Dear #BernieOrBust or Bernie Brothers or #AnyoneButHer,
Welcome to what was the reality for every Hillary supporter in 2008 after a long-fought battle with a senator from Illinois.
After a different hard-fought battle that lasted the entirety of the caucus and primary season for the Democrats, and after 57.6 million people headed to the polls, one person was victorious in clinching the Democratic nomination.
You lost.
Yeah, that sucks. You lost at the last moment, and you didn't lose by much. All these things and more are true. You’re hurt, disappointed and angry at a system that didn’t work the way you wanted or hoped. You spent countless hours volunteering or spent your hard-earned money on contributions to the Sanders’ campaign. You stayed up countless nights watching coverage of primaries in states that you never usually think about.
You felt inspired by a presidential candidate — something that hasn't happened in a very long time. Maybe this is the first election you’re going through as an eligible voter, and your choice for President of the United States fell short.
The odds were stacked against you, and it seems like you were cheated.
Whether you were or not, that is not what this article is about. I’m not here to argue about the DNC unfairly treating the Sanders campaign or the lack of coverage Bernie received throughout his campaign, and please don’t ask me about those damn Hillary emails.
There's one thing you need to understand: you can’t complain about the rules of the game once the game is over. Bernie’s campaign did so many things for our party. It highlighted flaws in the system we use that decide our nominee. Because of Bernie Sanders, there will be a reorganization of the DNC administration.
This is a plea, however desperate, to support the candidate most qualified and most able to defeat Donald Trump in November.
The idealist in all of us says that anyone can be President of the United States. The naïve me says you should vote with your heart, and if that means voting for candidates that no one has heard of from a Libertarian or Green party, then go for it.
The realist in all of us should say that we only have one shot. We don’t get to re-do this election day in November. If Trump wins, he wins. There is no Ctrl+Z, no eraser to try again later. This is not a faulty Nintendo game, you can't just hit "reset."
The point of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) this year has been two-fold. One, we need to get excited about this election and encourage voters out there to contribute to the candidate’s campaign so that he/she may have the resources needed to campaign effectively.
Of course, the second and most important goal of the DNC is to unify the party. As much as I might differ in opinion with die-hard Bernie supporters, we need each other. I need you to vote with us in November. I need you to help me elect a President whose values closely align with Bernie Sanders’.
This is likely one of the most important elections I will ever live through, and the same is true for you.
You have the power to vote out of principle, but there is no honor in that. I need you to understand that there is only one candidate that can defeat Trump, and we cannot have a Trump presidency.
You have so much power this election season. You literally have the power to decide who the most powerful person in the world is. I just hope you make the right choice.
