Democrats Abroad In Argentina For Bernie Sanders
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Janis -
Last night, it took nearly two hours for the Republican debate to even briefly touch on an important issue: raising the minimum wage in this country from $7.25 an hour. The American people overwhelmingly want to raise the minimum wage, but not a single candidate embraced the idea with the same enthusiasm.
The truth is, once again, if you are one of the wealthiest people in this country, you had eleven candidates on the stage talking about your needs for almost three and a half hours. The rich are getting richer and everyone else is getting poorer, yet for what seemed like an eternity, all they could talk about was not letting women control their own bodies and defunding Planned Parenthood. If you are a veteran or military family member, there was a lot of talk about more money for war and confrontation, but no conversation about how the cost of war continues long after the last service member has returned home from overseas.
I think that’s one of the reasons our campaign is doing so well. We are willing to talk about the issues that matter in the lives of all Americans, and not just a handful of special interests and wealthy campaign contributors.
And all throughout last night’s debate, I kept thinking about some of the people I’ve met and stories I’ve received since our campaign began. Like the young mother from California who wrote me a few weeks ago saying:
"I'm 25 years old and about to have my first daughter. I want her to be able to go to college without going into insane amounts of debt. I want her to be able to get the healthcare she needs to stay happy and healthy."
Or the printing company worker in upstate New York who wrote to me saying:
"I am paid $10.00 an hour for the past 2 years in a customer service role. I have 2 sons and cannot afford the daycare bill for them by myself. I've been forced to move home with my parents as my $650 paychecks after tax are not enough to live on with paying $500 for daycare just to go to work."
Today, we live in the richest country in the history of the world, but that reality means little when people who work 40 hours a week are living in poverty, and hundreds of thousands of young people are forced to give up their dream of going to college because it is too expensive.
The good news is, this is a nation we can rebuild together. And I am asking you to join me in this campaign to build a future for all of us, and not just a few on the top.
Make a $3 contribution to our campaign if you’re ready for a political revolution that creates a country in which children aren’t living in poverty, kids can go to college, and seniors have health care.
The truth is, I had to give up on the debate after two and a half hours. This country and our planet face enormous problems, and the Republican candidates on that stage last night barely touched upon them.
There was no discussion about racial justice, income inequality, or making college more affordable. Nothing about child poverty, parental leave, or ensuring that every American can retire with dignity. And with virtually every campaign backed by an enormous Super PAC (except Trump who is his own Super PAC), you can be sure there was no discussion of the grotesque amount of spending corrupting our political process.
And when the candidates did touch on actual issues, they were dead wrong on virtually every position they took.
In less than a month, we’ll have our chance at the first Democratic presidential debate. But I’ll need your support to keep growing our political revolution between now and then.
That’s why your contribution is so important.
In solidarity,
Bernie Sanders
Last night, it took nearly two hours for the Republican debate to even briefly touch on an important issue: raising the minimum wage in this country from $7.25 an hour. The American people overwhelmingly want to raise the minimum wage, but not a single candidate embraced the idea with the same enthusiasm.
The truth is, once again, if you are one of the wealthiest people in this country, you had eleven candidates on the stage talking about your needs for almost three and a half hours. The rich are getting richer and everyone else is getting poorer, yet for what seemed like an eternity, all they could talk about was not letting women control their own bodies and defunding Planned Parenthood. If you are a veteran or military family member, there was a lot of talk about more money for war and confrontation, but no conversation about how the cost of war continues long after the last service member has returned home from overseas.
I think that’s one of the reasons our campaign is doing so well. We are willing to talk about the issues that matter in the lives of all Americans, and not just a handful of special interests and wealthy campaign contributors.
And all throughout last night’s debate, I kept thinking about some of the people I’ve met and stories I’ve received since our campaign began. Like the young mother from California who wrote me a few weeks ago saying:
"I'm 25 years old and about to have my first daughter. I want her to be able to go to college without going into insane amounts of debt. I want her to be able to get the healthcare she needs to stay happy and healthy."
Or the printing company worker in upstate New York who wrote to me saying:
"I am paid $10.00 an hour for the past 2 years in a customer service role. I have 2 sons and cannot afford the daycare bill for them by myself. I've been forced to move home with my parents as my $650 paychecks after tax are not enough to live on with paying $500 for daycare just to go to work."
Today, we live in the richest country in the history of the world, but that reality means little when people who work 40 hours a week are living in poverty, and hundreds of thousands of young people are forced to give up their dream of going to college because it is too expensive.
The good news is, this is a nation we can rebuild together. And I am asking you to join me in this campaign to build a future for all of us, and not just a few on the top.
Make a $3 contribution to our campaign if you’re ready for a political revolution that creates a country in which children aren’t living in poverty, kids can go to college, and seniors have health care.
The truth is, I had to give up on the debate after two and a half hours. This country and our planet face enormous problems, and the Republican candidates on that stage last night barely touched upon them.
There was no discussion about racial justice, income inequality, or making college more affordable. Nothing about child poverty, parental leave, or ensuring that every American can retire with dignity. And with virtually every campaign backed by an enormous Super PAC (except Trump who is his own Super PAC), you can be sure there was no discussion of the grotesque amount of spending corrupting our political process.
And when the candidates did touch on actual issues, they were dead wrong on virtually every position they took.
In less than a month, we’ll have our chance at the first Democratic presidential debate. But I’ll need your support to keep growing our political revolution between now and then.
That’s why your contribution is so important.
In solidarity,
Bernie Sanders
jantango
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Dear Janis,
Earlier this week I spoke at Liberty University. For those of you who do not know, Liberty University is a deeply religious institution. It is a school which tries to understand the meaning of morality and the words of the Bible, within the context of a very complicated modern world. It was founded by the Reverend Jerry Falwell, and the vast majority of people at Liberty strongly disagree with me, and perhaps you, about abortion, marriage equality, and other issues.
You might be asking yourself, "Why on earth would Bernie Sanders go there?" It is a fair question within the context of our modern politics.
I spoke at Liberty University because I believe that it is important for those with different views in our country to engage in civil discourse – not just to shout at each other or make fun of each other.
It is very easy for those in politics to talk to those who agree with us – and I do that every day. It is harder, but not less important, to try and communicate with those who do not agree with us and see where, if possible, we can find common ground. In other words, to reach out of our zone of comfort.
So I went outside of my zone of comfort. Watch this video of my remarks there and read what I have to say about the ideas of morality and justice as they relate to income inequality and other critical issues facing our nation.
Bernie speaking at Liberty University: https://go.berniesanders.com/liberty
The message I gave at Liberty University is that the moral choice is to fight income inequality, and that the just thing to do is to work to make our society more fair. Below are some of my remarks to Liberty from the video above, but I think it is important to share them with you here as well so that you can share with others how I approach these issues.
I am far, far from a perfect human being, but I am motivated by a vision which exists in all of the great religions – Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism and others – and which is so beautifully and clearly stated in Matthew 7:12. “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the prophets.” The Golden Rule. Do to others what you would have them do to you. Not very complicated.
I told the crowd at Liberty University that I understand that issues such as abortion and gay marriage are very important to them, and that we disagree on those issues. I get that. But there are other issues out there that are of enormous consequence to our country and the world and that maybe, just maybe, we don’t disagree on them. And maybe, just maybe, we can work together in trying to resolve them.
Amos 5:24, “But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!”
Justice. Treating others the way we would like to be treated. Treating all people with dignity and respect.
It would, I think, be hard for anyone in that room where I spoke to make the case that the United States today is a “just” society or anything resembling a just society.
In America today there is massive injustice in terms of income and wealth inequality. Injustice is rampant. We live in the wealthiest country in the history of the world but most Americans don’t know that because almost all of that wealth and income is going to the top one percent. We are living at a time where a handful of people have wealth beyond comprehension – huge yachts, jet planes, tens of billions of dollars, more money than they could spend in a thousand lifetimes. But at the same time, millions of people are struggling to feed their families or put a roof over their heads or find the money to go to a doctor.
When we talk about morality and when we talk about justice, we have to understand that there is no justice when the top one-tenth of one percent own almost as much wealth as the bottom 90 percent. There is no justice when all over this country people are working long hours for abysmally low wages, $7.25 an hour or $8 an hour, while 58 percent of all new income being created today goes to the top one percent.
There is no justice when, in recent years, we have seen a proliferation of millionaires and billionaires while, at the same time, the United States has the highest rate of childhood poverty in the industrialized world. How can we talk about morality when we turn our backs on the children of this country? Twenty percent of the children in this country live in poverty and that includes 40 percent of African American children. There is no justice when, in the wealthiest country in the history of the world, children in our country go to bed hungry.
There is no justice when the 15 wealthiest people in this country saw their wealth increase by $170 billion dollars in the last two years. That is more wealth, acquired in a two-year period, than is owned by the bottom 130 million Americans. And while the very rich become much richer, millions of families have no savings at all and struggle every week just to stay alive economically, and the elderly and disabled wonder how they stay warm in the winter. That is not justice. That is a rigged economy designed by the wealthiest people in this country to benefit the wealthiest people in this country at the expense of everyone else.
There is no justice when thousands of people in America die each year because they don’t have health insurance and don’t get to a doctor when they should, or when elderly people are forced to choose between food or medicine because our citizens pay the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs. That is not justice. That is not morality. That is simply an indication that we are the only major country on earth that does not guarantee health care for all as a right.
There is no justice when low-income and working-class mothers are forced to separate from their babies one or two weeks after birth and go back to work because we are the only major country on earth that does not have a paid family and medical leave policy. That is not justice. That is an attack on family values that everyone should be appalled at.
There is no justice in our country when youth unemployment exists at tragic levels – with 51 percent of African American high school kids unemployed or underemployed. No. We apparently do not have the funds to provide jobs or educational opportunities for our young people but we sure do have the money to throw them into jails. Today, the United States has more people in jail than any other country on earth, and many are serving time in inhumane conditions. That is not justice. That is the destruction of human life.
I am not a theologian or an expert on the Bible or a Catholic. I am just a U.S. senator from the small state of Vermont. But I agree with Pope Francis when he says: "The current financial crisis… originated in a profound human crisis: the denial of the primacy of the human person! We have created new idols. The worship of the ancient golden calf has returned in a new and ruthless guise in the idolatry of money and the dictatorship of an impersonal economy lacking a truly human purpose."
He also states: "There is a need for financial reform along ethical lines that would produce in its turn an economic reform to benefit everyone. Money has to serve, not to rule."
In his view, and I agree with him, we are living in a nation and in a world which worships the acquisition of money and great wealth, but which turns its back on those in need. And that must end. We need to move toward an economy which works for all, and not just the few.
Throughout human history there has been endless discussion and debate about the meaning of justice and the meaning of morality. I hope that by getting out of my comfort zone and speaking with the students at Liberty University that I can be a part of a dialogue with people who might not agree with us. I hope that some of them conclude that if we strive toward morality and toward justice, that it is imperative that we have the courage to stand with the poor and working people of our country.
In solidarity,
Bernie Sanders
Earlier this week I spoke at Liberty University. For those of you who do not know, Liberty University is a deeply religious institution. It is a school which tries to understand the meaning of morality and the words of the Bible, within the context of a very complicated modern world. It was founded by the Reverend Jerry Falwell, and the vast majority of people at Liberty strongly disagree with me, and perhaps you, about abortion, marriage equality, and other issues.
You might be asking yourself, "Why on earth would Bernie Sanders go there?" It is a fair question within the context of our modern politics.
I spoke at Liberty University because I believe that it is important for those with different views in our country to engage in civil discourse – not just to shout at each other or make fun of each other.
It is very easy for those in politics to talk to those who agree with us – and I do that every day. It is harder, but not less important, to try and communicate with those who do not agree with us and see where, if possible, we can find common ground. In other words, to reach out of our zone of comfort.
So I went outside of my zone of comfort. Watch this video of my remarks there and read what I have to say about the ideas of morality and justice as they relate to income inequality and other critical issues facing our nation.
Bernie speaking at Liberty University: https://go.berniesanders.com/liberty
The message I gave at Liberty University is that the moral choice is to fight income inequality, and that the just thing to do is to work to make our society more fair. Below are some of my remarks to Liberty from the video above, but I think it is important to share them with you here as well so that you can share with others how I approach these issues.
I am far, far from a perfect human being, but I am motivated by a vision which exists in all of the great religions – Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism and others – and which is so beautifully and clearly stated in Matthew 7:12. “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the prophets.” The Golden Rule. Do to others what you would have them do to you. Not very complicated.
I told the crowd at Liberty University that I understand that issues such as abortion and gay marriage are very important to them, and that we disagree on those issues. I get that. But there are other issues out there that are of enormous consequence to our country and the world and that maybe, just maybe, we don’t disagree on them. And maybe, just maybe, we can work together in trying to resolve them.
Amos 5:24, “But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!”
Justice. Treating others the way we would like to be treated. Treating all people with dignity and respect.
It would, I think, be hard for anyone in that room where I spoke to make the case that the United States today is a “just” society or anything resembling a just society.
In America today there is massive injustice in terms of income and wealth inequality. Injustice is rampant. We live in the wealthiest country in the history of the world but most Americans don’t know that because almost all of that wealth and income is going to the top one percent. We are living at a time where a handful of people have wealth beyond comprehension – huge yachts, jet planes, tens of billions of dollars, more money than they could spend in a thousand lifetimes. But at the same time, millions of people are struggling to feed their families or put a roof over their heads or find the money to go to a doctor.
When we talk about morality and when we talk about justice, we have to understand that there is no justice when the top one-tenth of one percent own almost as much wealth as the bottom 90 percent. There is no justice when all over this country people are working long hours for abysmally low wages, $7.25 an hour or $8 an hour, while 58 percent of all new income being created today goes to the top one percent.
There is no justice when, in recent years, we have seen a proliferation of millionaires and billionaires while, at the same time, the United States has the highest rate of childhood poverty in the industrialized world. How can we talk about morality when we turn our backs on the children of this country? Twenty percent of the children in this country live in poverty and that includes 40 percent of African American children. There is no justice when, in the wealthiest country in the history of the world, children in our country go to bed hungry.
There is no justice when the 15 wealthiest people in this country saw their wealth increase by $170 billion dollars in the last two years. That is more wealth, acquired in a two-year period, than is owned by the bottom 130 million Americans. And while the very rich become much richer, millions of families have no savings at all and struggle every week just to stay alive economically, and the elderly and disabled wonder how they stay warm in the winter. That is not justice. That is a rigged economy designed by the wealthiest people in this country to benefit the wealthiest people in this country at the expense of everyone else.
There is no justice when thousands of people in America die each year because they don’t have health insurance and don’t get to a doctor when they should, or when elderly people are forced to choose between food or medicine because our citizens pay the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs. That is not justice. That is not morality. That is simply an indication that we are the only major country on earth that does not guarantee health care for all as a right.
There is no justice when low-income and working-class mothers are forced to separate from their babies one or two weeks after birth and go back to work because we are the only major country on earth that does not have a paid family and medical leave policy. That is not justice. That is an attack on family values that everyone should be appalled at.
There is no justice in our country when youth unemployment exists at tragic levels – with 51 percent of African American high school kids unemployed or underemployed. No. We apparently do not have the funds to provide jobs or educational opportunities for our young people but we sure do have the money to throw them into jails. Today, the United States has more people in jail than any other country on earth, and many are serving time in inhumane conditions. That is not justice. That is the destruction of human life.
I am not a theologian or an expert on the Bible or a Catholic. I am just a U.S. senator from the small state of Vermont. But I agree with Pope Francis when he says: "The current financial crisis… originated in a profound human crisis: the denial of the primacy of the human person! We have created new idols. The worship of the ancient golden calf has returned in a new and ruthless guise in the idolatry of money and the dictatorship of an impersonal economy lacking a truly human purpose."
He also states: "There is a need for financial reform along ethical lines that would produce in its turn an economic reform to benefit everyone. Money has to serve, not to rule."
In his view, and I agree with him, we are living in a nation and in a world which worships the acquisition of money and great wealth, but which turns its back on those in need. And that must end. We need to move toward an economy which works for all, and not just the few.
Throughout human history there has been endless discussion and debate about the meaning of justice and the meaning of morality. I hope that by getting out of my comfort zone and speaking with the students at Liberty University that I can be a part of a dialogue with people who might not agree with us. I hope that some of them conclude that if we strive toward morality and toward justice, that it is imperative that we have the courage to stand with the poor and working people of our country.
In solidarity,
Bernie Sanders
jantango
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Something remarkable is happening, Janis. We are approaching a critical fundraising deadline next week, after which we will have to publicly report not just how much money our campaign has raised, but how many people have made a contribution to own a part of it.
This deadline gives our campaign the chance to make presidential election history. We may be able to say that our supporters have made 1 million contributions online to our campaign. It's a stretch to reach that goal. Yet I believe that it's possible to get there if we all come together.
Are you in to help us try, Janis?
Help us reach 1 million online contributions by next week's deadline. Please contribute to our campaign to try and meet this unprecedented goal:
If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately:
Having more than 1 million contributions would be absolutely, totally historic this early in an election. In the 2008 race, with all of his grassroots momentum and enthusiasm in his incredible campaign, President Obama did not reach more than 1 million contributions until after he won the Iowa caucuses.
The political media like to take fundraising deadlines like the one coming up next week and make it all about the grotesque amounts of money poured into our democracy. We'll see just how many Wall Street execs contributed how many millions of dollars to prop up the corrupt system that helps them get rich. They'll report on super PACs raking in potentially hundreds of millions of dollars from corporations and the ultra-wealthy.
What they're not counting on is our political revolution. Let's show that the number of people and the number of contributions people make is just as important as the money raised from the billionaire class.
Please chip in to help reach our goal of 1 million online contributions by our fundraising deadline.
I cannot thank you enough for all of your support, dedication, and sacrifices for our campaign. We have shown that a political revolution is possible. Now let's show what we can do with it.
In solidarity,
Bernie Sanders
This deadline gives our campaign the chance to make presidential election history. We may be able to say that our supporters have made 1 million contributions online to our campaign. It's a stretch to reach that goal. Yet I believe that it's possible to get there if we all come together.
Are you in to help us try, Janis?
Help us reach 1 million online contributions by next week's deadline. Please contribute to our campaign to try and meet this unprecedented goal:
If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately:
Having more than 1 million contributions would be absolutely, totally historic this early in an election. In the 2008 race, with all of his grassroots momentum and enthusiasm in his incredible campaign, President Obama did not reach more than 1 million contributions until after he won the Iowa caucuses.
The political media like to take fundraising deadlines like the one coming up next week and make it all about the grotesque amounts of money poured into our democracy. We'll see just how many Wall Street execs contributed how many millions of dollars to prop up the corrupt system that helps them get rich. They'll report on super PACs raking in potentially hundreds of millions of dollars from corporations and the ultra-wealthy.
What they're not counting on is our political revolution. Let's show that the number of people and the number of contributions people make is just as important as the money raised from the billionaire class.
Please chip in to help reach our goal of 1 million online contributions by our fundraising deadline.
I cannot thank you enough for all of your support, dedication, and sacrifices for our campaign. We have shown that a political revolution is possible. Now let's show what we can do with it.
In solidarity,
Bernie Sanders
jantango
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"If politics must truly be at the service of the human person, it follows that it cannot be a slave to the economy and finance. Politics is, instead, an exp<b></b>ression of our compelling need to live as one, in order to build as one the greatest common good: that of a community which sacrifices particular interests in order to share, in justice and peace, its goods, its interests, its social life. I do not underestimate the difficulty that this involves, but I encourage you in this effort." - Pope Francis addressing Congress today
Brothers and Sisters: I am not a theologian, an expert on the Bible, or a Catholic. I am just a U.S. senator from the small state of Vermont.
But I am emailing you today to discuss Pope Francis in the hope that we can examine the very profound lessons that he is teaching people all over this world and some of the issues for which he is advocating.
Now, there are issues on which the pope and I disagree — like choice and marriage equality — but from the moment he was elected, Pope Francis immediately let it be known that he would be a different kind of pope, a different kind of religious leader. He forces us to address some of the major issues facing humanity: war, income and wealth inequality, poverty, unemployment, greed, the death penalty and other issues that too many prefer to ignore.
He is reaching out not just to the Catholic Church. He's reaching out to people all over the world with an incredibly strong message of social justice talking about the grotesque levels of wealth and income inequality.
Pope Francis is looking in the eyes of the wealthiest people around the world who make billions of dollars, and he is saying we cannot continue to ignore the needs of the poor, the needs of the sick, the dispossessed, the elderly people who are living alone, the young people who can't find jobs. He is saying that the accumulation of money, that the worship of money, is not what life should be about. We cannot turn our backs on our fellow human beings.
He is asking us to create a new society where the economy works for all, and not just the wealthy and the powerful. He is asking us to be the kind of people whose happiness and well-being comes from serving others and being part of a human community, not spending our lives accumulating more and more wealth and power while oppressing others. He is saying that as a planet and as a people we have got to do better.
That's why I was so pleased that in his address to Congress today, Pope Francis spoke of Dorothy Day, who was a tireless advocate for the impoverished and working people in America. I think it was extraordinary that he cited her as one of the most important people in recent American history.
As the founder of the Catholic Worker newspaper, Dorothy Day organized workers to stand up against the wealthy and powerful. Pope Francis said of her today in Congress:
In these times when social concerns are so important, I cannot fail to mention the Servant of God Dorothy Day, who founded the Catholic Worker Movement. Her social activism, her passion for justice and for the cause of the oppressed, were inspired by the Gospel, her faith, and the example of the saints.
How much progress has been made in this area in so many parts of the world! How much has been done in these first years of the third millennium to raise people out of extreme poverty! I know that you share my conviction that much more still needs to be done, and that in times of crisis and economic hardship a spirit of global solidarity must not be lost. At the same time I would encourage you to keep in mind all those people around us who are trapped in a cycle of poverty. They too need to be given hope. The fight against poverty and hunger must be fought constantly and on many fronts, especially in its causes. I know that many Americans today, as in the past, are working to deal with this problem.
The fact that the pope singled out Dorothy Day — a fierce advocate in the fight for economic justice — as one of the leaders he admires most is quite remarkable. We are living in a nation which worships the acquisition of money and great wealth, but turns its back on those in need. We are admiring people with billions of dollars, while we ignore people who sleep out on the streets. That must end.
Dorothy Day fought this fight, and as Pope Francis says, we must continue it. We need to move toward an economy which works for all, and not just the few.
We have so much poverty in a land of plenty. Together, we can work to make our country more fair for everybody.
I am glad that you are with me in this fight.
In solidarity,
Bernie Sanders
Brothers and Sisters: I am not a theologian, an expert on the Bible, or a Catholic. I am just a U.S. senator from the small state of Vermont.
But I am emailing you today to discuss Pope Francis in the hope that we can examine the very profound lessons that he is teaching people all over this world and some of the issues for which he is advocating.
Now, there are issues on which the pope and I disagree — like choice and marriage equality — but from the moment he was elected, Pope Francis immediately let it be known that he would be a different kind of pope, a different kind of religious leader. He forces us to address some of the major issues facing humanity: war, income and wealth inequality, poverty, unemployment, greed, the death penalty and other issues that too many prefer to ignore.
He is reaching out not just to the Catholic Church. He's reaching out to people all over the world with an incredibly strong message of social justice talking about the grotesque levels of wealth and income inequality.
Pope Francis is looking in the eyes of the wealthiest people around the world who make billions of dollars, and he is saying we cannot continue to ignore the needs of the poor, the needs of the sick, the dispossessed, the elderly people who are living alone, the young people who can't find jobs. He is saying that the accumulation of money, that the worship of money, is not what life should be about. We cannot turn our backs on our fellow human beings.
He is asking us to create a new society where the economy works for all, and not just the wealthy and the powerful. He is asking us to be the kind of people whose happiness and well-being comes from serving others and being part of a human community, not spending our lives accumulating more and more wealth and power while oppressing others. He is saying that as a planet and as a people we have got to do better.
That's why I was so pleased that in his address to Congress today, Pope Francis spoke of Dorothy Day, who was a tireless advocate for the impoverished and working people in America. I think it was extraordinary that he cited her as one of the most important people in recent American history.
As the founder of the Catholic Worker newspaper, Dorothy Day organized workers to stand up against the wealthy and powerful. Pope Francis said of her today in Congress:
In these times when social concerns are so important, I cannot fail to mention the Servant of God Dorothy Day, who founded the Catholic Worker Movement. Her social activism, her passion for justice and for the cause of the oppressed, were inspired by the Gospel, her faith, and the example of the saints.
How much progress has been made in this area in so many parts of the world! How much has been done in these first years of the third millennium to raise people out of extreme poverty! I know that you share my conviction that much more still needs to be done, and that in times of crisis and economic hardship a spirit of global solidarity must not be lost. At the same time I would encourage you to keep in mind all those people around us who are trapped in a cycle of poverty. They too need to be given hope. The fight against poverty and hunger must be fought constantly and on many fronts, especially in its causes. I know that many Americans today, as in the past, are working to deal with this problem.
The fact that the pope singled out Dorothy Day — a fierce advocate in the fight for economic justice — as one of the leaders he admires most is quite remarkable. We are living in a nation which worships the acquisition of money and great wealth, but turns its back on those in need. We are admiring people with billions of dollars, while we ignore people who sleep out on the streets. That must end.
Dorothy Day fought this fight, and as Pope Francis says, we must continue it. We need to move toward an economy which works for all, and not just the few.
We have so much poverty in a land of plenty. Together, we can work to make our country more fair for everybody.
I am glad that you are with me in this fight.
In solidarity,
Bernie Sanders
jantango
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- Mar 21, 2009
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Janis -
As you know, we launched our campaign almost five months ago and we’re doing very well so far. We’ve seen leads in Iowa and New Hampshire, and continue to gain ground in states across the country.
And while we will never raise as much money as our opponents who receive huge donations from wealthy individuals and super PACs, I have been amazed by the outpouring of grassroots financial support that we have secured. In just a few months, we have received almost 1 million individual contributions online. Incredibly, these donations average less than $30 per contribution. In other words, while my opponents hold fundraising events in which a handful of millionaires make huge contributions, we are gaining extraordinary support with modest contributions coming from the working families and middle class of our country.
That's what my politics is all about. That's what I want to do throughout this campaign. And I want to thank all of you for your support.
Let me be very clear. As I have mentioned before and will mention again and again, this campaign is not about Bernie Sanders. It's about putting together a grassroots movement of Americans who stand up and say: "Enough is enough. This country and our government belong to all of us, not just a handful of billionaires."
Sign on to endorse the campaign's progressive platform below — click here to add your name. Here's what this campaign is going to continue to talk about:
Income and wealth inequality: In the United States today we have the most unequal wealth and income distribution of any major country on earth — worse than at any time since the 1920s.
In terms of income, more than half of all new income is going to the top 1 percent. In other words, millions of Americans are working longer hours for lower wages, while virtually all new income growth goes to the people who need it the least.
This is a rigged economy. It is an economy which is not sustainable from a moral, economic or political perspective. Our economy must be changed in fundamental ways.
Jobs and income: The newspapers tell us that "official" unemployment is 5.1 percent. Real unemployment however, including those people who have given up looking for jobs and people who are working part-time when they want to work full-time, is 10.3 percent. And the youth unemployment rate is off the charts. For high school graduates between the ages of 17 and 20 years old, the real unemployment rate is 33.8 percent for white Americans, 36.1 percent for Hispanic Americans, and 51.3 percent for African Americans. This is nothing less than a national tragedy.
The fastest and most effective way to create a large number of good paying jobs is to rebuild our crumbling infrastructure — roads, bridges, rail, airports, water systems, waste water plants, etc. We can also create good paying jobs by hiring the teachers and pre-school educators we need to make sure our young people get a high-quality education.
We must end our disastrous trade policies, which are resulting in the outsourcing of jobs. That is why I am vigorously opposed to the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, and will do everything that I can to defeat it.
We need to raise the minimum wage to a living wage. Nobody who works 40 hours a week in our country should live in poverty. Over a period of a few years the national minimum wage should be $15 per hour.
We must end the disgrace of women earning 79 cents on the dollar for doing the same work as a man. We will fight for pay equity.
We need to end the scandal in which millions of Americans work 50 to 60 hours per week but receive no overtime pay. People who work overtime must get time and a half.
Campaign finance reform: As a result of the Citizens United Supreme Court decision, American democracy is being undermined by the ability of the Koch brothers and other billionaire families to buy elections. These wealthy contributors can literally buy politicians and elections by spending hundreds of millions of dollars in support of the candidates of their choice. I introduced a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United and will fight hard to make certain that we win that struggle. In the short term, we need to pass a disclosure law to rein in the political power of big money. In the long term, we need to move toward public funding of elections so that all candidates can run for office without being beholden to the wealthy and powerful.
Climate change: Climate change is real, it is caused by human activity, and it is already devastating our nation and planet. The United States must lead the world in combating climate change and transforming our energy system away from fossil fuels and toward energy efficiency and sustainability. We have a moral responsibility to make certain that our kids and grandchildren can live on a habitable planet.
College affordability: In a highly competitive global economy, the United States needs the best educated workforce in the world. Thirty years ago we led the world in the percentage of our people who had college degrees. Today we are in 12th place, and we are moving in the wrong direction. I have talked to too many young people who can no longer afford to go to college or are leaving school deeply in debt. This is not acceptable.
Every person in this country who has the desire and ability should be able to get all the education they need regardless of the income of their family. This is not a radical idea. In Germany, Scandinavia and many other countries, higher education is either free or very inexpensive. We must do the same.
Dismantling structural racism: Throughout much of our history, the elite in America have divided people along racial lines in an effort to consolidate wealth and power. We need to simultaneously address the structural and institutional racism which exists in this country while at the same time vigorously attacking the grotesque level of income and wealth inequality which is making the very rich much richer, and everyone else — especially the African-American community — much poorer.
Meanwhile, too many people of color in this country find themselves subjected to a system that treats citizens who have not committed crimes like criminals. We have more people locked up in jail than any other country on earth. We need to invest in jobs and education, not jails and incarceration.
Finally, no person should have to worry that a routine interaction with law enforcement will end in violence or death. Black lives matter: we must reform our criminal justice system, move away from the militarization of police forces, and invest in community policing.
Health care: Shamefully, the United States remains the only major country on earth that does not guarantee health care to all people. Despite the modest gains of the Affordable Care Act, 35 million Americans continue to lack health insurance and many more are underinsured. Yet, we continue to pay far more per capita for health care than any other nation. The United States must move toward a Medicare-for-all single-payer system. Health care is a right, not a privilege.
Poverty: The United States has more people living in poverty today than at almost any time in the modern history of our country. We have the highest rate of childhood poverty of nearly any major country, while millions of Americans struggle to put food on the table. The Republican response to the crisis of poverty in America? Give more tax breaks to billionaires and make savage cuts to health care, education and nutrition programs. My response is somewhat different. I believe that in a democratic, civilized society none of our people should be hungry or live in desperation. We need to expand Social Security, not cut it. We need to increase funding for nutrition programs, not cut them.
Tax reform: We need real tax reform which makes the rich and profitable corporations begin to pay their fair share of taxes. It is absurd that in 1952, corporate income taxes provided 32 percent of federal revenue, but in 2014 they provided only 11 percent. It is scandalous that major profitable corporations like General Electric, Verizon, Citigroup and Bank of America have, in a given recent year, paid nothing in federal income taxes. It is fiscally irresponsible that the U.S. Treasury loses about $100 billion a year because corporations and the rich stash their profits in the Cayman Islands, Bermuda and other tax havens.
Warren Buffett is honest. He has pointed out the unfairness that he, a multi-billionaire, pays a lower effective tax rate than his secretary. It is not acceptable that billionaire hedge fund managers are able to pay lower effective tax rates than truck drivers or nurses because they take advantage of a variety of tax loopholes that their lobbyists wrote.
This must end. We need a tax system which is fair, and which is progressive. Children should not go hungry in this country while profitable corporations and the wealthy avoid their tax responsibilities.
These are just some of the issues that we will be dealing with. Add your name to stand with me and endorse this platform for our campaign.
The struggle to create a nation and world of economic and social justice and environmental sanity is not an easy one. The struggle to try and create a more peaceful world will be extremely difficult. But this I know: despair is not an option if we care about our kids and grandchildren. Giving up is not an option if we want to prevent irreparable harm to our planet.
We must stand up and fight back. We must launch a political revolution which engages millions of Americans from all walks of life in the struggle for real change. This country belongs to all of us, not just the billionaire class. And that's what our campaign is all about.
This campaign cannot be won by me alone. That is absolutely for sure. To win, all of us must be deeply involved.
In the coming days, weeks and months we need to hear your ideas as to what issues are most important to you and your community. We need to hear your thoughts about how we can mount the effective campaign we need to win. We need your help in spreading the word so that your friends, neighbors, and co-workers become involved in the effort.
Please stand with me and join the grassroots revolution that we desperately need.
In solidarity,
Bernie Sanders
As you know, we launched our campaign almost five months ago and we’re doing very well so far. We’ve seen leads in Iowa and New Hampshire, and continue to gain ground in states across the country.
And while we will never raise as much money as our opponents who receive huge donations from wealthy individuals and super PACs, I have been amazed by the outpouring of grassroots financial support that we have secured. In just a few months, we have received almost 1 million individual contributions online. Incredibly, these donations average less than $30 per contribution. In other words, while my opponents hold fundraising events in which a handful of millionaires make huge contributions, we are gaining extraordinary support with modest contributions coming from the working families and middle class of our country.
That's what my politics is all about. That's what I want to do throughout this campaign. And I want to thank all of you for your support.
Let me be very clear. As I have mentioned before and will mention again and again, this campaign is not about Bernie Sanders. It's about putting together a grassroots movement of Americans who stand up and say: "Enough is enough. This country and our government belong to all of us, not just a handful of billionaires."
Sign on to endorse the campaign's progressive platform below — click here to add your name. Here's what this campaign is going to continue to talk about:
Income and wealth inequality: In the United States today we have the most unequal wealth and income distribution of any major country on earth — worse than at any time since the 1920s.
In terms of income, more than half of all new income is going to the top 1 percent. In other words, millions of Americans are working longer hours for lower wages, while virtually all new income growth goes to the people who need it the least.
This is a rigged economy. It is an economy which is not sustainable from a moral, economic or political perspective. Our economy must be changed in fundamental ways.
Jobs and income: The newspapers tell us that "official" unemployment is 5.1 percent. Real unemployment however, including those people who have given up looking for jobs and people who are working part-time when they want to work full-time, is 10.3 percent. And the youth unemployment rate is off the charts. For high school graduates between the ages of 17 and 20 years old, the real unemployment rate is 33.8 percent for white Americans, 36.1 percent for Hispanic Americans, and 51.3 percent for African Americans. This is nothing less than a national tragedy.
The fastest and most effective way to create a large number of good paying jobs is to rebuild our crumbling infrastructure — roads, bridges, rail, airports, water systems, waste water plants, etc. We can also create good paying jobs by hiring the teachers and pre-school educators we need to make sure our young people get a high-quality education.
We must end our disastrous trade policies, which are resulting in the outsourcing of jobs. That is why I am vigorously opposed to the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, and will do everything that I can to defeat it.
We need to raise the minimum wage to a living wage. Nobody who works 40 hours a week in our country should live in poverty. Over a period of a few years the national minimum wage should be $15 per hour.
We must end the disgrace of women earning 79 cents on the dollar for doing the same work as a man. We will fight for pay equity.
We need to end the scandal in which millions of Americans work 50 to 60 hours per week but receive no overtime pay. People who work overtime must get time and a half.
Campaign finance reform: As a result of the Citizens United Supreme Court decision, American democracy is being undermined by the ability of the Koch brothers and other billionaire families to buy elections. These wealthy contributors can literally buy politicians and elections by spending hundreds of millions of dollars in support of the candidates of their choice. I introduced a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United and will fight hard to make certain that we win that struggle. In the short term, we need to pass a disclosure law to rein in the political power of big money. In the long term, we need to move toward public funding of elections so that all candidates can run for office without being beholden to the wealthy and powerful.
Climate change: Climate change is real, it is caused by human activity, and it is already devastating our nation and planet. The United States must lead the world in combating climate change and transforming our energy system away from fossil fuels and toward energy efficiency and sustainability. We have a moral responsibility to make certain that our kids and grandchildren can live on a habitable planet.
College affordability: In a highly competitive global economy, the United States needs the best educated workforce in the world. Thirty years ago we led the world in the percentage of our people who had college degrees. Today we are in 12th place, and we are moving in the wrong direction. I have talked to too many young people who can no longer afford to go to college or are leaving school deeply in debt. This is not acceptable.
Every person in this country who has the desire and ability should be able to get all the education they need regardless of the income of their family. This is not a radical idea. In Germany, Scandinavia and many other countries, higher education is either free or very inexpensive. We must do the same.
Dismantling structural racism: Throughout much of our history, the elite in America have divided people along racial lines in an effort to consolidate wealth and power. We need to simultaneously address the structural and institutional racism which exists in this country while at the same time vigorously attacking the grotesque level of income and wealth inequality which is making the very rich much richer, and everyone else — especially the African-American community — much poorer.
Meanwhile, too many people of color in this country find themselves subjected to a system that treats citizens who have not committed crimes like criminals. We have more people locked up in jail than any other country on earth. We need to invest in jobs and education, not jails and incarceration.
Finally, no person should have to worry that a routine interaction with law enforcement will end in violence or death. Black lives matter: we must reform our criminal justice system, move away from the militarization of police forces, and invest in community policing.
Health care: Shamefully, the United States remains the only major country on earth that does not guarantee health care to all people. Despite the modest gains of the Affordable Care Act, 35 million Americans continue to lack health insurance and many more are underinsured. Yet, we continue to pay far more per capita for health care than any other nation. The United States must move toward a Medicare-for-all single-payer system. Health care is a right, not a privilege.
Poverty: The United States has more people living in poverty today than at almost any time in the modern history of our country. We have the highest rate of childhood poverty of nearly any major country, while millions of Americans struggle to put food on the table. The Republican response to the crisis of poverty in America? Give more tax breaks to billionaires and make savage cuts to health care, education and nutrition programs. My response is somewhat different. I believe that in a democratic, civilized society none of our people should be hungry or live in desperation. We need to expand Social Security, not cut it. We need to increase funding for nutrition programs, not cut them.
Tax reform: We need real tax reform which makes the rich and profitable corporations begin to pay their fair share of taxes. It is absurd that in 1952, corporate income taxes provided 32 percent of federal revenue, but in 2014 they provided only 11 percent. It is scandalous that major profitable corporations like General Electric, Verizon, Citigroup and Bank of America have, in a given recent year, paid nothing in federal income taxes. It is fiscally irresponsible that the U.S. Treasury loses about $100 billion a year because corporations and the rich stash their profits in the Cayman Islands, Bermuda and other tax havens.
Warren Buffett is honest. He has pointed out the unfairness that he, a multi-billionaire, pays a lower effective tax rate than his secretary. It is not acceptable that billionaire hedge fund managers are able to pay lower effective tax rates than truck drivers or nurses because they take advantage of a variety of tax loopholes that their lobbyists wrote.
This must end. We need a tax system which is fair, and which is progressive. Children should not go hungry in this country while profitable corporations and the wealthy avoid their tax responsibilities.
These are just some of the issues that we will be dealing with. Add your name to stand with me and endorse this platform for our campaign.
The struggle to create a nation and world of economic and social justice and environmental sanity is not an easy one. The struggle to try and create a more peaceful world will be extremely difficult. But this I know: despair is not an option if we care about our kids and grandchildren. Giving up is not an option if we want to prevent irreparable harm to our planet.
We must stand up and fight back. We must launch a political revolution which engages millions of Americans from all walks of life in the struggle for real change. This country belongs to all of us, not just the billionaire class. And that's what our campaign is all about.
This campaign cannot be won by me alone. That is absolutely for sure. To win, all of us must be deeply involved.
In the coming days, weeks and months we need to hear your ideas as to what issues are most important to you and your community. We need to hear your thoughts about how we can mount the effective campaign we need to win. We need your help in spreading the word so that your friends, neighbors, and co-workers become involved in the effort.
Please stand with me and join the grassroots revolution that we desperately need.
In solidarity,
Bernie Sanders
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Janis -
I wanted you to hear it from me first: a short while ago, we flew past our goal of 1 million online contributions to our campaign.
Let’s. Keep. Going.
If we do, we can send an unmistakable message about the size and strength of our political revolution to the political media who have dismissed us for too long.
Make a contribution of $50 before tonight’s official FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION fundraising deadline.
We’ll check back in with another update before the end of the day, but I wanted to share the news with you first and implore you to help us keep going.
All my best,
Jeff Weaver
Campaign Manager
I wanted you to hear it from me first: a short while ago, we flew past our goal of 1 million online contributions to our campaign.
Let’s. Keep. Going.
If we do, we can send an unmistakable message about the size and strength of our political revolution to the political media who have dismissed us for too long.
Make a contribution of $50 before tonight’s official FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION fundraising deadline.
We’ll check back in with another update before the end of the day, but I wanted to share the news with you first and implore you to help us keep going.
All my best,
Jeff Weaver
Campaign Manager
- Status