2016 Postmortem
In reply to the discussion: Hillary Supporters' strategy becomes clear [View all]jeff47
(26,549 posts)And barring a miracle, the Republicans will control the House until at least 2022.
So if Clinton wins, we're in for years of government shutdown and debt limit battles that can only be "won" by fucking over Democrats.
The problem isn't Republican politicians - there are plenty who would negotiate in good faith. The problem is Republicans and Fox have been telling the Republican base that Clinton is Satan incarnate for the last 20 years, and the base believes them. Thus anything Clinton supports would instantly be loathed by the base as if it was proposed by Satan. Even the "Puppies and Kittens Are Cute Act of 2017".
Meanwhile, O'Malley and Sanders would "only" be despised at "generic Democrat" levels. They'd be evil socialists just like every other Democrat since there is not 20 years of utter hatred built in the base for them. They will still face opposition from the party that doesn't actually want to govern, but it will not be to the degree faced by Clinton.
After all, the Benghazi committee's still running. And the base loves it. Even after Clinton's testimony.