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Bernie Sanders' Political Revolution (Rolling Stone interview with Bernie)
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders – just plain "Bernie" to his backers – is the unlikeliest of political sensations. The self-styled "democratic socialist" has packed arenas and meeting halls from Seattle to L.A. to Atlanta, drawing nearly 400,000 supporters to his rallies. Decrying a "rigged" economy and a political system corrupted by billionaires, Sanders has refused Super PAC politics, instead drawing on 750,000 grassroots donors. On the strength of $30-average checks, he has built a campaign war chest to rival the Hillary Clinton juggernaut.
Sanders has already altered the course of the 2016 campaign. His resonance with the Democratic Party's activist base has forced Clinton to tack left, repeatedly. But don't mistake this as Sanders' endgame. "Bernie's campaign is more than symbolic – it's real, and it can succeed," says senior adviser Tad Devine, a veteran of Al Gore's 2000 bid. The Sanders machine is built to slingshot to an early lead, propelled by grassroots excitement in Iowa and New Hampshire, and then to fight, delegate by delegate, all the way to the convention. And recent polls counter the notion that Sanders is "unelectable." An October NBC News/Wall Street Journal survey shows Sanders besting Donald Trump by nine points, Marco Rubio by five.
Sanders has a unique ability to drive turnout among "lower-income working whites," Devine insists. But an October National Student Town Hall at George Mason University – a public school in leafy Fairfax, Virginia – suggests a far broader resonance. Sixteen hundred roaring students pack the volleyball stadium to the rafters. The audience is startlingly diverse: African-American and African immigrant, Hispanic, Asian, Middle Eastern, white, preppy, hipster, jock and dreadlocked. Kianoosh Asar, a 22-year-old Iranian immigrant, wears a homemade T-shirt that reads "CAUTION THE POLLS MAY CAUSE SERIOUS BERN." For Asar, Sanders' substance is the selling point: "I really care about all the issues," he says. "And I care about a candidate who talks for my generation." That Sanders would be 75 on Inauguration Day doesn't even seem to register.
Sanders has already altered the course of the 2016 campaign. His resonance with the Democratic Party's activist base has forced Clinton to tack left, repeatedly. But don't mistake this as Sanders' endgame. "Bernie's campaign is more than symbolic – it's real, and it can succeed," says senior adviser Tad Devine, a veteran of Al Gore's 2000 bid. The Sanders machine is built to slingshot to an early lead, propelled by grassroots excitement in Iowa and New Hampshire, and then to fight, delegate by delegate, all the way to the convention. And recent polls counter the notion that Sanders is "unelectable." An October NBC News/Wall Street Journal survey shows Sanders besting Donald Trump by nine points, Marco Rubio by five.
Sanders has a unique ability to drive turnout among "lower-income working whites," Devine insists. But an October National Student Town Hall at George Mason University – a public school in leafy Fairfax, Virginia – suggests a far broader resonance. Sixteen hundred roaring students pack the volleyball stadium to the rafters. The audience is startlingly diverse: African-American and African immigrant, Hispanic, Asian, Middle Eastern, white, preppy, hipster, jock and dreadlocked. Kianoosh Asar, a 22-year-old Iranian immigrant, wears a homemade T-shirt that reads "CAUTION THE POLLS MAY CAUSE SERIOUS BERN." For Asar, Sanders' substance is the selling point: "I really care about all the issues," he says. "And I care about a candidate who talks for my generation." That Sanders would be 75 on Inauguration Day doesn't even seem to register.
Read more: http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/bernie-sanders-political-revolution-20151118#ixzz3rrJVEdoE
Follow us: @rollingstone on Twitter | RollingStone on Facebook
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