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By Julian Routh, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Seven months ago, Cassidy Gruber — a professional dog walker and independent contractor who feared an injury on the job would bankrupt her — predicted that Bernie Sanders would change her life if he became president.
What she didn’t know was that the Vermont senator wasn’t going to become president, but would still change her life before he dropped from the race.
Ms. Gruber, 32, of Squirrel Hill, was forced to close her dog walking business because of the impacts of COVID-19 this week — just a few days after Mr. Sanders shuttered his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination. But because Mr. Sanders lobbied to make independent contractors eligible for unemployment compensation under the most recent federal stimulus package, she is staying afloat financially.
“It’s shown really starkly in the last few weeks how important the issues that he campaigned on are to every American,” Ms. Gruber said, framing the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic as a validation of what drew her to Mr. Sanders in the first place: his vision of protecting workers like her, and a need to govern a country at its “crisis point” with deliberate change, not moderation.
Now, like other supporters of Mr. Sanders in a state that is anticipated to be one of the most hotly contested in the November election, Ms. Gruber has to decide between getting on board with a candidate, Joe Biden, who she says doesn’t embody her values and is symbolic of a Democratic establishment that has left her behind, or sit out of the election and risk four more years of a Donald Trump presidency that will remain entirely antithetical to her beliefs.
Seven months ago, Cassidy Gruber — a professional dog walker and independent contractor who feared an injury on the job would bankrupt her — predicted that Bernie Sanders would change her life if he became president.
What she didn’t know was that the Vermont senator wasn’t going to become president, but would still change her life before he dropped from the race.
Ms. Gruber, 32, of Squirrel Hill, was forced to close her dog walking business because of the impacts of COVID-19 this week — just a few days after Mr. Sanders shuttered his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination. But because Mr. Sanders lobbied to make independent contractors eligible for unemployment compensation under the most recent federal stimulus package, she is staying afloat financially.
“It’s shown really starkly in the last few weeks how important the issues that he campaigned on are to every American,” Ms. Gruber said, framing the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic as a validation of what drew her to Mr. Sanders in the first place: his vision of protecting workers like her, and a need to govern a country at its “crisis point” with deliberate change, not moderation.
Now, like other supporters of Mr. Sanders in a state that is anticipated to be one of the most hotly contested in the November election, Ms. Gruber has to decide between getting on board with a candidate, Joe Biden, who she says doesn’t embody her values and is symbolic of a Democratic establishment that has left her behind, or sit out of the election and risk four more years of a Donald Trump presidency that will remain entirely antithetical to her beliefs.
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Sen.Bernie Sanders speaks during a rally at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center on March 31, 2016, in Downtown.(Andrew Rush/Post-Gazette)
One thing they all can agree on is that this feels like déjà vu. Supporters of Mr. Sanders pointed the same criticisms at the Democratic Party in 2016 when Hillary Clinton took the party’s reins, alleging that establishment elites favored the status quo — and pandering to an ideological center that they say doesn’t exist in U.S. politics — instead of nominating a candidate that can energize the base. Ms. Gruber called it a “complete institutional breakdown,” and said that running the same playbook this time will give Mr. Trump the White House again.
This ideological struggle was embodied in a statement this week by a group of elected progressive women in Western Pennsylvania who endorsed Mr. Sanders — a group that includes state Reps. Summer Lee, Sara Innamorato and Elizabeth Fiedler.
The representatives wrote that Mr. Sanders started a movement to transform American politics through “relentless organizing” and ambition, coalescing around an apparatus of local community organizations and unions that desired “transformative policies” like universal health care and the cancellation of student debt, among other things.
It was under this backdrop that they called on Mr. Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, to commit to policy proposals like Medicare for All and a Green New Deal, urging the Democratic Party to “catch up to its base, which is boldly and rapidly charting a path forward.”
“We are united in a mission to defeat the gross incompetence and authoritarianism of this current President and his enablers,” they wrote. “But we want to be clear: Support must be earned.”
‘You’re needed’
On the day Mr. Sanders suspended his campaign, Mr. Biden started to try to make inroads with his supporters, writing in a lengthy statement that Mr. Sanders brought issues that were once given little attention — like universal health care, climate change and free college — to the forefront of the political arena, and “while Bernie and I may not agree on how we might get there, we agree on the ultimate goal for these issues and many more.”
To Mr. Sanders’ supporters, Mr. Biden wrote, “I see you, I hear you, and I understand the urgency of what it is we have to get done in this country. I hope you will join us. You are more than welcome. You’re needed.”
Pennsylvania Democratic Party chairwoman Nancy Patton Mills called for unity, too, and said — in an email to party members — that supporters of the Vermont senator “should know there is always a place for their movement and ideas in the Democratic Party.”
“Behind Joe, Democrats can expand healthcare access, fix our top-down economy, safeguard our elections, and create a safer, more equitable nation,” Ms. Mills said.
Acknowledging that Mr. Sanders’ ideas will influence the Democratic platform moving forward, Ben Bright, chair of the Washington County Democratic Committee, said it will be most difficult for supporters of Mr. Sanders to understand that “change takes time” — and though Mr. Biden will be moved to the left, it won’t be as far as they’ll like.
“Regardless of how far left Joe Biden is, he will bring something to the presidency that he shares greatly with Bernie, and what is missing entirely from the current administration, and that is compassion,” Mr. Bright said. “Compassion is what is most needed in these unprecedented times, and I hope that the Bernie supporters understand this and get behind Biden and help bring compassion back to the presidency.”
One thing they all can agree on is that this feels like déjà vu. Supporters of Mr. Sanders pointed the same criticisms at the Democratic Party in 2016 when Hillary Clinton took the party’s reins, alleging that establishment elites favored the status quo — and pandering to an ideological center that they say doesn’t exist in U.S. politics — instead of nominating a candidate that can energize the base. Ms. Gruber called it a “complete institutional breakdown,” and said that running the same playbook this time will give Mr. Trump the White House again.
This ideological struggle was embodied in a statement this week by a group of elected progressive women in Western Pennsylvania who endorsed Mr. Sanders — a group that includes state Reps. Summer Lee, Sara Innamorato and Elizabeth Fiedler.
The representatives wrote that Mr. Sanders started a movement to transform American politics through “relentless organizing” and ambition, coalescing around an apparatus of local community organizations and unions that desired “transformative policies” like universal health care and the cancellation of student debt, among other things.
It was under this backdrop that they called on Mr. Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, to commit to policy proposals like Medicare for All and a Green New Deal, urging the Democratic Party to “catch up to its base, which is boldly and rapidly charting a path forward.”
“We are united in a mission to defeat the gross incompetence and authoritarianism of this current President and his enablers,” they wrote. “But we want to be clear: Support must be earned.”
‘You’re needed’
On the day Mr. Sanders suspended his campaign, Mr. Biden started to try to make inroads with his supporters, writing in a lengthy statement that Mr. Sanders brought issues that were once given little attention — like universal health care, climate change and free college — to the forefront of the political arena, and “while Bernie and I may not agree on how we might get there, we agree on the ultimate goal for these issues and many more.”
To Mr. Sanders’ supporters, Mr. Biden wrote, “I see you, I hear you, and I understand the urgency of what it is we have to get done in this country. I hope you will join us. You are more than welcome. You’re needed.”
Pennsylvania Democratic Party chairwoman Nancy Patton Mills called for unity, too, and said — in an email to party members — that supporters of the Vermont senator “should know there is always a place for their movement and ideas in the Democratic Party.”
“Behind Joe, Democrats can expand healthcare access, fix our top-down economy, safeguard our elections, and create a safer, more equitable nation,” Ms. Mills said.
Acknowledging that Mr. Sanders’ ideas will influence the Democratic platform moving forward, Ben Bright, chair of the Washington County Democratic Committee, said it will be most difficult for supporters of Mr. Sanders to understand that “change takes time” — and though Mr. Biden will be moved to the left, it won’t be as far as they’ll like.
“Regardless of how far left Joe Biden is, he will bring something to the presidency that he shares greatly with Bernie, and what is missing entirely from the current administration, and that is compassion,” Mr. Bright said. “Compassion is what is most needed in these unprecedented times, and I hope that the Bernie supporters understand this and get behind Biden and help bring compassion back to the presidency.”
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U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders stands in silence as he views the new construction of the UPMC Vision and Rehabilitation Tower on the campus of UPMC Mercy Hospital, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2019, on Locust Street in Uptown.(Michael M. Santiago/Post-Gazette/Post-Gazette)
But to Mr. Sanders, that was never enough. One year ago this Tuesday, he made his first official campaign stop in Pittsburgh, telling a crowd made up mostly of college students at the University of Pittsburgh that universal health care, raising the minimum wage and canceling student loan debt were now mainstream ideas, and that his administration would directly combat corporate greed to win back power for workers.
The 78-year-old continued to carry that message throughout his year-long pursuit of the nomination, arguing that the only way to beat Mr. Trump and change life substantially for struggling Americans is through revolution, not moderation.
Ryan Yeager, a freshman at Pitt studying public service who served as a campus leader for the campaign, posted a video to Twitter in December in which he said Mr. Sanders is the only candidate who “gets it” and has compassion to listen to Americans, regardless of the hardships they face.
Now, with much hesitation and apathy, Mr. Yeager said he likely will vote for Mr. Biden in November, though he doesn’t think the former vice president will win. There are many people like him, he said, who will “hold their nose and vote for [Mr. Biden],” but won’t campaign for him or convince others to vote in November.
“It’s hard to convince someone to vote for someone who you don’t even believe in yourself,” Mr. Yeager said this week.
But, Mr. Yeager said, even if it means voting for someone who proposes returning to a normal that wasn’t all that revolutionary, there are many supporters of Mr. Sanders who don’t want to be the reason why Mr. Trump is re-elected — a prospect he said would do “irreparable” damage to the country.
Ms. Gruber said it would take a lot for her to vote for Mr. Biden, and that she doesn’t think it’s enough to vote for him just because he’ll put liberal conservatives on the Supreme Court.
“As it stands now, nothing that Biden has said other than, ‘I am not Donald Trump,’ would make me want to vote for him,” Ms. Gruber said.
See more at Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
But to Mr. Sanders, that was never enough. One year ago this Tuesday, he made his first official campaign stop in Pittsburgh, telling a crowd made up mostly of college students at the University of Pittsburgh that universal health care, raising the minimum wage and canceling student loan debt were now mainstream ideas, and that his administration would directly combat corporate greed to win back power for workers.
The 78-year-old continued to carry that message throughout his year-long pursuit of the nomination, arguing that the only way to beat Mr. Trump and change life substantially for struggling Americans is through revolution, not moderation.
Ryan Yeager, a freshman at Pitt studying public service who served as a campus leader for the campaign, posted a video to Twitter in December in which he said Mr. Sanders is the only candidate who “gets it” and has compassion to listen to Americans, regardless of the hardships they face.
Now, with much hesitation and apathy, Mr. Yeager said he likely will vote for Mr. Biden in November, though he doesn’t think the former vice president will win. There are many people like him, he said, who will “hold their nose and vote for [Mr. Biden],” but won’t campaign for him or convince others to vote in November.
“It’s hard to convince someone to vote for someone who you don’t even believe in yourself,” Mr. Yeager said this week.
But, Mr. Yeager said, even if it means voting for someone who proposes returning to a normal that wasn’t all that revolutionary, there are many supporters of Mr. Sanders who don’t want to be the reason why Mr. Trump is re-elected — a prospect he said would do “irreparable” damage to the country.
Ms. Gruber said it would take a lot for her to vote for Mr. Biden, and that she doesn’t think it’s enough to vote for him just because he’ll put liberal conservatives on the Supreme Court.
“As it stands now, nothing that Biden has said other than, ‘I am not Donald Trump,’ would make me want to vote for him,” Ms. Gruber said.
See more at Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
