Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders announced his 2020 presidential campaign launch early last week to open arms. According to CNN, Sanders raised $5,925,771 from 223,074 individual contributors from across the United States within the first 24 hours of his announcing the campaign. His campaign went on to raise more than $6 million from 225,000 individual contributors, with an average contribution of $27. This total greatly exceeds totals raised by other candidates, including Sen. Kamala Harris of California, who raised $1.5 million within 24 hours of announcing her campaign in January, and Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, who raised $1 million in the first 48 hours after her campaign launch.
Sanders launching his campaign with such a strong financial base indicates his popularity. Sanders gained a large following with these same ideas in 2016, particularly among young people. Much of Sanders’ fan base consists of millennials and Gen Z. A poll from the Pew Research Center from Jan. 2019 reveals that majority of these generations support progressive ideas, including universal health care, free public college and a higher minimum wage. Sanders has also spoken about addressing income inequality, establishing higher taxes for the wealthy and ending tax breaks for billion-dollar corporations. Many, if not all, of Sanders’ ideas have been echoed by other Democratic politicians and are becoming mainstream among Democrats.
While a growing number of citizens support Sanders and his ideas, there are many who harbor doubts and believe his goals are not “realistic,” or will put too much strain on the economy. People must realize that these ideas are established policies in other developed nations, including Japan and many European nations. For example, the U.S. is the only developed nation that does not have universal health care. Again, primarily through higher taxes, the government in these other nations can fund health care for anyone who seeks it. The government can keep prices of health care lower as well by regulating and negotiating the price of drugs and services and eliminating private health insurance, making health care more affordable and accessible. This lessens the financial burden individuals face when they fall ill or are injured. In 2016, Sanders released a plan outlining the funding for universal health care. While the plan would cost $1.38 trillion per year and would involve raising taxes, particularly among the wealthy, it would cost citizens less money on health care overall.
Several nations in Europe also offer either free public education, such as Norway and Germany, or much more affordable education, such as France. Students in France attending public universities usually pay only a few hundred dollars per year. Their ability to provide this lies in higher taxes, an idea that Sanders supports to help people in the U.S. attain higher education without having decades worth of debt to pay back. Countries outside of Europe, such as China, also offer more affordable higher education, with students paying about $3,000 per year.
Climate change and protecting the environment is another significant point for Sanders. He embraces the science behind climate change and the dire predictions that have been made. He is adamant about investing in renewable energy resources, such as wind and solar, instead of allowing the coal and oil industries to influence politicians into continuing to discredit science, which puts the U.S. and the world in danger.
Sanders’ call for progressive candidates and true progressive ideas over left-leaning or Democratic views is one of his most poignant stances. This country has been treating politics as if they are a sporting event, and each party is a team that must win, no matter what that party stands for. Moderate and independent candidates with progressive ideas are the future of politics for this country.
Sanders is a good candidate who has been invested in his ideas for decades. He has been consistently advocating for universal health care and free public college tuition for the past couple of decades and has remained consistent with advocating for abortion rights and supporting the LGBTQ+ community. He has also drafted solid plans for his ideas, demonstrating he is not just “talk.” Some of his ideas may seem unrealistic, but they are worth supporting and investing in if this country is still committed to giving its citizens true opportunities to achieve the American dream.
