Don’t claim to be the next evolution of Bernie’s movement if you don’t have the courage to stand firmly with attorneys defending Bernie voters in the DNC lawsuit.
Don’t raise large sums of money, with statements like “We will no longer cede control of the Democratic Party to corporations and bribed puppets” if you’re afraid to take a stand against the DNC in the ongoing lawsuit.
It was the DNC that cheated Bernie Sanders, and it’s Bernie’s revolution that Justice Democrats and The Young Turks have utilized to create a new, vaguely familiar brand of Feel the Bern. However, in addition to treating the DNC lawsuit like the plague, both organizations have made some grandiose statements, without backing them up.
Justice Democrats are doing some good things, raising awareness for progressive candidates. However, numerous marketing claims made by The Young Turks, and Justice Democrats, simply are not true; they’re not taking money out of politics or going to war with the Democratic Party. For example, just look at the contradiction in the Tweet below by the latest Justice Democrat:
Immediately, the rebuttal from Kyle Kulinski and Cenk Uygur would be that Congressman Khanna’s Tweet doesn’t represent his progressive policies, or the values of Justice Democrats.
Well, Congressman Khanna might be a great progressive, and he’ll be on Tim Black’s channel this Tuesday for an interview, but Secular Talk’s Kyle Kulinski and TYT’s Cenk Uygur have utilized semantics to circumvent certain inconvenient truths. For example, let’s evaluate the statement made in this Tweet:
Yes, the newest Justice Democrat might take zero PAC money, but he doesn’t need this money. Debbie Lusignan of The Sane Progressive explains exactly why Khanna’s ties to wealthy individuals creates a conflict of interest. It’s true Khanna has championed progressive policies, but Justice Democrats doesn’t say “We’ll push progressive candidates who take money from billionaires.” With Bernie’s continual reference to the Billionaire Class throughout the election, it’s odd that TYT and Justice Democrat backers ignore the WikiLeaks Podesta Email 24506, which I explain entirely in this H. A. Goodman YouTube segment:
Our opponent’s campaign is funded by people like far-right billionaire Peter Thiel, who spent $2M through the Club for Growth to elect Tea Party Senator Ted Cruz. We can’t stop him from spending millions more to try and unseat Mike. But we can stop him from being successful.
Sure, this email was from Mike Honda’s campaign when they were running against Khanna, but who’s Peter Thiel? Also, are there other billionaires who gave money to the newest Justice Democrat?
It’s disingenuous to say that Bernie’s $27 individual donors were just like the billionaires who once donated to Khanna’s campaign. This American Progress article explains a point that Justice Democrats overlook using an overtly disingenuous semantic game:
“Ro Khanna is the first true Silicon Valley candidate,” Khanna’s campaign chairman Steve Spinner wrote in an email to Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta last spring, apparently following up on an in-person meeting with Podesta, according to newly released hacked emails put out by Wikileaks. Khanna has “received the support of over 600 technology and financial leaders, more than six times what President Obama received in 2012,” Spinner added, before listing off Silicon Valley titans like Google CEO Eric Schmidt, tech’s original mega-donor John Doerr, Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg, and the now-toxic Trump supporter Peter Thiel.
Sorry Kyle and Cenk, Google’s Eric Schmidt isn’t the average Bernie voter who gave an “individual donation” to the Sanders campaign in 2016. Neither is Facebook’s Sheyl Sandberg or billionaire Peter Thiel.
So, who is Peter Thiel, the individual donor who once gave to Khanna’s campaign? Regardless of the new Justice Democrat’s policy goals (and I agree with many of them, my issue has little to do with Khanna) Peter Thiel now works for President Trump. Thiel’s role in the Trump administration is explained in a POLITICO piece titled Donald Trump's 'shadow president' in Silicon Valley:
Billionaire iconoclast Peter Thiel's fingerprints are all over the administration.
“Once Election Day came and went, Peter Thiel was a major force in the transition,” said a senior Trump campaign aide.
In addition to Thiel and his team in Trump Tower, a handful of Thiel associates also took on critical posts in the Trump transition, with Harrington, now at the NSC, working to fill positions at the Department of Commerce; and Mark Woolway, a Thiel colleague from his PayPal days, doing the same the Treasury Department. Others slated to take on important roles in the administration — such as Josh Wright, who is likely to run the Justice Department’s antitrust division — have come with Thiel’s imprimatur.
A spokesman for Thiel declined to comment for the story. A senior White House official would say only that “Peter has been a very prominent supporter of the president’s and we are grateful for his support."
Peter Thiel is a prominent Trump adviser. Does this mean his contribution to Khanna’s campaign years back implicates Justice Democrats in a nefarious plot to work with Trump? Of course not, but it raises questions.
Justice Democrats state “Americans deserve free and fair elections — free from the corruption of big money donors.”
The billionaires listed above, completely undermine their stated goal. In addition, Khanna’s campaign chairman Steve Spinner was a top Obama fundraiser.
Again, Justice Democrats state “It’s time to rebuild the Democratic party from scratch and make it represent the American people.”
How on Earth can the Democratic Party be rebuilt if the latest Justice Democrat has Steve Spinner as his campaign manager, and a current Trump adviser once donated to Khanna’s campaign?
It doesn’t matter if these donations, or associations have no influence on Khanna’s platform or future decisions.
The entire point of Bernie’s political revolution was to fund campaigns so we wouldn’t have to ask these questions.
As for why Justice Democrats are so willing to use Bernie’s rhetoric, but refuse to openly stand against the DNC in the DNC lawsuit, there are a number of reasons. The biggest reason, however, deals with branding.
There are 82 “Loser Donald” videos from The Young Turks on YouTube.
There are zero “Loser DNC” videos, even though TYT and Justice Democrats have milked every passionate campaign sentiment that Bernie voters loved, as the DNC was stealing their money under the guise of neutrality.
Imagine what happens to The Young Turks if they passionately side with Jared and Elizabeth Beck, the two courageous attorney’s battling the DNC? And sorry Jordan, interviewing them is only one component of rebuilding the “Democratic Party from scratch.” Taking a stand is a far more important aspect of politics.
Its doubtful Kulinski or TYT read Zach Haller’s viral piece titled 7 Jaw-Dropping Revelations From Hearings on the Motion to Dismiss the DNC Fraud Lawsuit. Anyone who read’s Haller’s article will be forced to defend Bernie voters against a corrupt political party.
I’ve taken a stand, or “pledge” (since Justice Democrats seemed to be into pledges) to stand with Bernie voters and Jared and Elizabeth Beck against the DNC during this lawsuit. Tim Black, Niko House, and other powerful voices are firmly behind Bernie voters in the DNC lawsuit. However, Cenk Uygur and Kyle Kulinski, the two people utilizing Bernie’s message and the passions of his voter base to raise money and start their own movement, have refused to voice their considerable support behind Bernie Sanders voters who’ve lost millions.
Why is that?
Well, we’d have to ask Cenk, and Kyle that question. Until then, the media silence and the neutrality of Justice Democrats and TYT regarding the DNC lawsuit speaks volumes. Transforming the system means ensuring the DNC faces repercussions for cheating Bernie Sanders, and ensuring billionaire donors don’t give to progressive candidates.
Essentially, two organizations are trying to rekindle the flames of a time period stolen from us by DNC corruption. In the process, they’re not just working within the system for change, but grabbing political power, under the guise of radical transformation. Just be honest and say you support progressive candidates with ties to billionaires, Justice Democrats. Also, when Cenk Uygur states he’s going to “war” with Democrats, make sure to fire some of those salvos at the DNC.
H. A. Goodman is the creator of Counter Propa and the thoughts above are inspired by his new publication. Follow Counter Propa on Twitter and Facebook. Follow H. A. Goodman on Twitter.