Hillary Clinton and Debbie Wasserman Schultz Gave Us Trump. Will They Give Florida Ron DeSantis?
Besides Donald Trump, there are few politicians more hated in Florida and the entire country than Hillary Clinton and Debbie Wasserman Schultz. Andrew Gillum’s campaign took a big hit on September 27th, after announcing he was honored to campaign with Hillary Clinton. His posts received thousands of comments from people upset about this announcement.
After noticing the backlash, Gillum posted a letter on a Facebook group to address the unrest. The letter attempted to justify his participation with Hillary Clinton but it’s clear from the thousands of comments on his posts, that the vast majority of people were disappointed and very concerned about this campaign decision.
Gillum’s participation with Hillary Clinton may sound reasonable for some people. Having Hillary Clinton and her establishment supporters on his side could ensure his victory. Bernie was also involved so why not have the best of both worlds? Appealing to establish Democrats may be a way to slowly end the corruption in the party, some incrementalists may say. But then there was the final blow that drove many to retract their vote and make public statements denouncing Andrew Gillum as establishment agenda. Debbie Wasserman Schultz announced an event with Andrew Gillum and Mayor Bloomberg, who is likely to run for President as a Democrat in 2020.
Gillum was able to gain lots of popularity in the primaries, thanks to progressives and Bernie Sanders. After changing campaign manager his popularity fell in a matter of hours thanks to Hillary Clinton and Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
Is Gillum’s Campaign a Different Campaign Now?
The short answer is yes. Many who voted and supported him in the primaries now expressed concerns after watching him rephrase the progressive platform. He is now talking about expanding Medicaid, affordable healthcare and the Affordable Care Act, instead of Medicare for all (H.R. 676). The platform on his website states:
“Florida never received the opportunity to benefit from the full impact of the Affordable Care Act due to Governor Scott’s refusal to extend Medicaid to over 1 million Floridians. As Governor, Andrew will work to expand Medicaid and strengthen the Affordable Care Act.” https://andrewgillum.com/issue/healthcare/
Naturally this worries many people who think he is only going to push for Medicaid expansion to make the Affordable Care Act (ACA) more appealing to Floridians and drag or leave Medicare For All (H.R. 676) out of the equation.
Israel is listed as a main issue in his platform. His firm support for Israel and opposition to BDS was the first issue progressives politely brought to his attention. Support of regime change and intervention, overlooking the consensus of South American countries was also an issue.
Gillum’s Campaign Finance
During the primaries, Gillum’s most talked about contributions among progressives were those of billionaire George Soros and his son Alex Soros. Together they donated about $750,000 to his campaign. Many view George Soros as a vulture, financing both sides of opposing groups, using his direct or indirect influence on parties, candidates and NGOs to pull the strings in his favor and capitalize. The Clinton Foundation is one of the many organizations.
Donations skyrocketed in a single week, immediately after the primaries. Half the money Gillum raised came from hedge fund manager Donald Sussman and the Democratic Governors Association, with both donating $1 million a piece. Philanthropist Martha Laufer gave $250,000, topping off a list comprised mostly of some 39,000 small donations.
Hillary Clinton’s Influence Over Gillum
It may still surprise some, but Andrew Gillum did not support Bernie in the 2016 Primaries. He endorsed Hillary Clinton for the 2016 presidential primaries, campaigned for her in South Carolina and even gave a speech during her nomination at the Wells Fargo center in Philadelphia. Gillum was firmly on the wrong side of history when progressives needed all the support they could get.
https://www.tallahassee.com/story/news/2016/02/23/gillum-campaigns-clinton-south-carolina/80798094/
Gillum’s campaign staff changed drastically after the primaries. Brandon Davis became Gillum’s new campaign manager, replacing Brendan McPhillips. Brandon Davis was Chief of Staff of the DNC during the 2016 DNC debacle. He was SEIU’s National Political Director for six year before becoming the DNC’s Chief of Staff. As explained bellow Brandon Davis was a very close Hillary Clinton ally.
Clearing any remaining doubts, Donna Brazile explained how Brandon Davis acted as a liaison between the Hillary Clinton campaign and the DNC.
Many in Gillum’s campaign staff are previous Hillary Clinton and Debbie Wasserman Schultz staff. Juan Cuba has close ties to Brett Berlin and Stephen Bittel, the infamous billionaire who became chair of the Florida Democratic Party, even after the Miami-Dade Progressive Caucus caught him rigging the DEC elections. https://observer.com/2017/04/florida-chair-stephen-bittel-rigs-race-rewards-accomplices/
Hillary Clinton’s campaign further revealed the extend of the plans for Andrew Gillum in 2016.
Debbie Wasserman Schultz Has Been a Disaster for The Democratic Party
It was Debbie Wasserman Schultz who waged war against progressives and prevented Bernie Sanders from winning the 2016 Democratic Primaries. She was the Chair of the DNC and was directly responsible for strategizing to giving Donald Trump millions of dollars on free advertising. This is the real reason we have Trump. Even Dona Brazile, who replaced her as DNC Chair spoke about this. Nikki Barnes, a DNC member went on national television to speak about Debbie Wasserman Schulz and how much liability she is to the Democratic party.
On October 3rd the new Gillums office in Aventura is opening and will be inaugurated by State Representative Joe Geller, a very close friend of Debbie Wasserman Schultz and one of the the main establishment Democrats that enabled Stephen Bittel to rig the Florida Democratic Party Chair elections.
If Andrew Gillum can resist the tentacles of the Democratic establishment, i.e., Hillary Clinton and Debbie Wasserman Schultz, his victory can be vital for Progressives in Florida and all over the country.
But given all the evidence, it is hard to imagine Gillum not joining Hillary Clinton’s agenda, and wage war against progressives once elected. Progressives may be a victim of a well thought out establishment agenda. They may be digging their own graves.
Progressives need to ensure they won’t be dominated if Gillum is elected. We can demand a pledge, a firm progressive commitment and closely watch him and his circle.
Some voters may not vote for this reason and once again thanks to Hillary Clinton and Debbie Wassermn Schultz. They both gave us Trump in 2016, will they give us Ron DeSantis and Debbie Wasserman Schultz in 2018?
