The problem with primaries is that only motivated voters come out consistently to cast their vote. This is what leads to extreme candidates, as it'll always be the extremists - and not the moderates - at the front of the line when polls open on Primary Election Day.
There's no way to fix this other than making voting in primaries mandatory, which would be illegal as those elections are held by the parties and it would be a clear First Amendment violation to force someone to participate.
Oddity for sure David...longing for "smoke filled rooms." The effort to be more democratic certainly has been fraught with danger and crappy candidates. We've watched social media become the darling of who should win, imagine what AI will do.
I vote in Michigan. The problem isn't whether they are democratic or not. The problem is they have a tendency to disregard the choices that their primaries have made. Its not even about Platner who most agree should drop out. The issue is when you start to see people call for the party to disregard the clear desire of the primary voting block and choosing a moderate when clearly they wanted something else.
I have voted D in every election since Obama 1. If my vote can be so easily cast aside when its for someone the party deems to radical then I don't see why I should continue supporting said party.
I am watching what they do in Maine closely and my vote hangs in the balance. If they disregard the will of their voters I will not cast a vote this year for national races. I am not going to pretend to know how many feel as I do but I am pretty active around Ann Arbor which is very progressive and I do know others who feel as I do. I worry they are underestimating just how angry some of us are.
If they screw over progressives again I won't believe for a second it was done without lots of outside interference. The primary wasn't even close. That's why I will still support my in state party. This will be my last straw with the national party though.
First there was Bernie and the super delegates, then they said just vote for Biden this time, he will only be a one termer and we have to beat Trump. Then he decided to run again and when everyone saw how slow he had gotten, they said don't worry we got Harris right here. I was there for all of that like a good little soldier. But after watching how progressives we're treated this election cycle, especially Mamdani I am just done. Either we have a place in this party or we don't.
The primary electorate was lied to by Platner and his campaign, and that matters. Their polling was suspect, and that matters too. More importantly, it's up to the Maine Democratic Party to follow their own rules for replacing a candidate that drops out. That has nothing to do with the MI Democratic Party.
Bernie lost by 10% before the superdelegates ever cast a vote (and I voted for him in 2016).
Biden never said he'd be a one-termer. He explicitly stated otherwise.
Okay, when I was a 21 year old marine my girlfriend and I went down to Myrtle Beach to stay a weekend with some friends of hers. That friday night I was tired from my time on duty and decided to stay home and sleep while she and her friends went out to party. I was woken up that night with her having drunken sex with me. Is that rape? Do you think she even remembers what she did that night? I can tell you the only reason I remember it so vividly is because after she was mad at me because according to her I wasn't "connected" enough, and that really bugged me.
I don't say that to justify what he did. I say it because there is a good chance he doesn't remember any of this. Which means he didn't lie. The people knew his drinking problem and they overwhelmingly voted for him anyway. Honestly I think the reason is because they democratic party forced a vote between him and an old lady. At least that and it was an open primary.
At some point a line needs to be drawn, either we allow fair primaries or we don't.
And the Maine Democratic Party will follow their by-laws and rules for replacing the candidate. If that isn't someone they want, they won't vote for that candidate and will later remove the party leaders.
The problem with primaries is that only motivated voters come out consistently to cast their vote. This is what leads to extreme candidates, as it'll always be the extremists - and not the moderates - at the front of the line when polls open on Primary Election Day.
There's no way to fix this other than making voting in primaries mandatory, which would be illegal as those elections are held by the parties and it would be a clear First Amendment violation to force someone to participate.
Oddity for sure David...longing for "smoke filled rooms." The effort to be more democratic certainly has been fraught with danger and crappy candidates. We've watched social media become the darling of who should win, imagine what AI will do.
BS on rape.
https://factually.co/fact-checks/justice/trump-convicted-rape-or-sex-charges-explained-63ef1e
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2025/09/07/marlow-e-jean-carroll-hopes-her-explosive-new-doc-will-finish-off-trump-heres-why-thats-absurd/
https://townhall.com/tipsheet/saraharnold/2025/09/09/e-jean-carroll-admits-to-using-tricks-to-convince-jury-in-trump-case-n2662989
I vote in Michigan. The problem isn't whether they are democratic or not. The problem is they have a tendency to disregard the choices that their primaries have made. Its not even about Platner who most agree should drop out. The issue is when you start to see people call for the party to disregard the clear desire of the primary voting block and choosing a moderate when clearly they wanted something else.
I have voted D in every election since Obama 1. If my vote can be so easily cast aside when its for someone the party deems to radical then I don't see why I should continue supporting said party.
I am watching what they do in Maine closely and my vote hangs in the balance. If they disregard the will of their voters I will not cast a vote this year for national races. I am not going to pretend to know how many feel as I do but I am pretty active around Ann Arbor which is very progressive and I do know others who feel as I do. I worry they are underestimating just how angry some of us are.
I think it's a bit odd to hinge your vote in one state on the actions of another state's Democratic party. It's not a national decision by any means.
If they screw over progressives again I won't believe for a second it was done without lots of outside interference. The primary wasn't even close. That's why I will still support my in state party. This will be my last straw with the national party though.
First there was Bernie and the super delegates, then they said just vote for Biden this time, he will only be a one termer and we have to beat Trump. Then he decided to run again and when everyone saw how slow he had gotten, they said don't worry we got Harris right here. I was there for all of that like a good little soldier. But after watching how progressives we're treated this election cycle, especially Mamdani I am just done. Either we have a place in this party or we don't.
How is paving the way to Susan Collins' reelection NOT screwing over progressives?
Platner was trailing Collins BEFORE these new nuggets dropped. There's no way he had a chance of beating Collins AFTER them.
Oh it is, but if you ever want to have a voice in this party you need to show they they can't just say, "you have to vote for the democrat".
The primary electorate was lied to by Platner and his campaign, and that matters. Their polling was suspect, and that matters too. More importantly, it's up to the Maine Democratic Party to follow their own rules for replacing a candidate that drops out. That has nothing to do with the MI Democratic Party.
Bernie lost by 10% before the superdelegates ever cast a vote (and I voted for him in 2016).
Biden never said he'd be a one-termer. He explicitly stated otherwise.
Okay, when I was a 21 year old marine my girlfriend and I went down to Myrtle Beach to stay a weekend with some friends of hers. That friday night I was tired from my time on duty and decided to stay home and sleep while she and her friends went out to party. I was woken up that night with her having drunken sex with me. Is that rape? Do you think she even remembers what she did that night? I can tell you the only reason I remember it so vividly is because after she was mad at me because according to her I wasn't "connected" enough, and that really bugged me.
I don't say that to justify what he did. I say it because there is a good chance he doesn't remember any of this. Which means he didn't lie. The people knew his drinking problem and they overwhelmingly voted for him anyway. Honestly I think the reason is because they democratic party forced a vote between him and an old lady. At least that and it was an open primary.
At some point a line needs to be drawn, either we allow fair primaries or we don't.
Nice anecdote, totally irrelevant here.
It's good to have red lines, Scott.
And the Maine Democratic Party will follow their by-laws and rules for replacing the candidate. If that isn't someone they want, they won't vote for that candidate and will later remove the party leaders.