Former President Barack Obama warned his party that it’s pushing too far left too fast, saying the average American supports our current political and economic system and does not want it torn down.
“Even as we push the envelope and we are bold in our vision, we also have to be rooted in reality,” Obama said Friday while addressing the Democracy Alliance. “The average American doesn’t think we have to completely tear down the system and remake it. They just don’t want to see crazy stuff.”
The comments were a not-so-veiled attack on two 2020 Democratic presidential front-runners, Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders. Sanders has promised a political “revolution,” while Warren has vowed to enact “big, structural change.” Both have also said they would eliminate private healthcare insurance options in favor of a “Medicare for all” system.
Obama said voters are “rightly” being cautious in how they view policy changes because “they don’t have a lot of margin for error.” He argued that the 2020 Democrats should not mistake “bold and creative” for actual leadership.
The former president also warned about the party’s leftward shift in an appearance he made last month.
“This idea of purity and you’re never compromised and you’re always politically woke and all that stuff — you should get over that quickly,” he said. “The world is messy. There are ambiguities. People who do really good stuff have flaws.”
