Bernie Sanders: ‘We Will Not Defeat Donald Trump Unless We Bring Excitement And Energy Into The Campaign’
Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders said on Sunday that the Democratic Party will not be able to defeat President Donald Trump in 2020 unless it brings “excitement and energy” into the race, The Washington Examiner reports.
Sanders made the remarks during a speech at the California Democratic Party Convention, where all front-runners — bar former vice president Joe Biden — were present.
Sanders began his speech by taking a thinly-veiled swipe at Biden.
“As you all know, there is a debate among presidential candidates who have spoken to you here in this room and those who have chosen for whatever reason not to be in this room,” he said, announcing what would be a recurring theme in the speech — the crossroads at which the Democratic Party appears to be, torn between progressives and status quo candidates.
Currently, Sanders is behind Biden in most polls. The former vice president has maintained the lead which spiked when he officially announced his campaign, and he has since embarked on a campaign of “limited exposure,” as The Washington Post put it.
As other candidates in the race continue crisscrossing the country, holding rallies, attending town halls, and giving interviews, Biden is keeping his head down, and hoping to preserve the front-runner status. As Vox reported, Biden is promising a return to normalcy and campaigning on Obama-era nostalgia.
As the exact opposite of the former vice president, Sanders — farther left than any other candidate — is relaying anti-establishment messages, campaigning on change, and against the status quo.
There is no “middle ground” compromise with Donald Trump and the GOP. pic.twitter.com/EKu13ktjyc
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) June 2, 2019
That wouldn’t be without reason, as he revealed during his speech at the California Democratic Party Convention. According to Sanders, the Democrats cannot win against Trump in 2020 unless they propose a monumental political shift, a real alternative to the status quo.
“Let me be as clear as I can be. In my view, we will not defeat Donald Trump unless we bring excitement and energy into the campaign, and unless we give millions of working people and young people a reason to vote and a reason to believe that politics is relevant to their lives.”
The Vermont senator added that the Democrats “cannot go back to the old ways,” taking another shot at Biden and stating that there can be no “middle ground” when it comes to issues such as climate change.
As previously reported by The Inquisitr, the majority of Democrats running for president endorsed the Green New Deal, promising aggressive action to curb climate change. Biden is reportedly developing a “middle ground” climate policy. Progressives and activists slammed the proposal as inadequate and unambitious.
NEW: Commanding Biden lead puts pressure on Democrats to endorse https://t.co/b7g0ssx66B pic.twitter.com/1Kispp8DAM
— The Hill (@thehill) June 2, 2019
As CBS News reported, Greenpeace, which is arguably the most prominent non-governmental environmental organization in the world, gave Biden a “D-” grade, ranking him near the bottom of the field of Democratic hopefuls.
