Oscar-winning actress and activist Susan Sarandon spoke up to defend an organizer of a People’s Convention that saw nearly half a million Americans pledge opposition to the two-party duopoly – and is getting eviscerated for it.
Sarandon expressed her support for People’s Convention co-founder Ryan Knight on Twitter on Tuesday, reigniting the hatred of liberals who blamed her outspoken support and campaigning for Democratic Socialist Bernie Sanders for Hillary Clinton’s loss in 2016.
Knight has been attacked relentlessly by Biden supporters over the past few days over his support for a “party that represents the people.”
While he backs Green and Socialist Party nominee Howie Hawkins for president in 2020, he has been open about his transformation from a voter-shaming Hillary Clinton Democrat in 2016 – Twitter handle @ProudResister – into what his current Twitter handle calls a @ProudSocialist.
However, some have held up his past centrism as proof he’s a “grifter” or suggested he’s a Russian-controlled infiltrator who has been “activated” in order to meddle in the 2020 election.
But it was Sarandon’s vote of confidence that triggered Biden supporters to a truly cosmic degree, unleashing torrents of hate not seen since, well, 2016. “Trump endorses this message,” Vox reporter Aaron Rupar snarked, referring to the actress’ tweet in support of Knight.
Sarandon is helping Trump “destroy America for Putin,” as one Twitter pundit put it.
Many blamed Sarandon’s privilege – being white and rich, they reasoned, she could afford to weather the fallout from a second Trump term.
Some went beyond blaming Sarandon for Trump’s 2016 victory, arguing her ‘traitorous’ support for a third party had even opened the door to Republican War on Terror firestarter George W. Bush’s victory over Democrat Al Gore in 2000 – a reaction which raised several eyebrows even in 2020’s mudslinging political climate.
Others pointed out Democrats had gone down this road before, to less-than-stellar results. “We tried everything – mocking poor people AND yelling about Susan Sarandon!” one user tweeted sarcastically, doing an impression of 2016’s liberal pundits post-election: “I just don’t know what else we could have done!”
Biden, like Clinton, doesn’t need Sarandon’s “help” to lose the election, they argued, suggesting if centrist Democrats actually listened to voters like her the country would be in a very different place.
Between piling on Sarandon, raising the alarm about “Russian meddling” without any proof it’s taking place, and circling the wagons to protect Biden from accusations of failing health, the 2020 election is lousy with echoes of 2016.
More than a few liberal doomsayers have warned Biden’s apparent polling lead could be a figment of Democrats’ imagination, among them documentary-maker Michael Moore, who also predicted Trump’s win in 2016 despite polls claiming Clinton had a 98 percent chance of taking the White House.
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Published by Rt.com
Republished by The 21st Century
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