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Bernie Sanders Tag

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on September 06, 2015 7 Comments
As Hillary lags in the polls and her unfavorables soar, Draft Biden makes significant moves in Iowa. The Hill reports:
The group urging Vice President Joe Biden to launch a 2016 bid for the Democratic presidential nomination announced Friday that two longtime backers of Biden have signed on as co-chairs in the early-voting state of Iowa. . . . .  Draft Biden also announced on Friday that around a dozen Iowa elected officials have signed on to the effort as committee members, as well as a pair of political operatives, to direct organizing efforts in the state. The staff moves lend new credibility to the budding effort to convince the vice president to run against former secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the party’s front-runner. . . . .  The Draft Biden announcement on Friday also came on the same day that news emerged that Clinton's campaign would spend $4 million in ads in Iowa and New Hampshire over the next two months.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on September 02, 2015 26 Comments
Does calling it 'Democratic Socialism' make it less socialisty? Nah. Not really. But that doesn't stop Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders from pretending there's a difference. "What Democratic Socialism is about, is having a government which reflects the interests of the ordinary people, rather than is currently the case, the billionaire class," explained Sanders.
Bernie Sanders Explains Why You Shouldn't Be Scared Of The Ter...Bernie Sanders explains why you shouldn't be scared of the term 'socialism' Posted by NowThis on Monday, August 31, 2015

Posted by Mike LaChance on August 31, 2015 7 Comments
Bernie Sanders is getting hit from his left on gun control. Vermont is a very blue state, but it's also rural and has plenty of gun owners. Yesterday on CNN, he assured Jake Tapper and, by extension, progressive Democratic primary voters that he strongly believes in greater gun control:
Bernie Sanders says he's 'strong' on gun control Bernie Sanders says he favors gun control measures just as strongly as his Democratic presidential rivals, touting his rural-state roots as key to his chances of enacting "real, constructive" legislation. In an interview with CNN's Jake Tapper Sunday on "State of the Union," the Vermont senator touted his career "D-" rating from the National Rifle Association. Sanders also played up his differences on policy issues with Hillary Clinton and hit national Democrats for a debate calendar he said is too restrictive during the interview.

Posted by Mike LaChance on August 22, 2015 5 Comments
It looks like Bernie Sanders learned something from his recent run-in with #BlackLivesMatter in Seattle because he's now taking great pains to reach out to black voters. Vanessa Williams of the Washington Post:
Bernie Sanders looks to broaden his appeal in South Carolina Bernie Sanders fired up a lively crowd of supporters Friday as he began a campaign swing through this early primary state that seven years ago helped to boost the candidacy of another senator who many thought couldn’t beat the odds of winning the presidency. Sanders even made reference to President Obama’s historic election in 2008 as evidence that the country “has in fact made real progress of overcoming our legacy of historical racism … But the bad news is racism still remains a much too real part of American life.”

Posted by Mike LaChance on August 15, 2015 10 Comments
Plenty of people in political media are taking note of the large crowds Bernie Sanders is drawing at his events, but at the end of the day, it still might not be enough for Sanders to trounce Clinton. Philip Bump of the Washington Post recently took a hard look at the numbers:
100,000 people have attended Bernie Sanders events this month. That doesn’t mean much. Some 28,000 people attended Bernie Sanders's rally in Portland, Ore., on Sunday -- both in the venue and watching outside. The Fix's Chris Cillizza marveled at the turnout. "28,000 people! In August! Of an off year!" Cillizza wrote. "I mean, that is a lot. A LOT." It's an amount that exceeds one out of every 10 people who voted for Barack Obama in 2012 in Multnomah County, in fact. And then, the next day, Sanders pulled the same number in Los Angeles -- meaning that in seven events since July 1, Sanders spoke before 100,000 people. So what does this mean? I hate to say it -- and I hate to rain on Sanders' well-attended parade -- but: It doesn't mean a whole lot.

Posted by Mike LaChance on August 09, 2015 30 Comments
For the second time in a month, Bernie Sanders has been derailed by Black Lives Matter activists. The last time was at the Netroots Nation conference in Phoenix. This time it was at a campaign rally in Seattle, WA. John Wagner of the Washington Post reports:
Bernie Sanders leaves Seattle stage after event disrupted by Black Lives Matter protesters A planned speech in Seattle by presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders celebrating the anniversary of Social Security and Medicare was scuttled Saturday after protesters from Black Lives Matter took the stage and demanded that the crowd hold Sanders “accountable” for not doing enough, in their view, to address police brutality and other issues on the group’s agenda... Shortly after the senator from Vermont started speaking, a small group of protesters took the microphone, shared a series of local grievances with the crowd, including school disparities and gentrification in Seattle, and then asked for a period of silence to commemorate the one-year anniversary of Michael Brown being shot and killed during a confrontation with a police officer in Ferguson, Mo.

Posted by Mike LaChance on July 26, 2015 19 Comments
Vermont's "independent" "Socialist" Senator Bernie Sanders may have a lock on the left-wing vote but Hillary Clinton is doing everything she can to stop his rise. In so doing, the ultimate crony capitalist is demonstrating, once again, that she has no core set of beliefs other than in obtaining power. Hillary is adopting Sanders' platform attacking capitalism not because she believes it, but because she hears Bernie's footsteps gaining on her in the polls. In a recent speech at NYU, Hillary Clinton claimed that capitalism needs a reset and proposed changes to capital gains taxes. Tory Newmyer of Fortune reports:
Hillary Clinton: Capitalism is out of balance, needs a reset Hillary Clinton wants to hike capital gains taxes as part of her plan to discourage short-term thinking among corporate executives and investors. The Democratic presidential front-runner laid out her plan to retool the tax treatment of investment earnings on Friday as part of an ongoing series of speeches fleshing out her economic program. She proposed extending from one to two years the period that top earners would need to hang on to an investment before seeing the 39.6% tax rate applied to it start to fall. And she would lower the rate slowly, over a six year period, down to the 24% rate for longer-term investments — a tweak that she said would help refigure a system that’s bent itself out of shape over the last few decades. Capitalism itself, she said, “needs to be reinvented, it needs to be put back into balance.”

Posted by William A. Jacobson on July 18, 2015 28 Comments
One of the big secrets of the Democratic Party is the deep racial tension between the mostly white elite progressive leaders and activists "of color." We examined this in detail in 2011, Dem Base Fractures Into Twitter War And Charges Of Racism Against Professional Left. In that post, we documented the Twitter war between black activists and Joan Walsh of Salon.com and Jane Hamsher of Firedoglake:
What is clear is that there is a growing fissure in the Democratic “base” over criticism by the (mostly White) Professional Left, as reflected in this Twitter exchange:
Those tensions have simmered for the past several years, and grown in the past year as the #BlackLivesMatters movement insisted that its voice was not being heard even within progressive circles.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on July 13, 2015 23 Comments
She said she's not running. Ready for Warren and MoveOn.org have gone to spend the Weekend at Bernie Sanders, the stand-in for who progressives really want, Elizabeth Warren. Bernie!? Really? Is an open Socialist really going to stand a chance in a general election? And weakness in the Hillary campaign may be just what is needed for the Democratic Party to grovel for a Warren entry, writes Doug Shoen, The potentially mortal threat to Hillary’s candidacy:
Pundits have focused recently on Hillary Clinton’s narrowing lead in polls among a group of less well known Republicans, along with voters' growing skepticism about her integrity. But a much more immediate threat to her electability is beginning to appear: in the last few weeks, Clinton has lost significant ground in both New Hampshire and Iowa to socialist Bernie Sanders....
But Sanders isn't a viable national candidate, so who will Democrats turn to if Hillary continues to falter? Schoen sees the need for a new Bobby Kennedy. Who’s the Bobby Kennedy in this race? Elizabeth Warren, say Schoen.

Posted by Mike LaChance on July 12, 2015 16 Comments
Did you know that Anthony Weiner, aka Carlos Danger, writes a regular column for Business Insider? In his latest piece, he wonders why Bernie Sanders, who's an independent socialist, is running for the Democratic nomination. This is pretty entertaining stuff:
ANTHONY WEINER: I have one big question for Bernie Sanders Apart from the Donald Trump sideshow, one of the biggest stories in the presidential election this past week has been the apparent momentum Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) is enjoying in his underdog campaign. Sanders has been drawing crowds of thousands at his rallies and is quickly becoming the main primary rival of Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton. I totally get Bernie Mania. However, I’m deeply conflicted about it. My wife works for Hillary so there’s that. But I’m also torn because I don’t really understand what he is doing.
It's good that Weiner admitted that last part. After all, he is married to Huma Abedin, one of Hillary Clinton's most trusted aides.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on June 17, 2015 18 Comments
Hillary might have her work cut out for her after all. A new poll shows Sen. Sanders narrowing Hillary's gap in the sparsely populated Democratic presidential primary field... at least in New Hampshire. According to a poll released by Morning Consult, Hillary's lead in New Hampshire has dwindled to 12 points over the Vermont's socialist hero. The same percentage of respondents indicated they're currently undecided. Bernie Sanders gaining on Hillary Clinton in New Hampshire polling 2016 presidential election

Posted by Mike LaChance on June 09, 2015 14 Comments
Hillary Clinton's made-to-order nomination for 2016 may not be as safe as she thought. Once again, many people in the far left base of the Democratic Party, i.e. primary voters, are rejecting Mrs. Clinton for a progressive upstart from the senate. Jonathan Topaz of Politico:
Wisconsin straw poll surprise: A narrow Clinton win Hillary Clinton is crushing the rest of the Democratic presidential field in national polls, but over the weekend, in a Wisconsin straw poll, there was reason to give the Clinton camp pause and the Bernie Sanders camp hope — Sanders scored a strong second-place finish with 41 percent of the vote, to Clinton’s 49 percent. The Vermont senator, a self-described democratic socialist and a long shot for the White House, received 208 of 511 delegate votes at the Wisconsin Democratic Party convention in Milwaukee on Saturday, while Clinton won votes from 252 of the delegates, leaving her just short of a majority. Vice President Joe Biden and former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, who announced his candidacy late last month, each received 3 percent of the vote. Former Virginia Sen. Jim Webb, who is considering a bid, won 2 percent, while former Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee, who announced his long-shot candidacy last week, received 1 percent.
Professor Jacobson noted this story yesterday on Twitter:

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on June 05, 2015 20 Comments
With the media busy normalizing socialism for Bernie Sanders, it's no wonder that few are reporting on his latest plan to spend $5.5 billion to employ a million young people. Bloomberg has the details:
The Employ Young Americans Now Act is the sort of legislation that would have struggled even in a Democratic Congress. In a Capitol controlled by Republicans, it might as well propose taxing churches to pay for sex reassignment surgeries on a moon base. The legislation, introduced by Michigan Representative John Conyers, would create a $5.5 billion fund, $4 billion earmarked for the employment of people between 16 and 24, $1.5 billion for job training grants. There are no pay-fors. It would ask a Congress that is dead-set against "big government" to employ people, with the help of big government.

Posted by Mike LaChance on June 03, 2015 26 Comments
Have you noticed that the same media that uses words like "extreme" to describe Ted Cruz, Scott Walker, and other Republicans finds nothing out of the ordinary when it comes to Bernie Sanders? Sanders, who wants a 90% tax rate for the wealthiest Americans, and recently came under fire for a 1972 column describing female rape fantasies, describes himself as a socialist---yet the media treats him like a viable candidate for 2016. Socialism is the most important aspect of Sanders' political identity and goes a long way in helping us understand the media's kid-glove treatment of him. Jennifer Harper of the Washington Times:
The Bernie Effect: Media normalize socialism There’s yet another trend in the trendy news media, identified by more than one concerned critic. Consider a new Investor’s Business Daily editorial titled “The soft-soaping of socialism in the U.S.” The publication focuses on the happy-go-lucky press coverage of a certain Vermont independent making a vigorous run for the White House as a Democrat.

Posted by Mike LaChance on May 01, 2015 9 Comments
Vermont senator Bernie Sanders has announced his bid for the Democratic nomination in 2016 and the left couldn't be happier about it. After all, who needs a socialist in disguise like Elizabeth Warren when you can have a candidate who openly identifies as one? Sanders has come out swinging at Hillary Clinton and some far left publications are making legitimate points about his candidacy. Patrick Caldwell of Mother Jones:
Bernie Sanders Has Already Taken More Press Questions Than Hillary Clinton Unlike Hillary Clinton, his rival for the Democratic presidential nomination, Bernie Sanders didn't use a splashy, big-budget video to announce his campaign. Instead, the Vermont senator opted for a series of one-on-one television interviews Wednesday followed by a low-key launch event outside the US Capitol Thursday morning. "I believe that in a democracy, what elections are about are serious debates over serious issues," he said Thursday. "Not political gossip, not making campaigns into soap operas. This is not the Red Sox vs. the Yankees, this is the debate over major issues facing the American people."
Watch Sanders talk about his challenge to Hillary Clinton in the clip below: Progressives are fired up.

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on April 29, 2015 12 Comments
The Los Angeles Daily News reports that Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders will officially toss his hat into the presidential ring Thursday. The self-described 'democratic socialist' is currently 73-years-old, making Sanders just a few years older than Hillary Clinton who is now 67. Former Rhode Island Governor, Lincoln Chafee, who seems to have dropped off the map after kind of sort of announcing candidacy, is 62-years-old. Though he's registered as an independent, all accounts suggest Sanders will run on the Democratic ticket. According to Vermont's NPR News Source, the first to report Sanders' forthcoming candidacy:
VPR News has learned from several sources that Independent U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders will announce his candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination on Thursday. Sanders will release a short statement on that day and then hold a major campaign kickoff in Vermont in several weeks. Sanders' entry into the Democratic race ensures that Hillary Clinton will face a challenge to win the support of the liberal wing of the party. Sanders' basic message will be that the middle class in America has been decimated in the past two decades while wealthy people and corporations have flourished.
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