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Ocasio-Cortez joins Bernie Sanders for comeback rally in New York Ocasio-Cortez joins Bernie Sanders for comeback rally in New York
(about 1 hour later)
Bernie Sanders staged a rally on Saturday afternoon in New York City, his first since he paused his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination due to health problems. Bernie Sanders addressed a rally in New York City on Saturday, his first since he paused his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination due to health concerns.
Will Ocasio-Cortez's Sanders endorsement shake up the 2020 race?Will Ocasio-Cortez's Sanders endorsement shake up the 2020 race?
Sanders was joined by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the New York congresswoman who gave him a surprise endorsement this week. Ocasio-Cortez’s district is less than a mile from Long Island City, the Queens neighborhood where Sanders set his rally. “We got a permit for 20,000,” he said, “and we had to close the doors.”
In remarks before Sanders took the stage, Ocasio-Cortez said: “It wasn’t until I heard of a man named Bernie Sanders that I began to question and assert and recognize my inherent value as a human being that deserves healthcare, housing, education and a living wage.” He added: “I look at this huge crowd, brothers and sisters, I have no doubt that the political revolution is going to sweep … Donald Trump out of office and bring the change that this country has long needed.”
The Bernie’s Back Rally kicked off the senator’s comeback. The Vermont senator abruptly paused his campaign at the beginning of October, after undergoing treatment for an artery blockage. Sanders had a heart attack, his campaign said as he was released from hospital. Sanders was joined by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the New York congresswoman and progressive star who gave him a surprise endorsement. Ocasio-Cortez’s district is less than a mile from Long Island City, the Queens neighborhood where Sanders set his stage.
At 78, Sanders is the oldest major presidential candidate. If elected, he will be the oldest president inaugurated. In her remarks, Ocasio-Cortez said: “It wasn’t until I heard of a man named Bernie Sanders that I began to question and assert and recognize my inherent value as a human being that deserves healthcare, housing, education and a living wage.”
As he was recovering, Sanders said his campaign was going to change. He told reporters outside his home in Burlington, Vermont he had felt “more fatigued than I usually have been” and should have “listened to those symptoms”. The Vermont senator abruptly paused his campaign at the beginning of October, after undergoing treatment for an artery blockage. Sanders had a heart attack, his campaign said as he was released from hospital.
But just a day later, the old Bernie was back. He said he “misspoke” and would be getting “back into the groove of a very rigorous campaign. I love doing rallies and I love doing town meetings”. The media, he said, “drives me a little bit nuts to make a big deal out of it”. At 78, Sanders is the oldest major presidential candidate. If elected, he will be the oldest president inaugurated. As he was recovering, Sanders said his campaign was going to change. He told reporters outside his home in Burlington, Vermont he had felt “more fatigued than I usually have been” and should have “listened to those symptoms”.
Sanders was on the debate stage on Tuesday night wagging his finger and taking bites from other candidates. When CNN’s Erin Burnett tried to change the subject from drug companies to “the issues of candidates and their health”, Sanders interjected: “I’m healthy. I’m feeling great!” The crowd burst into applause. But just a day later, the old Bernie was back. He said he “misspoke” and would be getting “back into the groove of a very rigorous campaign. I love doing rallies and I love doing town meetings.” The media, he said, “drives me a little bit nuts to make a big deal out of it”.
Though Sanders trails former vice-president Joe Biden and Senator Elizabeth Warren in most polls, he is beating them in fundraising. From July to September, Sanders raised $25.3m, edging out Warren’s $24.6m and Biden’s $15.2m. In New York, he thanked “the many people across this nation who in my time of illness sent me and my family their prayers, their well-wishes and their love”.
Ocasio-Cortez’s endorsement is expected to boost or at least sustain Sanders’ support. In many ways, it shows Ocasio-Cortez going back to her roots. Before she became a political celebrity in her own right, she was an organizer for Sanders. Some founders of Justice Democrats, the political action committee that helped organize her campaign, are former Sanders staffers. “Along with the great medical care that I received,” he added, “I am happy to report to you that I am more than ready to carry out with you the epic struggle that we face today. I am more than ready to assume than ready to assume the office of president of the United States …
The Chicago teachers' strike shows how to go on offense against neoliberalism | Miles Kampf-Lassin and Micah Uetricht “To put it in one way: I am back.”
“I was born across this river in the boogie-down,” she told the New York crowd on Saturday, with a reference to the borough's role in the early days of hip-hop. “And like many first-, second- and third-generation Americans, I was born in multiple contexts. Though Sanders trails the former vice-president Joe Biden and Senator Elizabeth Warren in most polls, he is beating them in fundraising. From July to September, Sanders raised $25.3m, edging out Warren’s $24.6m and Biden’s $15.2m.
Ocasio-Cortez’s endorsement is expected to boost or at least sustain Sanders’ support. Before she became a political celebrity in her own right, she was an organizer for Sanders. Some founders of Justice Democrats, the political action committee that helped organize her campaign, are former Sanders staffers.
“I was born across this river in the Boogie-Down,” she told Sanders’ New York crowd on Saturday, with a reference to the Bronx borough’s role in the early days of hip-hop. “And like many first-, second- and third-generation Americans, I was born in multiple contexts.
“My mom was born in Puerto Rico, my dad was born in the South Bronx while the Bronx was burning … when landlords began to turn to arsonists because the insurance payouts were more valuable than the people living in these buildings.“My mom was born in Puerto Rico, my dad was born in the South Bronx while the Bronx was burning … when landlords began to turn to arsonists because the insurance payouts were more valuable than the people living in these buildings.
“That was the backdrop by which my parents started their lives, and the backdrop in which I started mine was a one-apartment bedroom in Parkchester in the Bronx. They worked hard, they had a mattress on the floor, they had a crib in the closet, and that’s how we started our American Dream.” “That was the backdrop by which my parents started their lives, and the backdrop in which I started mine was a one-apartment bedroom in Parkchester in the Bronx. They worked hard, they had a mattress on the floor, they had a crib in the closet, and that’s how we started our American dream.”
During Tuesday’s debate, when asked how he would “reassure Democratic voters that you’re up to the stress of the presidency”, Sanders plugged the Saturday rally. It would just be a continuation of his campaign, he said. She also paid tribute to Sanders, saying “in 2016, he fundamentally changed politics in America”.
“We are going to be mounting a vigorous campaign all over this country. That is how I think I can reassure the American people.” “I’m proud to say,” she added, “that the only reason I had [any] hope in launching a long-shot campaign for Congress is because Bernie Sanders proved that you can run a grassroots campaign in an America where we almost thought it wasn’t possible.”
Sanders paid tribute in return.
“It is hard to believe the degree to which a less than one year this woman, the youngest woman ever elected to Congress … has transformed politics in America.
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“She has been a defender of the working class in our country, she has taken on the greed of Wall Street … she has been the leader in the fight of gentrification, rent control, affordable housing, and all within one year, she has electrified this country when she introduced the concept of the Green New Deal.
“Alexandria has become an inspiration to millions of people, not just across New York but across this country, who now understand the importance of political participation and standing up for justice.
In Tuesday’s debate, when asked how he would “reassure Democratic voters that you’re up to the stress of the presidency”, Sanders plugged the New York rally and said it would just be a continuation of his “vigorous” campaign.
On Saturday, he said: “I am so delighted that Alexandria is part of our campaign, and I look forward to traveling with her all over this country.”
US elections 2020US elections 2020
Bernie SandersBernie Sanders
Alexandria Ocasio-CortezAlexandria Ocasio-Cortez
DemocratsDemocrats
New YorkNew York
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US politicsUS politics
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