Bernie Sanders stands alone behind a pickup truck screaming at the bull.
He faces hundreds of ecs voters huddled outside a high school outside Detroit. This is a group that doesn’t fit in a high school gym or two overflow rooms. The crowd cried happily as they told them that a total of 9,000 people had appeared for the rally.
“All this is telling me is not just Michigan or Vermont, but the people in this country don’t allow us to move towards the Olihead. They don’t allow Trump to take us to authoritarianism,” cried Sanders. “We’re ready to fight, and we’re going to win.”
At 83, Sanders is not running for president again. But a bent silver-haired democratic socialist emerged as leaders of resistance to Donald Trump’s second presidency. By tearing apart the Trump seizure of power and warning about the consequences of firing tens of thousands of government workers, Sanders relies on Democrats to focus on egg prices or to the wishes of those who want to “roll over and die.”
For now, at least, Sanders stands alone as the only elected progressive campaign to run a nationwide campaign to capitalize on the fear and rage of the vast anti-Trump movement.
He drew a crowd of 4,000 people in Kenosha, Wisconsin on Friday night. He faced about 2,600 more people the following morning in Altoona, Wisconsin, in a town with fewer than 10,000 residents. A crowd of 9,000 people outside of Detroit exceeded the expectations of his own team. By design, each stop was located in the Swing US House district, represented by Republicans.
Just elected to Vermont for his fourth Senate term, Sanders admitted that this was not the role he expected to play at this stage of his career.
In fact, his team had been intentionally waiting in President Trump’s early weeks to launch what they now call the “oligarchy tour” and to deliberately begin whether or not famous Democrats would meet the leadership void. Instead, Sanders, who has allied with Senate Democrats and runs twice to the party’s presidential nomination, is not the Democrat himself, wonders if he is considering a bid for another White House.
“It’s like a presidential rally. But I’m not running for president. This is not a campaign,” Sanders told The Associated Press. “You have to do what you have to do. The country is in trouble and I want to do my part.”
Divided democratic resistance
Since losing the White House, Democrats across Washington have struggled to coalesce behind a consistent message or messenger to cut down government workforce, weaken federal surveillance, and stop Trump’s aggressive move to get technology Titan Elon Musk to carry out his vision.
There was no intensive movement to sort out anti-Trump resistance.
“You’re looking around – who else is doing it? There’s no one,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, DN.Y., said of Sanders’ efforts. “My hope is that the dam will break from a Democrat’s perspective on crime-going Democrats… we need to have a discussion directly with people.”
Longtime Sanders ally Ocasio-Cortez said she will join him in the coming weeks. She also plans to make solo appearances in Republican-owned Congressional districts in Pennsylvania and New York. Perhaps others at the place where Republicans refused to hold city hall within persons who could face protests.
“It’s not whether Bernie should do this or not, it’s what we all should,” she said. “But as long as he is unique in this country and we are blessed with the ability to have on our side, I think we should be grateful for that.”
Beyond Sanders’ tours, angry voters have so far relied on inseparable grassroots groups to organize a series of local protests. They were effective in putting pressure on Trump’s allies in some cases. Many House Republicans facing angry questions have either criticised Musk or questioned the cuts being made at the request of their allies.
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Ezra Levin, an inseparable co-founder who is critical of many Democratic leaders, praised Sanders for stepping up.
“I hope more Democrats are traveling around countries, including the Red State, and bringing together a majority for Masks and Project 2025,” Levin said. “It’s true that Hell Beats (House Democrat Leader Hakeem) Jeffries travels the country for a children’s book tour during a constitutional crisis.”
During a parliamentary break last month, Jeffries made two appearances to promote children’s books on democracy. He also travelled to support House Democrats. Last weekend he was in Selma, Alabama to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Bloody Sunday.
The truth is that, if any, a small number of Democratic leaders have the capacity to attract such crowds in a short period of time and organize relevant logistics nationwide. Early classes of the 2028 presidential candidate party, California Governor Gavin Newsom, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, have limited national profiles, and they have stepped too far into the national spotlight to date.
Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy said Democrats need to be better organized, among Trump critics who are more openly stated in Congress.
“People are eager to be featured in action right now. People see threats. They are anxious, angry, motivated and want to be sent in the direction of seeking help,” he said.
Murphy admitted that Sanders still has many detractors within the Democrats who are looking at him and his ideas for progressive policy – replacing private and job-based health insurance with a government-funded “all Medicare” plan, free public universities, and the “Green New Deal” on climate policy.
Certainly, it was only five years ago that Democrats combined around Joe Biden to effectively block Sanders from winning the party’s 2020 presidential nomination.
“There are still many people who view Bernie as a party risk,” Murphy said, but “I see his message as the core of what we need to build.”
Sanders has been a solid supporter of Biden over the past four years, but criticised Democrats in the aftermath of Kamala Harris’ defeat last fall, declaring Trump’s victory could be possible just because Democrats “abandoned” the working class.
Shaun Fein, the president of United Autoworkers who introduced Sanders in Michigan, said more Democrats “have to follow his lead to focus on working-class people and working-class issues.”
“In my opinion, they have to look closely at the mirror and decide who they want to represent,” Fein said of the Democrats.
Voters speak
Voters packed venues in Wisconsin and Michigan over the weekend formed a diverse group that included people who were not supporting Sanders’ past presidential elections. Most people said that Democrat leaders haven’t done enough to stop Trump.
“I’m here because I’m afraid of our country. Diana Shack, a 72-year-old retired lawyer who attended the first Sanders rally on Saturday, said: “I’m becoming a more enthusiastic Bernie fan, especially in light of his work traveling around the country. These are not normal.”
In Kenosha the night before, 50-year-old medical worker Amber Schultz demanded that her party “step up and do something.”
“Berney is the only politician I trust,” she said.
Tony Gonzalez, 56, who has become independent from Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin, said he is worried that Trump will “dismantle historic American standards” and will try to take office beyond this semester. The constitution prohibits the president from serving more than two terms, despite Trump suggesting he deserves a third.
“It’s a dangerous time,” Gonzalez said. “What Bernie has to say, and the turnout is important. He still hears the voice.”
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Sanders has had the same fiery populist message over the weekend for decades. They seized the economic inequality of the country in order to seek free health care, free higher education and stronger social safety net programs. Sanders was particularly focused on a team of billionaires who Trump was appointed to serve as leaders in his administration, including Musk and half a dozen.
“They want to dismantle the federal government and cut down the programs that workforce desperately need,” Sanders warned.
“Yes, the oligarchs are very powerful. They have an infinite amount of money. They control our economy. They own a lot of the media and have a big impact on our political system,” he continued. “But from the bottom of my heart, I believe that if we stand together, we can beat them.”
It is unclear how long Sanders, an Octenarian who was hospitalized due to heart disease during the 2020 campaign, will continue in this role. The spokesman said Sanders has not had any health issues since the 2019 episode.
He is not expected to slow down anytime soon. Sanders leaned against Faiz Shaquir, the 2020 presidential election manager, to organize his stops and are supported by a small number of former presidential election staff working on contract basis.
Having lost a bid to become the new Democratic National Committee chairman, Shaquille acknowledged strategic differences within the party about how best to fight Trump.
Last month, veteran political strategist James Kerrville wrote an article urging Democrats to “roll over and die,” betting that Trump and his party will ultimately suffer political backlash from voters.
“One theory is that you can die and play. You can retreat strategically,” Shaquille said. “Or you play alive, you go out to people, you talk to them with confidence and integrity.”
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