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bigtree

(86,013 posts)
Fri Jul 17, 2015, 02:54 PM Jul 2015

Some Real Talk From Bernie Sanders

from HuffPo: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/bernie-sanders-quotes_55a909f1e4b0c5f0322d0a59


Between his large crowds at campaign events and surging poll numbers, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has so far been the biggest surprise in the race for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination. In the past few months, Sanders has gone from "virtually having no chance" to causing concern for frontrunner Hillary Clinton's campaign.

A self-described democratic socialist who has a lot of ideas and a brash demeanor, Sanders can make some interesting statements. We've collected a few of his most intriguing and most provocative words on a wide range of issues, including marijuana and income inequality.

Here are some of the most notable things Sanders has said since announcing his White House run:

On Youth Unemployment


(Getty)

"We got to put young people to work, we got to give them an education, rather than putting them in jail," Sanders said in an interview on MSNBC's "The Ed Show."


On The Middle Class


(AP)

"Ordinary people are profoundly disgusted with the fact that the middle class is being destroyed and income going to the top 1 percent," Sanders tweeted.


On Free Tuition


(Getty)

"It is insane and counter-productive to the best interests of our country, that hundreds of thousands of bright young people cannot afford to go to college, and that millions of others leave school with a mountain of debt that burdens them for decades. That must end," Sanders said during his campaign announcement.


On Wanting Top Marginal Tax Rate Over 50 Percent


(AFP/Getty)

"In the last 30 years there has been a massive -- we’re talking about many trillions of dollars being redistributed from the middle class to the top one-tenth of 1 percent. It is time to redistribute money back to the working families of this country from the top one-tenth of 1 percent," Sanders said on PBS's "Charlie Rose."


On Marijuana


(Getty)

“I coughed a lot, I don’t know. I smoked marijuana twice -- didn’t quite work for me,” Sanders told Yahoo.


On The War On Drugs


(AP)

"What I can tell you is this: We have far, far, far too many people in jail for nonviolent crimes, and I think in many ways, the war against drugs has not been successful, and I think we've got to rethink that," Sanders told Yahoo News' Katie Couric.



On Universal Health Care


(AFP/Getty)

"So I do believe that we have to move toward a Medicare-for-all, single-payer system. I think it's not going to happen tomorrow, but that certainly should be the goal," Sanders said on ABC’s "This Week."


On Police Reform


(Getty)

"We’ve got to demilitarize the police -- we don’t need tanks, you don’t need heavy military equipment in the communities of the United States. We gotta pay attention to the African-American communities, to poverty so these kids get the education and job training they need," Sanders told Yahoo.


On Health Care And Education


(Getty)

"Please don't tell me that the United States of America, our great country, cannot guarantee health care to all people. Don't tell me that every person in this country should not be able to get all the education that they need regardless of their income," Sanders said in Portland, Maine.


On Campaign Finance Reform


(AFP/Getty)

"A major problem of our campaign finance system is that anybody can start a super PAC on behalf of anybody and can say anything. And this is what makes our current campaign finance situation totally absurd," Sanders said to the Burlington Free Press.


On Undocumented Immigrants


(AFP/Getty)

"Despite the central role that undocumented workers play in our economy and in our daily lives, these workers are too often reviled by many for political gain and shunted into the shadows," Sanders said at the National Association of Latino Elected Officials conference.


On Bank Bailouts


(Getty)

"If a bank is too big to fail, that bank is too big to exist," Sanders said in Denver, Colorado.


On Raising The Minimum Wage


(Getty)

"Our goal as a nation is that if somebody works 40 hours a week, that person will not be living in poverty," Sanders said in Iowa.

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Some Real Talk From Bernie Sanders (Original Post) bigtree Jul 2015 OP
Real talk that everyone can get behind. nt LWolf Jul 2015 #1
Thanks bigtree! London Lover Man Jul 2015 #2
I had the same idea. immoderate Jul 2015 #4
It all sounds good... except... immoderate Jul 2015 #3
kick bigtree Jul 2015 #5
Upbeat threads like this are truly refreshing. oasis Jul 2015 #6
I coughed a lot, I don’t know. frylock Jul 2015 #7
kick bigtree Jul 2015 #8
Targeted "Plain Speak" it always works...and he's stuck to this for Decades! KoKo Jul 2015 #9
 

London Lover Man

(371 posts)
2. Thanks bigtree!
Fri Jul 17, 2015, 03:01 PM
Jul 2015

Very nice post, espcially coming from a O'Malley supporter!

I think Sanders/O'Malley tickets might work for me, that way, If Sanders decides to retire in 2020, O'Malley would be in a great position to take the lead and roll with it.



 

immoderate

(20,885 posts)
3. It all sounds good... except...
Fri Jul 17, 2015, 03:07 PM
Jul 2015

He might try some edibles to deal with that coughing problem. Just a suggestion.

--imm

KoKo

(84,711 posts)
9. Targeted "Plain Speak" it always works...and he's stuck to this for Decades!
Fri Jul 17, 2015, 09:22 PM
Jul 2015

No hidden stuff there. And, its firm enough that if he appoints a Rahm Emmanuel ....we'd be in the streets. But...there's no chance of that since he already said he'd put Robert Reich in his Cabinet today and wouldn't go anywhere near Bob Rubin!

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