I was going to write a post on the latest from HRC but Campos pretty much covers it.
I can understand Clinton’s bitterness, and her assessment of the worst of the Bernie Bros is of course correct, but saying you’re withholding judgment on whether you’ll support Sanders in the general against Trump is really bad, whether it’s a tactical gesture or not (I will assume it is but even so JFC).
It trivializes the threat that Trump’s potential re-election represents, and it’s a reminder that yeah in fact Clinton has been unnecessarily chummy with all sorts of scumbags throughout her career, very much including Trump himself. (The Clintons’ willingness to attend Donald Trump’s third wedding in 2005 was the kind of gesture that lent this demi-gangster fraud a sheen of social respectability he never deserved, as Trump himself was eminently aware at the time, which is precisely why he invited them).
In addition to what Campos said, from a position of political power, this is not a smart move. If Bernie wins the primary, crow will have to be eaten, and eating crow is not a power move. If Bernie wins the primary and loses the general, you’re gonna get some blame. And what is to be gained from this statement? As Campos goes on to point out, the likelihood that Clinton’s advice will move voters who weren’t already inclined not to vote for Sanders is pretty much nil. And, unlike Twitter, there are a lot of Democrats who have Bernie as a first choice, and Warren and even Biden as another choice. The Iowa caucus is all about your second choice if your first choice doesn’t get enough votes. So why piss off Bernie voters now?