Senator Bernie Sanders, (I, Vt.), displayed a huge sign on which was printed a tweeted campaign promise by Donald Trump not to cut Social Security or Medicare. Sanders stated that Trump "lied" to the American People when he made the campaign promises never to cut Social Security or Medicare benefits. Sanders ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic Party Presidential nomination in 2016. He was defeated by Hillary Clinton who was later defeated by Donald Trump in the Electoral College even though she won the popular vote by nearly 3 million votes.
Sanders' Political leanings
Sanders is neither a Democrat nor a Republican, but an Independent. He started his political career by running for Governor of Vermont and for the United States Senate from Vermont in the mid 1970's. Sanders was unsuccessful in those early runs, but later was elected Mayor of Burlington, Vt. in 1981. Sanders served three terms as Mayor of Burlington and was elected to the House of Representatives in 1990 and served eight terms in that capacity. In 2006, Sanders was elected to the United States Senate, where he has served ever since.
Sanders is very liberal politically and describes himself as a socialist. He opposed the MIddle Class Tax Relief Act of 2010 because he felt that it provided unfair tax cuts for affluent Americans.
Throughout his tenure as a Senator, Sanders has been outspoken about income inequity, "corporate welfare," healthcare for all Americans, and LGBT rights. Sanders voted against the Iraq War and the first Gulf War when George H.W. Bush was President. He has been a lifelong advocate of civil liberties and civil rights and he vehemently opposed the Patriot Act and NSA surveillance of American citizens.
Sanders' town hall meeting
Sanders is to participate in a town hall meeting hosted by CNN on Monday. At that meeting, Sanders will address the Democratic Party's plan to deal with the upcoming Trump presidency. Some observers feel that Trump is being manipulated by Vladimir Putin and that his ability to control Trump may have been his motive for hacking the DNC emails and affecting the presidential election outcome in 2016.
North Korea's threat
Meanwhile, Trump has stated that North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un's threat to attain the capacity to launch a nuclear attack against the United States "won't happen." Trump also had claimed shortly after being elected President that he only needed to undergo security briefings when there was something "new" that he needed to learn. Considering that Trump has no political experience and has never worked in the public sector in any capacity, there may a lot of new things to learn over the next four years.
