The New Bernie

Dr. Jill Stein Is The New Bernie Sanders

By H. A. Goodman

Within his speech pushing for unity with Clinton, Bernie Sanders stated “I look forward to your votes during the roll call on Tuesday night.” Therefore, there’s perhaps a chance that he could still become Democratic nominee, although the WikiLeaks DNC emails have shown that the primary was rigged in favor of Clinton. Thus, Bernie Sanders supporters, and people who feel that they’ve experienced a roller coaster of emotions have another option; a candidate who wasn’t at risk of criminal indictments. Her name is Dr. Jill Stein of the Green Party, and she’s not only a remarkable woman, Stein offers hope to millions of people who feel cheated by the system. I explain in this YouTube segment why Bernie Sanders might truly want you to vote for Dr. Stein in 2016.

Jill Stein is becoming the new Bernie Sanders (if indeed Bernie doesn’t become Democratic nominee) according to an ABC News piece titled Green Party’s Jill Stein Offers Hope for Bernie Sanders Supporters:

“This is how you build political movements —- you have to gain trust and you have to work together and that’s what you can do in the course of a political campaign. You can test the waters and those waters right now are feeling very warm and welcoming,” she told ABC.

This is Stein’s second time through the presidential campaign process. She feels that this time, Sanders has helped her campaign…

“It’s quite different [this time]. In 2012, we were really ahead of the curve. This year, the curve caught up to us and we have Bernie Sanders who lifted up our agenda and it found incredible resonance in the polls among people who are activists,” she said.

The concern that a third party candidate would be more harmful for the major party candidate hasn’t stopped Stein and her supporters from being vocal in their joint criticism of Clinton.

When asked what she would think of a Trump presidency, Stein said she “wouldn’t wish that on anyone, nor would I wish Hillary on anyone. Hillary is a proven danger and Trump is a terrifying danger.”

There’s no love lost between Stein and Clinton. Stein is quick to point out that, while Clinton will be making history by being officially nominated as the first female presidential candidate for one of the main parties, Stein is the woman who has earned the most presidential votes in the history of U.S. politics to date.

“You can be sure that Hillary Clinton does not look favorably on another woman candidate who is actually progressive in the race,” Stein said. “We are a very inconvenient truth.”

For some Sanders supporters, that truth looks like it could be their salvation.

Jeremy Dolan, 24, traveled to Philadelphia from St. Petersburg, Florida and was spotted today holding a pro-Sanders poster near the protest but said that he’s already open to switching to Stein.

“I’ve already donated $1,000 to her campaign,” he told ABC.

“If Bernie doesn’t make it past the convention with the nomination, we’ll support Jill Stein,” he said.

While most people haven’t spoken about this accomplishment, “Stein is the woman who has earned the most presidential votes in the history of U.S. politics to date.” Whereas Hillary Clinton relied upon the help of the DNC, Dr. Stein hasn’t had such advantages, and simply focuses upon many of the same messages echoed by Bernie Sanders.

Although Hillary Clinton is America’s political Ms. Pac-Man, gobbling up Elizabeth Warren, and if the roll call doesn’t work, perhaps even Bernie, there’s one candidate Clinton can’t silence. According to The Hill, Dr. Stein has strong words for the Democratic Party and its version of democracy:

Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein once again welcomed Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) into her party, suggesting in a series of tweets that he could leave the party that “betrayed” him. 

“If @BernieSanders repudiates the Democratic Party that betrayed him, I’d welcome him into @GreenPartyUS to continue the revolution,” Stein posted on Twitter on Saturday afternoon. 

Stein’s comments come in the wake of a massive leak of emails from the Democratic National Committee (DNC) this weekend that revealed party officials’ plans to undermine Sanders’s presidential campaign. 

In one such email, the DNC press secretary discussed planting a narrative to the press that Sanders’s “campaign was a mess.” 

In another, a top DNC official appeared to suggest a plan to question Sanders’s faith and ask if he was actually an atheist.  

“Don’t let establishment bully you into supporting corporate warmongers,” Stein posted in another tweet…

Stein said in an interview with the Guardian. “If he saw that you can’t have a revolutionary campaign in a counter-revolutionary party, he’d be welcomed to the Green party. He could lead the ticket and build a political movement.”

Whereas Bernie spoke at the convention about unity, Senator Sanders has stated in the past he believes in the viability of third-party candidates. Just watch Bernie in 1991, stating that in his experience, “the progressive, third-party people” would get the best response from audiences. He also stated in the video that most Americans don’t feel they have a choice, and that it’s truth, not political party, that matter to voters.

In this respect, Jill Stein offers the truth about America’s overreaching foreign policy, prison industrial complex, and rigged economy. During a recent NPR interview, Dr. Stein speaks to the heart of Bernie voters, without any compromise:

On what the Green Party stands for

In a nutshell, the Green Party is the one national party that does not accept corporate money, lobbyist money, or have a superPAC. So we have the unique liberty to stand up for everyday people. We are basically a party that puts people, planet and peace over profit. And we put forward the real solutions that everyday Americans are just clamoring for.

On columnist Dan Savage’s (explicit language-laden) criticism that supporting the Green Party is helping Donald Trump

I do not say there is no difference between the parties. What I say is that there’s not enough difference to save your job, to save your life, or to save the planet. And the scary things, the horrific things that Donald Trump says, Hillary Clinton has already done. Whether it’s massively deporting immigrants, whether it’s threatening nuclear warfare. ...

Put it this way: I will feel horrible if Donald Trump is elected, I will feel horrible if Hillary Clinton is elected, and I feel most horrible about a voting system that says: Here are two deadly choices, now pick your weapon of self-destruction.

So, whereas some pundits claim that Clinton is vastly different from Trump, Dr. Stein (and Bernie, Warren, and many others) remember when Clinton voted for Iraq, and accepted millions from Wall Street. In addition, neoconservatives are now openly supporting Clinton, which should be strange for progressives against the Iraq War. If this comes as a shock to you, just read Rania Khalek’s piece in The Intercept titled Robert Kagan and Other Neocons Are Backing Hillary Clinton.

Finally, with all the talk of unity, it’s important to note that Jill Stein, or Bernie or Bust voters, can’t be blamed if Trump wins the presidency. Even Nate Silver believes that Trump would win if the election were held today, as quoted in a Hill article titled Nate Silver: Trump would likely win if election were held today:

Statistician Nate Silver on Monday said Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump would be favored to win if the general election occurred today.

If the election were today, Trump would likely win.

Trump now leads presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, 57.5 percent to 42.5 percent, in that scenario, according to Silver’s website.

Furthermore, in an average of polls according to Real Clear Politics, Trump is up over Clinton by .2 points.

There’s one candidate for president that Bernie Sanders supporters can endorse, without feeling they’re rewarding a corrupt system, or succumbing to a lesser evil. Dr. Jill Stein will battle Wall Street, end perpetual wars, and focus on working people. If she falls short of perfection, at least her goals are lofty and she remains independent of lobbyist influence; Hillary Clinton accepted prison lobbyist donations for a reason. With the hubris of Clinton’s campaign working directly with Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Dr. Stein is needed more than ever, and has in many ways become the new Bernie Sanders. In certain other ways, she could be even better than Bernie Sanders, and I urge everyone to watch Tim Black’s interview with Dr. Stein.