History UsefulNotes / BernieSanders

Bernie's father emigrated to the United States from what is now UsefulNotes/{{Poland}} just before the rise of UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler, and much of his extended family was murdered during UsefulNotes/TheHolocaust. Sanders credits much of his early interest in politics to this: "A guy named Adolf Hitler won an election in 1932. He won an election, and 50 million people died as a result of that election in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, including six million Jews. So what I learned as a little kid is that politics is, in fact, very important." Sanders moved to Vermont in 1968, and his first position as an official elected member of government was as mayor of Burlington; he served as such from 1981 to 1989. He later served as the representative of Vermont's at-large House district in the U.S. Congress from 1991 until 2007, when he was sworn into the Senate following his victory in Vermont's 2006 Senate election.

Bernie Sanders gained national attention during the 2016 presidential election cycle, in which he mounted a long-shot bid for the Democratic Party nomination and gave the expected winner, former First Lady, senator, and Secretary of State UsefulNotes/HillaryRodhamClinton, an active contest, to nearly everybody's surprise.[[note]]Despite having always been elected as an Independent, Sanders caucuses with the Democrats in Congress. Nevertheless, running for the party's nomination without officially being a member of it was the subject of some controversy.[[/note]] Although he didn't win,[[note]]Some people attribute this to corruption within the Democratic National Committee, as Bernie supporters were generally a lot more enthusiastic than Hillary supporters.[[/note]] his massive grassroots campaign came very close, and his candidacy inspired other significant political figures such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to run for office.

Sanders's 2016 political campaign gained massive traction among young people, and many of his notable positions, such as a 15-dollar hourly minimum wage, have become part of the Democratic Party's mainstream platform. In 2019, Sanders announced his intention to run for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, with his campaign drawing heavily from his strong base from the 2016 primary cycle. For a time, Bernie was seen as the frontrunner, but ultimately lost out to former vice president UsefulNotes/JoeBiden, who became the nominee and, eventually, the President after defeating incumbent UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump.

Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York City, he grew up in a Jewish family with his parents and his brother Larry (who moved to Britain as an adult and also became a politician). He became interested in politics at a young age, participating in the UsefulNotes/CivilRightsMovement with none other than UsefulNotes/MartinLutherKingJr himself.

Bernie's father emigrated to the United States from what is now Poland just before the rise of UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler, and much of his extended family was murdered during UsefulNotes/TheHolocaust. Sanders credits much of his early interest in politics to this: "A guy named Adolf Hitler won an election in 1932. He won an election, and 50 million people died as a result of that election in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, including six million Jews. So what I learned as a little kid is that politics is, in fact, very important." Sanders moved to Vermont in 1968, and his first position as an official elected member of government was as mayor of Burlington; he served as such from 1981 to 1989. From there, he served as the representative of Vermont's at-large House district in the U.S. Congress starting from 1991. He was elected to his Senate seat in 2006.

In general, most portrayals of Sanders focus on his populist rhetoric, Jewish New Yorker heritage and fiery personality. His LargeHam speeches and his distinct Brooklyn accent made him an easy source of humor among political satirists. Likewise, his old age and Jewish heritage is handy for anyone looking to making jokes about elderly people, Jews or [[BreadEggsBreadedEggs elderly Jews]].

* ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'', "Titanic" sketch (2016) as a passenger on the ship

* ''We Shall Overcome'' (1987) - narrator

* ''Series/{{Succession}}'' has Gil Eavis as a rather blatant stand-in for Bernie Sanders. Like his real-life inspiration, Eavis is a liberal Jewish senator who runs for President on the platform of wealth inequality.

Bernard "Bernie" Sanders (born September 8, 1941) is a United States Senator from UsefulNotes/{{Vermont}}. Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York City, he grew up in a Jewish family with his parents and his brother Larry (who moved to Britain as an adult and also became a politician). He became interested in politics at a young age, participating in the UsefulNotes/CivilRightsMovement with none other than UsefulNotes/MartinLutherKingJr himself. Bernie's father emigrated to the United States from what is now Poland just before the rise of UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler, and much of his extended family was murdered during UsefulNotes/TheHolocaust. Sanders credits much of his early interest in politics to this: "A guy named Adolf Hitler won an election in 1932. He won an election, and 50 million people died as a result of that election in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, including six million Jews. So what I learned as a little kid is that politics is, in fact, very important." Sanders moved to Vermont in 1968, and his first position as an official elected member of government was as mayor of Burlington; he served as such from 1981 to 1989. From there, he served as the representative of Vermont's at-large House district in the U.S. Congress starting from 1991. He was elected to his Senate seat in 2006.

Bernie Sanders gained national attention during the 2016 presidential election cycle, in which he mounted a long-shot bid for the Democratic Party nomination and gave the expected winner, former First Lady, senator, and Secretary of State UsefulNotes/HillaryRodhamClinton, an active contest, to nearly everybody's surprise.[[note]]Despite having always been elected as an Independent, Sanders caucuses with the Democrats in Congress. Nevertheless, running for the party's nomination without officially being a member of it was the subject of some controversy.[[/note]] Although he didn't win,[[note]]Some people attribute this to corruption within the Democratic National Committee, as Bernie supporters were generally a lot more enthusiastic than Hillary supporters.[[/note]] his massive grassroots campaign came very close, and his candidacy inspired other significant political figures such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to run for office. Sanders is known for his progressive, left-wing political positions. A self-described democratic socialist (some would say [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_democracy "social democrat"]]), he supports a single-payer health care system in the form of Medicare for All and a massive overhaul of the United States' energy economy through a Green New Deal. He is also notably critical of the United States' habit of engaging in foreign regime change, particularly during UsefulNotes/TheWarOnTerror, supports a two-state solution to the UsefulNotes/ArabIsraeliConflict, and has passionately fought for the rights of the UsefulNotes/LGBTCommunity since long before the topic became a mainstream issue. He also advocates for criminal justice reform, automatic voter registration, and is notably the only presidential candidate to call to abolish ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) and return to the immigration enforcement system used prior to 2003 (where multiple agencies shared the responsibility).

Bernie Sanders gained national attention during the 2016 presidential election cycle, in which he mounted a long-shot bid for the Democratic Party nomination and gave the expected winner, former First Lady, senator, and Secretary of State UsefulNotes/HillaryRodhamClinton, an active contest, to nearly everybody's surprise.[[note]]Despite having always been elected as an Independent, Sanders caucuses with the Democrats in Congress. Nevertheless, running for the party's nomination without officially being a member of it was the subject of some controversy.[[/note]] Although he didn't win,[[note]]Some people attribute this to corruption within the Democratic National Committee, as Bernie supporters were generally a lot more enthusiastic than Hillary supporters.[[/note]] his massive grassroots campaign came very close, and his candidacy inspired other significant political figures such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to run for office. Sanders is known for his progressive, left-wing political positions. A self-described democratic socialist, he supports a single-payer health care system in the form of Medicare for All and a massive overhaul of the United States' energy economy through a Green New Deal. He is also notably critical of the United States' habit of engaging in foreign regime change, particularly during UsefulNotes/TheWarOnTerror, supports a two-state solution to the UsefulNotes/ArabIsraeliConflict, and has passionately fought for the rights of the UsefulNotes/LGBTCommunity since long before the topic became a mainstream issue. He also advocates for criminal justice reform, automatic voter registration, and is notably the only presidential candidate to call to abolish ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) and return to the immigration enforcement system used prior to 2003 (where multiple agencies shared the responsibility).

In general, most portrayals of Sanders focus on his populist rhetoric, Jewish New Yorker heritage and fiery personality. The his LargeHam speeches and his distinct Brooklyn accent made him an easy source of humor among political satirists. Likewise, his old age and Jewish heritage is handy for anyone looking to making jokes about elderly people, Jews or [[BreadEggsBreadedEggs elderly Jews]].

In general, most portrayals of Sanders focus on his populist rhetoric, Jewish New Yorker heritage and fiery personality. The his LargeHam speeches railing against inequality and his distinct Brooklyn accent made him an easy source of humor among political satirists. Likewise, his old age and Jewish heritage is handy for anyone looking to making jokes about elderly people, Jews or elderly Jews.

* ''Series/{{Succession}}'' has Gil Eavis as a rather blatant stand-in for Bernie Sanders. Like the real-life Sanders, Eavis is a liberal Jewish senator who runs for President on the platform of wealth inequality.

In general, most portrayals of Sanders show his populist rhetoric, Jewish New Yorker heritage and fiery personality. The combination of his LargeHam speeches railing against inequality and his distinct Brooklyn accent made him an easy source of humor among political satirists. Likewise, his old age and Jewish heritage is handy for anyone looking to making jokes about old people, Jews or elderly Jews.

* ''Series/{{Succession}}'' has Gil Eavis as a rather blatant stand-in for Bernie Sanders. Like the real-life Sanders, Eavis is a liberal Jewish senator who runs for President with the message of wealth inequality.

In general, most portrayals of Sanders focus on his populist rhetoric, Jewish New Yorker heritage and fiery personality. The combination of his LargeHam speeches against inequality and his distinct Brooklyn accent made him an easy source of humor and memes among political satirists. Likewise, his Jewish heritage is handy for anyone looking to make jokes about New York Jews.

* ''Series/{{Succession}}'' has Gil Eavis as a rather blatant stand-in for Bernie Sanders. Like the real life Sanders, Eavis is a Jewish liberal senator who runs for President on the theme of wealth inequality.