A couple of people have asked me who I would vote for in the Democratic primaries, if I could. Now obviously, I’m not an American citizen. But the US presidency is a rather powerful institution, so I think I’m allowed to have an opinion 🙃 /1
Here’s who I would vote for: Bernie Sanders.
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Yes, I think other candidates – like Warren or Yang – are really good as well.
I don’t like Warren's backpedaling on Medicare-for-all though, and even though I *love* Andrew Yang’s basic income advocacy, I don’t understand why he’s against a wealth tax for the super-rich /3
I don’t like Warren's backpedaling on Medicare-for-all though, and even though I *love* Andrew Yang’s basic income advocacy, I don’t understand why he’s against a wealth tax for the super-rich /3
Sanders, meanwhile, diagnoses the core sickness of the United States. Inequality.
We all know the crazy statistics. The working class today pays higher tax rates than the billionaire class, the top 0.1% owns about as much as the bottom 90%. - etc. /4
We all know the crazy statistics. The working class today pays higher tax rates than the billionaire class, the top 0.1% owns about as much as the bottom 90%. - etc. /4
A democracy cannot survive this way. Such radical inequality is a poison that destroys the bonds between people.
And maybe this is my European perspective, but Sanders’ ideals and proposals seem totally common sense to me. /5
And maybe this is my European perspective, but Sanders’ ideals and proposals seem totally common sense to me. /5
To most people in developed countries – even for conservatives – it's bewildering that policies like Medicare-for-all are seen as 'radical' or 'socialist' in the US. Currently, the US has the most expensive health care system in the world, and life expectancy is going *down*. /6
A system like the French or the Germans currently have would save millions of lives and billions of dollars.
Moreover, I don’t see Sanders as a revolutionary socialist. He’s an old-fashioned social-democrat. /7
Moreover, I don’t see Sanders as a revolutionary socialist. He’s an old-fashioned social-democrat. /7
Social democracy means universal health care, high-quality public education, much higher taxes on the rich, parental leave, child care, or in short: policies that are hugely popular and work really well in the countries that tried them. /8
One of the things I love most about Bernie Sanders is his earnestness. With him it’s always about the issues, because he knows what’s at stake. Unlike many journalists, politics is not a game to him. He's the opposite of cynicism. /9
To be clear, I don’t think anyone in the world should have as much power as the US president. But if we must have someone in that office, then let it be an authentically good person. I think that's what Bernie Sanders is. /10
Finally, I believe he’ll beat Trump.
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