I’ve been thinking about the mistakes the electoral left made in the 2020 campaign, and going scorched earth against Elizabeth Warren and her supporters really was one of the biggest ones.

I’m not saying building a common front would have been easy, but at the end of the day it would have made the Sanders campaign stronger and more supple. More capable of pivoting in February to consolidate support.

Since the left training their fire on Warren ultimately had little to do with her fading in the polls, I would imagine the campaign dynamics in January and February would have been somewhat similar, but without the eruption of bad blood between Sanders and Warren.

Even if this was the case—which it was not—building an electoral coalition has to go beyond “if you hit us we’ll fucking destroy you.” https://twitter.com/foxhoundintern/status/1246063520841637889?s=20

And if you’re going to insist on doing that, at least hold off on that UNTIL YOU ACTUALLY WIN!

All of this “bend the knee” horseshit came well before actually capturing institutional power!

At the end of the day, there was an opportunity to build an actual popular front both against fascism and neoliberalism.

I believed it was our best shot at actually changing things in 2020, but that it demanded discipline and a thick skin.

This is why I donated to both Warren and Sanders in the primary, *and* why, when Sanders pulled ahead in February, I threw my weight behind him.

Maybe that popular front was never actually possible.

But its failure was sealed by missteps, flawed assumptions, undue arrogance, and, on the dirtbag left side, more than a smidge of misogyny.

I want to add that I’m writing this—in case it isn’t obvious—because I’m VERY upset about Bernie losing, and I think the consequences are going to be bad.

Biden is a poor candidate, will make a poor president, and the electoral left is spent as a national force for some time.*

I’m trying to write through WHY, despite being in a strong position in early February, Bernie wasn’t able to put together a winning coalition. Lessons for the future.