February 25, 2016
Let me open by stating that I strongly support Bernie Sanders for the Presidency. He is the most consistent and strongest candidate on the issues of mass incarceration, civil rights, health care, the wealth gap, Citizens United and abortion, among others. I, for these reasons, am one of the Co-Presidents of the Hamilton College for Bernie Sanders group. Bernie represents the future of the Democratic party, embodying true progressive leftism that has been missing from the party for years. His platform is a form of leftism that even Barack Obama has failed to fully embrace. In response to Bernie’s appeal of progressiveness, former Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, has been forced to drift further to the left. Clinton, like Sanders, who opposes nearly every trade deal, recently came out against the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), even though she wrote a large amount of the deal during her time as Secretary of State. Following Bernie’s push for single-payer health care, Hillary was quick to state that she’ll “defend the Affordable Care Act, build on its successes and go even further to reduce costs.” Despite Bernie’s massive grassroots support, Hillary, the “establishment candidate,” is still the likely nominee. She has a dominant superdelegate advantage, more name recognition among minority communities and represents a form of moderate liberalism that is appealing to older Democrats. She is still a liberal, and one who will continue to push the left wing policies of the Obama administration. It is for this reason that I am urging Sanders’ supporters not to rebuff her in the general election if she wins the primary.
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