Moderate?

[Elijah John]

Mayor Pete, Mike Bloomberg, Joe Biden, Amy Klobuchar have all been described as "moderate" Democrats.

For debate, in what sense are any of these people "moderate"?

"Moderate" compared to who?

[2ndRateMind]

Moderate compared to who? Well, I would say compared to Hitler, on the right, and Stalin, on the left. And thus I show my age.

My own observation, from the UK, is that elections are won by mobilising the centre, which Tony Blair did successfully, winning three elections in a row, but which Jeremy Corbyn never even attempted, and so lost outright. It seems your politicians are getting wise to this strategy.

It might also be noted that the philosopher Aristotle thought that virtue lies halfway between two extremes. Thus bravery, for example, lies between the rash and the cowardly.

The only problem is, it is hard to get the general populace excited by a moderate position. Far easier to persuade them they are threatened by the extreme left or right, and demand their votes in order to save them from that threat.

Best wishes, 2RM.

[2ndRateMind]

[Replying to post 2 by 2ndRateMind]

It occurred to me to make my own political tendency clear. If I was an American, I would vote democrat, whoever wins the nomination. It has always seemed to me that the USA has two options; right of centre (democrat), and right of right of centre (republican).

But I think the priority in this election is to get rid of Trump. So if I was American, I would vote Biden, who, it seems to me, has a greater chance of achieving this than Sanders. But, I think Sanders has a lot to say Americans need to hear. And so, in almost all other scenarios, I would vote Sanders.

Best wishes, 2RM.

[Elijah John]

[Replying to post 3 by 2ndRateMind]

At best, Democrats are left-of-center. But today's Democrats have taken a dramatic turn to the left. That is this American's perspective. Even former President Obama has warned the party against the "cancel culture" and going too far left. As did James Carville, former campaign manager to President Clinton.

[2ndRateMind]

[Replying to post 4 by Elijah John]

Yes, it is a fact that we Europeans tend to be more left-leaning as populations than you Americans. And that is from where my perspective is derived.

Best wishes, 2RM.

[historia]

But today's Democrats have taken a dramatic turn to the left.

I'm having a hard time squaring this claim with the results of Tuesday's Democratic primary, where large sections of the Democratic coalition, including party elites, rallied behind a moderate instead of his socialist opponent.

[Elijah John]

But today's Democrats have taken a dramatic turn to the left.

I'm having a hard time squaring this claim with the results of Tuesday's Democratic primary, where large sections of the Democratic coalition, including party elites, rallied behind a moderate instead of his socialist opponent.

How is Joe Biden moderate? He too, seems to have taken a dramatic turn to the left.

Ex. He once called Mike Pence a decent man. He was bullied into a retraction of that compliment.

That's just one example. We could go down the list.

My point is that so called "moderate" Democrat candidates for President are no such thing.

Joe Biden used to be. Now he is riding on that reputation. But his new positions do not support the title of "moderate" for him.

Joe Manchin, on the other hand, is a moderate Democrat. But the WV Senator is not running this year, and that's a pity.

[Divine Insight]

My point is that so called "moderate" Democrat candidates for President are no such thing.

That's your opinion.

The Democrats are actually much more in harmony with the teachings of Jesus.

Do you think Jesus was a far leftest?

I don't get into the tribal warfare of name calling. But I think it should be obvious to everyone that the Democrats are more in harmony with the teachings of Jesus than the Republicans are.

And Bernie Sanders has policy proposals that are as close to the teachings of Jesus as you can get.

Jesus would be all for socialism. That's what he taught.

Why are the Republicans so against the teachings of Jesus?

[historia]

How is Joe Biden moderate?

On domestic policy, foreign affairs, and government reform, Biden is considerably to the right of Sanders and the progressive wing of the Democratic party. Heck, on issues like trade, he's to the right of Trump.

He too, seems to have taken a dramatic turn to the left.

Ex. He once called Mike Pence a decent man. He was bullied into a retraction of that compliment.

That's just one example. We could go down the list.

That's not a particularly useful example. For starters, where a candidate sits on the political spectrum is typically based on their policies. And the fact that Biden regularly complements Republicans, but qualified the one he gave to Pence, can hardly be deemed a "hard turn" to the left.

Joe Manchin, on the other hand, is a moderate Democrat.

Manchin is probably better described as a conservative Democratic. After all, his voting record is more conservative than some moderate Republican senators. If you only consider the most conservative Democrats to be "moderate," it seems to me you're using that term too narrowly. For example, do you consider Tulsi Gabbard to be a moderate?

[AgnosticBoy]

Mayor Pete, Mike Bloomberg, Joe Biden, Amy Klobuchar have all been described as "moderate" Democrats.

For debate, in what sense are any of these people "moderate"?

"Moderate" compared to who?

Can we also ask about moderate compared to "what"? Evidence and reason?

If the focus is solely about comparison to other people, then I can say that Biden and some of the other candidates are less extreme than Bernie Sanders. However being more moderate to Sanders does not make you a "moderate", like what you'd find among independents and others who are closer to the center. For example, Biden is still to the Left of a lot of issues even if not as extreme or as far left as Bernie Sanders.

If the focus is also about evidence and logic then many of the Democrat candidates are far from a moderate evidence-based view. I actually find this to be a problem for both parties because they tend to put IDEOLOGY before logic and evidence. The same problem can be seen in the debate between atheists and theists which is why Huxley came up with the "agnostic" position but that's another debate.