Thread by @jonathansmucker

The old guard of the Democratic Party seems to have no grasp of the monumental historical opportunity they have with @BernieSanders, who is uniquely positioned to bring tens of millions of disaffected voters and young low-propensity voters out to vote in 2020.

@BernieSanders Bernie's has shown an unparalleled ability to engage with disaffected voters, to win over persuadable conservative voters, and to organize an enormous base of dedicated volunteers and small donors. These are exactly the ingredients we need to defeat Trump.

@BernieSanders But the reality is you can't have Bernie—and the vision he represents—ascend in the Democratic Party without huge changes that will adversely impact the career politicians and operatives who comprise the corporate-friendly old guard of the Democratic Party.

@BernieSanders Many of these careerists would rather keep their jobs, status, and hegemony within a Democratic Party that loses in 2020 than lose their jobs, status, and hegemony within a Democratic Party that wins in 2020.

@BernieSanders Obviously no one would admit that to themselves or others, so they cling to a narrative about "moderate electability," even if all the empirical evidence from the past 20 years suggests that the opposite is true for general elections.

@BernieSanders Bernie Sanders' dilemma, however, is that while he may be the strongest candidate in the general election, this is because he's able to inspire disaffected and low-propensity voters, and these voters are far less likely than affluent voters to turn out to vote in a primary.

Republicans and independent voters who Bernie wins over can't vote for him in the primary (in most states) unless they change their registration to Democrat, and with enough lead time.

This is why the Sanders campaign's ground game is so important. We have to knock millions of doors and make millions of phone calls and talk to our neighbors and friends and family members. It's our path to winning the primary.

Time to start volunteering: act.berniesanders.com/signup/volunte…

The biggest reason I support Bernie Sanders is because my assessment is that he has a far better chance than any other candidate to defeat Donald Trump.

Funny how establishment types still like to bring up how the more progressive Dem nominee (McGovern) lost the general election in NINETEEN-FUCKING-SEVENTY-TWO. But they take exactly zero responsibility for the losses of Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, and Al Gore.