Hillary Clinton’s new barrage against Bernie Sanders, the Democratic presidential primary opponent she has all but ignored through most of her campaign, is having an effect — though probably not the one she intended.
Sanders’s underdog campaign said it is seeing a surge of contributions as a direct result of the new attention it is getting from the Democratic front-runner, with money coming in at a clip nearly four times the average daily rate reported in the last quarter of 2015.
In its email appeals for money, the campaign accused the Clinton campaign of making “vicious and coordinated attacks” on Sanders’s health-care plan, which calls for a government-run system. Sanders’s strategists are also considering rolling out advertising beyond the early-contest states where it is airing spots now.
The former secretary of state and her team have stepped up their criticism of Sanders on a variety of fronts in recent days as polls have begun to show him edging even with her in Iowa — and, for the first time, looking competitive in a national poll. But the Clinton strategy may be backfiring in some ways.
“Thanks, Team Clinton,” Sanders spokesman Michael Briggs said Wednesday afternoon.
“As of now, we are at about $1.4 million raised since yesterday when the panic attacks by the Clinton campaign began,” Briggs said. “We’ve gotten 47,000 contributions. We’re projecting 60,000 donations. Even for our people-powered campaign, this is pretty darn impressive.”
x"To Bernie Sanders with thanks for your commitment to real health care access for all Americans..."-@HillaryClintonpic.twitter.com/XMVPEx8fT8
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) January 13, 2016 x YouTube Video The Candidates Trade Blows On TwitterFormer Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) have exchanged a number of Twitter blows in recent days.
Sanders in particular has launched some zingers. On Wednesday, the Vermont senator tweeted a photo of a handwritten note Clinton had apparently written to him back in 1993. The post was a thinly veiled jab at Clinton for ratcheting up attacks against his healthcare-policy agenda in the race.
"To Bernie Sanders with thanks for your commitment to real healthcare access for all Americans," the Clinton note read.
Both Clinton and Sanders have been publicly sparring as Clinton, the Democratic front-runner, has seen her lead over Sanders melt away both nationally and in the first two voting states. Clinton has also launched broadsides against Sanders for backing a bill that protected gun manufacturers.
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At the end of last week, Sanders highlighted the fact that Clinton criticized President Barack Obama's position on guns during her 2008 primary campaign against him:
x"Clinton Flip-Flops on Health Care" https://t.co/CPJOpg4dizhttps://t.co/CPJOpg4diz">https://t.co/CPJOpg4diz> via @BernieSandershttps://twitter.com/BernieSanders">@BernieSanders> #FeelTheBern
&mdash'>https://twitter.com/hashtag/FeelTheBern?src=hash">#FeelTheBern— GrassrootsForSanders (@GRForSanders) January'>https://twitter.com/GRForSanders/status/687336861170176004">January 13, 2016 x YouTube VideoSanders' Social Security Challenge Sen. Bernie Sanders on Wednesday urged Hillary Clinton to back a plan endorsed by leading Democrats and seniors’ advocates to strengthen Social Security.Sanders has introduced legislation to make the wealthiest Americans who make more than $250,000 a year pay the same share of their income into the retirement system as everyone else. Current law now caps the amount of income subject to payroll taxes at $118,500.
Sanders’ plan is patterned after a proposal to scrap the cap first brought forward by President Barack Obama in 2008. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada in the last session of Congress was a cosponsor of Sanders’ legislation to scrap the cap on the payroll tax.
“I hope Hillary Clinton joins us because I believe that we’ve got to stand with seniors,” Sanders said. “We need not only to extend social security benefits, we need to expand them,” he added.
Social Security is the subject of a new television ad being released on Wednesday to stations in Iowa and New Hampshire, where polls show Sanders gaining ground or leading Clinton. “I hope we can keep this campaign focused on the important issues facing our country including the economic security of seniors and disabled veterans.”
xWhen Hillary Clinton sent Bernie Sanders a thank-you note for his work on health care. https://t.co/2qTkoLZQOLpic.twitter.com/ip9eZHJfIG
— Mother Jones (@MotherJones) January 13, 2016 x YouTube VideoSanders Decries 'Karl Rove Tactics'Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) on Wednesday blasted Hillary Clinton over her campaign's recent criticism of his health care proposals.
"Hillary Clinton once said it 'undermined core Democratic values' and gives 'aid and comfort' to the special interests and 'their allies in the Republican Party' for Democrats to attack each other’s health care plans. Today, in another flip-flop, she’s doing exactly what she once decried," a statement from Sanders' campaign reads.
"Clinton’s attacks on a Democratic Party rival over universal health care marks a very public flip flop by her and her campaign. She is now using the same Karl Rove tactics she once decried in this video," the statement continues, linking to a video of Clinton criticizing Barack Obama's presidential campaign for attacking her proposal for universal health care during the 2008 campaign.
Over the past few days, Clinton's campaign has been critical of Sanders' proposal for universal health care. The former secretary of state suggested in November that Sanders' plan would raise taxes on the middle class. And this week, she characterized his state-based plan as a "risky deal" that would turn "over your and my health insurance to governors."
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Sanders elaborated on his defense in a Wednesday afternoon interview on MSNBC, calling Chelsea Clinton's comments "factually incorrect."
"The way the legislation we have introduced in the past was written -- and obviously is what we believe in -- is that if a Republican governor doesn't want it, it will be implemented by the federal government," Sanders said, adding that he hopes the Clinton campaign will stop using that line of attack.
x.@BernieSandershttps://twitter.com/BernieSanders">@BernieSanders> plan to pay for every program he has introduced to date. #FeelTheBernhttps://twitter.com/hashtag/FeelTheBern?src=hash">#FeelTheBern href="https://twitter.com/People4Bernie">@People4Bernie> @PortiaABoulgerhttps://twitter.com/PortiaABoulger">@PortiaABoulger> https://t.co/w7UpFJv6cr
&mdash'>https://t.co/w7UpFJv6cr">https://t.co/w7UpFJv6cr— Women For Bernie (@Women4Bernie) January'>https://twitter.com/Women4Bernie/status/687265739057795074">January 13, 2016 x YouTube VideoBernie Champions Clean TechTo a soundtrack provided by the albums of John Lennon and Neil Young, Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders told a crowd of 550 people in Boone Sunday that if he is elected, his administration will focus on the challenges created by global climate change because he believes it is the moral obligation of this generation.
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Sanders said the issue of climate change should be important to every person on the planet because, “we are actually witnessing in our own lifetime, a very short period of time, major transformations of our climate.”
“In my state, and states like Minnesota, people used to do ice fishing. Well, the ice is no longer there. California’s seeing right now a state in the midst of a terrible drought, huge impacts on agriculture” Sanders said. “What the scientists tell us is if we do not get our act together … what we will be seeing is more drought, more flooding, more extreme weather disturbances.”
Sanders added that he believes America cannot afford to wait to react to climate change any longer. Sanders urged his competition in the race to focus more on creating a better future for the world and less on the day to day politics of the election.
“My message to my Republican opponents is think more about your kids and your grandchildren than about your campaign funds,” Sanders said. “I have seven beautiful grandchildren and if you ask me why I am here today, that is why I am here.”
x YouTube VideoThe Other Campaigns Should Be Nervous"Today" show host Savannah Guthrie asked Hillary Clinton a very simple question Wednesday morning: Are you getting worried about Bernie Sanders?
"No, I'm not nervous at all,'' Clinton responded. "I'm working hard, and I intend to keep working as hard as I can until the last vote or caucus-goer expresses an opinion. I'm excited about where we are."
That's the wrong answer.
Clinton should ABSOLUTELY be nervous about the state of the race with less than three weeks before voters in Iowa head to caucuses. There are warning signs almost everywhere she looks that suggest that the Vermont socialist is gaining momentum at exactly the worst moment for Clinton's chances at winning the nomination.
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There are many Democrats who think that Clinton will be the nominee no matter what happens in Iowa and New Hampshire. That Sanders's inability to win over African American and Hispanic voters will doom him when the primary race moves to the south and west.
To which I say: Maybe. There's little question that Clinton has dominated Sanders among non-white voters in the race to date. But, as recently as last month, she was dominating him in national polling and had a comfortable double-digit cushion in Iowa. Neither of those things are true anymore.
Politics is a changeable business.
xPolitifact Confirms Bernie Sanders’ Healthcare Plan Will SAVE Every American Family $1,200/Year https://t.co/8fNL7DaRqFhttps://t.co/8fNL7DaRqF">https://t.co/8fNL7DaRqF> #FeelTheBern
&mdash'>https://twitter.com/hashtag/FeelTheBern?src=hash">#FeelTheBern— WI4BernieSanders2016 (@WI4Bernie) January'>https://twitter.com/WI4Bernie/status/687501305770807297">January 14, 2016 x YouTube VideoTrevor Noah Had A Segment On SandersOn Tuesday night’s “Daily Show,” Noah told us that Sanders was the son of a Che Guevara poster and a scratchy wool sweater. “A turning point came in his life when he was bitten by a radioactive senior citizen, giving him the power to be as grumpy as 10 old men,” Noah said. “You think this is a joke, but Bernie Sanders released an actual folk album in 1987 titled ‘We Shall Overcome.'” The excerpts are priceless. Sanders should totally do other covers like Adele’s “Hello.”
When it comes to Sanders’ politics, Noah highlighted some of the Bern’s policies like breaking up the big banks to avoid more massive potential bailouts and open up the possibility of letting the post office do basic banking services. It’s actually a great idea to help those in need avoid those awful check cashing places and predatory lenders. But he’s perhaps most known for his plan to lift caps on income for the rich and get rid of loopholes for those who hide their money in tax-free tax havens.
But the most compelling thing about Sanders is that he is obviously the universe’s attempt to balance out Donald Trump. “Bernie is the yin to Trump’s racist yang,” Noah said. But while they might seem worlds apart, the two have a lot in common. Like the frequent usage of the word “huge” and the whole shouty thing.
xDon’t underestimate Bernie Sanders: The Vermont senator is poised for two historic victories https://t.co/SAreqZKnQ6
&mdash'>https://t.co/SAreqZKnQ6">https://t.co/SAreqZKnQ6— Salon.com (@Salon) January'>https://twitter.com/Salon/status/687529617343799297">January 14, 2016 xBernie Sanders is making the Democratic primary look a lot like 2008 https://t.co/dGpnFWYAaI | AP Photo pic.twitter.com/HlBSfv6x20
— POLITICO (@politico) January 14, 2016Sanders & Auditing The Fed“Requiring the Government Accountability Office to conduct a full and independent audit of the Fed each and every year, would be an important step towards making the Federal Reserve a more democratic institution that is responsive to the needs of ordinary Americans rather than the billionaires on Wall Street,” Mr. Sanders said.
But many Democrats argue the bill would politicize monetary policy and grant congress access to too much power. “That bill is about Congress supplanting its judgment as to what monetary policy should be,” said Jason Furman, Chairman of President Obama’s Council of Economic Advisers, in an interview with Bloomberg TV last year. “Congress shouldn’t be telling the Fed what to do with monetary policy.”
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Mr. Sanders’ decision to defect from the Democratic Party was bold, and is revealing of the dissipation of bipartisanship in Washington under the Obama administration. Votes are too often determined by whose name and party is attached, rather than by the principals, values and implications signing a bill into law would have on improving our government’s policies.
Mr. Sanders has the ability to reach across the aisle and work with members of both parties to achieve common ground over sensible legislation. No other presidential candidate—on either side—has the record of bipartisanship he has, and no other candidate would be as effective in the White House because of it.
xBernie Sanders is on the rise in Iowa — and it looks like he could win there https://t.co/dfsFbbOJCJ
&mdash'>https://t.co/dfsFbbOJCJ">https://t.co/dfsFbbOJCJ— Vox (@voxdotcom) January'>https://twitter.com/voxdotcom/status/687427665184296960">January 14, 2016 xWhy is Bernie Sanders overtaking Hillary? https://t.co/VJ00irUQBopic.twitter.com/v6wTxdo3J8
— The Atlantic (@TheAtlantic) January 14, 2016A Threat To CentristsNow, considering the fact that Bernie Sanders does better than Hillary Clinton in a hypothetical matchup with Republican frontrunner Donald Trump, you'd think the establishment Democrats would be thrilled with these developments. You'd think the people who talk so much about "electability" and how important it is, would be overjoyed that Bernie Sanders, a popular and electable candidate, is moving toward the Democratic nomination.
Apparently not.
Instead of celebrating the rise of a new star, establishment Democrats are freaking out about the possibility of Bernie Sanders winning both Iowa and New Hampshire. Case in point: former Tennessee congressman Harold Ford, Jr., who on MSNBC agreed with Joe Scarborough that establishment Dems could recruit John Kerry or Joe Biden to run if Bernie sweeps both early primary states.
Pretty weird, right?
Here Sanders is inspiring millions of young people to get involved in politics, and establishment Democrats think it might be a good idea to draft two guys who've already lost presidential races. Go figure.
But here's the thing: Establishment Democrats aren't stupid — they should be scared of Bernie Sanders. That's because he represents a direct threat to the centrists who have ruled the Democratic Party for the past few decades.
xPacked house at #Bernie2016https://twitter.com/hashtag/Bernie2016?src=hash">#Bernie2016> HQ in Des Moines. These volunteers are dialing for democracy cuz they #FeelTheBernhttps://twitter.com/hashtag/FeelTheBern?src=hash">#FeelTheBern>! pic.twitter.com/7TOIf68tat
&mdash'>https://t.co/7TOIf68tat">pic.twitter.com/7TOIf68tat— Lilia A. Chacon (@LiliaChacon) January'>https://twitter.com/LiliaChacon/status/687437324221689856">January 14, 2016 xIt's packed at opening of @BernieSanders' first campaign office in Maine. Atmosphere almost like a rally. pic.twitter.com/nF5QZU3JLI
— Grady Trimble (@Grady_Trimble) January 13, 2016A Portland Office OpensBernie Sanders' campaign has officially opened its first office in Maine. The campaign and a group of supporters celebrated the opening Wednesday night.
The democratic presidential candidate wasn't there, but dozens of people still crammed into the office to show their support.
The event almost felt like a rally, with supporters cheering on the people who spoke. Several state lawmakers were there, including Rep. Ben Chipman (D-Portland), Rep. Christine Powers (D-Naples) and Sen. John Patrick (D-Rumford).
For a while, Sanders was considered a long shot to Hillary Clinton. However, the most recent WSJ/NBC News poll shows Sanders has a 4-point lead in New Hampshire and trails Clinton by three points in Iowa.
"I think people are listening to him and hearing what he has to say and he's speaking the truth," Lindsay McArthur, a Sanders supporter, said. ..
With the new office, officials said they're hoping for a big push ahead of the February primary in New Hampshire to carry them into the Maine caucuses in March.
x.@BernieSandershttps://twitter.com/BernieSanders">@BernieSanders> more than doubles Hillary Clinton's Iowa events since last debate https://t.co/zudItZWIcahttps://t.co/zudItZWIca">https://t.co/zudItZWIca> pic.twitter.com/i8uDvLhLBC
&mdash'>https://t.co/i8uDvLhLBC">pic.twitter.com/i8uDvLhLBC— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) January'>https://twitter.com/ABCPolitics/status/687436613530562561">January 14, 2016 x YouTube Video A Sandusky For Sanders EventDespite the January weather, supporters of an outspoken Democratic presidential candidate want Sandusky to feel the burn.
The area’s Congressional district delegate, Erin Cruz, organized an informational meeting Wednesday night at the Sandusky Library to learn about Bernie Sanders’ platforms.
“It’s really important for people to get involved in the political process and for them to know who is going to be running our country,” Cruz said. “This meeting is going to be a focused opportunity to ask questions about what his platforms are, who the supporters are involved in this campaign and to clear up any misconceptions about what it means to be a socialist Democrat.”
Want to go?
• What: Bernie Sanders informational meeting hosted by local Congressional district delegate Erin Cruz
• Where: Sandusky Library, 114 W. Adams St.
• When: 6:30-7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 20
• Who: Anyone can attend the event
• More: Visit a sponsored Bernie Sanders website for more information and to RSVP for Wednesday’s event
The Bernie News Roundup is a voluntary, non-campaign associated roundup of news, media, & other information related to Bernie Sanders' run for President. Visit The Bernie News Roundup website! Sign up, donate, volunteer @ Bernie's official page. More information about Bernie & the Issues @ feelthebern.org