Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1211430
13 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 16 FEBRUARY 2020 NEWS JOE BIDEN AMY KLOBUCHAR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG Former Vice-President, Senator, 77 Senator Minnesota, attorney, 58 Former mayor New York, billionaire, 77 BIDEN Restoring America's standing on the global stage; strengthening economic protections for low-income workers in industries like manufacturing and fast food BLOOMBERG Has been an outspoken voice on gun control and climate change, but his views on taxes would put him on the conservative end of the Democratic field BUTTIGIEG Has stressed his generational identity and focused on issues like cli- mate change and economic opportunity KLOBUCHAR Has championed legislation to combat the opioid crisis and drug ad- diction, and to address the cost of prescription drugs SANDERS "Medicare for all," free college tuition and curtailing the influence of "the billionaires" WARREN Income inequality and what she sees as a middle class under attack from big corporations and political corruption Source: New York Times Significant issues similar problem with black voters. "Iron- ically… it was the major reason he came up short versus Hillary Clinton. This time round, it seems Bernie's standing with Latinos and black voters has improved greatly." Billionaire with a war chest And then comes Super Tuesday on 3 March, when billionaire and former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg hopes his advertising spree will catapult him into contention. Super Tuesday tends to reward broad name recognition and familiarity and re- sources because candidates have less time to campaign in town-hall meetings as they did in Iowa and New Hampshire. Buttigieg may well be over-performing in rural areas. while Klobuchar is more dependent on suburban voters. But to stay on in the race candidates need funding. Buttigieg has increasingly become the tar- get of criticism by the Sanders and War- ren camps that Wall Street and billionaires back him. But Sammut points out that a public list of contributors shows that only 0.2% of the funds came from "billionaires" and that over 800,000 people collectively donated over $75 million so far. "This may sound like a massive amount but in fact it may soon run out if people do not do- nate in the run-up to Super Tuesday when many states vote on the same day." Despite Buttigieg's courtship of some of America's richest people, which reported- ly netted him some 40 contributions from billionaires and their spouses, he trailed Sanders by nearly $10 million in the last quarter of 2019. On this count Michael Bloomberg's end- less flow of money may have an advantage. Bloomberg missed the initial primaries but will contest the big states on Super Tues- day. And wins in both Nevada and South Carolina could bolster Biden's momen- tum before Super Tuesday, where he is especially strong among black voters, who prevail among Democrats in South Caro- lina. Brendan Zerafa says this primary will be one to watch. "Whilst I believe that Joe Biden's time is up, we still need to see the outcome of the South Carolina vote, which Biden is using as his firewall." Biden's single-digit performance in New Hampshire was a demoralising blow, and has raised more doubts on his viability as a candidate. Regarded as the Democrats front-runner for months, benefitting from name recognition as Obama's vice-presi- dent and appeal to working class voters, he may have lost his sheen. And on Super Tuesday the Latino vote is expected to flex its muscle. California and Texas have not just the largest Hispanic populations, but they bring the greatest number of delegates. While Bloomberg may have the most resources to stop Sanders, the Wall Street billionaire's candidature further ener- gises Sanders supporters, Zerafa notes. "Bloomberg has shown himself to be willing to invest in adverts and so far he has spent more than $300 million in this regard. His strong financial war chest allows him to do this and as a result, he's being rewarded by ever-increasing support nationwide." Questions have been raised on Sanders's ability to take on Trump due to his iden- tification with democratic socialism, but his ability to communicate with rust belt voters may prove an asset. With a crowd- ed field, it is also possible that none of the candidates emerge victorious, leading to a possible brokered convention, where it will be the votes of so-called "super delegates", that will be decisive. But Zerafa believes that the race will eventually become polarised between Sanders and the establishment wing of the party. "If I had to guess now how the final result would be, I'd say that the race will likely develop to be Sanders vs. Buttigieg or Bloomberg". But he makes one important proviso. "A candidate that obtains a good vote in Iowa, might not necessarily obtain a good result in the Deep South. Likewise, a candidate that does really well in the Mid-West might not do well enough in California." What makes Pete a possibility Although Buttigieg faces an uphill strug- gle, he has so far defied the odds. Sammut does not hide her sympathies for Buttigieg, but backs her support with reasons which go beyond his Maltese origins. "I have followed Buttigieg long before he announced his presidential bid. Then I was more intrigued to see how the son of a well-known Gramscian scholar, Prof. Joseph Buttigieg, would roll out a political programme in the US context." Buttigieg is neither rich nor does he come from a well-established political family. Neither does he have any name recogni- tion whatsoever and his political experi- ence was limited to South Bend. "To top it all, homophobic quarters could have easily frustrated his effort," she adds. But his en- ergy, intellectual capabilities and commit- ment to public service seem to have com- pensated for all this. "In less than a year, Buttigieg has risen to achieve the biggest number of elected del- egates yet (a total of 12 delegates) and is in a close tie with Sanders when it comes to the popular vote… and now has a strong lead in the moderate lane of the Democrat- ic campaign that ultimately has the biggest support at a national level." Sammut sees Buttigieg leading a prin- cipled campaign, inviting his virtual and on-the-ground supporters to abide to the "Rules of the Road": respect; belonging; truth; teamwork; boldness; responsibility; substance; discipline, excellence and joy. "These in themselves are a sharp contrast with Trumpism, who is currently reigning supreme over the Republican camp."