CLOVERDALE >> Triple digit temperatures did not deter thousands of staunch Sanders’ supporters who stood in line waiting for up to two hours to pass through the security screenings onto the tarmac of the Cloverdale Municipal Airport on Friday evening to hear the populist Democratic presidential candidate deliver his message.
Arriving early from Lakeport, Sasha Rockmeretzky was standing just a few feet from the stage, happy to be in the thick of things, “enjoying the vibe.”
“I’m here because of my love and support for Bernie; he’s made me believe again in the possibility of a people-powered movement.”
After hours of waiting in eager anticipation, the crowd roared to life as Sanders approached the stage, hand in hand with his granddaughter, took to the podium and asked, “Why do I come to a town like Cloverdale? Because I love rural America; I love what I see around me.”
He says California’s primary today with 475 pledged delegates at stake will be the country’s most significant.
Total California registration at 17,915,053, the largest number of voters heading into a primary election. Recent rolls grew by almost 650,000, 76 per cent of them being Democrats.
“The status quo just won’t do anymore,” Sanders said, “and what is most gratifying to me is when millions of people, the vast majority of them younger, have enormous faith in the future of our country, sharing the vision that we must move forward on the basis of social, economic and environmental justice.”
Haji Warf from Upper Lake was snugged right up in front of the stage. She and her husband have been deeply involved in the grassroots movement in Lake County, canvassing door-to-door for Sanders. They have been life-long Democrats but never has she been so passionate about a candidate.
“This man has empowered us,” she observed. “What he says I inherently recognize as a truth for myself; it’s a reflection of how I feel.”
In a highly energized, one-hour delivery, Sanders outlined his political agenda including the necessity of cleaning up a corrupt campaign system. Looking out at the crowd, he said, “This is what democracy looks like, ordinary people coming together to shake up the country. It’s one person, one vote, not billionaires buying elections.”
He spoke of the gross economic inequity in the United States quoting statistics that indicate one tenth of the top one per cent of the population own almost as much as the bottom ninety per cent.
“Corporations are shutting down plants and moving them overseas; veterans are sleeping on the streets; we have single moms not earning enough to pay for childcare. Our job is to create an economy that works for all of us, not just the top one per cent.”
Terry Daniels and Carol Cole-Lewis of Upper Lake and John Saare of Lakeport waited an hour and a half in line to hear him speak.
For Daniels, it is the gross disparity in income inequality that is most concerning to him.
“Our middle class has been gutted; we have the ninety-nine per cent and we have the one per cent,” Daniels said. “We need to reestablish a strong middle class.”
For Cole-Lewis, Sander’s platform of free tuition for higher education speaks to her so clearly. “That’s the most important thing we can do to create equality,” she said.
After a few minutes to get his bearings, Saare looked around saying, “It’s great to see representation from a wide variety of people, especially the enthusiasm of the younger crowd. People have come together here as a well-behaved, spontaneous community.”
