By: Wladimir Sarmiento
As we all no doubt have realized by now, Williamsville East is, for better or for worse, a haven for liberal ideology. A Bernie Sanders supporter has only to shout the iconic slogan of his campaign, “Feel the Bern!”, into a crowd of assorted students and teachers to elicit at the very least murmurings of approval. In fact, earlier this year this newspaper conducted a poll on our students as to their presidential candidate of choice for 2016, and the response in Bernie’s favor was overwhelming.
As a Sanders supporter, it is extremely easy to lose sight of logic and realities of politics in an echo chamber such as this one; however, I feel it would do us well to keep in mind that the path to success in this country will not be paved by a single man or a single generation in a single election. If Sanders were to win the Democratic nomination come June, and then go on to win the Presidency, it is important to remember that the fight won’t even be close to won.
President Obama has said that the biggest regret of his presidency is not being able to unite Washington in a way that is conducive to the productivity of the country. The executive and legislative branches have arguably never been at odds like they are today; there is an entire subsection of the Republican party dedicated entirely to blocking all of Obama’s proposed legislation from ever becoming law. They have repeatedly attempted to repeal the Affordable Healthcare Act and have consistently supported the defunding of Planned Parenthood.
As liberals, we must blame ourselves for allowing this to happen. Voter turnout rates in America are a national disgrace. The passive left has allowed a radically conservative subset of the population to effectively control politics in our country, and because of this even centrist bills like Obamacare are under threat.
Not only this, but we are truly deluded if we believe that the same blocking in Congress will not be directed at a Sanders Administration, with even greater numbers, if we sit back and allow right-wing Republicans to control the House and Senate. Going farther, we are deluded if we believe that Bernie Sanders will be able to put far-reaching reforms into place with even a Democrat-controlled Congress like we have traditionally seen. Clinton-esque politicians content to play it safe and allow social issues like income inequality, horrendous student debt, an inadequate welfare system, and corrupt campaign finance will not take us in the right direction and Sanders will accomplish nothing.
Sanders has managed a beautiful thing: he has mobilized a group of the population that has traditionally been cynical about the future of our country and shown them that united they have the power to institute real change in the ways things are done in America. We have realized that there is no reason why the most advanced country in the world must kneel to the antiquated and oppressive ideals of a more politically active far-right. It is truly incredible to see many of our own students so passionate about politics for the first time.
The impending Democratic-Socialist political revolution in this country will only mean something if that passion extends well past 2016, and make no mistake, it will succeed only based on a foundation of strong grassroots democracy at the state and county levels. Come 2018, if the group of enthusiastic Sanders supporters unites once again to elect representatives and senators to our congress that will back the President up in executing what has up until this point been considered radical reform, all the big promises of this campaign can come true.
Clinton, when questioned about her stance as a moderate progressive stated, “I’m a progressive who gets things done.” She has a point, her more moderate policies focused on building upon what Obama has done in his campaign will undoubtedly result in easier results for the Democratic Party. However, many of us believe that the time for slow reform is over, and if we unite for 2016 and every single election after that we will be successful in bringing country to a better place.
If you are a Sanders supporter who will be able to vote in this election, you better be prepared to continue your support. The things he is fighting for will not be easy to accomplish, and electing him to president is a gamble that can only end in four years of nothing getting done or eight of the most progressive years in our country’s history. If you are not willing to fight the good fight and exercise your democratic duties past 2016, then I’m sure Clinton’s campaign would be more than glad to accept your half-hearted vote.
