Psst, Amy, It’s Time To Get To Work

Right now, in my fantasy world, Joe Biden would be telling Senator Any Klobuchar that in 2016, Jill Stein, the Green Party candidate, captured 22,000+ votes in six counties that were won by Hilary Clinton! Here they are: Dakota (2,678), Hennepin (10,310), Olmstead (1,117), Ramsey (4,560), St. Louis (1,878) and Washington (1,478).

But, my fantasies extend a little further. I’m wishing that Joe Biden were a bit more like Lyndon Johnson. If Johnson were the candidate today, it would be a one way conversation.

Lyndon Johnson: “I want those votes, Amy, and if you can’t deliver them, then what good are you to the Democratic ticket. It’s not complicated. Jill Stein voters should be my voters and I want every God-damned one of them. Now, go get them and don’t come back until you do.”

Amy Klobachar: “I’m going to do everything I can.”

Lyndon Johnson: “Every you can? Really. You had a lead of 29% in Minnesota and you quit. You even got 41,000 votes AFTER you dropped out. Well, there’s no quitting now. Your life in the Democratic Party is on the line here. If you can’t deliver Minnesota, forget about running for President. Now, you’ve got 60 days to capture those 20,000 Jill Stein’s voters. I want a cushion in Minnesota. I don’t want you thinking about anything else, or doing anything else. All I want to hear from you is what you need from me to grab those voters. Are you with me because, if you’re not, I’ll call Keith Ellison and he’d do handstands to get me the votes I want. So, Amy, what’s it going to be?”

Amy: “I’ll deliver the votes Joe. I’ll deliver.”

After Amy walks out of the room, our fantasy candidate Lyndon is putting in a calling Keith Ellison.

Lyndon: “Keith, it’s Lyndon. Why don’t you and I have a little talk.”

The sad truth is that Democrats don’t traditionally have the same thirst for the jugular that is so typical of Trumpers (and Republicans post-Lee Atwater). But, that’s what is needed in every state, in every county. Names should be taken, failure should not be forgotten or forgiven. It’s now or never. Every Democratic politician will be judged forever on what he or she does in the next sixty days. If Trump wins, the only Democratic survivors will be those who can say that they succeeded in the contest against him. No other Democrat will matter.