In 2020, Joe Biden and the “moderates” are well to Obama’s left

We are living through the most progressive Democratic primary of all time.

 

By Roge Karma and Ezra Klein Dec 20, 2019

 

Thursday’s debate, like the collisions that preceded it, pitted a “leftist” lane led by Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren against a “moderate” lane led by former Vice President Joe Biden and South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg. The former believe in “big, structural change,” going to battle with billionaires, and eliminating private insurance; the latter believe in incremental progress, courting the wealthy, and building on Obamacare. The seemingly massive differences between these two factions represent a fierce ideological fight for the future of the Democratic Party.

The rhetoric of this clash is obscuring a deeper truth: All the lead contenders are running on the most progressive agendas to ever dominate a Democratic primary. Indeed, by the standards of the Democratic Party in 2008, the moderates look like leftists. As a result, if Biden or Buttigieg actually win the nomination, they will be running on the most progressive platform of any Democratic nominee in history. .......To Read More.....