Enough Already!

A subtle hint for the newest entry into the 2020 Democratic primaries, billionaire Tom Steyer. Go Home! And while you’re at it, take that loopy Oracle of Delphi, Marianne Williamson with you. We’re trying to conduct some serious business here.

So Tom Steyer wants to be the next President of the United states, and he’s willing to spend $100 million to do it, huh? i have a question for you Mr Steyer. Are you sure that you’re thinking of the right party here? There are candidate like Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren who won’t take special interest money, hell, Warren won’t even hold fundraisers, and the DNC included a debate qualification criteria for small, grassroots fundraising to make it easier for candidates to get onto the stage. And yet you want to come riding in on a white charger like Shane, checkbooks blazing, to save the town of Democracy from the wicked, evil Hole-In-The-Head-Gang? Give me a break!

The last time I looked, there were Democratic candidates for President who were running in part on getting big money out of the political process!  About 8 months ago, the entire freakin’ Democratic party publicly celebrated the victories of grassroots, small donor driven House candidates who overpowered entrenched incumbents with deep pockets. And now you want to carpet bomb the airwaves in every early primary state and beyond, drowning out the voices of highly qualified candidates, just to stoke your ego, and make your point that nobody messes with Tom Steyer?

Those of you who read me regularly know that I have not been a fan of Tom Steyer and his tactics since day one. Sure there are many people who want Trump’s overstuffed ass out of the Oval Office, but polling shows that they’re in the minority. By spending millions of dollars in what is to Steyer Monopoly Money to pimp his online impeachment petition, Steyer has given them an oversized bullhorn, and this amplified minority is making it difficult for Nancy Pelosi and senior leadership to make sensible political decisions.

There are so many ways that this can hurt the Democratic party. First, even an egomaniac like Michael Bloomberg determined that this was not a political environment conducive for a billionaire to run for President as a liberal, yet here comes Steyer, crashing around like Frankenstein’s monster in the countryside. Second, the image itself is terrible. The Democrats are surrounding the White House, with pitchforks and torches, over an inept, bungling, unqualified billionaire mucking up the body politic of this country, and here comes our own Bigfoot, wanting to trade out one elitist goof for another. Third, the entry of Steyer into the race gives Trump the greatest gift of all, a poster child to use to rally his base around. Whom better for Trump to rally all of the mouth breathers and conspiracy nuts in his base against than the very guy who has literally spent millions to get Glorious Bleater removed from office?

But the greatest damage that Steyer can do will be done within the Democratic party itself, and he will do damage. Right now there are well qualified second tier candidates out there, like Cory Booker, Amy Klobuchar, and Kirsten Gillibrand, busting their collective asses off to get their messages heard. Steyer will drown them all out with massive ad buys in early states. And worse yet, in the process maybe disgust early primary voters with his assault to the point where they tune out completely. Steyer will make the debate stage in September by dint of polling, and doesn’t care if he doesn’t. Not when he can buy every ad slot for every commercial break at every debate. Let me ask you one simple question. Which is worse, the media tilting the coverage to Trump in 2016 voluntarily because of his “novelty value,” or Tom Steyer just buying it all up because he can?

Tom Steyer, you selfish bastard. You’re no better than Robert Mercer, Shelly Adelsen, or the Koch brothers, and you just proved it. The other 340 million of us or so be damned. You have the money, so you’ll tell us what’s in our best interest, and who is in the best position to tell us what’s best for the rest of us. Screw that. Just go home, and take your billions with you. We’ll work it out just fine on our own, thank you very much. And please, do let the door hit you in the ass on the way out.