2020 US Presidential Election

I don't really see what AOC would accomplish by just leaving electoral politics completely. Perhaps she's instead posturing to remind democratic voters and the rest of the party that progressives do in fact exist and did indeed help to win the election. I know that the centrist democrats have been very salty about their losses. Hoo boy, though, centrist dem tears are also pretty sweet. That being said, still not quite as sweet as fashy tears, to which we've all been luckily treated quite a stream of lately. Still, I can't help but find it hilarious that people keep trying to paint people like AOC as somehow far-left. She's definitely among the less contemptible US politicians, and her heart is in the right place, but in an electoral sense nothing she does is all that far left.

@songofsisyphus Just curious of your thoughts. Who is the most progressive politician currently in office?

I'd probably have to look into everyone's specific records, but I imagine it would probably be AOC or someone from the 'squad'. Still, aren't they all largely SocDems who occasionally flirt with the language of DemSoc? When I said 'electorally', what I meant was that how she appears electorally is probably less left-wing than she actually is in private and in her own mind.

Oh. by the previous post it seemed like you were on the up and up and could probably spout off a list but I didn't want to ask for 5 in case there were only like 2 or 3. Would you then say that there are no radical libs/left currently in office then? If AOC isn't technically as far left as people think?

Well, yeah, you don't get to be radical left and also get to run for the Democrats (though I'm not familiar with his record so can't say for sure, judging solely by his election pitch and nothing else, Ed Markey seems like he *could* be that). I imagine the DNC has ways of crushing very left candidates. Possible to be a radlib, I guess, and I'd have to do more searching in the party on that, but radical liberalism and radical leftism are two pretty distinct things in my mind. EDIT: Plus, among leftists, even after we consider all of the stuff from the democratic party, there's also the idea that being in a government at the head of the state itself tends to serve to change the way that representatives engage in political activity and goal-setting. Certain styles of leftist see that as ultimately subversive to the cause of leftism if everyone relies only on an electoral political force without any kind of direct democracy. EDIT 2: Hm, yeah, upon watching the video again, I'm not really all that sure where to put him. Probably still on the left end of SocDem, because he's gesturing back to new deal and social contract stuff. He's probably in a similar ballpark to AOC and Sanders, looking at this. But the overt support of union organising and action is one that is bound to resonate with a lot of leftists, too. The vid I was referring to is here if anyone's interested: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86-3yuzn5UU

I will look into him. AOC gets a lot of screen time so I would like to see someone's record that doesn't and especially if they are *MOAR* anything than AOC. She and Pelosi seem to be the bar of comparison. Pelosi as speaker of the house, not what I would call "centrist" but rather a classic model Dem while AOC, otherwise considered progressive, has the pull and swing of the youth and social media.

That video was both good and cringe. SocDem sounds correct. He was backed by AOC for his senate seat and has worked directly with Bernie Sanders on single-payer medical coverage system. One thing I read about him that I liked was immediately after Trump was elected in 2016, this happened: In December 2016, Markey was one of 17 senators to sign a letter to President-elect Trump asking him to fulfill a campaign pledge to bring down the cost of prescription drugs, stating their willingness "to advance measures to achieve this goal", and calling on Trump "to partner with Republicans and Democrats alike to take meaningful steps to address the high cost of prescription drugs through bold administrative and legislative actions." So he and at least 16 others were ready and willing to talk with Trump on medical costs.

https://youtu.be/zFfWv0EnHQw VAN JONES: Van Jones is a social entrepreneur, CNN political contributor and host of The Messy Truth with Van Jones. Famous for his heart-felt election night coverage, Jones showed up as “the voice of reason” for people in red states and blue throughout the volatile 2016 political season. In response to much civil unrest and energy post-election, Jones launched the #Love Army -- a values-based movement that is working for an America where everyone counts. This is old and I believe I have watched it before. 3 years ago, interesting to see how he's talking about politics then and with what happened during this election cycle.

Tucker Carlson.... Gross... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vMK-p6-M5E

https://youtu.be/7WbeqHMkTVE lol