How the Populist Moment Will Shape the Debates

How the Populist Moment Will Shape the Debates

How the Populist Moment Will Shape the Debates

The moment and the movements shaping it.

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Tuesday night, Democrats will finally hold their first presidential debate. Already ideas for the drinking games are piling up. Take a drink for any question mentioning Hillary Clinton’s private e-mail server, the FBI or Benghazi. A sip for every time Martin O’Malley, Jim Webb and Lincoln Chafee are asked how they expect to win given their lack of support in polls or in money. A drink when the candidates are asked what they think about Vice President Biden getting in the race. Another for every time the candidates are invited to attack someone else on the stage.

And if you want to get plastered quickly, two shots for all if Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is asked in the first five minutes if he really thinks Americans will vote for a socialist. A drink for every time he’s called an outsider or he’s asked if his proposals are “realistic.” A full shot for questions on his writings from decades ago, cheap titillation utterly divorced from his qualifications.

The media narrative on the Democratic race has already congealed. Clinton, the prohibitive favorite, has been sliding in the polls, burdened by the scandals over her private server and her “character.” Sanders, the insurgent, is rising but can’t win because he’s a “socialist.” The remaining three are too far behind to count. Joe Biden, the media wait for you.

Read the full text of Katrina’s column here.

Become a Sustaining Donor This September

Between the reemergence of right-wing red-baiting and Donald Trump’s use of the chilling National Security Presidential Memorandum–7 to criminalize left political organizing, we’re seeing McCarthyism reborn before our eyes.

This assault on democracy cannot be ignored or wished away. Resisting it requires bravery in the face of threats and repression, a steadfast commitment to the truth, and the unwavering belief that we can—and will—overcome this darkness.

We must have an independent media that sets the record straight, unearths corruption and abuses of power, and advances a politics of justice and dignity for all if we’re to win this fight.

That’s why I’m writing to you today. This September, The Nation needs to add 100 monthly donors to sustain our progressive journalism. Your contribution makes the next investigative report, the next truth-speaking column, and the next pathbreaking essay all possible. 

I hope you’ll support our work with a recurring donation today. If you donate $10 or more a month, we’ll send you a brand new “Hands Off the Free Press!” sticker to recognise your commitment to our cause. Please, donate today. 

Onward,

Katrina vanden Heuvel
Editor and Publisher, The Nation

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