Bernie Sanders and his followers are marching on a political revolution. The Lasso is joining in. We encourage you to come along.
The Lasso officially endorses Senator Bernie Sanders as the presidential candidate who best represents this publication’s ideals in the 2016 race for president. Sanders receives overwhelming support from this paper for one reason: he restores trust in America’s political system.
Imagine Washington’s institutions devoid of big money special interests where politicians are accountable to their voters, not their donors. Although that is just a thought experiment, Sanders represents the only shot we have at turning this vision into reality. His refusal to campaign with a Super PAC is reason enough to trust his word on this.
Moreover, Sanders has the better record among the two Democratic candidates on trust as well. For example, Bernie Sanders has always stood in favor of gay rights. As a member of the House of Representatives, he was one of 67 Representatives to vote against the Defense of Marriage Act (the law that barred gay marriage). On the other hand, Hillary Clinton, Sanders’ primary democratic rival, voted in favor of the Defense of Marriage Act. Now, Clinton publicly supports gay rights — although we believe she has always privately done so — but this vote points to the most striking contrast between the two candidates: Sanders is above politics, and we can be sure that his platform reflects his true beliefs.
Some of Sanders’s proposals also resonate with our community, such as his proposal for free college. Since we are a high school newspaper, our staff has talked to peers who refused to attend a college because of its price tag. That is unacceptable. Education today is not the great leveling field it is touted to be.
Government health insurance for all is another proposition that resonates with our community. Since we are young, we are not inclined to simply accept the state of things. Rather, we look at other countries who pay much less for healthcare and ask ourselves why we cannot do the same.
Generally, we also ask you to pay attention to how you get informed about candidates. For example, the cable news pundits who call Sanders’s plans unachievable are the exact same ones who predicted Trump would not last more than a month and that Sanders was a fringe candidate. Sanders supporters did not suddenly materialize. They have always existed, but this is the first time they have someone who can represent them.
Finally, the Lasso asks you to reject the label of “unelectable” that gets pinned on Sanders. The only reason people think he is unelectable is because others label him as such. It is a circular argument without footing. If you want him elected, then elect him. In the general election, we promise Sanders’s message will have wide appeal, and he has ample chances to be elected President. He has an incredibly powerful asset — the youth vote — and it can tip the balance.
