This is not about Bernie losing; it's about the nomination being hijacked. If the situation were reversed, the reaction from Hillary supporters would be far different. Back in January, I would have supported Hillary if she had won the primaries fair and square, even though I had serious concerns, and she wasn't my first choice. After watching events unfold for the past six months, I cannot in good conscience vote for someone who bought and cheated their way into the nomination. I can't vote for corruption, and I can't vote for someone who makes me feel violated and marginalized. This is not about being a sore loser; it's about moral conscience and accountability.
If Trump wins the general election, that's not on me. The DNC had the opportunity to support and embrace the popular candidate who had the best chance of defeating Trump, and they blew it. Instead, the DNC chose to anoint Hillary, long before the first vote was ever cast. The DNC has shown no regard as to the detriment this has caused to the party, or our nation. Bernie Sanders may have been our last best hope for loosening the corporate stranglehold that has adversely influenced government policy and decimated the middle class.
Hillary represents the status quo and the elite. As evidenced in her tenure as Senator of New York, she has no interest in helping the millions of ordinary Americans who are struggling. Even if Hillary did win the nomination and the general election, she would at best be an ineffectual President; the only person Republicans hate more than President Obama is Hillary. Her term would be dogged with distraction and stonewalling, as Republicans would drag her long trail of baggage through the mud, and do everything in their power to render her impotent.
If the DNC and Hillary supporters were truly serious about uniting the party, they would not treat Bernie supporters with derision and dismissiveness. When Bill Clinton looks down his nose and tells Bernie supporters that they will be toast, as he did at a recent rally, he is not unifying the party, he is further dividing it. This condescension and open disdain towards independents is not going to score any points, or get undecided voters to jump on the Hillary bandwagon.
It's not the duty of these voters to fall blithely in line behind Hillary because she's the presumptive Democrat nominee, or because Trump would be worse. It's up to Hillary to convince undecided Americans why she should be President. The common argument that she has experience is not enough. Hillary needs to show that she's a true leader by being a unifier, that she can effectively work with a Republican-controlled Congress, and that she genuinely cares about the best interests of this country. So far, she's fallen woefully short on all counts.
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