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WE’RE IN A PIVOTAL MOMENT IN AMERICAN HISTORY. WE CANNOT RETREAT  
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Bernie Sanders
May 15, 2024
The Guardian
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_ Clearly, our job is not just to re-elect Biden. It’s much more
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, Courtesy of CNN

 

In 1776, Americans, living in a British colony, put their lives on the
line and fought for independence from the king of England. They wrote
the strongest democratic constitution that had ever been written as
they created a new nation. That was a pivotal moment in American
history.

In 1861, civil war broke out in the United States and more than
600,000 Americans died in the war between the states. Slavery was
abolished. Over the ensuing decades, racist forces regained power and
established an apartheid form of government throughout the old
confederacy. That was a pivotal moment in American history.

In 1929, Wall Street collapsed. The United States and much of the
world experienced the Great Depression. Unemployment rose to 25% and
millions of Americans descended into economic desperation. In 1932,
Franklin Delano Roosevelt was elected president and the federal
government’s role in addressing the needs of working people was
transformed. That was a pivotal moment in American history.

In 1941, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor and an unprepared United States
was forced to mobilize and fight a world war on two fronts: Hitler in
Europe and Japan in Asia. The future of democracy and the prevention
of barbarism in the world was at stake. That was a pivotal moment in
American history.

Today, in 2024, our country once again faces a pivotal moment in
American history. The crises facing us are enormous. The consequences
if we fail are unthinkable.

As the nation moves rapidly toward oligarchy, the billionaire class
exerts enormous influence over the economic and political life of the
nation. While the rich become much richer, 60% of Americans live
paycheck to paycheck, and real, inflation-adjusted wages for the
average US worker have actually declined over the last 50 years. Never
before have the 1% done so well, or enjoyed so much power.

Our political system is corrupt. Thanks to the disastrous Citizens
United supreme court decision, billionaires and their Super Pacs are
able to spend hundreds of millions to elect or defeat candidates they
target. As a result, more than 90% of House elections and more than
80% of Senate elections are won by the candidate who spends the most
money.

Our life expectancy and birth rate are in decline. Despite spending
far more per capita on a broken healthcare system, the average
American now lives 77.5 years – 18 months less than in 2019 – and
the lowest of any wealthy nation on earth. Further, our total births
last year fell to 3.59 million, the lowest level ever recorded.

The climate crisis threatens the very future of the planet. The last
10 years have been the 10 warmest years on record. 2023 was by far the
hottest year in recorded history and 2024 is on track to be even
hotter. Unless there is a huge reduction in carbon emissions we will
continue to see more drought, more flooding, more forest fires, more
extreme weather disturbances, more mass migrations and more deaths as
a result of the climate crisis.

Artificial intelligence and robotics are radically transforming our
society, causing enormous anxiety among workers. Most of the jobs we
have today will likely not be here in 15 years. Will the increased
productivity that AI brings simply make corporations wealthier as they
discard their employees, or will workers benefit? The wellbeing of
tens of millions depends upon that answer.

The basic human rights that women have struggled to win are under
severe attack. Since the supreme court’s disastrous decision
overturning Roe v Wade, 14 states have passed near-total abortion
bans, some with no exceptions for victims of rape or incest. Will the
war against women continue? Will women once again, be reduced to
second-class citizenship?

The US now spends almost 1tn a year on the military, more than the
next 10 countries combined. This is more than all federal funding for
food, housing and education. Tens of billions of those dollars are
currently supporting the horrific war in Gaza waged by the rightwing
extremist Israeli government of Netanyahu.

So. That’s where we are, and it’s not a pretty picture. People
feel hopeless. They are exhausted. They are worried about the kind of
future that awaits their kids and grandkids.

We are in the midst of another pivotal moment in American history. How
do we respond?

First, we cannot simply turn away from the painful and complex
realities that we face and bury our heads in the sand. We cannot stop
reading the news or turn off the TV. The world is what it is. It is a
mess. And the situation is not going to improve unless we do the hard
work required.

Second, we must be actively involved in the 2024 national elections
– the most consequential in our lifetimes.

Yes. I know. Biden is not popular and many progressives, including me,
strongly disagree with his policies regarding Israel and this
disastrous war in Gaza.

But, let’s be clear. Biden is not running against God. He is running
against Donald Trump
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president in American history whose second term, if he is re-elected,
will be worse than his first. And, on his worst day, Biden is a
thousand times better than Trump.

Are you concerned about the extreme income and wealth inequality we
are experiencing, and the decline of the middle class? Trump wants to
give huge tax breaks to billionaires and, as president, appointed
viciously anti-union officials to high office. Biden, on the other
hand, is the first president to ever walk a picket line – in support
of striking UAW workers. He has helped create millions of decent
paying jobs rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure and investing in
manufacturing. Biden has also forgiven the debts of millions of
struggling young people.

Are you concerned about the right of women to control their own
bodies? Trump brags about how he appointed three supreme court
justices who helped overturn Roe v Wade. Biden is solidly pro-choice.

Are you concerned about the climate crisis? Donald Trump thinks
climate change is a “hoax”. A Trump victory will tell the entire
world to continue their support for fossil fuels, and the planet we
leave our kids and future generations will be increasingly unhealthy.
Biden, on the other hand, has helped invest more money into
sustainable energy and energy efficiency than any president in
history.

And if you have problems with Biden’s position on Israel and the war
in Gaza, Trump’s position is far worse. Biden has at least
restricted some powerful bombs from going to the Israel and has been
critical of Netanyahu. Trump and his Republican colleagues are “all
in” for the massive destruction of the Palestinian people.

Oh. And there’s one other thing. And that’s the small matter of
retaining our democracy. Biden is a traditional American politician
who believes in democracy, free elections and the right of dissent.
That’s not what Trump believes. He and his supporters have spent the
last four years undermining faith in the rule of law and our
democratic form of government. He is weighing pardons for more than
800 of his supporters who attacked the Capitol in the January 6
insurrection. And his advisers are drawing up plans to invoke the
Insurrection Act to allow him to deploy the military against civil
demonstrations.

Clearly, our job is not just to re-elect Biden. It’s much more than
that. We must defend the many progressives that we have elected to the
House, some of whom who face significant financial opposition from
Aipac and other special interest Pacs. And we must elect more strong
progressive candidates who are on the ballot to the House, and state
and local governments.

We must work in coalition with all those who understand that we must
do everything possible to defeat Donald Trump and his extreme
rightwing Republican party, not just because he is “worse”, but
because nothing less than the future of our democracy is at stake in
this election.

Further, we must demand that Biden and the Democrats
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a truly progressive agenda that addresses the needs of the working
families of our country.

Yes. Healthcare is a human right.

Yes. The billionaire class must start paying their fair share of
taxes.

Yes. We must raise the minimum wage to a living wage and make it
easier for workers to join unions.

Yes. We must seriously address the housing crisis, which exists in
almost every state in the country.

Yes. We must strengthen public education in our country and make
higher education available to all regardless of income.

Bottom line: we must have the guts to take on and defeat a powerful
and greedy ruling class and create a government which works for all,
not just the few. The path forward is not easy. But now is not the
time for despair or cynicism.

During this pivotal moment, we must do what Americans have always done
when change is needed: we must stand together, organize and fight for
the country we know we can become.

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_Bernie Sanders [[link removed]] is a US senator, and
chairman of the health education labor and pensions committee. He
represents the state of Vermont and is the
longest-serving independent
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Congress_

* Bernie Sanders
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* political struggle
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* 2024 Elections
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* progressive agenda
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