"There Really Are Republicans for Bernie"
So who are these Republicans who want a very left independent for President? Take Darren Remington, age 49, from Memphis, Tennessee. He is a college graduate and ex-military, registered Republican in 1994 when he left the Air Force, and describes himself this way:
“I am an Eisenhower Conservative. My personal outlook is most closely aligned with that of three presidents (two Republican, one Democrat): Teddy Roosevelt (“Square Deal”), Truman (“the buck stops here”), and Eisenhower (five balanced budgets out of eight, understood that we must have adequate infrastructure to support a thriving economy).”
And why is Remington for Bernie Sanders?
“He’s an independent who has spoken up for veterans’ issues, rebuilding a strong middle class, and re-introducing the “common sense” that Thomas Paine wrote about into our modern government. Bernie Sanders seems to me to be to the 21st Century what Teddy Roosevelt was to the 20th Century.”
And does the word “socialist” bother him?
“I will support anyone who not only “talks the talk” but also “walks the walk” regarding the issues that I consider to be important. With that in mind, the phrase “democratic socialist” does not bother me—because I happen to know that two of the most prosperous nations in Europe are “democratic socialist” (Denmark & Sweden.) There is nothing intrinsically wrong with“socialism”—all effective government is socialist to some degree: Public Education; Public works (utilities and roads); Public institutions such as museums, theaters, and libraries. Social involvement does NOT equate to control of society.”
Karl Hubert, age 40, from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, is likewise a college graduate but never was in the military. He is still a registered Republican:
“I had the pleasure of living in Vermont for nearly a decade and became familiar with Senator Sanders then. His progressive policies were sound. He respected gun rights since there’s folks in Vermont that will starve through winter without game meat. He warned us all about the Iraq War and the Patriot Act. And it amazed me that this “flatlander” (a non-native to Vermont) kept getting re-elected—first as Mayor of Burlington, then Representative of Vermont, and then the junior Senator from the Green Mountain State. Since the financial craziness of 2008, Sanders has been wanting to break up the oligarchy and set this country back onto a path similar to FDR’s New Deal, and after 30 years of rampant greed from the banksters and their bought-and-paid-for politicians, this country needs some real change.”
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https://www.laprogressive.com/republicans-for-sanders/
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