Will Bernie Sanders Hurt His Own Cause?

Bernie Sanders’s beliefs have been obvious from the start. He thinks wealthy elites exert too much influence over American politics. He wants the U.S. government to lessen income inequality. He believes climate change is a pressing threat to the world. The clarity and overarching ambition of his agenda has been central to his appeal and expectations-defying political success so far.

If Sanders wants his political revolution to last, he will need to win widespread support for his ideas well into the future. Yet as the primary election draws to a close, the campaign has increasingly made arguments that may undercut the long-term viability of the movement that has coalesced around the Vermont senator.

The Sanders campaign has long made the case that the political system is beholden to the rich and powerful, and no longer adequately represents the interests of the people. That message animates supporters and has become a key rationale for the campaign. So it is perhaps not surprising that after Sanders supporters protested the Nevada Democratic convention earlier this month, the candidate decried party leaders. “Democratic leadership used its power to prevent a fair and transparent process from taking place,” Sanders declared. In the aftermath of the convention, Sanders’s campaign manager, Jeff Weaver, accused the Democratic National Committee chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz of “throwing shade on the Sanders campaign since the very beginning.” Read more at The Atlantic