Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders has managed to tap into a deep-rooted progressive movement within and just outside the Democratic party that has felt ignored and even betrayed by the direction of the party.
Bernie or Bust supporters argue that if they don’t withhold their vote, there will be little if any pressure on the “establishment” to move to the left. But what needs to happen for the Democratic party to continue to move left is for the people in the movement to examine the strategy that the Tea Party used to move their Republican establishment to the right.
The Tea Party managed to not only threaten the re-election efforts of Republicans nationwide, but they also continued to build their insurgent organization and introduced their candidates in down-ticket local races.
As a result, Republicans have two non-establishment candidates running for president who have a good chance at capturing the nomination: Donald Trump and Ted Cruz.
Bernie Sanders supporters are a relatively new and somewhat disorganized movement; it will take time for them to develop the organization needed to endorse an adequate number of down-ticket progressive candidates. Meanwhile, the young man in this video offers a different perspective that brings everything into focus.
Featured image via Matthew Cavanaugh/Getty
