Tag Archives: sanders for president

Bernie Packs The House: Draws Crowd of 7,500 in Town of 66,000 Residents

We told you weeks ago that Senator Bernie Sanders is the untold story of the Democratic Primary race.  While media has treated Hillary Clinton as the presumptive Democratic nominee, Sanders has been building a massive groundswell of support from grassroots Democratic supporters.

Sanders, is doing more than creating a buzz, he is filling stadiums across the northeast and is becoming the face of the anti-establishment movement.  So why is Sanders support growing, despite a media—including print, broadcast, cable and internet—that is so Clinton-centric? The answer may be pretty simple. Senator Sanders isn’t building his campaign based on Clinton’s weaknesses. Instead, he is focusing on issues that millions of Americans—many in the Democratic Party—are concerned over.

Take for instance his latest event in Portland, Maine Monday night.

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Sanders packed a stadium with 7,500 attendees for a massive rally.  What is more surprising is that Portland, Maine is a city of only 66,000 people.  That of course means more than 10% of the city’s population came out to hear Sanders speak.

In his speech, Sanders pledged to address gaps in wealth and income inequality that are greater than at any time since the Great Depression. The big turnouts, he said, are sending a powerful message that Americans are tired of a system rigged to help the rich and powerful instead of working families.

“It is not acceptable that a handful of billionaires is now controlling our political process and the time is long overdue for the corporate media to start talking about the real issues,” Sanders said. “People are becoming involved in this campaign because they want change – real change – and that is what this campaign is about.”

This turn-out in Portland is one stop in what is a growing number of massive rallies.

Screen Shot 2015-07-08 at 8.06.36 PMFor instance, a 10,000-seat arena in Madison, Wisconsin, was filled to capacity last Wednesday when more people turned out than for any presidential candidate anywhere so far this campaign.

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On the Friday night before the Fourth of July, more than 2,500 showed up at a convention center in Council Bluffs, Iowa, the biggest Iowa audience for any candidate to date.