Bernie Sanders attracted a crowd on the Senate Floor last night when he returned from Vermont to vote on the pending, and unfortunately Failed, Gun Control Bills. He was greeted and embraced by Senators from both sides of the aisle (yes, yes including John McCain).
Emily Cadei writes —
“It’s a steep reversal from his decades toiling in the House and Senate, largely ignored by the Washington press corps and power brokers, as a lonely iconoclast. The really good news for Sanders is he’s been able to build up this new national standing without much of the typical blowback candidates see from voters back home, one of the occupational hazards that usually comes with running for president.”
And, yes, Bernie is still not heeding the continuous hue and cry for him to concede the nomination, but by doing so he is heeding his constituents.
“What’s more, as the Boston Globe reported earlier this month, Vermonters want to see Sanders stay in the race through the convention. Globe reporter Akilah Johnson tells Newsweek she only encountered one Vermont resident during her reporting for that piece—a Hillary Clinton supporter—who suggested it was time for Sanders to come home. But she even said she still likes Sanders.”
Vermont State Senator Phil Baruth, who represents the Burlington area explains why Vermonters are eager to see Bernie Carry on his fight for reform of the Democratic Party.
“There’s a tradition of Vermonters viewing themselves as at the forefront of progressive policy,” explains the state senator. “So to the extent that Bernie Sanders becomes our Paul Wellstone, our Daniel Patrick Moynihan, a figure that’s recognized nationally for the power of his ideas, we take great and justifiable pride in that.”
Hillary could make great strides in Reforming a Democratic Party badly in need of refurbishment, greatly expand it’s base of voters and gain a powerful ally in the Senate by embracing Sanders calls for reform.
How long will she resist uniting the Party?