Good grief! You have effectively alienated half the electorate! Have you not noticed that the 2 most successful lefty candidates so far, as mentioned in the article, are WOMEN - the idea that folks won’t elect women is not only farcical, but self defeating …
What the GP needs are dynamic, fire breathing candidates, like Sawant, who know how to use a bully pulpit and who, IMO, have enough credentials to convince not only the poor, but the middle classes that they have the chops and the background to deal with the “big issues” - her degree may not help her appeal among working folk, but it certainly doesn’t hurt in terms of her appeal to folks of “middle class” sensibilities the left so often disdains, but will definitely need to succeed …
Frankly, when i, as a supporter of the cause, catch myself yawning at another speech filled with statistics and endless analysis, how do you think folks who are looking for inspiration, feel - King roused his audiences from the pulpit, not the Bureau of Labor statistics, for Pete’s sake … Say what you want about charisma, but it inspires and inspiration is what gets folks energized …
That was my first impression of Stein - i just hope she doesn’t get bogged down in the internal politics of the GP, that, IMO, have been what has stood in the way of its success … Combine the righteous indignation that i heard from her in the beginning with a vision of how it can be - not just how awful it is …
In the end, it isn’t just proposals that win folks over, it’s people - individuals. Obama’s “success” is understandably a cogent warning against the seduction of “charisma”, but the fact is, whether we like it or not, it really is important …