The most diverse field an American primary has ever had, we deserved a real conversation on the issues. Unfortunately, we didn't get it since we've tricked the average voter to caring about delegate math instead of letting them vote their values on the merits of argument.
Every televised debate sunk a huge amount of time into weaponizing nuanced differences in healthcare policy. Not because the media cared about the differences, but because they knew it would be entertaining.
Too many voters are forfeiting their democratic voice by letting others dictate who they think will strategically be better in the general, instead of who they wanted to vote for. Too many people demanded candidates drop out once their choice was ahead in the polls.
We've turned the voting population into an echo chamber of pundits. With this cycle, we had the chance to reevaluate the role of the president and have a real reflection on how race, accessibility, gender, and class all intersect with one another, and we blew it.
We were told there were bigger stakes. With Trump, the goal is to get him out, no matter the cost. We told everyone that now's not the time to talk about any of the issues that led to Trump in the first place. Why?
This just feeds into an inevitable permanent presidential election season. There will never be a time to truly talk about these issues. Every election will be just as important as the last. Just as critical. Just as strategic. And without the voices of those most affected by it.
There's no reason why @KamalaHarris @JulianCastro @CoryBooker @AndrewYang and @PeteButtigieg are out of this race before Super Tuesday. None. They all brought something unique and elevated the conversation. It was healthy for our party and what we claim to believe in.
The 2016 Republican primary was a circus. It was long. There were a ton of candidates. But you know what else it did? It kept the focus on the Republican argument for almost 2 years. And it worked. Why are we so rushed to narrow down this field?
The second there's a clear Democratic frontrunner, the media will hand the national microphone back to Trump. And we will have given them the permission to do it.
Just imagine what it would have looked like to have a wide field of candidates for months, from all over the United States, making the Democratic case for justice and then have every single one of them bring their delegates to the convention and build a real coalition.
I'm not talking about a contested convention. I'm talking about building a platform beyond a winner-take-all contest. None of the candidates were perfect (and shouldn't be) but we had a responsibility to make sure the winner was chosen without cutting the same people out.
I know people are scared. Some more than others. I know the stakes are high, but I don't want us to forget what we're ultimately fighting for. And for everything I've just said, I still have a lot of hope. I want some of this process to be able to play itself out.
Tomorrow is Super Tuesday. I'm also on the ballot running for Congress in CA-30. I could win. I could lose. But this is bigger than any one candidate. I'm not the "chosen one" to fix the problems of my district and your presidential pick isn't the only one who can fix the nation.
It'll take all of us. And I know that's cheesy, but it's true. It'll take the firebrands, and the wonks, and the institutionalists, and the ones who may not pay as much attention as we'd like. It'll take all of us. But we need to give people more opportunities to engage with it.
I was particularly inspired to write all of this today because of @QasimRashid, especially after someone at work asked me who they should vote for based on their chances of winning, instead of who they connected with more.
If you've already voted in this primary, thank you for being a voter. If you're voting on Super Tuesday or after, please don't let other people decide your vote for you, vote for the person you want to vote for. Who may inspire you, even if the chances of winning are slim.
Because at the end of the day, THAT'S what we're fighting for. We can all be pundits and strategic voters for the general election, but not yet. This is a primary. Let yourself have a say in it.
