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
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