Current Events > Establishment Dems getting nervous

(+) Yeah! (+)

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/22/us/politics/democratic-candidates-2020.html

When a half-dozen Democratic donors gathered at the Whitby Hotel in Manhattan last week, the dinner began with a discussion of which presidential candidates the contributors liked. But as conversations among influential Democrats often go these days, the meeting quickly evolved into a discussion of who was not in the race but could be lured in.

Would Hillary Clinton get in, the contributors wondered, and how about Michael R. Bloomberg, the former New York mayor? One person even mused whether Michelle Obama would consider a late entry, according to two people who attended the event, which was hosted by the progressive group American Bridge.

Its that time of the election season for Democrats.

Since the last debate, just anecdotally, Ive had five or six people ask me: Is there anybody else? said Leah Daughtry, a longtime Democrat who has run two of the partys recent conventions.

With doubts rising about former Vice President Joseph R. Bidens ability to finance a multistate primary campaign, persistent questions about Senator Elizabeth Warrens viability in the general election and skepticism that Mayor Pete Buttigieg, of South Bend, Ind., can broaden his appeal beyond white voters, Democratic leaders are engaging in a familiar rite: fretting about who is in the race and longing for a white knight to enter the contest at the last minute.

It is a regular, if not quite quadrennial, tradition for a party that can be fatalistic about its prospects and recalls similar Maalox moments Democrats endured in 1992, 2004 and in the last primary, when it was Mr. Biden who nearly entered the race in October. But the mood of alarm is even more intense because of the partys hunger to defeat President Trump and with just over three months to go before voting starts in Iowa their impatience with finding Mr. or Mrs. Right among the current crop of candidates.

Theres more anxiety than ever, said Connie Schultz, a journalist who is married to Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio, another Democrat who some in the party would like to see join the race. Were both getting the calls. Ive been surprised by some whove called me.

I can see it, I can feel it, I can hear it, Mitch Landrieu, the former New Orleans mayor, said of the unease within the party. He said he thinks Mr. Biden is best positioned to defeat Mr. Trump but called the former vice presidents fund-raising a real concern.

Mr. Bidens lackluster debate performances and alarmingly low cash flow he has less than $9 million on hand, not even half of some of his rivals has fueled the Democratic disquiet. But if the causes of the concern are plain to see, what exactly can be done about it is less clear.

And even some of those being wooed acknowledge that it can be hard to discern between people just being nice and those who genuinely want them in the race.

Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Bloomberg have both told people privately in recent weeks that if they thought they could win, they would consider entering the primary but that they were skeptical there would be an opening, according to Democrats who have spoken with them.

Former Secretary of State John F. Kerry, who associates say has wondered aloud about whether he should have run and has found it hard to watch Mr. Bidens missteps, has also been urged to get in. But he still thinks the former vice president, who was once his longtime Senate colleague, is the partys best nominee.

Another Obama administration official who weighed a campaign at the start of the year, former Attorney General Eric Holder, is considering a last-minute entry but has conceded it may be too late, according to a Democrat familiar with his thinking.

Lol
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This is why they are going to lose.
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Establishment Dems are a joke
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why do people think Biden is the candidate best positioned to take down Trump lol.
over reliance on the "moderate" Dem voter is the party's damn Achilles heel
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2020 looking good
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Not one mention of the fund raising leader Bernie Sanders.
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Frizzurd posted...

This is why they are going to lose.

in fairness we all laughed at that shit show primary season last time around from the GOP and thought the party had nearly collapsed in general election respectability than we all got trump'd so....
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I will laugh so fucking hard if Hillary runs.
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HydraSlayer82 posted...

I will laugh so fucking hard if Hillary runs.

Get ready to laugh because it looks more and more like it's gonna happen.
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Won't somebody please think of the downtrodden rich people?
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They are terrified of bernie and liz
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Ultima Dragon posted...

Hillary

there is legit no proof this is occurring, you just wanted to get in a lazy Clinton hit.
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It's almost like they want to fail and let Trump get reelected.
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Her slogan: Third times a charm
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