Reflections on Chomsky's Voting Strategy: Why The Democratic Party Can't Be Saved

http://www.counterpunch.org/2018/10/19/reflections-on-chomskys-voting-strategy-why-the-democratic-party-cant-be-saved/
Date Written:  2018-10-19
Publisher:  CounterPunch
Year Published:  2018
Resource Type:  Article
Cx Number:  CX23068

Nick Pemberton explains why his opinion is different from that of Noam Chomsky on the matter of third party voting during US elections.

Abstract: 
--

Excerpt:

But I must break from Chomsky. I understand that he believes voting can and should be separated from being a radical in today's dark times. But for better or worse, voting remains a huge part of our political culture. Advocating for a lesser evil undermines radical candidates, plain and simple. It even undermines not-so-radical candidates who could significantly change America for the better.

I am talking here about the Bernie Sanders campaign. Bernie ultimately had the same attitude as Chomsky did about elections. Presenting big and exciting ideas is ok, but it is impossible to actually get them to happen via electoral politics. When Bernie Sanders endorsed Hillary Clinton he undermined the entire movement he created. One could argue that the cynical endorsement may have defeated Donald Trump (oops). But Bernie’s surrender also had other rational consequences besides potentially keeping the far greater evil Donald Trump out of office. One rational consequence was that the Sanders movement was smothered - a consequence that without question outweighed the difference between Clinton and Trump.