SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) speaks at the State Theater in Portland, Maine on July 27, 2024.
(Photo: Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Portland Press Herald via Getty Images)
Is the US Still a Democracy? 'Yes and No,' Says Bernie Sanders
"I use the term oligarchy... I think we are moving rapidly in that direction."
Aug 15, 2024
Asserting that money is the "real power" in U.S. politics, Sen. Bernie Sanders warned Wednesday that the country is rapidly moving away from democracy and toward "oligarchy."
Asked by "The Chief Nerd" podcast host Theo Von if the U.S. electoral system is "still democratic," Sanders (I-Vt.) replied, "Yes and no."
"I mean, you want to run for office, can you? Yup, you can," the senator said. "But if... I have 10 times more money than you do, I will beat you 95% of the time... By and large, money people will win. So if you're asking me, are we a democracy, in one sense, we are."
"I use the term 'oligarchy,'" he added. "And oligarchy is a society where small numbers of very wealthy people control the economic and political life of the country. I think we are moving rapidly in that direction."
Reflecting on his 2016 and 2020 presidential runs, Sanders agreed with Von that he "didn't get treated fairly" by the Democratic establishment.
"That's what happens when you take on the establishments," the senator said. "What happened was we won the first three primaries and then the establishment got very, very nervous. And they got a whole lot of candidates in the Democratic primary and they said: 'Hey, be a good idea if you all dropped out. Let [President] Joe Biden be the one candidate.' People rallied around him."
Looking forward to the 2024 election, Von asked if Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris is the "right person" to take on former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee.
"Well, she is the person," Sanders replied. "She'll be the Democratic candidate. She's very smart. You've got to give credit to somebody, a Black woman, to move up the ladder. That ain't easy stuff. There's a lot of resistance to that."
Sanders warned earlier this week in a Senate floor speech that "many, many Americans are giving up on democracy."
"They are hurting, they look to the government, they vote, and nothing happens," he said. "The rich get richer, they get poorer. And they're saying: 'Hey, all of this democracy and all this election stuff, it's all a crock. It doesn't matter.' And they are willing to look to authoritarianism as a substitute for the democracy we have."
"If we care to preserve democracy," Sanders added, "we should pay attention to the long-neglected needs of the working class."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
authoritarianismdemocracydemocratic partydonald trumpelection 2024inequalityjoe bidenkamala harrisoligarchyu.s. senatebernie sanders
Asserting that money is the "real power" in U.S. politics, Sen. Bernie Sanders warned Wednesday that the country is rapidly moving away from democracy and toward "oligarchy."
Asked by "The Chief Nerd" podcast host Theo Von if the U.S. electoral system is "still democratic," Sanders (I-Vt.) replied, "Yes and no."
"I mean, you want to run for office, can you? Yup, you can," the senator said. "But if... I have 10 times more money than you do, I will beat you 95% of the time... By and large, money people will win. So if you're asking me, are we a democracy, in one sense, we are."
"I use the term 'oligarchy,'" he added. "And oligarchy is a society where small numbers of very wealthy people control the economic and political life of the country. I think we are moving rapidly in that direction."
Reflecting on his 2016 and 2020 presidential runs, Sanders agreed with Von that he "didn't get treated fairly" by the Democratic establishment.
"That's what happens when you take on the establishments," the senator said. "What happened was we won the first three primaries and then the establishment got very, very nervous. And they got a whole lot of candidates in the Democratic primary and they said: 'Hey, be a good idea if you all dropped out. Let [President] Joe Biden be the one candidate.' People rallied around him."
Looking forward to the 2024 election, Von asked if Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris is the "right person" to take on former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee.
"Well, she is the person," Sanders replied. "She'll be the Democratic candidate. She's very smart. You've got to give credit to somebody, a Black woman, to move up the ladder. That ain't easy stuff. There's a lot of resistance to that."
Sanders warned earlier this week in a Senate floor speech that "many, many Americans are giving up on democracy."
"They are hurting, they look to the government, they vote, and nothing happens," he said. "The rich get richer, they get poorer. And they're saying: 'Hey, all of this democracy and all this election stuff, it's all a crock. It doesn't matter.' And they are willing to look to authoritarianism as a substitute for the democracy we have."
"If we care to preserve democracy," Sanders added, "we should pay attention to the long-neglected needs of the working class."
From Your Site Articles
- Sanders Pushes Harris to Pursue Agenda That 'Speaks to the Needs of the Working Class' ›
- Sanders Poll Sends Clear Message to Harris: Pro-Worker Policies Are 'Also Good Politics' ›
- What Kamala Harris Must Do to Win Working-Class Voters ›
- Sanders Says Possible VP Walz 'Understands the Needs of Working Families' ›
- US Will Be 'Weimar Republic' If Biden Doesn't Lift Up Working Class and Defeat Trump: Sanders ›
- Bernie Sanders Calls for Major Overhaul to Solve US Retirement Crisis ›
- Bernie Sanders Says Defeating Oligarchy Now Most Urgent Issue | Common Dreams ›
- Opinion | Will Defeating the Oligarchs Be Easy? Of Course Not | Common Dreams ›
- Working-Class Unity Key to Defeating Oligarchy, Says Sanders in Response to Trump SOTU | Common Dreams ›
Asserting that money is the "real power" in U.S. politics, Sen. Bernie Sanders warned Wednesday that the country is rapidly moving away from democracy and toward "oligarchy."
Asked by "The Chief Nerd" podcast host Theo Von if the U.S. electoral system is "still democratic," Sanders (I-Vt.) replied, "Yes and no."
"I mean, you want to run for office, can you? Yup, you can," the senator said. "But if... I have 10 times more money than you do, I will beat you 95% of the time... By and large, money people will win. So if you're asking me, are we a democracy, in one sense, we are."
"I use the term 'oligarchy,'" he added. "And oligarchy is a society where small numbers of very wealthy people control the economic and political life of the country. I think we are moving rapidly in that direction."
Reflecting on his 2016 and 2020 presidential runs, Sanders agreed with Von that he "didn't get treated fairly" by the Democratic establishment.
"That's what happens when you take on the establishments," the senator said. "What happened was we won the first three primaries and then the establishment got very, very nervous. And they got a whole lot of candidates in the Democratic primary and they said: 'Hey, be a good idea if you all dropped out. Let [President] Joe Biden be the one candidate.' People rallied around him."
Looking forward to the 2024 election, Von asked if Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris is the "right person" to take on former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee.
"Well, she is the person," Sanders replied. "She'll be the Democratic candidate. She's very smart. You've got to give credit to somebody, a Black woman, to move up the ladder. That ain't easy stuff. There's a lot of resistance to that."
Sanders warned earlier this week in a Senate floor speech that "many, many Americans are giving up on democracy."
"They are hurting, they look to the government, they vote, and nothing happens," he said. "The rich get richer, they get poorer. And they're saying: 'Hey, all of this democracy and all this election stuff, it's all a crock. It doesn't matter.' And they are willing to look to authoritarianism as a substitute for the democracy we have."
"If we care to preserve democracy," Sanders added, "we should pay attention to the long-neglected needs of the working class."
From Your Site Articles
- Sanders Pushes Harris to Pursue Agenda That 'Speaks to the Needs of the Working Class' ›
- Sanders Poll Sends Clear Message to Harris: Pro-Worker Policies Are 'Also Good Politics' ›
- What Kamala Harris Must Do to Win Working-Class Voters ›
- Sanders Says Possible VP Walz 'Understands the Needs of Working Families' ›
- US Will Be 'Weimar Republic' If Biden Doesn't Lift Up Working Class and Defeat Trump: Sanders ›
- Bernie Sanders Calls for Major Overhaul to Solve US Retirement Crisis ›
- Bernie Sanders Says Defeating Oligarchy Now Most Urgent Issue | Common Dreams ›
- Opinion | Will Defeating the Oligarchs Be Easy? Of Course Not | Common Dreams ›
- Working-Class Unity Key to Defeating Oligarchy, Says Sanders in Response to Trump SOTU | Common Dreams ›
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.