Democratic Party in Where We Go From Here, by Bernie Sanders
On Government Reform:
Unity Reform Commission: reduce power of superdelegates
During the 2016 Democratic presidential primary, it became clear to me that the elitist, top-down approach of the party needed to be reformed. The Democratic National Committee had designated 716 political insiders as superdelegates--delegates to
the national convention who could support any candidate they wanted, regardless of how the people of their state had voted in their primaries or caucuses.
In other words, the Democratic leadership had created the absurd and undemocratic situation
that allowed 30 percent of the votes needed for the presidential nomination to come from the party elite. In 2016, this grossly unfair situation became very apparent when Secretary Clinton received the support of some 500 superdelegates
BEFORE the first popular vote was cast in the Iowa caucuses.
[The Unity Reform Commission] in December 2017 unanimously passed a resolution that would significantly reduce the power of superdelegates.
Source: Where We Go From Here, by B. Sanders, p.248-50, on 2016 DNC
Aug 25, 2018
On Principles & Values:
OpEd: DNC tilted primary in favor of Hillary Clinton
On July 26, 2016, in a prime-time speech at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, I endorsed Hillary Clinton and urged my supporters and the American people to elect her as president. The now-famous DNC emails that we later learned
were stolen by hackers working for a Russian intelligence agency had been released at the start of the convention. The content of these emails, which were not a shock to me, showed that the leadership of the
DNC had tilted the playing field during the primary in favor of Hillary Clinton's campaign. As a result, the chair of the DNC,
Debbie Wasserman Schultz, was forced to resign. Many of my delegate, who were not great fans of Hillary Clinton or the democratic establishment to begin with, were further enraged.
Source: Where We Go From Here, by B.Sanders, p. 19-20, on 2016 DNC
Jul 26, 2016
On Corporations:
Disallow stashing corporate profits overseas to avoid taxes
[At the 2016 convention preparation], we were victorious in including amendments in the platform that made it the policy of the Democratic Party to fight for:- Breaking up too-big-to-fail banks and passing a twenty-first-century Glass-Steagall
Act;
- Expanding Social Security by increasing taxes on those making over $250,000 a year;
- Preventing employers from cutting the earned pension benefits of more than 1.5 million Americans;
- Closing loopholes that allow corporations to stash
their cash offshore to avoid paying taxes, and using the revenue generated by this policy to create millions of jobs rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure;
- Making it easier for workers to join unions through majority card-check
recognition and by ensuring a first contract through binding arbitration.
I appreciated the willingness of the Clinton team and the DNC to work with us and create a platform that we could all be proud of.
Source: Where We Go From Here, by B. Sanders, p.16-7, on 2016 DNC
Jul 9, 2016
On Crime:
End mass incarceration & reform criminal justice
[At the 2016 convention preparation], we were victorious in including amendments in the platform that made it the policy of the Democratic Party to fight for:- Abolishing the death penalty, ending mass incarceration, and enacting major criminal
justice reforms;
- Establishing a path toward the legalization of marijuana;
- Ending disastrous deportation raids, banning private prisons and detention centers, and passing comprehensive immigration reform.
Source: Where We Go From Here, by B. Sanders, p.16-7, on 2016 DNC
Jul 9, 2016
On Energy & Oil:
Tax carbon, methane, and other greenhouse gases
[After the 2016 primaries], we were victorious in including amendments in the platform that made it the policy of the Democratic Party to fight for:- Levying a tax on carbon, methane, and other greenhouse gas emissions to aggressively combat
climate change;
- Making massive investments in wind, solar, and other renewable energy.
All of these progressive policies were at the heart of our campaign, and I was very proud of the accomplishment of our platform-writing team.
Source: Where We Go From Here, by B. Sanders, p.16-7, on 2016 DNC
Jul 9, 2016
On Government Reform:
Automatic voter registration; holiday for Election Day
[At the 2016 convention preparation], we were victorious in including amendments in the platform that made it the policy of the Democratic Party to fight for:- Moving to automatic voter registration and the public financing of elections, making
Election Day a federal holiday, eliminating super PAC's, and passing a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United; and
- Creating a comprehensive agenda to protect and expand the rights of Native Americans and indigenous communities.
Source: Where We Go From Here, by B. Sanders, p.16-7, on 2016 DNC
Jul 9, 2016
On Jobs:
$15/hour minimum wage indexed to inflation
[After the 2016 primaries], during the proceedings in St. Louis and Orlando, we were victorious in including amendments in the platform that made it the policy of the Democratic Party to fight for:- A $15-an-hour federal minimum wage indexed to
inflation;
- Requiring Medicare to negotiate for lower prescription drug prices and making it legal to import safe and affordable medicine from Canada and other countries;
- Expanding Social Security by increasing taxes on those making over $250,000 a
year;
- Preventing employers from cutting the earned pension benefits of more than 1.5 million Americans;
- Making it easier for workers to join unions through majority card-check recognition and by ensuring a first contract through binding
arbitration.
All of these progressive policies were at the heart of our campaign. I appreciated the willingness of the Clinton team and the DNC to work with us and create a platform that we could all be proud of.
Source: Where We Go From Here, by B. Sanders, p.16-7, on 2016 DNC
Jul 9, 2016
Page last updated: Apr 10, 2019