Sen. Bernie Sanders has always been a political outsider, but the longest-serving independent in US congressional history is now not afraid to exhibit his pragmatic side.
In an exclusive interview with USA TODAY on Wednesday, the senior senator from Vermont discussed the Israel-Hamas conflict, antisemitism, student protests, and President Biden’s record. One common thread that emerged immediately was Sanders’ refusal to let his disagreements with Biden on some subjects distract him from facing something more pressing: the threat posed by former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee.
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- 1 Sanders praises Biden’s work on health care access, infrastructure
- 2 At odds with policy on military aid to Israel
- 3 ‘Solution is to mobilize the American people’
He believes Biden’s policy change on Israel is long overdue, but he is also concerned that young people are underestimating the true threat that Trump poses and, in their rage over Israel and other issues, may fail to recognize that Biden is better on their side, even if he is not where they want him to be on Israel.
“We can be extremely upset at the Biden administration for their policies toward Israel and Gaza, but the difficulty is that in the real world that you live in, you have to look at a whole lot of things,” he said, sitting in the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions committee hearing room on Capitol Hill. “On the other hand, I would hope that most of the young people and protestors do not want to see Donald Trump, who is a racist, a sexist, and a homophobe who doesn’t acknowledge the reality of climate change, become elected president of the United States.”
The 82-year-old senator was popular with young people when he ran in 2020, but he eventually embraced Biden and became an effective surrogate. His remarks about young people and Trump come as the self-described Democratic socialist is becoming more active in messaging directly to Democrats, and polling shows Biden’s support dwindling among a key voting demographic that helped the incumbent president win the White House nearly four years ago. Sanders’ political career has been based on his commitment to challenge the powerful, particularly large businesses and lobbyists, for the betterment of the working class.
“I believe the president has much to be proud of in terms of his previous accomplishments. “I’m not sure if he gets credit for it,” he remarked.
Sanders praises Biden’s work on health care access, infrastructure
As the chair of HELP, Sanders discussed the collaborative efforts he had undertaken with Biden to address the challenges posed by the pharmaceutical industry. Just recently, he joined Biden at the White House to participate in an event alongside health care advocates, where the primary focus was on reducing the costs of inhalers to a mere $35 per month. This event also shed light on various Democratic initiatives aimed at enhancing health care accessibility.
According to the speaker, the groundbreaking development in healthcare is the inclusion of Medicare in price negotiations. This significant change is expected to have a profound impact on the overall healthcare system.
Biden’s support for the United Auto Workers was highlighted as a significant aspect of his presidency, with him becoming the first president in American history to join a picket line in Michigan. This gesture solidified his stance as being pro-union and pro-worker.
Bernie Sanders strongly opposes the Biden administration’s unrestricted military assistance to Israel during its ongoing conflict with Gaza. He has voiced strong criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of the war, holding him accountable for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Sanders believes that the Israeli government’s actions need to be closely examined and reevaluated.
At odds with policy on military aid to Israel
According to a recent Gallup survey released on March 27th, the disapproval of Israel’s military action is evident among 55% of all Americans. This disapproval rate has significantly increased among Democrats, with 75% expressing their disapproval, compared to 63% in November.
According to Sanders, although Congress has approved and the president has signed off on the money, it has not yet been released.
According to a statement made by an anonymous source, it is suggested that the president should take a firm stance with Netanyahu regarding the situation. The suggestion is for the president to make it clear that there will be no financial support unless there is a substantial increase in humanitarian aid and an immediate end to the potential famine crisis. Additionally, the source suggests that the president should address the issue of settlers’ actions on the West Bank and initiate serious discussions about a two-state solution. These actions are seen as prerequisites for receiving any financial assistance.
“I strongly disagree with the idea that expressing concerns and criticism about the military automatically makes someone anti-Semitic. That is simply not true,” Sanders asserted. He added, “It is truly disheartening to see Netanyahu attempting to divert attention from the problematic actions of his government by invoking the specter of anti-Semitism.”
Sanders also recognized the alarming increase in anti-Semitism and Islamophobia.
“I condemn any form of prejudice, whether it be anti-Semitism, racism against Muslim students, discrimination against Black students, or bigotry towards gay students. It goes against the principles of a peace movement,” he emphasized. “I want to make it clear that such behavior is completely unacceptable, and I strongly condemn it.”
‘Solution is to mobilize the American people’
Biden has defined himself as a Zionist, although the term has become weighted in recent years. Some claim they are not anti-Semites but rather anti-Zionists. How does Sanders, as a Jewish senator, view Zionism?
“I don’t sit around wondering what the word means. All I know is that Israel currently has an extreme right-wing administration, including some outright racists,” he stated. “Hamas, a terrorist organization, launched this war. Israel has the right to protect itself, but it does not have the right to wage war on the entire Palestinian population.”
Polls reveal that many Democratic voters, including young voters, black voters, and Arab and Muslim American voters, are dissatisfied with Biden’s stance on Gaza. What does the president need to do to persuade these voters? “I think, for a start, changing their policy to Netanyahu and Israel would be a good step forward,” he told reporters. “I believe that would be the first order of business. So I think it’s long past time to fix that.”
Sanders, the de facto leader of the Democratic Party’s socialist wing, who has endorsed Biden, says that no matter how unhappy people are, the solution is not to elect a president “who admires authoritarian leaders like Putin, who’s trying to undermine American democracy.”
“The solution is to mobilize the American people, working-class people, black, white, Latino, Native American, whatever they may be, to come together and fight for a government that represents all of us and not just the few.”
