what does it say that thousands showed up in Minneapolis to see Bernie?

[cali]

Maybe you can write off the thousands who came for his kickoff in his hometown, but it says something when his events in Iowa are all overflowing and when he attracts this kind of crowd in Minneapolis. I confess to being shocked, but I think it demonstrates a pretty strong vein of frustration and anger, within the democratic party, with politics as usual, and disgust with the influence of corporate money on our party. I think it demonstrates that folks are looking for new approaches to problems and that there's a real hunger for candidates who give voice to that.

I am not claiming that these folks constitute a majority of dems, but we may well be a much larger group than anyone credited.

Bravo Minneapolis.
http://bringmethenews.com/2015/05/31/thousands-come-out-to-hear-presidential-hopeful-bernie-sanders-speak-in-mn/

[jwirr]

1. I think it is significant.

[Vincardog]

2. I don't know about a Majority of democrats but I believe it represents a majority of Americans.

[arcane1]

5. I believe Americans in general are more liberal than they might think they are.

And Sanders a better job of proving that than any other politician I've seen. Many of our so-called differences exist solely because of buzz-words and slogans. Take those slogans away, and the differences evaporate.

Bernie is a slogan-slayer!

[Enthusiast]

92. +1 so very much!

[nikto]

137. Well-expressed

[daleanime]

146. +1

Nicely written.

[Cosmocat]

147. Man

I have a lot, I mean a LOT of rapid "conservative" friends and acquaintances who I would say are liberal in a LOT of ways - very giving and community oriented, generally accepting and caring. But, they have long bought into the liberal boogyman, and there is no way they are going to change their minds or way of thinking past the box they are in.

Bernie does keep it simple, and cuts to it well.

This country is pretty fucking far down the rats hole. People have really come to know republican bullshit as reality. It is deeply entrenched.

And, Bernie has not gotten near the full treatment.

IF he really starts getting wind, we will see how he weathers the bullshit.

Dean scream, Obama flagpin ...

It really is not about him.

It is about the country.

His "success" in this campaign will rely on a level of sober and rational thinking this country has not displayed relative to politics, policy and government my entire life.

[CrispyQ]

162. Have you ever given the "Joe Conservative" essay to a conservative friend?

I gave it to my mom - she was a hard right winger. I asked her, which of these policies do you disagree with? Which should we get rid of? She wouldn't answer, because she would have had to admit that she would not get rid of any of them.

Here it is, in case you haven't seen it. http://www.nobeliefs.com/RepublicanDay.htm

Anyway, I think it's a really good tool to show that we as a people are more liberal than most of us think. It was a masterful move by the repub media machine to paint the word liberal as bad. Too bad the dems didn't stand proud & defend it. Instead, they tucked tail & ran. And soon they started to abandoned liberal policies, as well. The party & most politicians in general, have been shifting right ever since.



They've been playing this game for 30 years & dem leadership wonders why the left lacks enthusiasm. I have republican friends who would vote for HRC. We are putting up a candidate that repubs would vote for & I'm supposed to be glad about that?

Oops. Got a little off topic there.

[Pooka Fey]

141. +1

[Cheese Sandwich]

3. Overflow crowd... He might have to start doing stadium rallies...

More than 3,700 people squeezed into a Minneapolis gym to hear presidential candidate Senator Bernie Sanders lay out his campaign agenda. More people were left standing outside. Upon arrival, Sanders said he would like to ask people in the gym to sit down, but there were no more chairs.

Sanders said his campaign had scheduled the Minnesota stop as almost an afterthought - it was on the way to Iowa. But the event which was scheduled to be a gathering for two hundred at a union headquarters quickly drew thousands of RSVPs and was moved to the larger gym at the Minneapolis American Indian Center.

Bernie Sanders Wows Overflow Minneapolis Crowd

An overflow crowd converged in south Minneapolis to hear from Bernie Sanders, the U.S. senator from Vermont who is running for the Democratic nomination for president.

The line snaked for some time outside the American Indian Center on E. Franklin Avenue for the town hall meeting, which began about 10 a.m. Attendees were standing inside and others were left to wait outside.

Overflow crowd in south Minneapolis hears Bernie Sanders this morning

Thousands of Bernie Sanders supporters lined up in Minneapolis Sunday morning to see the Vermont Senator who's running for president.

Sanders is seeking the Democratic nomination and drew standing ovations as he called for higher taxes on the wealthy, universal pre-Kindergarten, and solutions to climate change.

One of the supporters at the event Max Wallin, 30, is an Iraq War veteran from South St. Paul. He said he supports Sanders' campaign because of his early opposition to the war.

"I think the biggest thing for me was that he was one of the very few people who actually voted against authorization of force for going into Iraq."

http://www.mprnews.org/story/2015/05/31/bernie-sanders-minneapolis

[BrotherIvan]

8. Whoa

That is a trip. He just announced this week and he is pulling these kinds of crowds? I guess that says while DU has been engulfed in flamebait, the rest of the country is listening. Fantastic.

Great photos, thanks.

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

25. What it means to me is the media will have more pressure to cover him.

Bernie is a self-propelled rocket ship! We need to support him, due to CU. I've donated 4 times already. The only way he makes it is for we the people to out spend these assholes. I think we could do that.

[valerief]

77. The media will do what its owners pay it to do. Millions marched against the

Iraq War and weren't covered.

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

154. They will cover Bernie. And soon too!

[darkangel218]

30. Damn!

Go Bernie!!

[blaze]

46. Thanks Cheese!!!!

What a great post!

I'm waiting for my Bernie T-Shirt to arrive!

I wish they would put some yard signs up for sale. I won't put a bumper sticker on my car... I'm anal about my car. But I'd put up a yard sign or two in a heart beat!

[Cheese Sandwich]

51. That's great

I want to get a T-Shirt soon too.

The crowd in Minneapolis was so big it looks like they filled up the courtyard outside too...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/128010313

[salimbag]

120. Yard signs are available

Check the website, they have t-shirts, cups, bumper stickers, and yard signs.

[Scootaloo]

78. And imagine, there are DU'ers advocating that the nomination be up for sale, rather than up for vote

[Art_from_Ark]

130. Some of them can be pretty obnoxious in their insistence

that money trumps peace, er, policy.

[brooklynite]

177. Care to name one?

FWIW - Some of us DO think it would be a good idea for our candidate to have the resources she or he will need to run against the Republicans. Maybe you feel differently?

[Wellstone ruled]

79. History says,Progressive Changes in the U.S.,

have usually started in the Upper Midwest. Remember these folks.La Follette,Humphrey,Mondale,Wellstone,Durgon,and the other Socialist,Burdick of North Dakota. Sense a wind of change and hoping it turns to a Hurricane.

[geardaddy]

167. You forgot McGovern and Gene McCarthy

But yes, I agree. I hope it follows that pattern again.

[Wellstone ruled]

175. Darn,forgot about Gene and the fellow from South Dakota.

And to think it's been down hill for Sodak ever since.

[geardaddy]

176. Too true.

[TrumanTown]

184. Americans Are More Liberal Than Politicians Think

http://www.salon.com/2015/06/01/the_gops_laughable_new_dirty_trick_%E2%80%94_that_the_new_york_times_wants_you_to_believe/

[Joe the Revelator]

102. That is actually pretty impressive. nt

[Cheese Sandwich]

105. Yeah. Here's a couple short videos of some overflow crowd outside

https://twitter.com/BernieSanders/status/605042140922576896

https://twitter.com/PeoplesWorld/status/605052944610959360/video/1



source: http://www.democraticunderground.com/128010313

[arcane1]

4. It says the hunger is real, and that you can't buy enthusiasm like that.

And you can't get that enthusiasm by pandering, either.

Unless the entire Internet conspires to block every mention of him, all those Super-PAC billions are going to be wasted.

Brace yourselves! This is going to be awesome!

[BrotherIvan]

9. Yes, you can't buy enthusiasm

And Bernie's message is new to voters, not focus-grouped and "evolved".

[hifiguy]

55. He is the same man saying the same things

no matter who he is speaking to. I think the last presidential candidate who did that was Fritz Mondale, and I may have to go back as far as George McGovern to find another.

[BrotherIvan]

66. I really wonder if people prefer "optics" in the real world or just here

I see a lot of women in the audience who are supposed to break 100% for Clinton. The new outrage du jour on DU is the "rape" article. Because, you know, *wink wink*. Sigh...

[hifiguy]

68. It really is getting tiresome as hell.

I may have to resort to the trash thread tool. I have made it a point not to put people on ignore but that may be coming to an end as well.

[BrotherIvan]

74. I'd like to see Bernie threads in the Bernie Group

It's 90% of the site anyway. It shows when Sanders Group threads sweep the top of the greatest page. And it keeps every thread from getting bombs tossed in to even the most mundane discussions. If there is a way for everyone to try it, that would save a whole lot of headache and make people who visit DU for Bernie information not think we're all a bunch of fucking idiots.

[beam me up scottie]

98. Women won't fall for it anymore than poc did.

Some of us are sick and tired of being told what to feel by members of our own gender.

Bernie is a passionate supporter of civil rights.

And and he didn't need to "evolve" to get there.

[BrotherIvan]

109. The "evolution" has legs

People should remember that identity politics doesn't always yield the intended results. As we have seen in recent history.

[beam me up scottie]

112. Yep.

The things that were said and done 7 years ago "in the heat of the moment" cannot be erased.

Nothing like smacking the snot out of someone and then offering them a friendly hug to let them know how important they are.

[BrotherIvan]

113. Or killing them and calling it "freedom"

[beam me up scottie]

117. And whose candidate voted repeatedly for that?

No nudging and winking necessary.

[BrotherIvan]

118. That was years ago!

What do you want???

[beam me up scottie]

121. She's evolved!

Of course Bernie isn't as slick and polished as Hillary but I think that's a good thing.

[brooklynite]

178. READY FOR HILLARY turned over FOUR MILLION contact names of people who signed up to support Clinton

You can't buy enthusiasm like that either...

[arcane1]

179. You mean the Super-PAC that used names from 2008?

That can't be. Super-PACs don't spend money!

[brooklynite]

180. No, the Super PAC that solicited new names from 2015 on.....

But if you don't believe they're authentic, then you won't have anything to worry about.

[arcane1]

183. "relying in part on an outdated supporter list from 2008"

Access to the list of close to 4 million names came after senior campaign officials admitted they were relying in part on an outdated supporter list from 2008. For two years, Ready for Hillary’s primary purpose was to create a plug-and-play list of supporter names, with contact information, that represented an energized base of people who could be tapped for money or volunteering.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2015/05/hillary-clinton-campaign-scores-ready-for-hillary-email-list-118446.html#ixzz3bqOdoLEc

I believe they're authentic, but it's also true that vast sums of money can play a role. The PAC spent over $2 million on salaries in 2014 alone. Those people are not being paid to bake cookies:

Salaries, wages & benefits $2,138,238

https://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/expenditures.php?cycle=2014&cmte=C00540997

[Kalidurga]

6. Don't take my word for this...

because I am going to admit up front I am horrible at crowd size estimations if there are more than 5 people I am like wow that's a lot of people. Anyway two lines that I could see were 2 blocks long. The grassy inside the fence was full more people showed up after this picture was taken I think. People were standing at least two rows deep on the outside of the fence. People were sitting on the stairs as well. It was great. So, to make a short story long, I think there was at least 5000 people there.

[bvar22]

7. It says that the Establishment Party Bosses and Conservatives (DLC/3rd Way)

...masquerading in the Democratic Party should be worried.

Hillary and her Handlers are already worried.
That is why they are "borrowing" so much Populist Sounding language from Warren.

[cali]

10. I suspect there's mounting anxiety in the Clinton camp

[hifiguy]

56. If they all start buying brown pants,

the fear is real.

And I predict increased sales thereof.

[nikto]

138. True. Hillary does not have even 1 Legit policy "weapon" to use against Bernie

Smears are all there is.

[BrotherIvan]

12. If you want to see just how worried, watch this

:20 second mark. I think they are completely caught off guard.

[cali]

14. omg, that fake southern accent

[BrotherIvan]

16. Yup, no white hair in the white house

And the look after shows it was intentional. Enough has been said about the accent, but no one is talking about what she said. Get ready for a red scare coming soon.

[truebluegreen]

21. Hate the accent as much as everybody else

but she didn't say "no white hair" in the White House (reference to Bernie I assume that would be), she says she won't turn white in the White House (reference to Bill? Obama? everybody else?).

[magical thyme]

38. immediately after saying she's been coloring her hair for years.

Her reference clearly was to white hair.

[Gloria]

47. This was not about Bernie, it was about deflecting the RW comments

That are already out there that are talking about her age. She is doing what Reagan did...and also had to deal with sexism. Doing a bit on hair creates a joke over all "Hillary's Hair" crap ftom years ago, too.

She's not picking a fight with Bernie, who has said he would support her as the nominee.

[magical thyme]

48. I'm aware of that. I was simply clarifying for the poster to whom I replied

that her statement that she was "not going to turn white" was clearly in reference to hair.

[Gloria]

49. I was actually commenting on the main comment

Not yours about white hair, post was misplaced...

[truebluegreen]

62. ? She still said "turn".

I think some of us are seeing things that aren't there--yet. By which I mean evidence of fear, even if she is worried. I doubt, at this point, that Hillary wants to give Bernie's campaign any oxygen, especially by even implying he is an actual rival.

Sadly for her and fortunately for us I think he is.

[magical thyme]

143. she was talking about age

She said she's may not be the youngest candidate out there, but she's been dying her hair for years and she's not going to turn white in the white house.

I do think she was referencing Bernie; she's not the youngest candidate out there but she's also not the oldest.

That said, I doubt she is worried about him because I think she's too arrogant to be worried about him. I think she's succombed again to thinking she has this in the bag and was just using him to make her age a non-issue. While showing how "down to earth and funny" she is. But the southern drawl was embarrassing; way over the top. Everybody effing knows by she's from the midwest; just a faker and a grifter.

[KingCharlemagne]

96. They'll probably assign the red baiting to Bill, since he did so well with African

Americans in 2008.

[BrotherIvan]

97. Oh no, haven't you heard, that never happened

Never ever. Not even on DU!

[beam me up scottie]

101. Don't you need some kind of badge to prove you're qualified to comment about that?

BrotherIvan!

[BrotherIvan]

110. I'll have to look in the mirror to do some "research"

[beam me up scottie]

111. Still shaking my head over that.

Read it, was like , left, came back, read it again, still couldn't believe it.

It's going to be an interesting primary season.

[BrotherIvan]

114. They found a new smear with the Freedom Act

Isn't it funny they have to make up new ones, but if you link to the great one's actual record it's a "right wing smear". Same handful of people, making DU look like fucking idiots. Sheesh.

[beam me up scottie]

115. Well they probably thought VoxNews needed the night off.

BREAKING: Bernie voted tonight for the surveillance state - Wants to put spy cams in your kids' rooms

[BrotherIvan]

119. He didn't vote with Republicans!!!!!

Horrors!!! Hey, throw it all on the wall and see what sticks.

[beam me up scottie]

122. I'm waiting for the anti-semitism.

Israel! *wink wink*

[BrotherIvan]

124. Oh you know that's coming

Red scare *nudge nudge*

Maybe they'll get it all out of their system. I have noticed that the more their chosen object of affection isn't getting all of the attention, the more desperate and vicious the attacks become.

I am advocating for every Bernie thread to be posted in the Sanders group. I was poking around today and saw that redditors and others were mentioning they did a search to find out more about Bernie and DU came up. It would be horrifying for the world to see this nuttery. So I have asked a host to discuss and consider advocating that anything pertaining to him be in that group. It's just a way to keep the bombs out of threads. I fear the vitriol might possibly be endless and it is just absolutely pointless. The Sanders group is 90% of DU, so the usual procedure of posting in the group and posting in GD for exposure need not apply. Bernie group threads consistently perch atop the greatest page. That's my suggestion anyway. Not to make an echo chamber, but to keep the kabuki down to a minimum.

[beam me up scottie]

125. Damn.

That's a really good idea.

I'm cringing just thinking about what they're reading here.

Like you said the other day I have no problem with legitimate criticism but these manufactured scandals are beyond the pale.

[BrotherIvan]

126. Maybe the members can discuss it after the hosts and see what they think

I really don't see anywhere else on the web with these kind of manufactured scandals. I could be missing it, but it is pure lunacy. I'm hoping there is an active Sanders forum that starts up where we can participate *wink wink* as the admins have endorsed a candidate already.

[beam me up scottie]

127. Yes, his supporters need a safe place to figure out how to counter them.

These attacks are despicable and since they've gotten away with it they will only continue.

[BrotherIvan]

128. It's really getting out of hand in some threads

You tried in this thread, but the whole thing is fucking embarrassing now.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10026758861

That same thing went on in two other threads I saw. Same argument. Holy crap.

[beam me up scottie]

129. Argh.

And their back ups will be in here ready to pile on Monday morning.

Last week I was trying to stay out of this but I am SO pissed off.

I'm all in now.

[BrotherIvan]

132. Here is some good news I posted

Shows that DU is just a sad and tiny bubble.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/128010498

[beam me up scottie]

133. I'll have to try to catch those another time.

I'm way out in the sticks and am stuck with dial up for now, any extra money goes to feed the hayburners in the barn.

I know you're right about the bubble; I've met Bernie and had the pleasure of voting for him - he's a force. These people have no idea.

[BrotherIvan]

135. It took me a while to get hayburners

My mind kept thinking of giant wood stoves in the barn. But then I thought, "That's dangerous! Who would do that" Shows you what I know.

Even if you can't watch the videos, it's very good news. It shows that people of color can relate to his message and don't think an establishment politician is the only answer. Great news.

[beam me up scottie]

136. Well they are very large and do throw off a lot of heat.

People aren't just turning to Bernie because they're sick of Hillary, they're responding to the man, they recognize his sincerity and it's like coming up for air.

He gets it.

[BrotherIvan]

142. I think so too

Can't wait to see his crowds grow and grow. It's exciting and that too will add momentum as people want to know what all the excitement is about.

[daleanime]

150. I hate that we even have to think about it.....

But, yeah, we have think about it. Might be a very good idea.

[BrotherIvan]

168. And it shouldn't be to hide and bitch about everyone

Which seems to be well used in other groups. I think actually less scorched earth threads will lead to less frustration and fighting. But because the country is hearing about Bernie for the first time and searches high in search engines, it is something to consider. I think we're going to see any number of new tactics, and usually those threads don't get many recs but lots of replies. But they show up in a search very easily. The fact that that disgusting post with the pictures would show up is a horrible idea. The blogger's personal blog is so low on the rankings that no one might ever find it, but on DU, it might come up second or third page on Google because the media is not covering him much. If they do, they would push down the DU threads. Just a thought.

[hootinholler]

149. Ok, I'm ignorant

Please enlighten me.

[2banon]

26. If you think that was bad, should have heard her back in 2007/2008 in Mississippi & Alabama

Don't know where to dig up the vid clips from that campaign, maybe C-Span but it was around the anniversary date of MLK's Selma march..

HRC's phony accent was so god awful over the top as to be extremely offensive.

I couldn't believe it wasn't picked up and used to run in negative campaign ads against her but I guess no one was paying attention or cared. Come to think of it, it was broadcast on C-Span, where I tuned in to the 2008 campaign maybe the clip is archived?

[BeanMusical]

37. Yes, pathetic.

[magical thyme]

39. cringe-worthy.

[hifiguy]

57. Oy. That is preposterous

and pathetic.

[trumad]

69. Yawn

Fake outrage is unbecoming.

[hifiguy]

76. It isn't outrage.

It's embarrassment combined with "did she really DO that? OMG, she DID."

[BrotherIvan]

88. It's 2008 all over again

As Sanders' number go up, watch for more. It is inevitable and part of the way they roll. Can't wait till her surrogates start in. He'll be the next coming of Stalin while at the same time a feeble, helpless old man.

[cali]

90. bzzzt. more like embarrassment at her pandering ways

[bvar22]

15. That was painful to watch.

I was embarrassed for her.

[LuvNewcastle]

24. I felt the same way.

[Joe the Revelator]

104. God damn, that faux accent

Drives me insane.

[salimbag]

123. Talkin' the talk

Some of our politicians seem to feel the need to sound more folksy. Obama started dropping the g somewhere during the 2008 campaign. I guess they don't think anyone will notice the fakery. We notice!

[HereSince1628]

18. Put together with the Draft Warren effort & Chuy Garcia's run against Emmanuel

and I think the establishment Dems should be worried.

Both garnered support from across the nation. A progressive candidate is going to capture that interest. Currently the favorite to get that seems to be Sanders.

The establishment dems have to prevent a ground swell...which can be tricky business.

[A Simple Game]

59. It's not just the Dems that should be worried, the Republicans need to worry too.

If a third party candidate, even if running as a Democrat, wins the Presidency the two party system is blown to pieces. No longer will people feel they only have two options. They will know Greens, and Liberal, and yes even Conservative party candidates among others can be elected, you only have to vote for them.

I think it is way past time the two major parties had a major shakeup and this election may be the one to do it. One party or maybe both will have to tack left or be replaced by a new or different party.

People that make very large political contributions will no longer think they are getting enough bang for their bucks and quit donating as much to individual candidates. If you can't buy an election why waste your money.

[HereSince1628]

80. yes, it surely suggests options to establishment candidates

It'll be really interesting to watch Sanders fund his campaign...if he succeeds in finding funding inside the Dem party or whether he's forced to go outside. The answers that come could, at least imo, give people a sense about whether getting outside the dominant parties can be successful.

[bigtree]

11. voters are looking for new leadership

...and are willing to give him a hearing.

[AtomicKitten]

13. k&r

[carolinayellowdog]

17. Pent up demand for honesty from Washington

it's encouraging that younger Americans haven't totally given in to cynicism

[Enthusiast]

93. We are sick of the lies. Even the well promoted, carefully crafted lies.

[URL=.html][IMG][/IMG][/URL]

[libodem]

19. It says Woo Hoo!

[Gregorian]

20. Maybe we're the new silent majority.

Ignored by the media; pushed aside by stolen elections; made to feel hopeless.

I think it says that there are still many engaged and educated people in this country.

Of course, thousands at a rally might just be thousands at a rally. I am getting a different feeling from people all the way from my mailman to complete strangers.

There appears to be a pulse.

[Jefferson23]

22. It indicates they're hungry for the truth which validates their own knowledge of what is wrong

in US politics, to include those who may not be as diligent about the details of public affairs but do
recognize on an intuitive level that much is awry in DC and it needs to change.

[azmom]

23. "Don't underestimate me".

[peacebird]

27. Bingo!

[ruffburr]

28. I could just dance-

I'm an old fart and have been voting my whole adult life, Finally a real election choice is at hand!!!

[CentralMass]

65. Yes.

[immoderate]

29. A Libertarian friend told me "Bernie's policies are too radical" for the electorate.

So I asked him what policies he meant. And he came up with "all of them."

So we sparred a bit, Libertarians loving word games and all, and I challenged him to find a policy proposal by Bernie that hasn't polled positive with a majority of Americans.

The only response I got was a Gallup poll that was headlined something like: "Americans think money is free speech." And indeed, that notion had a slight majority in that poll. My friend conveniently forgot to say that Gallup went on to show that a larger majority opposed the Citizens United decision, and about three quarters favored political spending limits on corporations, others.

So, I never got an answer about what policy of Bernie's is too radical. Today, he was working on "free college is not free because someone has to pay for it." I will remind him he is the Equivocator in Chief.

Point is: Bernie is oriented to the issues, and hardly a radical. It's as if both parties are onstage doing their versions of "Doggie in the Window." And Bernie is Elvis, and he's here to rock and roll.

--imm

[BrotherIvan]

75. I am surprised because I see Libertarians all over reddit coming out for Bernie

They like his stances on war, surveillance, pot, and sadly guns. It must be quite a conundrum for them.

But I do think that anyone who at the end of the day doesn't like being lied to, and that's quite a lot of people, will appreciate Sanders' openness and honesty. Even if they don't agree with him, they can appreciate that he is not bullshitting. That is going to be very different and some people may not be able to handle it. We'll see.

[immoderate]

86. They may, but he won't.

He denies climate change too. He recognizes nothing that does not promote what he thinks of as "free market capitalism."

I'll look for those Libertarians though. I can taunt him with them.

--imm

[bvar22]

174. That honesty is what WON elections for Wellstone.

Even many conservatives up in the Iron Belt voted for "No Bullshit" Bernie.

[Enthusiast]

94. +1!

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

31. That crowd (based on pics people have posted)

looks a lot like a Republican electorate. I really think Bernie could take a serious bite out of the Republican demographics in a general.

[Jack Rabbit]

32. . . . that the MSM looks idiotic to ignore a popular American leader

who doesn't represent the oligarchs who own the MSM.

[SmittynMo]

34. Bingo.

I couldn't have said it any better. He's starting to pick up steam with some of them. The Daily Show, Lawrence O'Donnell, ABC. I can't wait to see him force his way into the MSM. And he don't have to pay them a dime, like the other candidates.

[BeanMusical]

36. +1 Well said.

[raindaddy]

33. I think the era of the New Democrat is over.

[Enthusiast]

95. I pray you are right.

[BeanMusical]

35. Thanks Cali! Kick and R.

[CTyankee]

40. Joe Scarborough tomorrow: that's just Minnesota...

I can hear him dissing Bernie's crowds now. It's all that damn liberal state of Minnesota. "Real" Americans don't know who Bernie Sanders is...yadda, yadda...nothing to see here, move along...

Either that or he'll be um, having an accident in his pants...

[ZX86]

99. Then go on a rant about emails.

[MerryBlooms]

41. I think it's a very good sign.

A heavily involved and informed electorate traditionally leans Democratic.

[Gloria]

42. When Hillary annunced, I donated. I'm donating to Bernie, too because

I especially want him to have enough money to be HEARD!

I'm lukewarm on Clinton, and understand that the machine means that Bernie most likely not win the nomination.
However, he MUST be heard! There is no one out there running who is really addressing our problems in such an all encompassing and direct way!

[daleanime]

158. I wouldn't wager too much on the machine....

it's getting kind of rusty.

[yeoman6987]

43. Minnesota is a state that is very liberal like Vermont

This does not surprise. He really should concentrate on virginia and North Carolina. Those are two states that could easily turn even bluer for Senator Sanders.

[Fearless]

50. Minnesota is not as liberal as Vermont.

[yeoman6987]

63. I thought it was cause Vermont voted for Reagan

Minnesota did not. That alone would count it as liberal at least to me. Vermont drank the conservative cool aid in those years. They would probably do it all over again for Cruz or someone like that.

[cali]

70. That was then. This is now. And anyone who thinks that Vermont could conceivably

vote for any republican for president is living in gaga fantasy land, hon.

This state has a dem super majority in both state Houses. We have a growing third party with reps in both houses- the Vermont Progressive Party. The Republican Party is effectively defunct here. they have a hell of a time just finding candidates to run for office.

You really should try to educate yourself just the tiniest bit.

[RoccoR5955]

87. Then how come Vermont has

A Republican governor?

[cali]

89. it doesn't

[C Moon]

107. That was a really weird side thread. :/ Mind boggling.

[RoccoR5955]

148. Okay, my bad.

Maybe it was the last governor that was a Republican.

[cali]

157. It was. Vermont used to have republicans in the Jim Jeffords vein

pro-environment, pro-social safety net, pro choice, pro LGBT rights. Now? Not so much. And the Republican party in Vermont is so marginalized that they have a very hard time dredging up candidates. The dem party has a deep bench. As national dems moved to the right, there simply wasn't room anymore for moderate and liberal republicans, and wingnuttery just doesn't have an appeal in this least religious of states.

[HughBeaumont]

163. The state responsible for barfing up Michele Bachmann is as liberal as Vermont?

[Eric J in MN]

164. Minnesota didn't elect Michele Bachmann, just one Congressional District here. NT

NT

[yeoman6987]

170. Oh God. You're right.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

182. The 6th CD is a strange place.

There was a thing called the "Stearns County Syndrome," said to be the result of many years of inbreeding. It's not believed to be true any more, but the 6th CD is still, shall we say, a peculiar place, more amenable to nutjobs, racists, conspiracy theorists and all-purpose weirdos than most of the rest of the state.

[JI7]

44. i think it's a good thing people have interest

[L0oniX]

45. IMO a lot of it is that the unpartizan population desperately wants an alternative to Hillary.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

52. The media was shocked that Obama's crowds were bigger than Hillary's....

She finally went before the cameras and mocked the idea of filling a stadium as if it wasn't really important.

[frazzled]

53. Possibly not so much as we might think

Turn back the time machine to read this DU post from 2004 about the huge, overflow crowds Wes Clark was drawing in New Hampshire (and it's true; Dean and Kerry volunteers used to show up outside them to pass out literature, because the crowds were so large). But it didn't translate into votes. Kerry fairy much slaughtered the rest of the candidates, including Howard Dean, who was more or less a second favorite son, being a next-door neighbor (but then so was Kerry).

I think people are energized to hear Bernie, and I'd certainly go if he came to my town. But I'm not sure we can equate these things with electoral factors--at least yet.

At any rate, take a look at DU back then:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x92238

[ConservativeDemocrat]

81. I don't think basic facts or perspective is going to move this crowd

They know what they want to believe, and will believe it right up until the state nomination elections, where Bernie loses.

- C.D. Proud Member of the Reality Based Community

[hifiguy]

54. I am getting a buzz from this like the one RFK got in 1968.

Kennedy's name and personal charisma played a part, of course, but I don't think he ever expected to become the tribune nd champion of the downtrodden in quite the way he did. It's amazing what telling the real truth about the Way Things Are and What Has To Change can do, RFK did it then in his way, Bernie is doing it now in his own way. Both tap into deep, hidden wells of discontent.

[workinclasszero]

67. Wow I was a kid when Bobby was running.

To me at least there has never been anyone like him since.

[hifiguy]

72. I was 11 or 12

and RFK was the first hero I had that wasn't a baseball player. He's still a hero to me.

[workinclasszero]

73. Yes he was a great man

He would have been a fantastic president.

I loved Bobby Kennedy, a hero of mine as well.

[KingCharlemagne]

100. Bobbie had quite the rep as a ball-buster from his days working with

Senator Joseph McCarthy and then as JFK's Attorney General. But I think Bobbie's views started to evolve and tack leftward, beginning in 1965 (first year of LBJ's first full term). He really tapped a vein, though, didn't he? Schlesinger's biography is great, evoking the temper of the time. (The first chapter about the funeral train puts me in tears each time I read it.)

http://www.amazon.com/Robert-Kennedy-Times-Arthur-Schlesinger/dp/B002SB8MR2

[ladyVet]

64. LOL I was just going to post about that.

Surely someone has some comment about all the white faces?

I think if Bernie came down here to North Carolina, you'd see something awesome. I think the state is getting tired of being chewed up by the repukes. At least, I hope so!

[octoberlib]

60. Did you see this article in the NYT? It won't let me copy and paste for some reason.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/01/us/politics/challenging-hillary-clinton-bernie-sanders-gains-momentum-in-iowa.html?_r=0

[cali]

61. No, I hadn't. thanks. that was really interesting.

[WillyT]

83. Huge K & R !!! - Thank You !!!

[guillaumeb]

84. I say thanks, Cali

I believe that most people, left, right, and center, are tired of the same non-solutions offered by both parties. When politicians from both parties talk about cutbacks to Social Security, or raising the retirement age, voters are disgusted and do not bother to vote.

When politicians from both parties praise the advantages of yet another trade deal, even as all the evidence shows that trade deals only benefit the wealthy, people become disgusted.

Sanders, like Elizabeth Warren, represents a breath of fresh air. They can appeal to Tea Partiers as well as Socialists.

[KoKo]

85. I'd say maybe there's a HOPE for a "Tipping Point" in American Politics for 2016?

[Enthusiast]

91. What does it say? We know Minneapolis is a commie city in a commie state.

Once Minnesota becomes more like Wisconsin all will be well.

I kid, of course.

I think it says people are goddamned sick and tired of corporations writing our laws and dictating policy.

We don't mind people getting rich so much but they are disproportionately represented due to the influence of their wealth.

We don't need another 35 years of Supply-Side to know it has harmed the interests of the American working class people.

[Eric J in MN]

165. MN and WI are already similar.

Currently, MN has a Democratic governor in his second term and WI has a Republican governor in his second term.

The prior governor of MN was a Republican who served for two terms. The prior governor of WI was a Democrat who served for two terms.

Both states have 10 electoral votes, and have given them to the Democratic presidential candidate for decades.

[Joe the Revelator]

103. It says that Hillary is NOT inevitable

We have 3 very interesting candidates right now. This primary season just might have some bite to it.

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

106. But if you vote for Bernie, Romney, Palin, Uncle Gunnysack.

[spin]

108. People are tired of Bushes and Clintons and even Obamas They are looking for ...

some real change and not just more empty promises.

[Iwillnevergiveup]

116. What does it say, cali?

It says it's only just begun, and it's gonna be so fun to watch.

For the Kook/Unableson candidates

[Tarheel_Dem]

131. Howard Dean circa 2004.

And these were young "diverse" crowds. So I'm not sure what it says? You?

[rhett o rick]

171. It means that people are tired of Wall Street strangling our economy. Sanders is the People's

Candidate.

[mahina]

134. It says that he can win the Presidency.

People have. fucking. had it.

We're ready for him.

Now to reach out to every right winger, independent and Republican we know who we've blocked from email for years, and get Bernie's message to them. They've had it too, lots of them.

[NotHardly]

139. In the end... not a damn thing

No need to repeat it. Simply, mark my words.

In the history of the world, thousands, nay, millions upon millions pass unrecognized and with no mark upon history... as individuals or forgotten masses.

[cali]

144. huh? well that was inane

[Pooka Fey]

140. It says "Woo-Hoo Bernie!" :-)

[4dsc]

145. Its only going to get bigger folks

Bernie is saying what the people want to hear.

[marble falls]

151. What it says is we're sick and tired of the usual suspects and candidates foisted on us .....

Bernie 2016, Warren 2024!

[IronLionZion]

152. MSP has a proud leftist history

I imagine all sorts of liberal folks would be excited to hear what Bernie has to say.

[Smarmie Doofus]

153. Hopefully that a large % of the primary electorate are as sick to DEATH of the ...

... politics-as-usual of the competition as I am that they will 1. vote accordingly 2. get their friends to vote accordingly. 3. Donate time and $$$.

If not now, when?

THIS is the time.

[bluegopher]

155. Here is an article in the Strib about it...

in case no one's posted it yet.

http://m.startribune.com/politics/national/305607011.html?section=/

[loyalsister]

156. It says

a large crowd people in a liberal state showed up to hear a liberal candidate speak, and not much else. Those kinds of crowds will not be very meaningful unless it happens with surprising, significant frequency in locales we wouldn't expect.

[OnlinePoker]

159. Ron Paul also drew thousands to his rallys in the 2008 campaign

It didn't matter one bit when those thousands hit the polling booth.

[MineralMan]

160. It's good news for the Sanders campaign, for sure.

Excellent turnout this early in the campaign.

[CrispyQ]

161. It says that his message resonates across party & generational lines.

Every Bernie quote I've posted on FB, my right wing cousin has 'liked.' I know that's anecdotal, but it makes me smile. I do think that there is a faction of the tea party that is not totally rabid & that they are starting to see the light - that both parties serve the 1%.

[fadedrose]

166. I think that the Sanders'

asking for small donations that are affordable to most people is a factor in their growing popularity. I say "their" because his wife from what I've seen is lovely....and is participating in asking for donations in emails.

They are hitting the nerve that most people have that you have to have thousands to contribute and they just give up.

The economy is bad, and this low expectation of contributions is helping them. They understand people.

[taught_me_patience]

169. Almost nothing - this happens every time

Candidates will come along to rally the base then fade away. It happens over and over again... Howard Dean, Kucinich, Ron Paul, Rand Paul... etc.

People are drawn to the ideological fairy dust early... then usually don't vote in the primaries, or pull the trigger for the centrist, knowing it's the only hope to win the general election.

People love to hear:
free college --> tax wall street!
expand social security --> lift the cap on upper income earners!
tax the rich --> ninety percent top rate not too high!
expand infrastructure by $1T --> no mention of how to pay for it

[CountAllVotes]

172. May The Force Be With You Senator Sanders!!!!

n/t

& recommend!!

[INdemo]

173. When Bernie Sanders talks about the issues that affects everyone

There are Republicans as well as Independents that will come out and support Sanders.
Now I'm not referring to the Tea Baggers or the Republicans that had the right wing radical ideology bred into them.
This is not 2000 or 1992. Bernie Sanders is not a spoiler candidate. Bernie Sanders is the real deal and Bernie Sanders can win

Also there are liberals that did not vote for Obama, that instead sat out the last election. Bernie Sanders will bring those voters back to the polls and that equals a WIN.!!

But hold everything lets see what happens when Hillary shows up in Iowa. It would be nice if Bernie was there the same day.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

181. It shows there is a constituency for what he is saying.

Go Bernie and all Democrats og good will everywhere.