Sen. Bernie
Sanders of Vermont, now a presidential candidate, is the only socialist
in Congress. But "he's a 'small S' socialist," professor Garrison Nelson
of the University of Vermont told me last year. "He's not, 'Let's
totally revamp the government, break up the corporations, create
five-year plans.' He doesn't get out too far on an ideological limb."Sanders
resembles many in the Democratic Party by criticizing the excessive
influence of the wealthy. But he takes things much further, both
rhetorically and substantively - he thinks checking the power of
billionaires and corporations is the defining issue in US politics
today. He's most interested in economic issues, from inequality to
trade, and as a result he's won a devoted following among liberals who
think their party too frequently carries water for the rich.
But
while Sanders wants a single-payer health care system, a carbon tax,
and much more government spending on infrastructure and benefits, he
isn't an uber-liberal on everything. On social issues like abortion, gun
rights, and gay rights, he is squarely within the mainstream of the
Democratic Party - not to its left. And while he's suspicious of foreign
wars, he voices sympathy with Israel's security concerns and warns of
the dangers of ISIS. Here's a guide to his views.
Move to a single-payer health care system
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Overturn Citizens United, publicly fund elections
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Combat climate change with a carbon tax
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Don't cut Social Security - expand it (by taxing the wealthy more)
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More spending on infrastructure, less on defense
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Don't tax the middle class more - they're already getting squeezed
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Raise the minimum wage quite a lot
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Supports immigration reform - but not guest worker programs for unskilled labor
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Does not support drug legalization
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Label foods with GMO ingredients
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Supports more gun control - but hasn't always
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Much more government funding for higher education
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Less foreign policy interventionism
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Stop the NSA's "out-of-control" surveillance
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Supports abortion rights and same-sex marriage
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Network neutrality is essential for free speech
[...]
Reform the Export-Import Bank
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