Dems’ dilemma: Which old boss will lead party?

Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.

That’s the catch phrase from “Won’t Get Fooled Again,” a song released by the British rock band The Who nearly 50 years ago.

Back then, it was an ode to a younger generation’s frustration with politics as usual.

Well, it might have taken a half century, but politics as usual might finally get its comeuppance.

Meet the old boss, same as the new boss.

That’s Bernie Sanders. Because after Tuesday night’s Democratic presidential primary debate, he’s still the candidate to beat.

Yes, the 78-year-old Vermont socialist democrat has caught the fancy of the Millennial and Gen Z crowd, but can the radical left turn that he proposes for this country play beyond primaries dominated by the kind of committed ideologues that have fueled his campaign?

It’s the question — and fear — that was on the minds of the Democratic establishment hopefuls on that South Carolina debate stage not named Elizabeth Warren. While our senior senator from Massachusetts continued to torment billionaire Michael Bloomberg, the others took aim at Sanders.

Bernie took shots from reeling Joe Biden, quick-on-his-feet former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg and down-toearth Sen. Amy Klobuchar on myriad issues, from the astronomical cost of his Medicare-for-all program to his past support of gun-owners’ rights.

Sanders successfully parried most of those blows, leaving those moderates no better off for their efforts.

And since there are no other debates before the Super Tuesday primaries on March 3, Tuesday night’s showdown presented voters with their last group impression of these Democratic presidential hopefuls.

And the signs all still point to a Sanders presidential nomination.

Bernie was closing the gap on Biden in South Carolina going into Saturday’s primary. The former vice president had labeled the Palmetto State his firewall, due to its significant number of black voters.

A slim win or loss by Biden there should be his cue to end his campaign, which would be good news for the remaining centrists in the race.

It’s about panic time for the Democratic National Committee. It was able to derail Bernie’s 2016 bid in favor of Hillary Clinton, but it has yet to coalesce around a formidable Sanders alternative this time.

And it might be too late. There are 1,357 delegates up for grabs on Super Tuesday — one-third of the primary total — and Sanders is poised to make a significant haul, including the majority of the 415 from California, where he’s a comfortable favorite. Bernie could even upset Warren in her home state, which would hopefully dash her presidential ambitions.

While Buttigieg has projected an articulate stage presence, the 38-year-old who ran a city smaller than Lowell simply isn’t ready to assume the leadership of the free world. Klobuchar, a productive senator from Minnesota, would be someone’s ideal vice presidential running mate.

Only Bloomberg possesses the financial resources to compete with Sanders through the entire primary season.

Which means the 77-year-old former sometimes Republican mayor of New York gives the DNC its best chance of avoiding a socialist at the top of the ticket.

In either case, the new boss would be an old boss.