The debate over 'Bernie Bros' isn't about Bernie Sanders at all VOX

That’s what the earnest debunkers, whether they happen to support Bernie Sanders or not, are missing. When women talk about so-called "Bernie Bro" harassment on Twitter, just as when we talk about the sexism Clinton faces on the campaign trail and the not-so-subtle misogyny with which she’s discussed in TV news studios, we’re not really talking about who should be president. We’re talking about ourselves. About our own lives, our own frustrations, and the unfair barriers between us and the fulfillment of our own ambitions.

And so, when men inevitably show up to explain that we don’t know what we’re talking about, and to insist that it doesn’t matter anyway even if we’re right because we must have some ulterior motive for even mentioning this in the first place, and that Not All Men, and that perhaps it would be more constructive if we could just stop mentioning this, please and thank you, it doesn’t convince us that we were wrong.

Quite the opposite: It just provides yet another irritating example of the ways in which sexism is an all-too-available tool to those who are looking for an easy way to attack or silence women, whether they see that they are wielding it or not — and the ways in which the consequences for doing so are all too weakly and rarely felt.

This Progressive Doesn't Need Your Lectures National Memo

Have I mentioned lately how much I’m enjoying the lectures from self-avowed liberals who insist my respect for Hillary Clinton is proof that I am not a “real progressive”?

I haven’t had this much fun since I had my sinuses packed with 40 miles of gauze after polyp surgery.

It’s not just men — my sisters, you disappoint me — but it’s particularly entertaining when the reprimands come from young white men who were still braying for their blankies when I started getting paid to give my opinion. They popped out special, I guess.

If like so many progressive women, you are waiting to exhale, read the rest of Connie Schultz's (aka Mrs. Sherrod Brown, wife of the great progressive senator) 'just lettin' it rip' essay at The National Memo.

Hillary Clinton's Infamous 2001 Bankruptcy Vote

We shared months ago insights and history of Hillary Clinton's new senator vote for a bankruptcy law in 2001. As NY Mag overviews here, as First Lady Hillary Clinton met with then professor Elizabeth Warren and launched a campaign against the bill. It should be noted that many of Hillary's issues with the legislation revolved around a lack of protection for women and children.

This 2001 vote -- not her 2005 abstention from voting -- is a hot topic today .

As this Daily Kos article points out, Hillary Clinton worked hard to modify the bill. For example, she negotiated changes to the bill insuring that child support payments could not be discharged under the new law. She also eliminated a major loophole for the wealthy.

Hillary did vote for the 2001 bill in a Senate vote that passed 85-15. It died in the House and didn't actually become law until 2005, when Hillary abstained from voting. Reading more about Clinton's relationship with the financial industry as the Senator from New York, it's Sen. Chuck Schumer who did the heavy lifting on legislation.

We have not read all the particulars of this bill that was sponsored by Del. Senator Joe Biden. It's our impression that it was very easy to declare bankruptcy in America prior to the legislation. As the graph shows, bankruptcy rates were rising quite dramatically -- and for multiple reasons. It seems that progressives, led by Warren, were opposed to any bankruptcy reform as protecting the big banks. We have no opinion presently, not being informed enough on the issue to comment, but we are researching the topic in depth.

There's no protecting the big banks at AOC, but we are clear that both sides of the debate play loose with facts and the broader range of arguments around legislation.