During the recent election cycle, many of us were looking for a candidate who was outspoken and honest.
A lot of us found Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt) to be that candidate.
Unfortunately, a lot of us thought Donald Trump was the one to fit the description.
In an odd way, the two men were similar. Both were relative outsiders to the Washington elite. Both spoke out against free trade agreements which hurt the American worker.
Both were known for speaking their minds.
Now that President-elect Trump has begun to set up his cabinet, he is hearing from the outspoken Senator, who will certainly not mince words.
Trump repeatedly said during the campaign that he would do nothing to damage Social Security or Medicaid/Medicare. His choice for Secretary of Health and Human Services, however, shows that his commitment to those social programs is shaky at best.
Representative Tom Price (R-Ga) has been a very vocal critic of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) since it was passed. He has repeatedly offered plans to replace Obamacare (ACA).
Sanders said:
“Donald Trump asked workers and seniors to vote for him because he was the only Republican candidate who would not cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid — programs that are of life-and-death importance for millions of Americans.Now, he has nominated a person for secretary of Health and Human Services, Rep. Tom Price, who has a long history of wanting to do exactly the opposite of what Trump campaigned on.”
Sanders, who is widely known for his fiery temper and willingness to be blunt, said that Trump needs to admit that he campaign promises were nothing more than lies. He called out the President-elect for his hypocrisy.
He said:
“What hypocrisy! Mr. Trump needs to tell the American people that what he said during the campaign were just lies, or else appoint an HHS secretary who will protect these programs and do what Trump said he would do.”
Trump needs to admit he was lying during the campaign or appoint an HHS secretary who will protect Social Security, Medicare & Medicaid. pic.twitter.com/bbhdrpbgSM
— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) November 29, 2016
The good Senator didn’t hesitate to remind us of our other favorite Republican hypocrite, Mitt Romney (R-Ma).
Romney was right. Trump sends out delusional tweets about people voting illegally but nothing about promises he made to help working people. https://t.co/hBBswBKJjo
— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) November 30, 2016
He was talking about this:
Here's what I know. Donald Trump is a phony, a fraud. His promises are as worthless as a degree from Trump University. (1/2)
— Mitt Romney (@MittRomney) March 3, 2016
There is one more similarity between Sanders and Trump. Both men use Twitter to express their views. The differences between their tweets is obvious, too. You can see how Sanders used the social media site to expose how Trump is turning his back on his campaign promises.
Unlike Trump, Senator Sanders takes the time to think before hitting the “tweet” button.
Outspoken, honest, thoughtful. Senator Sanders is showing us after the election that he is in fact the candidate who possesses all of those characteristics.
I guess the voters who backed Sanders were closer to the goal than the ones who backed Trump.
What a shame it’s too late to turn back.
Featured image by Phil Roeder via Flickr. Available through CC BY 2.0.
