Does Hillary Clinton want my vote?

Does Hillary Clinton want my vote?

Of course she does, doesn’t she? It would be foolish to think that she did not, considering how close the race to the White House has become this election cycle. Battleground states that Romney lost in 2012 have become dangerously close to going to The Donald, although states that generally go red during a presidential election could possibly be up for a’swinging in November. Either way, it leads to everything going up to a coin toss, and quite possibly won’t go as favorably to Mrs. Clinton as they did in states like Iowa. So, yes, she wants our votes.

Her supporters overwhelmingly agree that she deserves every single Senator Sanders supporters’ votes. Their reasons, although oft sprinkled with nuances of progressive ideology, mainly are a repeated two: Hillary deserves to break the glass ceiling and Trump is the boogeyman. They feel wrongfully pestered by unflattering facts, bothered with any notion that Hillary doesn’t deserve a “Bernie Bro’s” support.

This is what it has come down to. The writing that has been on the wall for months is starting to chip and peel. Hillary is the nominee and if you are a “good person”, meaning that you desperately don’t want to see a Trump presidency, you will do everything you can to get her elected.

Every speech given at the Democratic National Convention had become the pinnacle of authenticity; as emotional, inspiring, jaw-dropping, and foreboding as any that came before. Even the media and Establishment’s tone towards Sanders had gone through a complete about-face. Outlets that repeatedly mocked, derided, and condescended to Sanders and his campaign now fawned over him, peppering him with adjectives like “brave” and “classy” for his less-than-ringing initial endorsement of Clinton. There was no shortage of good camera angles of Mr. Sanders at the Convention, not a single conveyed hint of doubt placed that this man was a saint for manning-up and standing behind their Woman.

Contrastly, the Republican National Convention had been described as a disaster, from start to finish. Nothing good, apparently, could or had been said by anyone, anywhere at the RNC. It was a total shit-fest, and only showed the worst in humanity. At least, that’s how the story goes. It is not a completely unfair assessment (for the most part). But the demonizing of the Republican party, in light of the giant email server in the room, is something that comes off as disingenuous (if I’m kind).

Let’s turn off all the bright lights for a second. Let’s stop with all the fear mongering and race baiting. With all the lionizing and pontificating. The question is, simply, does Hillary Clinton really, truly want my vote (as a staunch Bernie supporter)?

To answer this, let’s look at who a Bernie sanders supporter is. The Hillary campaign, as well as all of her surrogates, have correctly pointed out that a Sanders supporter is most likely white, and most likely young. That’s a bit like saying that a firetruck is most likely red and has sirens. Yet both examples do not elucidate beyond that. Well, allow me. A firetruck, at it’s heart, is built to fight fires. A Sanders supporter, at their heart, has zero-patience for phonies (real or imagined, I will grant that), and they swoon for authenticity.

That’s it. That’s the secret. I promise you, having been to several rallies and working 100+ hours as a phone banker and door-knocker, that this is the one ubiquitous truth in nearly any Sanders supporter. Which is why most Sandernistas see past both Clinton and Trump’s thinly veiled “authenticity”, to their identical thirsts for the oval office. This is why so many became furious when Robert Reich first broke Bernie-ranks and endorsed Clinton, then with Cenk Uygur, and so on and so forth. For a moment, it came to a head at Elizabeth Warren. But Sanders supporters weren’t wrong to be upset; they felt betrayed. They were betrayed. And finally, the last, ultimate betrayal came from Bernie Sanders, himself, with his much more forceful endorsement of Clinton on the penultimate night, although it still did not ring believable to most of his followers, compounded by the fact that we know that in our hearts that he did not sell out. He simply saw no other way forward and genuinely fears a Donald Trump with his grotesque finger on the nuclear trigger.

So, why mention all of this? Because, if Hillary wants the Sanders vote, she has to become authentic, or at the very least, try as hard as she can to sound authentic. That 68% untrustworthy rating? In large part, it came to her being too proud — too certain that she was the nominee. Nearly in every debate, she began half of her responses and rebuttals with “Ya know…” which is “you probably don’t know this”-lite. When asked if she was worried about Sanders catching up, she would time and time again begin with an unabashed cackle. She deflected tough questions, danced around yes or no answers, and when accused of something untoward or skirting the line of legality, would invariably blame her predecessors or colleagues for doing the same.

And all along the way, Sandernistas and Bernie Bros continued to endure defamation, ridicule, and plain-old open hostility. They were called petulant and fringy (even after the leaked emails showed that, infact, there had been definite collusion between the DNC and Hillary Clinton to discredit Sanders at every turn).

And what was the result of all these scandals being exposed? The pro-Hillary noise became louder. Since the scandals had gone from din to bullhorn, the cacophony of noise from the Establishment, media, and Clinton supporters had risen to deafening proportions in an attempt to drown it out, strategically sharing headroom with newfound warmness towards the Senator from Vermont.

I will tell you that I despise the campaign that was run by Clinton. I despise the unbridled, hurtful rhetoric that was carelessly lobbed at any Sanders supporter who voiced dissatisfaction with how the game was run. I despise the dewy, unimpressive warm fuzziness towards Sanders from the heads of the DNC, now that he’s out of the running.

I will also tell you that I can still be convinced to vote for Hillary, and I’m sure that many of my fellow Sanders supporters will feel the same — if.

If Hillary Clinton admits to her faults. If the media admits to Hillary’s faults. If more sincerely felt apologies were given out to progressives that were betrayed by the very system meant to uplift them (much like the recently issued apology by the DNC). If those who wish for us to vote for Hillary can show as much “bravery” and “class” as Mr. Sanders did in his endorsement, by admitting that their candidate is deeply flawed and not some sort of misunderstood heroine, then I think that our coldness can be thawed. But only authenticity can thaw it. Only humility — asking for forgiveness — can undo the months of consternation and oppression.

We know that Donald Trump is a horrendous figure, one impressively unsuited for the position of Most Powerful Person in the World. But telling us that we must fall in line behind a person who has flip-flopped on every major issue that she felt forced to adopt from Sanders, without even admitting that he moved her further to the left (at least, on the face of a campaign), will not work.

If you want us to swallow a giant piece of humble pie, you get first bite. You want Sanders supporters to be persuaded? Embody that which wins them over in droves: honesty.