Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., called out former Vice President Kamala Harris and her campaign on Sunday for being influenced by wealthy people in 2024 and failing to speak to working families.
CNN’s “State of the Union” host Dana Bash pressed Sanders on a statement he made on one of his “Fighting Oligarchy” tour stops about the former vice president.
Bash played a clip of Sanders telling the crowd, “One of the reasons, in my view, that Kamala Harris lost this election is she had too many billionaires telling her not to speak up for the working-class of this country.”
The CNN host reacted to the clip and said, “ouch.”
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“I like her, she’s a friend of mine, but her core consultants, you know, were heavily influenced by very wealthy people. How do you run for president and not develop a strong agenda which speaks to the economic crises facing working families?” Sanders asked.
“You know, more income and wealth inequality today than we’ve ever had. You have 60% of our people living paycheck to paycheck. You’ve got a healthcare system which is broken and dysfunctional — and despite spending so much — we’re the only major country not to guarantee health care to all people. How do you not talk about these issues?” Sanders continued.
Bash pushed back and said Harris talked about affordability.
Sanders argued that Harris talked about it vaguely, but said he didn’t want to rehash the 2024 campaign.
“I think the clue to Democratic victories is to understand that you’ve got to stand unequivocally with the working class of this country. You need an agenda that speaks to the needs of working people,” Sanders said.
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He went on to call for guaranteed healthcare for all Americans and an increased minimum wage.
“Is it [a] radical idea to say that in the midst of a competitive global economy, we need to make sure we have the best educated workforce that all of our kids, regardless of income, should be able to get a higher education? These ideas exist all over the world. They don’t exist in America, and they don’t exist because of the power of the oligarchs, economically and politically,” he said.
The senator called America’s political system “broken and corrupt.”
Sanders was also asked if he planned to run for president again in 2028.
“Oh, god. Let‘s not worry about that. I am going to be 84 years of age next month, as a matter of fact. So I think that speaks for itself. But right now, what is more important in my view — and I want to see, obviously, the most progressive candidate that we can have — is to rally the grassroots of America,” he said.