Bernie Sanders, senator from Vermont: biography, career

Bernie (Bernard) Sanders - American politician, representative of the State of Vermont in the US Senate. Formally, not being a member of any political organization, in April 2015, he nominated himself for the presidency of the United States from the Democratic Party.

Bernie Sanders: Biography

Was born on September 8, 1941 in New York. He was the youngest of two sons of Jewish immigrants from Poland. A native of a needy family (his father did not sell paint very successfully), Sanders soon learned about the economic inequality in the US. According to him, he saw injustice, and this was the main source of inspiration in his policy. He was also greatly influenced by the leader of the American socialists Eugene Debs.

Bernie Sanders studied at Brooklyn Middle School of James Madison, and then moved to Brooklyn College. A year later he entered the University of Chicago. Then Sanders began to participate in the movement for civil rights. He was a member of the Congress of Racial Equality and participated in a sit-in demonstration against segregation in 1962. In addition, Sanders became the organizer of the Student non-violent coordinating committee. In 1963 he participated in the march on Washington.

After graduating from college (in 1964) with a degree in political science, the future presidential candidate lived for some time in the kibbutz in Israel, and then went to Vermont. Bernie Sanders tried himself in various professions, including worked as a film director and freelance writer, assistant psychiatrist and teacher of poor children, and his interest in politics continued to grow.

During the Vietnam War, Sanders submitted a decree to obtain the status of a person who refused military service in accordance with his convictions. Despite the fact that his request was ultimately rejected, by that time he had already left the draft age.

Burlington and not only

In the 1970s Bernie Sanders made several unsuccessful attempts to be elected from the anti-war party "Union of Freedom", of which he was a member until 1979. He won the first political victory with the slightest advantage. In 1981, he was elected mayor of Burlington (Vermont) by a majority of only 12 votes. Sanders was able to achieve this result with the support of the organization of the grassroots level "Progressive Coalition". He was reelected three more times, arguing that the "democratic socialist", as he called himself, could hold power.

Known for his mint clothes and "untamed mane," the mayor of Burlington was an unlikely candidate for deputies, but in 1990 this political outsider got a seat in the House of Representatives. As an independent candidate, Sanders faced a dilemma. He had to find political allies to advance his program and legislation. He considered cooperation with the Republicans "unthinkable," but held a meeting with the Democrats, despite the opposition of conservative party members.

Sanders openly criticized both camps every time he thought they were wrong. He was an active opponent of the war in Iraq. He was worried about the social and financial consequences of the conflict. In his address to the House of Representatives, he said that the United States, as a not indifferent country, should do everything possible to prevent the terrible suffering that the war will bring. He also questioned the timing of military operations "at a time when the country has $ 6 trillion in debt and a growing deficit."

US senator

Bernie Sanders tried to get to the Senate in 2006, nominating himself against the Republican businessman Richard Tarrant. He managed to do it, despite much more significant funding for the latter. In this election battle, Tarrant spent $ 7 million in personal savings.

In 2010, Sanders got into news releases with his over 8 hours of filibustering against tax cuts for the rich. It seemed to him that this law was a "very bad tax agreement" between the president and the republican legislators, as he later wrote in the preface to the book "Speech: historical filibustering about corporate greed and the decline of our middle class." Sanders ended his speech in the Senate asking his fellow lawmakers to make "a proposal that would better reflect the needs of the middle class and working families of the country and, most importantly, of her children."

Bernie Sanders - Senator - was a member of the Committees:

• On the budget;
• On health, education, labor and pensions;
• On affairs of veterans;
• Unified economic.

The Senator from Vermont is in favor of extending the right to vote and against the decision of the Supreme Court to cancel part of the Voting Rights Act. He is also a supporter of the universal unified health system. Driven by a sense of environmental protection, concerned about climate change and interested in renewable energy, Sanders is a member of the US Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

Presidential ambitions

In April 2015, Sanders announced his desire to be nominated for a Democratic presidential candidate. A long-standing independent politician had to resort to outside help out of political necessity. According to him, it would take a huge amount of time, energy and money to get on the ballot in 50 states as an independent candidate.

Sanders did not worry that he was considered an outsider. He believed that people should not underestimate him. As an old independent candidate, he managed to go beyond the bipartisan system, defeating Democrats and Republicans, fat-sum candidates.

Sanders really made impressive strides by challenging Clinton during the presidential primaries and gaining an advantage in public opinion polls. In February 2016, he was ahead of all top candidates and even Republican Donald Trump from 49% to 39% - it was better than Clinton, who defeated Trump from 46% to 41%.

The Sanders platform focuses on inequality in the United States. From the economic point of view, he advocates tax reform, which raises rates for the rich, expands government oversight of Wall Street and balances the inequality between the wages of men and women. Sanders also advocates for a public health system, more affordable higher education, which includes free college and universities and the expansion of social security and health insurance. A social liberal, he also supports same-sex marriages and abortions.

Campaign Slogans

One of the symbols that characterizes Sanders' campaign is his call for a "political revolution": he asks ordinary citizens to take an active part in the political process and make changes themselves that they would like to see.

Another symbol is his struggle for the withdrawal of corporate money from politics, in particular, for the cancellation of the decision, which allows corporations and the rich elite to pour in the campaign unlimited amounts. These funds, according to Sanders, undermine democracy, distorting policies that favor extremely wealthy.

Record fundraising

Remaining true to his principles, Bernie Sanders - presidential candidate - relied almost exclusively on small individual donations. To the surprise of many, including the politician himself, he broke the record for raising funds for the presidential campaign, surpassing even the achievement of President Obama during his re-election in 2011.

In February 2016, Sanders received 3.7 million contributions from 1.3 million individual sponsors, an average of $ 27 per person. In general, for the first quarter of 2016, the campaign attracted 109 million US dollars.

Historic victory in Michigan

The first victory of Sanders in Michigan is considered one of the biggest upheavals in modern political history. He won from 50% to 48%, despite the fact that according to polls he lagged behind Clinton by 20%.

The only time such a big mistake took place during the primaries of the Democratic Party in 1984 (Walter Mondale ahead of Gary Hart by 17%). Then Hart won in Michigan with an advantage of 9%.

The shocking victory of Sanders shows that his liberal populism finds a response in such a diverse state as Michigan, and not only there. It was also a huge psychological blow to the Clinton campaign, which hoped for a quick election.

Victory abroad and lack of AIPAC

In March 2016 Sanders won the primaries abroad with a score of 69%. More than 34 thousand American citizens voted for him in 38 countries.

He also got in the headlines as the first presidential candidate (and the only Jew) who refrained from participating in the annual pro-Israeli lobbying conference of AIPAC. He was justified by the tight schedule of the campaign, but some considered his absence controversial. The pro-Palestinian groups appreciated this act as a bold political statement.

Visiting the Vatican

Sanders went down in history as the only presidential candidate ever to be invited to the Vatican to discuss moral, environmental and economic issues. Against the backdrop of controversial primaries in New York, Sanders flew to a conference on social sciences, held in Rome in April 2016. He had the opportunity to briefly meet with the Pope, but in order not to politicize the event, the latter stressed that the meeting was a tribute of courtesy.

DNC platform and Clinton support

When the candidate's campaign came to an end and it became obvious that he had few chances to win, the senator used his political influence to change the DNC platform before speaking in support of Clinton. Bernie Sanders, whose program includes universal health care, free education at state colleges and universities, a minimum salary of $ 15 per hour, expansion of social security, financial reforms for Wall Street, and addressing climate change issues, was mainly able to include its demands in Platform of the Democratic Party. The failure was comprehended only in the issue of the Trans-Pacific partnership. Nevertheless, Sanders' enormous influence on the DNC platform has become a significant victory for him and his supporters.

July 12, 2016 before the primaries in New Hampshire, he accomplished what many did not expect from him: supported the candidacy of Clinton. This was a significant event for both campaigns, but the determination not to allow Trump to become the next Republican president pushed the differences into the background.

Hacking Email

In July 2016, on the eve of the National Convention of the Democratic Party in Philadelphia, Wikileaks published more than 19,000 letters from the DNC, which showed how officials favored Clinton and sought to undermine Sanders' campaign. In one electronic correspondence, the staff of DNC discussed how they could question his religiousness, "in order to weaken in the eyes of voters from the southern states."

The leak also showed the tension between the head of DNC Debbie Wasserman-Schultz and campaign manager Sanders Jeff Weaver, the DNC collusion with the media, and the ways in which officials attract sponsors.

As a result, Wasserman-Schultz announced that she will not speak at the congress and will step down as head of DNC.

The FBI announced the involvement of the Russian government in cracking DNC mail.

Despite the leak, Sanders called on voters and about 1,900 delegates supporting him at the DNC, to vote for Clinton. Some of his supporters criticized this decision. Turning to the furious crowd of dissenters, he said that it was necessary at all costs to defeat Donald Trump and elect Hillary Clinton and Tim Kane. This is the real world, and Trump is a hooligan and a demagogue who made fanaticism and hatred the cornerstone of his campaign.

Bernie Sanders about Russia

Historically, Russia has been and will be an important player in the international economic and diplomatic arena. Sanders supports the maintenance of a strong, consistent policy towards Russian President Vladimir Putin and advocates the preservation of economic sanctions and international pressure as an alternative to any direct military confrontation.

According to the politician, in order to moderate the aggression of the Russian Federation, the US should freeze Russian state assets around the world, and also influence organizations that hold huge investments in the aggressor state with the goal of withdrawing capital from this country pursuing increasingly hostile political goals.

The United States must cooperate with the international community to create a unified position in order to effectively solve the problem of Russian aggression.

Personal life

In 1964, Sanders married Deborah Shilling, but the couple divorced two years later. In 1968, he met with Susan Mott, and they had a son Levy in 1969.

Bernie Sanders met his second wife, Jane O'Meara, before becoming Burlington's mayor in 1981. A teacher with an experience of O'Meara eventually became president of Burlington College. They were married in 1988. O'Meara has three children from a previous marriage. In total, the couple have four children and seven grandchildren.

Sanders's older brother Larry is a British scientist and politician who is currently in charge of public health in the left-wing Green Party of England and Wales.