left–where it should be-- without giving Republicans an easy way to wedge voters away from the Democrats.
Fuck this lunatic. He’s lost his marbles, or he’s compromised
Some additional articles:
Cornel West switches parties again, and other campaign trail takeaways
Cornel West to run as independent, forgoing Green Party run
Cornel West Is Running as Independent in Presidential Race
Progressive activist Cornel West leaves the Green Party and will run for president as an independent
I’ve lived in several states, it sucks that the Green Party isn’t even recognized in several (usually Red) states. you can always write in candidates however
