If only Bernie Sanders had won the nomination in 2016

Politics is an unending game of “what if’s,” especially for Democrats. Every four years, we hear a similar lament: “What if Michael Dukakis had not worn that silly hat in the tank?” “What if Al Gore had campaigned with Bill Clinton in Tennessee?” “What if Kamala Harris had two or three more weeks?”

The truth is, who knows? But I do know the answer to one big “what if.” What if Bernie Sanders had won the Democratic nomination for president in 2016? And the answer is: Donald Trump would never have become president, because Bernie would have won the election.

For the record, I say that as a huge fan of Hillary Clinton, and one who worked hard for her in November. But I supported Sanders in the Democratic primary because I believed then and still believe today he would have been a stronger candidate against Trump.

So why didn’t Sanders get the nomination? Because the Democratic Party establishment — meaning the Clinton campaign, in cahoots with the Obama White House, the Democratic Senate leadership, and the Democratic National Committee — teamed up to smash him down. They couldn’t stand the fact that anyone would dare oppose Hillary Clinton.

It’s all spelled out in a powerful new book released last week by Tad Devine, Sanders’ 2016 campaign manager: “How the Democrats Screwed Bernie.” Devine documents the various ways Democratic insiders worked to thwart the Sanders campaign. Starting with the scheduling of debates.

In the run-up to the 2008........

© The Hill