When pigs fly will we have a socialist for president, right?
Of course, Senator Bernie Sanders isn't a socialist, but the distinction between socialists and social democrats (the government owning everything vs. not allowing corporations to control everything) is too fine a nuance for many, especially if they've watched a wee bit too much Fox News.
Tuesday night, though, Sanders won. At least according to most of the Pinellas Young Democrats at St. Petersburg's Flying Pig Taphouse, where the group held a watch party.
Freddy Cuevas, a member of the group, admitted Sanders swayed his thinking.
“I’m still undecided," Cuevas said. "I came into his a Hillary supporter all the way. And seeing some of the options — in particular Bernie Sanders — I’ve backtracked a little bit. I want to hear more of what he has to say.”
Eric Lynn, a Democrat vying for outgoing Congressman David Jolly's seat, had no qualms about declaring Sanders the winner in an imaginary debate against Donald Trump. The watch party had time for these discussions possibly because the candidates on stage didn't vary that much from answer to answer.
Notably missing, along with much diversity in policy, was the venom that pulsed through each of the GOP debates this summer. In its place viewers found a camaraderie, strengthened perhaps the most when Sanders agreed with Hillary Clinton when she said, "I want to talk not about my emails, but what the American people want from the next president of the United States."
"I think the secretary's right," Sanders replied. "The American people are sick and tried of hearing about your damn emails."
Although some of the lesser-knowns, such as Lincoln Chafee — who bore a remarkable resemblance to Jim Henson's Beaker — faced accusations of being a closet Republican ("The party left me," Chafee said of his former allegiance to the GOP) — the undertone of the debate was cohesive, and the candidates appeared united in not allowing a conservative into the White House.
"We cannot afford a Republican to succeed Barack Obama as president of the United States," Clinton said.
The candidates also debated gun control, campaign finance and taxes. While no one called a true winner, after the debate, the buzz in the bar revolved around Sanders.
“I think it’s significant that Bernie Sanders is even in the debate as a proclaimed socialist. i think it shows how unhappy people are with the current system," supporter Jessica Lewis said. "I hope that it signals a significant change in the coming years. We’re ready for it.”
This article appears in Oct 8-14, 2015.