Michigan is Berning
(you see what I did there? With his name, and the state, and the never mind.)
As I mentioned last week, Bernie is still in this thing, and now in a BIG way. Last night, Sanders won Michigan, in what’s being called one of the greatest upsets in modern political history. Despite polls having Clinton ahead by a helluva lot, Bernie won. The Dem primary is still a race, which means I will still have strangely aggressive posts from both camps in my Facebook feed. Some ask, is this the beginning of Clinton’s end, my friend? In short, no. With her landslide win in Mississippi, she is 770 delegates strong to Sanders’ 551, putting her ahead in number and in targets (god bless FiveThirtyEight and their graphs.)
On the GOP side, Donald Trump is the first Northern Republican to sweep the Deep South. And if you need some levity as this dire reality sinks in, BuzzFeed’s Donald Trump book reviews are amazing. Existence is meaningless, indeed.
If you need a podcast to listen to, check out David Axelrod’s “The Axe Files.” Produced by CNN and the Institute of Politics at the University of Chicago. I listened to his session with Senator Lindsey Graham, where they discussed what Trump is doing to the Republican party. I’ve got to say, listening to two people from different parties discuss politics without one calling the other a clown is like seeing a dog walk on two legs at this point. Graham discusses how the anti-immigrant rhetoric, combined with the GOP’s failure in working with minorities, has created a party “fighting for it’s soul," telling Axelrod that the GOP can survive losing the election, but they can’t survive President Trump.
The same day, friend of the Missive my Mum sent over a bleak portrait of an American political future by Matt Gurney of the National Post in Canada. I heartily agree with him when he says "Americans truly do seem... frustrated and bewildered and even afraid,” and that "we shouldn’t underestimate the devastating emotional toll that long-term unemployment has had on millions of Americans, mainly low-skilled, middle-aged workers.” Student debt, the effects of 14 years of war, and widespread feelings of disenfranchisement have pushed voters towards candidates that they feel are outside the system.
And finally, in headlines I never, ever needed to read, Awkward Hulk Hogan Testimony In Sex Tape Lawsuit Against Gawker.