Folks fret that Bernie Sanders may do to the Democratic Party what liberal George McGovern did to the blue team in 1972. That’s when a corrupt Republican president ran over McGovern.
Now pundits ask if Sanders represents a repeat of history.
The answer, according to this Washington Post piece, is yes. But it’s not the repeat of history that most assume.
Rather, the writer asserts, Sanders is a contemporary version of Ronald Reagan. Reagan also challenged a GOP leader in 1976, as Bernie did when confronting Hillary Clinton in 2016.
Democrats now warn that Sanders is a radical, just as many on the right did in 1980. That’s when Reagan proved them wrong; he won the Republican nomination and swept incumbent President Jimmy Carter out of office.
Time will tell us if Bernie has more McGovern or Reagan in him. But it is clear he reminded a timid party of its FDR roots.
At www.washingtonpost.com
