In a new interview on CBS’s Face the Nation, Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) discussed his hopes for America’s future and his anxieties about President-elect Donald Trump.
Sanders rose to national prominence last year when he sought the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination. A dark horse candidate when he began his campaign, Sanders made a strong showing, taking 22 states and mobilizing widespread grassroots support before conceding to Hillary Clinton in July.
In the interview, Sanders outlined what he sees as the country’s major problems. Wealth inequality, a declining middle class, a flawed healthcare system, and a totally broken criminal justice system topped his list.
‘We Are The majority’
But most importantly, Sanders addressed the ascension of Republican Donald Trump to the White House. In a shocking political upset last week, Trump won the electoral vote but not the popular vote in a close contest against Clinton. Sanders emphasized that while Trump won the election, most Americans do not support his policies.
“…On virtually every major issue – raising the minimum wage, climate change, pay equity for women, rebuilding our infrastructure, making public colleges and universities tuition-free – we are the majority. That is what the American people want.”
Sanders also expressed alarm over Trump’s position on climate change:
“…What astounds me – and I hope this changes very quickly – is we now have a President-elect who actually does not believe that climate change is real. I worry very much what this means for our kids and our grandchildren and the future of this planet.”
Building A Movement
If the elections last week proved anything, it was that the Democratic Party is in trouble. The Republicans took not only the Presidency, but both houses of Congress, too. So who is going to lead the Democratic Party to a better future? Sanders demurred, saying:
“I’m not into leaders. I am into building a movement which transforms this country and brings people together around an agenda that works for the middle class and working families in this country.”
How can progressives actually take Trump and his cronies on? Sanders explained:
“…The Democrats will win elections by pounding away on those issues and talking about not giving tax breaks to billionaires, [and by] undoing Citizens United – a disastrous Supreme Court decision.”
Room For Compromise?
Still, Sanders agreed there were areas of potential collaboration. While both Trump and Sanders ran populist campaigns that tapped into working-class frustration, they adopted totally different policy positions. One of the only areas of agreement between them was trade policy. Both have been critical of NAFTA and other international trade deals that export American jobs and import cheaply-made goods.
Sanders also suggested that he would back Trump’s plans to rebuild the country’s infrastructure – if it was “sensible”:
“If Mr. Trump in fact has the courage to take on Wall Street, to take on the drug companies, to try to go forward to create a better life for working people, we will work with him on issue by issue. But if his presidency is going to be about discrimination, if it’s going to be about scapegoating immigrants or scapegoating African Americans or Muslims, we will oppose him vigorously.”
Watch the interview below:
Feature image by Gage Skidmore via Flickr. Used in compliance with a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 license.
