Bernie Sanders, the light in American politics – Esme Peters
Bernie Sanders, the light of my life, the lid on my dustbin, the beaming light against the disaster calling itself Trump.
In a democrat leadership race which will ultimately decide who goes up against Trump America have found themselves with the choice between BTEC Obama or the guy who once went on a march with Martin Luther King. Many are calling Bernie the ‘unity candidate’ whose values driven politics combine with a surprising tendency towards pragmatism.
However his credentials as a ‘progressive’ candidate have been warped by those in politics to mean ‘communist’ and ‘radical’. But a quick examination of his policies could easily change ones mind of such a label. As one political commentator commented, was he a Canadian politician he would’ve been prime minister 20 years ago and probably happily in retirement drinking peach schnapps (he just strikes me as that kinda guy, Beth has argued he’s a pornstar martini guy while Josie thinks he would lean towards a bloody mary). Instead he’s in America fighting for rights considered basic in many other western countries.
So his 2020 polices include (but are not restricted to) abolishing the death penalty, passing legislation to force states to lower their carbon emissions, providing children across the country free school meals, universal background checks on those wishing to buy guns, free medicare for all, few to no restrictions on abortion, legalisation of marijuana, halt funding for Trump’s wall.
What a beautiful time to be a liberal in America.
His campaign took a bit of a hit in last weeks super Tuesday, as while early projections had forecast he would win as many as eight out of 14 states and amass a significant lead in pledged delegates, voters delivered a more modest outcome. Bernie won four states, including delegate-rich California, and ended nearly tied with Joe Biden in total pledged delegates. Most worryingly for his campaign was that the hoped for youth turnout did not materialise, while Biden enjoyed a suburban surge similar to the one that handed Democrats the 2018 midterms. But as many commentators have observed – it is not yet over!
Super Tuesday does not reverse his victories in the earlier primaries, and Nevada in particular bodes well for his appeal among Latino voters, who are a key demographic in several undecided states. Attracting this group is key, not only in his fight against Biden but also in beating Trump, whose policies (most notably his wall) have been a cause of significant distress for many members of the Latino population. Furthermore as other democratic candidates continue to drop out Bernie seems to be amassing a lot of their support, for example Elizabeth Warren’s (my original favourite whose departure was tragic) supporters.
So Bernie, the ultimate political cutie, is in the democratic race. He is the first ‘progressive’ candidates since George McGoven who went up against Nixon, and lost. But I have a lot more hope for Bernie. The amount of support he has amassed has been pretty monumental because the reality is the current system of government isn’t working for a large majority of Americans. The poorest men in the US have the same life expectancy as men in Sudan, maternal mortality has more than doubled between 1991 and 2014 and the middle class has shrunk, people are desperate for an alternative to an increasingly dismal status quo. Bernie, to many Americans, is this alternative.
I wouldn’t be naive enough to bet money on him winning, but I think the support he has amassed has shown appetite for change, and change in a direction away from Trump. He is representative, in my opinion, of everything that is good in American politics.
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