Senator Bernard, popularly known as Bernie, Sanders' credential as a progressive politician is beyond doubt. Credited to be the longest serving independent in the history of US Congress, he ran for Democratic presidential nomination in 2016 and 2020, each time coming second to the eventual presidential candidates Hilary Clinton and Joe Biden. His presidential campaign in 2016 actually influenced the Democratic Party to have a left-leaning shift. Now when such an influential politician makes an impassioned appeal to his countrymen to vote for Joe Biden, it has to be taken seriously. In an article titled, "We're in a pivotal moment in American history. We cannot retreat", Sanders has argued that Joe Biden's reelection is crucial to saving democracy, America and the rest of the world.
Starting from the Declaration of Independence in 1776, the veteran senator, now chairman of the health, education, labour and pension committee, has briefly touched the milestone events such as the civil war that broke out over abolishment of slavery, the Great Depression of 1929, the federal government's role in transforming working class's fate under President Roosevelt, US involvement in the World War II following Japan's attack on Pearl Harbour. All those were pivotal moments, according to him.
Then Sanders compares the 2024 US election with those momentous events on an even keel. His arguments on two of the several key issues he deals with are overwhelmingly compelling. One concerns the rise of the oligarchy in his country where the billionaires can contrive to have an undue sway on economic and political life of the American nation. While the working class Americans' inflation-adjusted wages have slid down over the last 50 years, he claims, the 1.0 per cent superrich are amassing wealth and wielding power never done before. Under the Super Pac endorsement by the US Supreme Court, individual donation for election campaign has no limit and the billionaires take advantage of this to make and unmake the prospect of House and Senate candidates. No wonder, more than 90 per cent of Congress and 80 per cent of Senate elections respectively are decided by the higher amount of campaign money spent.
This is revealing. If money wins elections, democracy is suspect. Sanders goes a step further to call the American political system corrupt. The nation that boasts framing the most powerful constitution in favour of individual liberty, human rights and democratic values has obviously declined. But intriguingly, it has not ceased to play the role of the sole moral guardian in sovereign countries across a large swathe of the planet.
Sanders considers Donald Trump the most dangerous president the US ever had, who is known for his anti-union labour policy and tax cuts for the billionaires. Extreme income and wealth inequality in America will only rise if Trump returns to power, he warns. Biden, 'a traditional politician who believes in democracy, free elections and the right of dissent', on the other hand, has taken some pro-poor and pro-worker measures to alleviate their sufferings. Sanders then laments how women's rights were dealt a mortal blow under Trump's rule.
On yet another crucial count, Biden is miles ahead of his rival. His approach to the climate change which Trump considers 'a hoax' is quite satisfactory. Biden favours investment in sustainable green energy and also energy efficiency as against Trump's promotion of fossil fuels. Bernie Sanders' concern about deterioration of climate is widely shared by conscious citizens the world over and Biden is a better choice as an American and by extension world leader.
Yet what is good for America is not good for the rest of the world. Trump is a self-proclaimed champion of "America first" principle. If his withdrawal from climate fund proved pernicious to the preservation of the planet's health, his dissociation from the North Atlantic Organisation (NATO) could not only avoid a Russia-Ukraine war but also provide a much needed respite from the unhealthy arms race.
The US spends, Sanders reveals, $1.0 trillion on military, more than the next 10 countries combined do. Arms worth billions of those dollars are now channelised to Israel for annihilation of the Palestinians. This is at a time when 60 per cent of Americans survive just on the monthly paycheck. Trump threatens to pardon the 800 of his supporters accused of attacking the Capitol Hill. America surely has reasons to be alarmed but if Trump's plan to part with the NATO is carried out, the world will see fewer conflicts. He brags not for nothing that he could bring an end to the Russia-Ukraine war within 24 hours. Whether he could or not, about one thing there is no doubt that the war would not have broken out at all had he been the president. It is Biden's hawkish NATO policy that is responsible for Putin's aggression on Ukraine.
Biden's calculation of furthering US interests was to the point. On one count, though, he has erred. It is the wicked policy of bringing Russia on to its knees. Evidently, it has backfired for the European Union toeing the US line, in particular. But poor, developing and emerging countries like Bangladesh are now paying through their noses for Biden's misadventure. Economies have crumbled like nine pins. In the Gaza conflict, he is a party to the carnage. Here Sanders also errs in his judgment of Biden, saying that "Biden has at least restricted some powerful bombs going to the Israel". This is nasty argument. Here is no choice for the lesser evil, it is a crime against humanity. The International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutors rightly sought an arrest order for Netanayahu. Biden rebukes. This is outrageous. He should also face prosecution for his role in Gaza genocide.
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