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Email List Articles, Speeches, and Other Stuff from Bernie Sanders
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• So. Where Do We Go From Here? - March 15th, 2025
• I am sending this email out to you just before our Fighting Oligarchy tour begins - March 20th, 2025
• A truly remarkable few days - March 23rd, 2025
• A lot of bad news... and there is also some good news - April 4th, 2025
• Republicans are getting nervous about our events - April 12th, 2025
• Here is what I've seen over the last five days - April 18th, 2025

So. Where do we go from here?
Mailing list post from March 15th, 2025.

Yesterday, I voted NO on a terrible Continuing Resolution bill - written by right-wing Republicans in the House with no input from anybody but themselves.

This bill moves our country toward authoritarianism by usurping Congress‘s constitutional responsibility to determine how federal funds are spent, and creates a slush fund for Elon Musk and Donald Trump to continue their war against the working families of our country. This bill puts more and more power into the hands of the White House.

In order to pass this bill the Republicans needed 60 votes - which meant they had to have seven votes from Democrats – and they got them. Actually they got ten. That is sad and a real failure on the part of Democratic leadership. NOBODY in the Senate should have voted for this dangerous bill.

But that’s only part of what’s going on right now.

As I’m sure you know Trump, Musk and the Republican Party are going after Social Security, cutting thousands of jobs at the Social Security administration.

They are going after Medicaid, trying to cut the program by over $800 billion dollars. That means millions of kids are going to lose their health care. It means if your mom and dad are in a nursing home, they're going to be in trouble because 2/3 of people in nursing homes are supported by Medicaid.

They are going after the Veterans Administration and want to cut over 80,000 workers at the VA, which means our veterans will get lower quality health care.

They're going after public education, nutrition assistance programs and regulations to protect us from polluters and corporate crooks - and on and on it goes.

And why do they want to cut all of these programs that are so important to the working families of our country?

The answer is very simple: they want to give massive tax cuts to the richest people in America. In their program, they are going to give over $1 trillion to the top 1%, paid for by cuts to programs working people rely on to survive.

It's the Robin Hood principle in reserve. They’re taking from the poor and working people and giving to the very rich.

And if you think my Republican colleagues lose a minute of sleep thinking about all of the harm they will cause for families across the country in the process, you would be mistaken.

So. Where do we go from here?

First, we have to understand that the economic and political crises facing our country will NOT be solved in Washington, DC. The system is just too corrupt. As a result of Citizens United billionaires in both parties are able spend unlimited sums of money buying and selling politicians - and that’s what they do. Further, on any given day, thousands of corporate lobbyists roam the halls of Congress doing the bidding of their corporate masters.

The ONLY way that real change ever takes place is from the bottom on up. It’s when millions of people, at the grassroots level, reject the status quo and stand up for justice and decency. And the good news is that we’re beginning to see that happen right now – all across the country. Seniors in large numbers are telling Congress: don’t cut the Social Security Administration. Veterans and their organizations are telling Congress: don’t cut the Veterans Administration. Students are telling Congress: don’t cut Pell grants and student loans.

And large numbers of people are coming out to town meetings - and taking on members of Congress who are prepared to vote against their interests.

Over the past several weeks I've held a series of town meetings in Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin and Michigan. And what I have found is that in these districts, and all across the country, Americans are saying loudly and clearly: NO to oligarchy, NO to authoritarianism, NO to kleptocracy, NO to massive cuts in programs that working people desperately need, NO to huge tax breaks for the richest people in our country.

Next week, as part of our Fighting Oligarchy tour I, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and other progressive members of Congress, will be holding events in Nevada, Colorado and Arizona. And that’s just the beginning.

There must be meetings and rallies in all 50 states, and they should take place over and over again. And when those rallies are over, we need to organize the people who attend to mobilize in their communities and be in touch with their members of Congress.

But that is not all.

We need progressives to run for office at all levels. I am talking about school boards, city councils, state legislature and the races that are not in the news but make a tremendous difference in local communities.

We need to build community and bring people together even when it isn't about politics first. The Republican Party is always trying to divide us up based on race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation and more... we need to come together as one.

We need to elect a U.S. House and a U.S. Senate that will prioritize the needs of the working people in this country. We now have open Senate seats in Minnesota, Michigan, and New Hampshire. Who are the progressives that are going to run, and how can we support them? There are also a number of House seats that can be won.

Further, we need to be looking for new and creative ways to educate each other in a world where nearly the entire media and communications infrastructure is owned and controlled by the wealthiest people in this country.

If there was ever a time in American history when we need to come together, this is that time.

Not me.

Us.

That is the only way forward.

In solidarity,

Bernie Sanders

The House CR cut $1 billion from DC's current year local budget. Local taxpayer money that they already approved last fall. Not federal money, so cutting it doesn't save the federal government any money.

They then went on vacation as a middle finger to everyone. And instead of amending the bill and sending it back to the House, which is literally their job, Schumer and other Senate Dems caved and passed the fix as a separate bill so they wouldn't have to inconvenience the House GOP from their self-imposed vacation. Leaving our city's fate in limbo. And now there's reporting that Republican hardliners are pressuring Speaker Johnson to not take up the Senate bill when they come back.

@taulover: It's almost like appeasement doesn't work or something.

I honestly don't know what those Democrats were thinking...at no time in history has appeasement worked. It only delays the inevitable and usually by then it's even harder to change course. I know Schumer claims that shutting the government down would be worse cause it'd give Trump and Musk more power to cut government jobs, but  they're doing that anyways and nothing in the CR is going to stop that. The whole point in opposing it was to make Republicans add guardrails to prevent that, and they gained nothing from caving in.

What do you do when you have an opposition party that's afraid to oppose anything? If they're not going to draw a line here, when will they ever?

I am sending this email out to you just before our Fighting Oligarchy tour begins
Mailing list post from March 20th, 2025.

I am sending this email out to you just before our Fighting Oligarchy tour begins. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez and I will be doing five rallies in Nevada, Arizona, and Colorado. If you can’t attend in person, please watch them on live-stream.

As we hit the road, here is some of what I have been thinking about.

Today in America, the Republican Party controls the White House, the U.S. Senate, the House of Representatives, the Supreme Court, and they hold a majority of the governorships and state legislatures in the country.

We are coming off a presidential election in which millions of Americans who voted for Joe Biden didn’t show up to vote for Kamala Harris. It was an also an election in which traditional Democratic Party consistencies — working people, young people, and Latinos — all shifted dramatically toward Donald Trump. And, as you read this, the polls show the Democratic Party has its lowest approval rating in decades.

Why is that happening? How is it that given the anti-worker ideology and policies of the Republican Party, that party now has more working class support than Democrats? How is it, given their views on climate change, student debt, housing, gay rights, etc. that Republicans are gaining support with young people? How is it that despite their clearly racist and xenophobic policies and rhetoric, Republicans are doing better and better with Latinos?

The bad news is that Democratic Establishment politicians, and donors, and the inside-the-beltway consultant class still don’t get it. And I’m not sure they ever will. Many of them believe that the answer is “playing dead” and hoping Republican support collapses — or more fundraising, more super PACs, more ads, more press releases and “better messaging.”

The good news is that more and more people are waking up to the fact that if Democrats are serious about winning elections the real answer lies in rejecting the corporate wing of the party and empowering those who are prepared to create a grassroots, multi-racial, multi-generational working class party in every state in this country. The good news is that millions of Americans are rejecting the corporate influence in both parties and are prepared to support Independent candidates or run as Independents themselves.

All you have to do is look around.

All across this country Americans - Democrats, Republicans, Independents - are saying loudly and clearly: NO to oligarchy, NO to authoritarianism, NO to kleptocracy, NO to massive cuts in programs that working people desperately need, NO to huge tax breaks for the richest people in our country, NO to maintaining the status quo in an economic and political system that is failing tens of millions of working class families.

At the same time, they are saying just as loudly and as clearly: YES to raising the minimum wage, YES to expanding Social Security, YES to guaranteeing health care as a human right, YES, to cutting the cost of prescription drugs, YES to paid family and medical leave, YES to equal pay for equal work, YES to more affordable housing, YES to making childcare and higher education affordable to all, YES to taking on the existential threat of climate change. And most importantly they are saying YES to a government and an economy that works for all of us and not just the billionaire class and the Oligarchs.

That is why you see thousands and thousands of people coming out to our meetings in Iowa, Nebraska, Michigan and Wisconsin.

It is why more than 50,000 people -- including 25,000 in Denver -- have RSVP'd to our rallies this weekend.

You see it at town hall meetings with unprecedented turnout in congressional districts across the country.

You see it when Republicans have told their members to avoid holding those very same meetings going forward.

It is happening because that is where the people are in this country, and that is where the energy is.

The path forward is clear:

If Democrats are serious about winning elections and addressing the major crises that we face, they must embrace the working class of this country in a way which hasn’t been done in almost 60 years.

If Democrats are serious about winning elections and addressing the major crises that we face, Democrats must make it clear that they are prepared to boldly take on the Oligarchs and corporate interests who have so much power and influence in this country.

If Democrats are serious about winning elections and addressing the major crises that we face, they must reject the corporate wing of the party and empower those who are prepared to create a grassroots, multi-racial, multi-generational working class party in every state in this country.

And, if Democrats are unable to make that transformation what we will see, and SHOULD see, are more and more Americans fighting for change outside of the broken two-party system.

Will taking on a rigged economy and a corporately dominated political system be easy? Absolutely not. It will require enormous discipline, hard work, and clear thinking.

We're taking on not only the entire Republican Party and their right-wing media outlets, but also the “moderate” corporate media and the entire Democratic Establishment. We’re taking on Wall Street and the CEOs of almost every major corporation in the country.

We’re taking on all those for whom the status quo is working just great.

That’s the bad news.

Here’s the good news. The overwhelming majority of Americans are on our side. They don’t want us to become an Oligarchy. They don’t want us to become an authoritarian society. They don’t want us to destroy Social Security, public education and the Veterans Administration while we provide enormous tax breaks to the rich. They don’t want us to turn against each other with increased racism, sexism, homophobia and xenophobia. They don’t want us to be in a confrontational relationship with long-time allies like Canada, Mexico and Europe.

Bottom line: the struggle before us will not be easy. But, for the sake of our kids and future generations, it’s a struggle we cannot run away from. We must take on Trumpism - and defeat it. We must create a government that works for all, and not just the few.

Needless to say, I intend to do my part — both inside the beltway and throughout the country. In the days, weeks, and months ahead I hope you will join me in that struggle.

In solidarity,

Bernie Sanders

A truely remarkable few days
Mailing list post from March 23rd, 2025.

We just finished up a truly remarkable few days on the road. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and I held five rallies in three states in three days. And the response was incredible.

North Las Vegas, Nevada

We began in Las Vegas on Thursday where we were joined by Congressman Steve Horsford — a former member of the Culinary Workers Union and past Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus. The last time Donald Trump was in Las Vegas, in January of this year, 2,000 people came out to his event. 3,200 people joined ours. It was the largest event I have ever held in the city.

Tempe, Arizona

And then it was on to Tempe, Arizona. And that was pretty crazy.

The largest rally turnout we have ever had in the Tempe-Phoenix area was 11,300 in 2015 when I was running for president. This weekend, in a non-campaign event, 15,000 Arizonans turned out. Not only was the arena filled to capacity — many thousands waited outside in the parking lot. Remarkable.

Greeley, Colorado

On Thursday we began the day in Greeley, Colorado. Greeley is a small city with a population of 108,000. Well, 11,300 of those Coloradans joined our event. There were more people in the overflow area outside, nearly 6,000, than we could fit into the gym.

Denver, Colorado

And then it was on to Denver. Total insanity.

When you run for President you hold a lot of rallies. And I have. But I’ve never held a rally like this - ever. At Denver we were joined by great musicians and speakers from the trade union movement. And 34,000 people turned out. 34,000 people! This is, by far, the largest rally that I have ever held anywhere. And, by the way, it is a larger number than Trump ever had in Denver.

Tucson, Arizona

On Saturday morning we had our last rally - in Tucson, Arizona. We were joined by Congressman Greg Casar from Texas -- the Chair of the House Progressive Caucus. It was a warm, beautiful day. We were planning on 8,000 to 10,000 people attending. We were wrong. Over 23,000 showed up at the high school football stadium.

So. What do these huge turnouts tell us? I think the answer is pretty clear.

The American people do not want Trumpism. They do not want oligarchy. They do not want authoritarianism. They are tired of massive income and wealth inequality and the greed of the billionaire class. They are tired of a corrupt political system that allows billionaires in both parties to buy elections and leaves working people behind.

All across this country Americans are prepared to take on the forces that control our economic and political lives. They are prepared to fight back. They want a government and an economy that works for all, not just the 1%.

And they understand that the Democratic Party isn’t going to save us. This fight is up to all of us at the grassroots level.

What history has always told us is that real change only occurs when ordinary people stand up against oppression and injustice.

That is the history of the founding of our nation when brave men and women took on the mighty British empire. It is the history of the abolitionist movement, the labor movement, the civil rights movement, the women’s movement, the environmental movement and the gay rights movement.

Yes, the oligarchs ARE enormously powerful. They have endless amounts of money. They control our economy. They own much of the media. They have enormous influence over our political system.

But, from the bottom of my heart, I am convinced that they can be beaten. But it won’t be easy.

Our job in the days, weeks and months ahead is to energize and organize.

We need to hold meetings and rallies in all 50 states, and then do it again and again and again. And when those rallies are over, we need to organize the people who attend to mobilize in their communities and fight back in every way we can.

We need progressives to run for office at all levels. I am talking about school boards, city councils, state legislatures and the races that are not in the news but make a tremendous difference in local communities. I’m talking about races for governor, U.S. House and U.S. Senate.

But it’s not just running for office. At a time when many of our people feel lonely and isolated, we need to build community and bring people together. In the deepest sense we need to care for each other and give each other strength.

This is a pivotal moment in American history. What we do now will not only impact our lives, but the lives of our kids and future generations. In terms of climate change, it will determine the well-being of the entire planet.

Now is not the time for despair. It’s not the time to hide under the covers. It’s the time to organize and fight back.

Together, we can and will win.

In Solidarity,

Bernie

A lot of bad news... and there is some good news
Mailing list post from April 4th, 2025.

These are crazy times. It appears that every day we’re dealing with one crisis or another, outrageous decisions and statements from the White House, and the continued undermining of the Constitution by Trump.

Let me take this opportunity to tell you where I think we are in this difficult moment – and how we can best go forward. I also want to stress that in the midst of a lot of bad news, there is also some good news.

In my view, the key components of Trumpism are: oligarchy, authoritarianism, unprecedented dishonesty, kleptocracy, and economic policies which favor the rich while impoverishing working families.

Abraham Lincoln talked about a government "of the people, by the people, for the people." I think it's clear that today we have a government of the billionaire class, by the billionaire class, and for the billionaire class.

Elon Musk contributed $277 million to get Trump elected president and he was rewarded with the most important position in government. Trump nominated 13 other billionaires to head various government agencies.

For years, as many of you know, I've been talking about how our country is moving toward an oligarchic form of society, and people had their doubts. What is Bernie talking about? What is oligarchy? Not anymore. It’s out in the open for all to see.

But it's not just oligarchy and a government by the billionaire class. It's a very rapid movement toward authoritarianism. Virtually every day, Trump is usurping the powers of Congress. He is holding back funds that Congress appropriated. He is ending programs and agencies that he has no legal power to do. He is shipping billions in military aid to Netanyahu under an “emergency” provision and has developed his tariff proposals under “emergency” decree.

He is aggressively undermining the first amendment and freedom of expression. He has sued major media outlets like ABC, CBS, Meta and the Des Moines Register for stories they wrote which he didn’t like. And now his FCC is investigating PBS and NPR. He is clearly trying to intimidate the media and prevent information coming out that he doesn’t like.

But it's not just Congress and the media that he's going after. He is also waging an outrageous attack against our legal system. He, and fellow Republicans, are threatening to impeach judges who render decisions that he doesn't like. He has also successfully received millions in tribute from large cowardly law firms that have opposed him in the past.

But it's not just Congress, the media, and the judiciary that he's going after. He's now waging a vitriolic attack against major universities that are teaching courses or allowing activities he doesn’t like. For years, we have heard conservatives talk about decentralized government, getting the government off the backs of the people. We've heard about how education is a local issue. And now we have a president who is telling Harvard, Columbia, Princeton, and other universities what they can and cannot do. Pathetically, some of them are bowing to his will — firing faculty or changing courses.

And, in an absolutely unconstitutional way, federal agents have grabbed foreign students, thrown them into unmarked cars and taken them to detention facilities. Their crime? They may have attended a demonstration or written an article critical of Israel.

Trump has also decided that he needs to lead the culture war. He has made himself Chairman of the Board of the Kennedy Center.

All of these activities make one thing very clear: Trump has little respect for the Constitution of the United States and for the rule of law. He wants more and more power unto himself. He wants to lead an authoritarian nation.

And to make a bad situation even worse, Trump and Musk are rapidly trying to dismantle federal agencies that serve working families and the poor. Musk has laid off thousands of workers at the Social Security Administration, which will make it harder for the elderly and the disabled to get the benefits that they paid for. Many will die as a result.

Trump and Musk have also decided to lay off some 83,000 employees from the Veterans Administration, which will mean that the men and women who put their lives on the line to defend our country will see a deterioration in the health care they receive and the speed in which they receive the benefits they earned.

And then, on top of all that, Trump and his Republican colleagues are working on a “reconciliation bill” which will make massive cuts to Medicaid, education, nutrition, etc. in order to give over a trillion dollars in tax breaks to the 1 percent.

So that's the bad news. And it is extremely bad. Here’s the good news.

Over the last several months I have been traveling the country in what I call a Fighting Oligarchy tour. I have been to Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, Nevada, Colorado, and Arizona. In the last three states I was joined by my House colleague Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. In every instance, the turnouts have been extraordinary. In Denver we had 34,000 people turn out – the biggest rally I have ever held. Bottom line: the American people are angry and are fighting back. And let me tell you: The Republicans are taking notice and getting nervous. Musk absurdly claimed that the people who attended the rallies were paid organizers, and Trump was forced to downplay the size of the crowds.

But it’s not just rallies and crowd size that we should be proud of. We are also hiring organizers in many of the states we have visited who are working with people in their communities on how to stand up and fight back — not only against Trump, but for an agenda that works for the working families of this country.

In our first virtual meeting, more than 600 people in Iowa's First Congressional District joined together to learn how they can best engage in grassroots organizing. Many hundreds more have signed up for an organizing meeting in Iowa’s Third Congressional District. That's a big deal. And we're going to expand that work as we visit more states.

I’m proud to tell you that the Fighting Oligarchy tour is continuing. Next week, I will be heading out west. AOC and I will be in California for three events. I, and others, will also be doing rallies in Boise, Idaho, Salt Lake City, Utah, and Missoula, Montana.

Let me give you another piece of good news. Last Tuesday Susan Crawford took on Elon Musk, the richest guy in the world and the $25 million that he spent - and won a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Please remember that five months ago Trump won a narrow victory in Wisconsin. On Tuesday, Ms. Crawford won by a 10-point margin.

Also, on Tuesday night, in two Congressional districts in Florida where Trump had won by 30 points, Democratic candidates, while losing, cut that margin in half.

So where do we go from here?

We started this work because you know your history as well as I do. You know that real change never takes place from the top down. If we waited on the Democratic Party and DC politicians to defeat Trumpism, we'd be waiting forever.

Trumpism will only be defeated by millions of Americans, in every state in this country, coming together in a strong, grassroots movement which says NO to oligarchy, NO to authoritarianism, NO to kleptocracy, NO to massive cuts in programs that working people desperately need, NO to huge tax brakes for the richest people in our country. And that’s what these events are about.

Needless to say, a few large rallies and organizing meetings will not be enough to stop Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and the Republican Party.

So we must continue to hold meetings and rallies in all 50 states, and then do it again and again and again. And when those rallies are over, we need to organize the people who attend to mobilize in their communities and fight back in every way we can.

We need progressives to run for office at all levels. I am talking about school boards, city councils, state legislatures, and the races that are not in the news but make a tremendous difference in local communities. I’m talking about races for governor, U.S. House and U.S. Senate.

We need to be looking for new and creative ways to educate each other in a world where nearly the entire media and communications infrastructure is owned and controlled by the wealthiest people in this country.

We need to build community and bring people together. In the deepest sense we need to care for each other and give each other strength.

Sisters and brothers, it may just be possible that this country is on the brink of the political revolution we have been talking about for a long time. People are tired of the status quo and a government that only benefits the 1 percent.

Just as loudly as people are saying NO to oligarchy, they are saying YES to raising the minimum wage, YES to expanding Social Security, YES to guaranteeing health care as a human right, YES, to cutting the cost of prescription drugs, YES to paid family and medical leave, YES to equal pay for equal work, YES to more affordable housing, YES to making childcare and higher education affordable to all, YES to taking on the existential threat of climate change.

And most importantly they are saying YES to a government and an economy that works for all of us and not just the billionaire class and the Oligarchs.

Needless to say, I intend to do my part — both inside the beltway and throughout the country. In the days, weeks, and months ahead I hope you will join me in that struggle.

So if you can, please contribute $27 or whatever you can afford to help us fund our rallies, organizing, and work to create a government that works for all of us, and not just the one percent.

Bottom line: the struggle before us will not be easy. But, for the sake of our kids and future generations, it’s a struggle we cannot run away from. We must take on Trumpism — and defeat it. We must create a government that works for all, and not just the few.

In solidarity,

Bernie Sanders

Republicans are getting nervous about our events
Mailing list post from April 12th, 2025.

Thank you very much for your ongoing support which is making possible the great Fighting Oligarchy rallies that we are holding all across the country. So far, as you may know, we’ve been to Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, Nevada, Colorado, and Arizona - and the turnouts have been extraordinary - with more than 100,000 people coming out.

And Republicans are getting nervous. Both Trump and Musk have had to respond - with lies. Musk claimed that many of the 34,000 who came to the Denver rally were “paid organizers.” Trump was busy boasting, falsely, that his turnouts were always larger than ours.

On Saturday, the next phase of the Fighting Oligarchy tour begins. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and I will be starting off in Los Angeles. We’ll then be going to Utah, Idaho, back to rural agricultural areas in California, and finishing up in Montana. Most of these events will be in conservative districts that have Republican members of Congress.

What are we trying to accomplish with these events? There are four main reasons.

First: I want people in the communities that we’re in, and people throughout the country, to understand that they’re not alone when they are outraged by what Trump is doing to our country. In fact, when they stand amidst thousands of their neighbors in opposition to oligarchy, authoritarianism, xenophobia and attacks on the working class, they learn that they are not part of some fringe minority but belong to a majority of Americans who want this country to move forward in a very different direction than Trump is taking us. These rallies give people confidence and provide hope for a better future.

Second: Given the nature of corporate media and the dominance of big money over the two-party political system, it’s vitally important that we provide a progressive political and economic analysis that many people have rarely or never heard. In other words, we must raise political consciousness. One of the ways that the Establishment is able to maintain the rigged economic and political systems that we have is by ignoring the most pressing problems that working class people face. When people are not provided with rational explanations as to what’s going on in the world in which they live, they may give up on the political process. And that is exactly what the moneyed interests want.

For example: When is the last time that you heard a serious national discussion about the unprecedented level of income and wealth inequality that we are currently experiencing? What are the moral and economic implications of the three wealthiest people in America owning more wealth than the bottom half of our country – 170 million Americans? This, perhaps the most important economic reality that we face, is almost completely ignored by the corporate media and corporate politicians. Well. I TALK ABOUT IT AT OUR RALLIES.

And what about the economic crises facing the working class of this country? In the richest country in the history of the world, which is what we are, 60% of our people live paycheck to paycheck and working class people, as a result of the stress they experience trying to survive, have a seven years shorter life expectancy than the wealthy. Over 20% of senior citizens in this country are trying to survive on less than $15,000 a year. We have the highest rate of childhood poverty of almost any major country on earth. Over 800,000 Americans are homeless and 20 million Americans spend half of their incomes or more on housing. Do you hear much discussion about those realities on TV or in Congress? Well. I TALK ABOUT IT AT OUR RALLIES.

And what about our dysfunctional and wildly expensive health care? Republicans want to slash Medicaid. Most Democrats are content to preserve the status quo. When is the last time you heard serious discussion about the need to approach health care as a human right and guarantee health care to all Americans through a Medicare for All single-payer system. Well. I TALK ABOUT IT AT OUR RALLIES.

And what about, perhaps, the most important issue of all? The need to end the disastrous Citizens United Supreme Court decision and move to public funding of elections. Both parties raise huge amounts from the billionaire class which allows them to use their influence to shape the government’s agenda. Musk spent $270 million to elect Trump and was given the right to decimate programs that working families desperately need. AIPAC and other super-PACs contribute heavily to Democrats (and Republicans) and are prepared to punish any elected official who stands up to Netanyahu’s barbaric war against the Palestinian people in Gaza. You’re not hearing much lately about our corrupt campaign finance system. Well. I TALK ABOUT IT AT OUR RALLIES.

Third: While it is absolutely imperative that we, as progressives, take on Trump and his extremist agenda every day, it’s equally important that we bring forth a bold agenda for the future that addresses the pain that millions of working class families are experiencing. Working class Americans are not voting Republican because they support tax breaks for billionaires or want to decimate Medicaid, Social Security, or the Veterans Administration. They are voting Republican because they perceive, correctly, that most Democrats are not prepared to forcefully address the economic crises that they face. Democrats are wildly perceived as the party of the status quo - a status quo which has been a disaster for most Americans. That has got to change. We need a clear economic program that takes on the Oligarchs and the greed of corporate America. An agenda that raises wages and supports unions, ends poverty for seniors, children and the disabled, makes housing affordable, guarantees health care and education for all and creates millions of good paying jobs by combatting the existential threat of climate change. In other words, after 10 years of simply criticizing Trump, we have to give Americans something to vote FOR.

Fourth: It is no secret to anyone that the current Democratic Party is a top-down institution. It is largely funded by a small group of individuals in the “donor class,” run by well-paid (and out of touch) consultants and elects most, not all, candidates through massive amounts of advertising. That is the political approach of the Democratic Establishment. It is an approach which will not only continue to lose elections but will never bring about the profound changes this country needs.

Our approach is different. We know that real political and social change never takes place from the top on down. It always takes place from the bottom on up. It’s what happens when millions of Americans - Black, White, Latino, men and women, gay and straight, native born or immigrant - stand together for economic, social, racial, and environmental justice.

And that is why we are now hiring organizers all across the country to help build that movement. We’re holding town meetings, we’re door-knocking, we’re on the phones and on social media. It’s why we’re beginning to recruit strong progressive candidates to run for office, from school board to U.S Senator.

That’s what the Fighting Oligarchy tour is all about.

In solidarity,

Bernie

Here is what I've seen over the last five days
Mailing list post from April 18th, 2025.

Sisters and Brothers:

Under the oligarchic and authoritarian regime of Donald Trump, we find ourselves living in an unprecedented moment in modern American history. As a result, we’ve got to respond in an unprecedented way.

And we’re beginning to do it.

Yesterday afternoon, Alexandria, Ocasio-Cortez and I completed the latest swing in our Fighting Oligarchy Tour. There were seven events in five days, and the turnouts were unbelievable. In total, nearly 150,000 people turned out from "blue" Los Angeles to "red" Idaho … a state Trump won with almost 70 percent of the vote.

Sisters and Brothers: it may just be possible that this country is on the brink of a political revolution that is long overdue and that, finally, we move toward a government and an economy that works for all of us – and not just the billionaire class. This struggle won’t be easy, but we’re making progress.

All across America, I am seeing people who are hungry for an understanding of what is going on in this country, how we are going to take on Trumpism, and what we must do to transform our society.

Here is what I’ve seen over the last five days:

Los Angeles, California — 36,000 people


Coachella Valley, California — 35,000 people


Salt Lake City, Utah — 20,000 people


Nampa, Idaho — 12,500 people


Bakersfield, California — 4,450 people


Folsom, California — 30,000 people


Missoula, Montana — 9,000 people

And let’s be clear. These turnouts are getting Republicans nervous. Elon Musk says our attendees are “paid organizers," and Trump boasts, falsely, that only a couple thousand people are attending and that his turnouts are always larger than ours.

Just this week, four Republican members of Congress representing districts where we have held rallies signed a letter to Speaker Johnson opposing significant cuts to Medicaid. The letter didn’t go as far as we would like – which is ABSOLUTELY NO CUTS TO MEDICAID – but it’s a start. And keep in mind, it does not take many Republicans to stop the House from passing Medicaid cuts. Four is enough.

But needless to say, a few large rallies are not going to be nearly enough to stop what Trump, Musk and right-wing extremist Republicans are doing to this country.

What is most important is what happens AFTER these rallies are finished, and that is what I want to talk to you about today.

First: our goal is not to simply parachute in and do a rally. Every time we leave a state, we follow up with people who attended our events and give them opportunities to take additional actions. Sometimes, it can be demanding that their member of Congress hold a town hall and tell them if they’re going to vote for tax breaks for billionaires while they slash Medicaid. We’re also asking people to go door-to-door educating their neighbors as to what’s going on in Washington. In some states, like Colorado and Utah, we have asked people to get involved in fights important to organized labor or in protecting the environment. In other words, the rallies are the beginning of our efforts, not the end.

As a result of your support, we have already hired organizers in several competitive Congressional districts and are in the process of hiring more. Our organizers have helped turn out people to other events and rallies, including last weekend’s "Hands Off" events. We have held virtual organizing meetings where people can learn how they can best engage in grassroots organizing. In our first virtual meeting, more than 600 people in Iowa's First Congressional District joined. We have even more RSVP's for an organizing meeting in Wisconsin later today.

But there is much more to be done if we’re going to be successful in taking on the Oligarchs who today control the economic and political life of our nation.

In the next week, we are going to help a group called "Run for Something" identify what I hope will be thousands of Americans who want to run for office at all levels on a progressive agenda that represents the needs of the working class of our country. I am talking about school boards, city councils, state legislatures and the U.S. House and U.S. Senate. We are talking about running candidates and mobilizing grassroots activism in EVERY state in the country. Please be on the lookout for that email and consider if now is the moment YOU may want to run for office.

We are also exploring new and creative ways to educate each other in a world where nearly the entire media and communications infrastructure is owned and controlled by the wealthiest people on earth. Our rallies in the last week were viewed more than 2 million times. But we must do more.

We are holding non-political events to build community that bring people together. In my home state of Vermont, we hold free-throw shooting basketball contests for kids, a chess tournament and community walks. When Republicans are trying to divide us up based on race, gender, religion and more, our job is to come together, support each other and give each other strength.

And we must engage in a coordinated effort to support progressive candidates who are not only prepared to stand up to Donald Trump and his Republicans allies, but who are offering real solutions to the problems facing working people, the elderly, the children, the sick and the poor. I am talking about contested House and Senate races this cycle where we have a chance to elect progressives over establishment Democrats.

Now, you know your history as well as I do. You know that real change never takes place from the top down. It takes place when ordinary people, by the millions, are prepared to stand up and fight for justice.

And the truth is, we are trying to do something that the establishment in the Democratic Party is incapable of doing. The sad truth is that many Democratic politicians have very few roots in their communities and are unable to generate grassroots enthusiasm. If we waited on them to defeat Trumpism and move our country forward, we'd be waiting forever.

So it is up to us.

Not me.

Us.

It is up to us to first stop a Republican reconciliation bill that will provide tax cuts for billionaires while cutting lifesaving programs for the poor and working class of this country.

And long term, it is up to us to transform this country.

This is big stuff, and it is not the time for small thinking. It is not the time for the same old same old establishment politics and stale "Inside the Beltway" ideas.

Now IS the time for millions of working families to come together, to revitalize American democracy, to end the collapse of the American middle class and to make certain that our children and grandchildren are able to enjoy a quality of life that brings them health, prosperity, security and joy — and that once again makes the United States the leader in the world in the fight for economic and social justice, for environmental sanity and for a world of peace.

Let's get it done.

In solidarity,

Bernie Sanders