[PEN-L:6018] Why we are occupying Bernie Sanders' office

[Louis Proyect <lnp3@xxxxxxxxx>]

Instant Antiwar Action Group
Contact: Will Miller
Press Release
cell phone (802) 343-1169

April 26th, 1999

Why We are Occupying Bernie Sander's Burlington Office:

[Burlington, VT] I am writing on behalf of the anarcho-socialist-feminist
and anti-racist left in Vermont, some 25 of whom are sitting next to me in
this occupation. We are in Bernie's Sander's office to help bring a halt to
the escalating war in Yugoslavia and the ongoing war against Iraq, both
supported by Sanders.

Many of us worked on Bernie's campaigns through 1980's, the years he
was--as the local press repeatedly put it--the "avowed socialist" Mayor of
Burlington, Vermont. His descent into de facto membership the Democratic
party has been a major setback for the task of building a real electoral
alternative to the two factions of the corporate property that monopolize
what passes for political choice in the United States. Bernie's selling out
says clearly to working people and those unable to find work that even
leftists become mainstream politicians, when and if they win office.

Sanders presented himself to the left outside of Vermont as the leader of
the third party movement, vanquishing the two major parties in every
Mayoral election from 1981-88.

When he first got elected Mayor of Burlington he was the only elected U.S.
official to attend the anniversary of the Sandinista Revolution in Managua.
The Gannett owned Burlington Free Press said he had to be removed from
office "by any means necessary." Now that same Burlington Free Press
endorses his Congressional candidacy.

Bernie became an imperialist to get elected in 1990. In August, 1990--after
the Bush administration enticed Iraq into invading Kuwait--Sanders said he
wasn't "going to let some damn war cost him the election," according to a
staff member who was present at the time. So Sanders backed the buildup in
the Persian Gulf and dumped on the left anti-imperialist peace movement,
singling out his former allies like Dave Dellinger for public criticism.

He lost in 1988 Congressional race, the last time the Democratic party ran
an official candidate against him. In that election Sanders and the
Democrat, Paul Poirer, split the majority of votes and the election went to
the Republican, Peter Smith.

Bernie--out of office for the first time in eight years--then went to the
Kennedy School at Harvard for six months and came back with a new
relationship with the state's Democrats. The Vermont Democratic Party
leadership has allowed no authorized candidate to run against Bernie in
1990 (or since) and in return, Bernie has repeatedly blocked third party
building. His closet party, the Democrats, are very worried about a left
3rd party forming in Vermont. In the last two elections, Sanders has
prevented Progressives in his machine from running against Howard Dean, our
conservative Democratic Governor who was ahead of Gingrich in the attack on
welfare.

The unauthorized Democratic candidate in 1990, Delores Sandoval, an African
American faculty member at the University of Vermont, was amazed that the
official party treated her as a nonperson and Bernie kept outflanking her
to her right. She opposed the Gulf build-up, Bernie supported it. She
supported decriminalization of drug use and Bernie defended the war on
drugs, and so on.....

After being safely elected in November of 1990, Bernie continued to support
the buildup while seeking membership in the Democratic Congressional
Caucus--with the enthusiastic support of the Vermont Democratic Party
leadership. But, the national Democratic Party blew him off, so he finally
voted against the war and returned home--and as the war began--belatedly
claimed to be the leader of the anti-war movement in Vermont.

Since 1991 the Democrats have given Bernie membership in their
Congressional Caucus. Reciprocally, Bernie has become an ardent
imperialist. Sanders endorsed Clinton in 1992 and 1996. In 1992 he
described Clinton as the "lesser of evils," ( a justification he used to
denounce when he was what the local press called an "avowed socialist"). By
1996 he gave Clinton an unqualified endorsement. He has been a consistent
"Friend of Bill's" from since 1992. One student I knew worked on the
Clinton Campaign in 1996 and all across Vermont, Bernie was on the stage
with the rest of the Vermont Democratic Party Leadership, while the
unauthorized Democratic candidate for his Congressional seat was kept out
in the audience.

Sanders continues to support sanctions even though the Iraqi body count has
now passed 1.5 million. Just as he has supported every bombing of Iraq
since 1992. When Clinton sent military units to Kuwait and Saudi Arabia in
October, 1994 because Iraq moved troops inside Iraq closer to the Kuwait
border (apparently about 100 miles away), Bernie supported this because "we
cannot tolerate aggression."

As a Congressman in Vermont he has allied himself the MIA/POW crowd, the
American Legion and the VFW, the very groups that red baited him as Mayor.
At the same time he and his staff "forget" to invite the Green Mountain
Veteran's for Peace--the only anti-imperialist veterans group in the
state--to his sponsored Veterans events. He sends out mailings to veterans
that supports the US having "the strongest military in the world," while
praising our sacrifices as veterans "for the freedom of Americans."

Bernie regularly rides out with the rest of the Vermont Congressional
delegation defending the military contracts in Vermont against cuts by the
Pentagon, while arguing that some moderation in military spending is
possible on the grounds "that the threat of communism is over" (WCAX
interview, 10/94)

Incidentally, Sanders now has a stronger record voting on the Democratic
side in the Congress than either Bonier or Gephardt--the Congressional
Leadership of the Democratic Party. It is tempting to situate Sanders
within the framework of the Congress as a whole. By that standard he
doesn't look so bad--though that's a very low standard to use. But
remember, unlike Maxine Waters or Ron Dellums who moved continuously to
their left during their Congressional careers, Bernie got where he is now
by a lurch to the right. He promises working people, the aged, the poor,
and the "vanishing middle class" that he will defend them while he
repeatedly blocks the building of the anti-capitalist political movement
and party that might actual make such promises legitimate. Indeed, when
challenged publicly about his failure to help build a left alternative to
the major capitalist parties, Sanders claims he is now too busy with his
work in Congress to be bothered.

Among his other discredits, Sanders supported the Federal Crime Bill that
give the gave the capitalist state more than 50 new pretexts to execute
members of the working class--because those without capital get the
punishment. He did this while courting the Vermont Police Chief's Assn.

Sanders also voted to extradite Assata Shakur from Cuba in violation of the
existing treaties with Cuba.

Recently, Bernie championed in Congress the dumping of Vermont's nuclear
waste near Sierra Blanca, Texas, a low income border community with a
mostly Latino population that is overwhelmingly opposed to the dump
project. Environmental racism and classism seem not to bother him.

On a related issue, Bernie was recently asked by the local press why he was
the only member of Vermont' s three member Congressional delegation who had
no person of color on his staff. Bernie responded that "we're hiring the
most qualified people we can."

For all of these reasons, we are sitting-in at Bernie Sander's Office. We
call on all Vermonters who shares our concern and horror at what U.S.
Empire is doing in Yugoslavia and Iraq to make your voices heard! Join us
at Sanders office or pay a call on the office of Senators Leahy and
Stafford. All three of them support both of these wars! In a one-party
system, they call it a "bi-partisan" on foreign policy.

 In solidarity with the peoples of Iraq and Yugoslavia!
Will Miller


For the Instant Antiwar Action Group
10 Machia Hill Rd.
Westford, VT 05494
office (802) 656-3137
home:(802) 879-0288
e-mail: wmiller@xxxxxxxxxxx

Follow-up:

At 6:30 PM, one half hour after closing time, Philip Fiermonte of Bernie's
staff had 15 of us arrested for trespass. Sanders refused a conference call
with those in the occupation, which was carried out nonviolently and with
no disruption to his staff. Fiermonte claimed he could not contact Sanders
for the four hours of the occupation-- if true, it still another way Bernie
has gotten out of touch in the Congress.

Ironically, Fiermonte was one of the defendants in the celebrated Winooski
44 case in 1984, where the conservative U.S. Senator Robt. Stafford's
(R-VT) office was occupied for his support of Reagan's murderous wars in
Central America. At least Stafford's staff let the occupation continue for
three days before having anyone arrested.

The struggle continues...

Will


*****************************************************************************
Will Miller			Phones: (802) 656-3137 (office)
Philosophy Department		before 9:00 PM (802) 879-0288 (home)
University of Vermont (UVM)		Philosophy Dept. FAX (802) 656-3133
70 South Williams Street, Room 107
 E-mail wmiller@xxxxxxxxxxx
Burlington, VT 05401-3404		Web page: http://www.uvm.edu/~wmiller

*****************************************************************************
If you give me a fish, you have feed me for a day.
If you teach me to fish, the you have fed me until
the river is contaminated or the shore line seized for development.
But if teach me to organize, then whatever the challenge
I can join together with my peers and we will fashion our own solution.
							Ricardo Levins Morales
*****************************************************************************


Louis Proyect
(http://www.panix.com/~lnp3/marxism.html)