From Beranie Sanders:
Sisters and Brothers -
What a year it was!
Yes. We all know that we
have seen a president take office who is the most dishonest, bigoted, divisive
and reactionary president in the modern history of our country.
We have also seen a
right-wing extremist, Republican Congress attempt to throw up to 32 million
Americans off of the health care they have, give hundreds of billions in tax
breaks to the richest people in our country and the largest corporations,
destroy environmental legislation and work overtime to deny women the right to
control their own bodies.
Yes. We have seen all of
that and much more. But we are also seeing something else that, from an
historical perspective, is far more important. We are seeing the American
people come together, fight back and win important victories all across the
country.
During my campaign for
president in 2016 I stated over and over again that the future of our country
was dependent upon our willingness to make a political revolution. I stressed
that real change never occurs from the top on down. It always happens from the
bottom on up. No real change in American history, not the labor movement, the
civil rights movement, the women's movement, the gay rights movement, the
environmental movement or any other movement has ever had success without
grassroots activism, without millions of people engaged in the struggle for
justice.
That's what I said when I
ran for president. That's what I believe now and that's what millions of us
have been working to accomplish over the last several years. At a time of
massive and growing income and wealth inequality, when our nation moves closer
and closer to an oligarchic form of society, we are working hard and
effectively to create an unprecedented grassroots political movement to defeat
the greed of the billionaire class and the politicians they own.
And the good news is that
we're making progress. In state after state ordinary Americans are successfully
taking on establishment politicians who are more concerned about protecting
their wealthy campaign contributors than the needs of the middle class or
working people they are supposed to represent.
In 2017 we made progress
when millions of people, in every state in the country, took to the streets for
the Women's March in opposition to Trump's reactionary agenda. We made progress
when an unprecedented grassroots movement elected a young African-American as
mayor of Birmingham, Alabama. We made progress when tens of thousands of Americans
turned out in rallies and town meetings to successfully oppose the Republican
efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act, and we're making progress when more
and more Americans are joining the fight for a Medicare-for-all, single-payer
program.
We're making progress when
governors and local officials in every part of the country announce, in
response to student demands, tuition-free public colleges and universities.
We're making progress when states and communities from coast to coast adopt
legislation which provides a minimum wage of $15 an hour.
We're making progress when,
on Election Day, Nov. 7, 2017, in local and state elections all across the
country, Trumpism suffered a major defeat as hundreds of progressive first time
candidates from every conceivable background ran for school board, city
council, state legislature and other local offices - and many of them won.
We're making progress when,
on Dec. 10, 2017, a strong Democrat was elected to the U.S. Senate from
Alabama, one of the most conservative states in the country.
The truth is that the
American people are far more united than the media allows us to believe. They
get it. They know that over the last 40 years, despite a huge increase in
worker productivity, the middle class has continued to shrink while the very
rich have become much richer. They know that, for the first time in the modern
history of the United States, our kids will likely have a lower standard of
living than their parents.
Our job, in 2018 and beyond,
for the sake of our kids and grandchildren, is to bring our people together
around a progressive agenda.
Are the people of our
country deeply concerned about the grotesque level of income and wealth
inequality that we are experiencing? You bet they are. Do they believe that our
campaign finance system is corrupt and enables the rich to buy elections? By
overwhelming numbers.
Do they want to raise the
minimum wage to a living wage and provide pay equity for women workers? Yes
they do. Do they think the very rich and large corporations should pay more in
taxes so that all of our kids can have free tuition at public colleges and
universities? Yup. Do they believe that the United States should join every
other major country and guarantee health care as a right? Yes, again. Do they
believe climate change is real? You've got to be kidding. Are they tired of the
United States of America, the wealthiest country in the history of the world,
having a crumbling infrastructure with roads, bridges, water systems,
wastewater plants, airports, rail, levees and dams falling apart? Who isn't?
Further, a majority of the
American people want comprehensive immigration reform and a criminal justice
system that is based on justice, not racism or mass incarceration.
Today, what the American
people want is not what they are getting. In fact, under Republican leadership
in the House, Senate and White House, they are getting exactly the opposite of
what they want.
The American people want a
government which represents all of us. Instead, they are getting a government
which represents the interests and extremist ideology of wealthy campaign
contributors. They want environmental policies which combat climate change and
pollution, and which will allow our kids to live in a healthy and habitable
planet. Instead, they are getting executive orders and legislation which pushes
more fossil fuel production, more greenhouse gas emissions and more pollution.
They want a nation in which all people are treated with dignity and respect,
and where we continue our decades long struggle to end discrimination based on
race, religion, gender, sexual orientation or nation of origin. Instead, they
have a president who seeks to win political support appealing to those very
prejudices.
Maintaining a vibrant
democracy based on principles of justice has never been easy. In these
dangerous and unprecedented times, it may be more difficult than ever.
As a result of the
disastrous Citizens United Supreme Court decision, billionaires are now able to
spend hundreds of millions in ugly TV ads demonizing candidates who dare to
stand up to them. Republican governors and legislatures are working to suppress
the vote, making it harder for people of color, poor people and young people to
vote. Republican state legislatures have created incredibly gerrymandered
districts which unfairly protect Republican candidates.
Yes, I know. These are
painful and frightening times. Many friends have told me that they have given
up reading the papers or watching TV. But let us be clear. Despair is not an
option. Not today. Not tomorrow. Not anytime. That is exactly what our enemies
want. Also, please never forget that the struggle we are engaged in is not just
for us. It is for our kids and grandchildren. It is for the future of the
planet.
So here is a New Year's
resolution I hope you will share with me. In 2018 we will not only intensify
the struggle against Trumpism, we will increase our efforts to spread the
progressive vision in every corner of the land. Yes. We will create a vibrant
democracy where the voices of all people are heard. Yes. We will create a
nation which leads the world in the struggle for peace, and for economic,
social, racial and environmental justice.
The struggle continues.
Bernie Sanders
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