"Could US Evangelicals vote for Bernie Sanders? I did and it could happen again"

[think]

Could US Evangelicals vote for Bernie Sanders? I did and it could happen again

By Ed Cyzewski - 12 September 2015

In 2006 I wasn't exactly "feeling the Bern" when I voted for Bernie Sanders in the US Senate Election for one of Vermont's two seats. He was simply the most appealing candidate when compared to a ludicrously wealthy Republican businessman and the representatives from the "Marijuana Party" and the "Anti-Bush Party".

As a disenchanted Republican clinging to my evangelical Christian faith in a state that actually isn't as liberal as many suspect, I was won over by Sanders' reputation for diligently governing by enacting policies that improved the quality of life for his constituents—especially the poor and working poor.


Comparing the Sanders campaign of 2006 to his bid for the Democratic nomination in America's 2016 presidential election, the main difference is the absence of BBQ chicken dinners at the local park. Rather, there are rallies with upwards of 20,000 people at a time.

The policy goals, communication style, and wild wisps of white hair are more or less the same as before. It's possible that the political landscape is finally ready for a figure like Sanders, even for a segment of the evangelical voting bloc that has typically belonged to Republicans.

As Sanders prepares to speak at the conservative bastion of Liberty University, his policies line up surprisingly well with the values of many millennial evangelical voters and, for good measure, Catholic teachings...

Read more:
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/could.us.evangelicals.vote.for.bernie.sanders.i.did.and.it.could.happen.again/64518.htm

[Snotcicles]

1. The reason Bernie is such a good candidate is that he values his integrity above all else.

He is the type of person who instinctively attempts to always do the right thing.
He isn't tempted with personal gain, he makes it clear he won't compromise his principles so as to remove any doubt what his intentions are. He also isn't burdened with an ego that parallelizes his ability to alter his positions when knowledge dictates.

[Fast Walker 52]

2. Interesting... I have felt for a while that Sanders has more cross-over appeal than Clinton

[jalan48]

3. I thought evangelicals were rabidly anti-abortion.

It has seemed to be the issue conservatives could point to in elections and win the vote.

[cui bono]

6. This mostly due to the fact that Republicans use scare tactics about emotional issues

to get the voters to the ballot box. They never actually talk to the voters about real issues. Even most Dems put it in political speak when they do. But when Bernie speaks it is authentic, no nonsense policy talk in a way that reaches everyone who is suffering or thinks this country has gone awry. Even though he is a career politician, he does not speak to the people as a calculate politician. He does what he always does even when he's on the floor, he speaks from his heart and he speaks truth to power about the very real issues that affect each and every one of us. He fights for each and every one of us.

[JDPriestly]

4. His political message and his self line up very well with almost any spiritual belief.

His values are those of Jesus, of the Jewish teachers, of Unitarians. He is not quite pacifist enough for Quakers, but he shares many of their values.

One of the reasons I like Bernie so much is that he has a set of values that are consistent with my spiritual or religious values and he derives his ideas and goals from those values.

His proposals are not just ad hoc solutions to problems that pop up as he goes along.

He values creation and human life, all life and works from there. The way he thinks is very apparent from the questions he asks himself and shares with us as he decides what stance to take on issues.

So I agree, a lot of Evangelical Christians will find that Bernie's values are their own.

A lot of people of a lot of religions will find that to be true.

That is my experience and my opinion.

Bernie values the ethical life, and that is the essence of religion.

[yuiyoshida]

5. So...Evangelicals are feeling the Bern?

I'm good with that.