Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said the reelection of former President Trump would be the “end of democracy” in an interview released Saturday by The Guardian.

“It will be the end of democracy, functional democracy,” Sanders said in the interview.

The Vermont senator also said in the interview that he thinks that another round of Trump as the president will be a lot more extreme than the first.

“He’s made that clear,” Sanders said. “There’s a lot of personal bitterness, he’s a bitter man, having gone through four indictments, humiliated, he’s going to take it out on his enemies. We’ve got to explain to the American people what that means to them — what the collapse of American democracy will mean to all of us.”

Sanders’s words echo those President Biden made in a recent campaign speech during which he said that Trump’s return to the presidency would risk American democracy. The president highlighted the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol in an attempt to cement a point about Trump and other Republicans espousing a kind of extremism that was seen by the world on that day.

  • rbhfd@lemmy.world
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    10 months ago

    The chance isn’t just slim. It’s astronomical.

    The chance of Cornell West winning is probably smaller than a bit-flip happening, switching your vote to another candidate. That’s how little chance your vote would have to make the country a better place.

    On the other hand, every vote not casted for the only viable non-Trump candidate helps Trump.

    I’m European and would love for you to have the option to vote for proper social democrats or greens (especially greens!). But please, every US citizen needs to do their part to not get fascists get hold of your country.

    It’s sad to say, but if you don’t vote for the democratic candidate, you might not have a chance to vote 3rd party in 4 years. (I don’t like fear mongering, but it’s a real enough possibility)

      • rbhfd@lemmy.world
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        10 months ago

        Clearly you don’t understand the first-past-the-post system the US presidential election utilises.

        • HACKthePRISONS@kolektiva.social
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          10 months ago

          >THIS is what you’re up against. Now is NOT the time to take a stand against single issue agendas.

          genocide is one of a long list of reasons I haven’t voted Democrat for president since 2008.

        • HACKthePRISONS@kolektiva.social
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          10 months ago

          >If you do ANYTHING outside of voting for the one person that stands a chance to beat him- you’re throwing away a vote and allowing a vote for Trump to be counted unchallenged.

          wrong. I’m voting for cornel west, a different candidate. they aren’t allowed to just throw out votes.

          • jordanlund@lemmy.worldM
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            10 months ago

            A vote for West does nothing, and means nothing if you’re in a safe Red or a safe Blue state. Safe states are going Trump or Biden regardless of who you personally vote for.

            In a SWING state, your vote does make a difference and voting for West is a lost vote. Congratulations on helping Trump win if you’re in a swing state.

              • jordanlund@lemmy.worldM
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                10 months ago

                West will not win any election, so any vote for him is a vote thrown away.

                Elections are won by 50%+1. Anything that takes away from a legitimate candiate reaching 50%+1 actively hurts that campaign, it’s not helping someone whose support sits in the margin of error.

                • HACKthePRISONS@kolektiva.social
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                  10 months ago

                  the language of “legitimate candidate” implies there are illegitimate candidates. and that’s peak irony: i am continually told that this election means the end of democracy.

                  • jordanlund@lemmy.worldM
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                    10 months ago

                    There are a whole host of illegitimate candidates. My favorite was a guy named Lyndon Larouche who was grade A insane, but he also had a major fanbase and was always running for President.

                    His main platform was that the primary enemy of the United States was England and that the Queen of England was a cocaine smuggler.

                    He regularly got about the same number of votes Cornel West will get.

                    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyndon_LaRouche

                  • jordanlund@lemmy.worldM
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                    10 months ago

                    Sure I can. The most successful 3rd party candidate we ever had was Ross Perot in 1992. He got just under 19% of the total vote and won exactly 0 elections.

                    West is nowhere NEAR the level Perot was at in 1992.

            • HACKthePRISONS@kolektiva.social
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              10 months ago

              >Congratulations on helping Trump win if you’re in a swing state.

              i can’t believe a mod is allowed to lie and spread election misinformation here. a vote for west does not help trump win. only votes for trump do that.

              • jordanlund@lemmy.worldM
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                10 months ago

                When multiple people are telling you that your rationale is wrong, maybe it’s time to recognize the problem is not everyone else. ;)

                • HACKthePRISONS@kolektiva.social
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                  10 months ago

                  i think what you, and all those who have been lying about this, mean is that it doesn’t help the only candidate who (you believe) can win.

                  well, if he wanted my vote, he’d try to get it.