Bernie Sanders Endorsement
Bernie Sanders is the longest serving independent in U.S. congressional history.
He began his lengthy career in politics by becoming the mayor of Vermont's largest city, Burlington in 1981. Sanders served four terms as the mayor of Burlington. He then moved onto a bigger platform as he became a congressional member in the United States House of Representatives.
During his time as a representative in the 90s, Bernie made copious strides toward ensuring civil liberties, civil rights, and economic stability. Sanders voted against the Defense of Marriage Act in 1996, which denied federal benefits to same-sex couples legally married (an act passed by President Bill Clinton and supported by wife Hillary). Sanders also voted against the North American Free Trade Agreement, which would allow American companies to flee to Mexico and hire workers there for smaller wages. This bill, against Sanders’s disapproval, passed and many American workers lost their jobs. In October of 2001, directly following the September 11 terrorist attacks, Sanders voted against the USA Patriot Act by saying“All of us want to protect the American people from terrorist attacks, but in a way that does not undermine basic freedoms.”
After serving as a congressman for 16 years, Sanders ran, and won a seat as a U.S. Senator representing the state of Vermont in 2006. While being a senator, Sanders worked to pass an amendment to an economic recovery bill preventing Wall Street banks that take taxpayer bailouts from replacing laid-off U.S. workers with exploited and poorly-paid foreign workers. Sanders was then re elected into the U.S. Senate in 2012 which is the office he is currently holding.
However, political activism and the yearn for drastic governmental reform is nothing new to Bernie. As the son of Polish immigrants, financial stability was not something Bernie grew up with. Living in a small, rented apartment in Brooklyn with his parents and brother Larry, money was tight. With hard work and dedication, Sanders was admitted into the University of Chicago where his leadership and advocacy for those being oppressed flourished. As a college student, Bernie became a Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) officer. Sanders led students in a lengthy sit in (multi-week) to oppose segregation in housing owned by the University of Chicago. Sanders was also was a part of the March on Washington led by Martin Luther King Jr. to advocate for equal jobs and wages for african americans. This was also the home of Martin Luther King Jr.’s distinguished “I Have a Dream” speech.
Sanders is known for his self proclaimed “democratic socialism”, a unique feature that sets him far apart from even his fellow democratic running mate(s).
Income and Wealth Equality
Sanders is a proud advocate of the middle class. Growing up less fortunate has given Bernie a certain sympathetic edge, a reassurance that your (future) president will understand you and your circumstances all the while passing policy to help boost your current way of life. The message the sanders campaign wants to send is this:
“ This campaign is sending a message to the billionaire class: “you can’t have it all.” You can’t get huge tax breaks while children in this country go hungry. You can’t continue sending our jobs to China while millions are looking for work. You can’t hide your profits in the Cayman Islands and other tax havens, while there are massive unmet needs on every corner of this nation. Your greed has got to end. You cannot take advantage of all the benefits of America, if you refuse to accept your responsibilities as Americans.”
Make Tuition Free at Public Colleges and Universities
The issue that has catapulted Sanders into the media is his strong stance on education and making college tuition free.
“This is not a radical idea. Last year, Germany eliminated tuition because they believed that charging students $1,300 per year was discouraging Germans from going to college. Next year, Chile will do the same. Finland, Norway, Sweden and many other countries around the world also offer free college to all of their citizens. If other countries can take this action, so can the United States of America.”
Police Brutality
Bernie Sanders calls attention to the police brutality issue in the United States “Sandra Bland, Michael Brown, Rekia Boyd, Eric Garner, Walter Scott, Freddie Gray, Jessica Hernandez, Tamir Rice, Jonathan Ferrell, Oscar Grant, Antonio Zambrano-Montes, Samuel DuBose and Anastacio Hernandez-Rojas. We know their names. Each of them died unarmed at the hands of police officers or in police custody. The chants are growing louder” . In response to these tragedies, Sanders understands that this is, in fact, a race issue “people are angry and they have a right to be angry. We should not fool ourselves into thinking that this violence only affects those whose names have appeared on TV or in the newspaper. African-Americans are twice as likely to be arrested and almost four times as likely to experience the use of force during encounters with the police. African-American and Latinos comprise well over half of all prisoners, even though African-Americans and Latinos make up approximately one quarter of the total US population ” (BernieSanders.com).
Bernie Sanders is the premium choice to be America’s next President of the United States. His impressive résumé and personal experiences sets him apart from any candidate on either end of the political spectrum. His extensive legislative background gives him the ability to work efficiently, hand-in-hand with Congress once in office. Political analyst Zaid Jilani wrote “Not only has Sanders gotten a lot more things done than Clinton did in her own short legislative career, he's actually one of the most effective members of Congress, passing bills, both big and small, that have reshaped American policy on key issues like poverty, the environment and health care” (Alternet.org).
America needs an empathetic president who is able to connect with the people, not the party, and Sanders brings equality to all. Throughout his campaign, Sanders has not shied away from the fact that he his a lot further left than even his fellow Democrats, however, he insist that we unite under ideas and movements, not under a party title. Passing legislation and enforcing laws that make our country flourish, not laws that are attached to political agendas.
America needs a president who has clear plans that he reveals in quality, practical policy. Unlike other candidates, Sanders campaign is packed heavily with policies. Sanders tactics are not for entertainment, or media buzz, he often during interviews and debates redirect the potentially polarizing questions and quarrels, to conversations focused around his policy and the future of America. In his own words to Hillary Clinton, “the American people are sick and tired of hearing about your damn emails!”
This isn’t Sander’s movement; this is our movement.
