Michael Bloomberg’s campaign thought it would be a good idea to send out this mailer:
Bloomberg swings back at Bernie again AND HE IS NAMING NAMES in a press release. . .WOW! pic.twitter.com/AMhjgiljSv
— Hercules Mulligan (@johnvmoore) February 17, 2020
Not only are all these tweets great and accurate, but it’s deeply telling how Michael Bloomberg is already running to this well of the “Bernie Bro” attack this early in his campaign, of trying to claim that people calling him an oligarch– which he is by any definition of the word– are being rude. David Sirota is right:
This move by Mike Bloomberg can be best understood as the enraged temper tantrum of a billionaire who has up until now been able to buy everything he wants — but who is now worried he may not be able to buy the presidency, and so he’s lashing out in an effort to silence critics. https://t.co/icZ6ny4O3z
— David Sirota (@davidsirota) February 17, 2020
I say “deeply telling” of Bloomberg, of course, because for all the talk about civility by Bloomberg and the liberals who support him– as well as other candidates who have tried to get in on the “Bernie Bro” act again, like Elizabeth Warren1, Pete Buttigieg, and Joe Biden– Bloomberg is one of the most profoundly uncivil candidates in this election, with his history of racism both personal and systematic, a persistent and deeply disgusting degree of sexism, and a horrifying level of transphobia.
“Civility” to these people means deference to power; that’s all it’s ever meant. Bloomberg installing a policy to let young black and Latino men know they were not welcome to exist in New York City is civil; calling him a racist is uncivil. (Some particularly bird-brained observers were trying to paint “oligarch” as a racist smear, inadvertently revealing their own racism while also serving to cover for the fact that Mike is trying to outright buy the Democratic Party nomination– like he bought a third term as New York mayor.)
Joe Biden physically accosting a voter every time one questions him is civil, which is why he can go on TV and decry the incivility of Sanders supporters. Using gross racist, sexist, and anti-semitic smears against Bernie and his supporters is civil; them standing up for themselves in the face of it is uncivil. Harassing Bernie supporters’ families is civil; being angry about that harassment is uncivil. Covering for Bloomberg’s Islamophobia is civil; demanding he or his enablers be held to account is uncivil. Threatening to suppress the black vote is civil; calling them out for doing so is uncivil.
This is actually a voters rights attorney in Philadelphia so this is more than an idle threat of voter suppression pic.twitter.com/W7mlBVvHWx
— jack allison (@jackallisonLOL) February 17, 2020
People complain about Bernie bro harassment but it’s always someone who did a post like “I plan to do voter suppression” and the harassment is when people find their old posts where they said the n word
— jack allison (@jackallisonLOL) February 17, 2020
I’ll have more another time on why the nominee absolutely cannot be Bloomberg, but for now, just know this: Bloomberg is already resorting to his because he has nothing else. (Also, because he has the kind of monumental ego that takes any challenge to his authority as violence.) They, the other candidates, and the media recycle the same smears because they have nothing else.
Our movement is winning. Don’t give up. If anything, be heartened by how scared they are of us now. Keep organizing and don’t give up. (They’re going to continue to try to suppress our vote. We must overwhelm them.)
#NEW #Nevada @DataProgress Poll:
Sanders 35%
Warren 16%
Buttigieg 15%
Biden 14%
Steyer 10%
Klobuchar 9%
Gabbard 2%— Political Polls (@PpollingNumbers) February 17, 2020
1 – BTW, a group that supports Warren protested Joe Biden this week, and many of the usual suspects decried it as Uncivil Bernie Bro Behavior. I wonder why she didn’t clear up who they support. Weird!