#runwarrenrun

From everything I know, running for president is really, really hard. Most sane people would hate doing it. So I completely understand why my friend and former colleague Elizabeth Warren has, to date, declined to run.

She should reconsider.

For the thing that she speaks so powerfully about — a rigged system — is rigged precisely because of the corruption caused by the way we fund campaigns. And yet, there is a significant chance that we Democrats will have a primary without any candidate who would even mention the issue, let alone commit to reform that might address it. 

Hillary Clinton is incredibly strong and incredibly smart. In normal times, she’d make an extraordinary president. But these are not normal times. And the corrupt system we have now was birthed under her husband’s watch. She (and he) have depended upon it to get to the place she is now. She had nothing but impatient scorn for Obama and Edwards when they pressed the issue in 2008. And she has offered nothing to demonstrate that she either gets it or cares about addressing it. Everything indicates that she believes she can govern effectively without removing this cancer that has compromised our democracy. 

She can’t. 

No one can (which is why we’re even seeing rumblings about the issue from the Right). And what we desperately need now is a contest that will force the issue into the center, and give us at least a chance of addressing it in 2016. 

Yet we're facing the prospect of a Democratic non-primary campaign, without a single debate, that generates a nominee who has not had to enlist the support of a grassroots movement. That's a dangerous prospect, not just for Democrats but for our democracy.

Senator Warren wouldn't just create the genuine, hard-fought primary contest that this country needs. She—and, I believe, she alone—could also galvanize the movement that we'll need if the next president of the United States is to have a prayer of actually taking on this the hardest, most important issue of our generation — because only by solving this can we solve anything else.

So this post is an announcement. First, an announcement that I believe Warren should run, and will do what I can to make it happen. And second, an announcement of the first thing I’m doing: On April 20, in New York City, at a major event hosted by MoveOn.org and the Run Warren Run campaign, I’ll give a speech that makes the case for why Warren should run. I'll be introduced by two friends and heroes of mine, Van Jones and Zephyr Teachout. And I’ll argue why all of us — Clinton supporters too — should want this contest now. Come if you can (tickets here) (or watch once video goes online if you can’t)—and whether or not you can make it, I hope you'll click over to RunWarrenRun.org and get involved. (Press inquiries) (General Inquiries)

I don't know whether Elizabeth Warren will run. I will respect her decision either way. But I do know this, because I saw it in the campaign to get her to run for Senate: there's always been one thing, and one thing only, that could convince her to take on a challenge. Not glory. Not power. Just one thing: the recognition that her jumping in is necessary to make a difference.

The more of us who speak up, the more clear it will be that this is just such a moment. That there’s a difference that only she can make, at a moment in our history when we desperately need that difference. 

Van Jones Might be Ready for Warren

Why Drafting Elizabeth Warren is a Plus | CNN:

In recent weeks, hundreds of thousands of Americans have joined a growing chorus urging Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren to run for president.