Surprising Ways Bernie Sanders Has Already Changed America
Bernie Sanders is powering ahead, beating Hillary in key caucuses and attracting awe-inspiring numbers of people to rallies around America.
US Uncut reports that the massive New York turnout, in particular, showed that Bernie is still a strong contender.
“If rally turnout is any indicator of voter excitement about the two candidates in the Democratic primary, Sanders has never been hotter. The Vermont senator, who spent his first 19 years in Brooklyn, spoke to a crowd of 28,356 supporters in Prospect Park on Sunday, delivering a fiery speech about the need for a national $15/hour minimum wage, tuition-free public college, and holding Wall Street accountable.”
Many are looking ahead, hoping the white-haired senator steals the nomination from Hillary in the end and goes on to best Trump.
Indeed, many left-wing pundits have argued that the Democrats simply must make Bernie Sanders their candidate, because he is the only one who can beat Trump.
“It’s very simple. One Democratic candidate is admired by most Americans, while the other is not.”
But did you know that Bernie Sanders has already changed America in massive ways? Here we outline them.
Bernie has shown that union leaders are out of touch
This has been reported around America and union locals are taking notice.
We are likely to see a push from the ground up, as local union branches fight to make sure their national leaders are endorsing the candidates they really believe in.
The cause of this change? Bernie Sanders.
The Atlantic reports that union bosses have continually endorsed Hillary Clinton, defying more than a dozen local labor organizations who prefer Bernie Sanders. Bernie has thus started a union shake-up that will change the labor landscape as we know it.
? LIVE Bernie Sanders Rally in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park New York (4-17-16) https://t.co/QVDDwf4iDj via @YouTube
— Bernie Believers! (@Bernie11901) April 17, 2016
“[T]he back-and-forth over endorsements suggests a deeper issue among unions. If the labor movement’s strength is unity, its weakness is a reflexive worship of hierarchy: Locals supply the labor, and the national leadership sets the direction.”
Hopefully we will see the national leadership setting a direction that is more in line with the wishes of their members.
He has directed the attention of minority communities to economic issues
This move predates Sanders’ presidential race. He announced his strategy for dealing with unemployment among Hispanic and black youth before he announced his candidacy.
“He has put out a detailed strategy to target unemployment across America and particularly to attack Hispanic and black youth unemployment, which he introduced in August 2014, long before he announced for president.”
Some people accuse Bernie of being too single-minded in his focus on economic issues when dealing with racial injustice. However, this seems to be exactly what the African-American and Latino communities want. Salon reports that “polling of both Latinos and African Americans shows that jobs and the economy is either their top concern or tied for their top concern.”
Once again, Bernie Sanders has his finger on the pulse of American sentiment.
He has brought marijuana decriminalization back into the national debate
This was a complete non-issue prior to Bernie’s candidacy, rarely discussed in the mainstream press. After Bernie Sanders came out criticizing the costly and ineffectual war on drugs, and expressed his support for marijuana decriminalization, the issue came back on the radar in America.
That does not mean Bernie regards it as a central issue, though — he says he is in favor of “increased access to medical marijuana” and hinted that he may push for full legalization, but he also kept things in perspective saying he does not regard legalization as one of the major issues facing the country.
He has made Hillary Clinton a better candidate
Bernie has made Hillary a better candidate, forcing her to refine her views and pushing the establishment candidate further to the left, according to NPR.
“Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton is a different candidate than she was a year ago. She’s not a different person, of course, but has taken more definite policy positions in her competition against Senator Bernie Sanders.”
He has changed the discourse on Israel
While Hillary has appeared unsympathetic to the plight of the Palestinians, Bernie Sanders has spoken out in defense of the displaced population, saying there are two sides to that story and both must be heard.
“If we are ever going to bring peace to that region which has seen so much hatred and so much war, we are going to have to treat the Palestinian people with respect and dignity…We cannot continue to be one-sided. There are two sides to the issue.”
First presidential candidate to show sympathy for Palestinians: https://t.co/NrWvGD1Jk7 Yes, Clinton is still clueless on foreign affairs.
— Kat Godspell (NOW Unplugged) ????? (@KatGodspell) April 16, 2016
Has Bernie Sanders already changed America?
[Photo by Eric Thayer/Getty Images News]
