Louis Capozzi | A royal 'Bern'

Citizen Capozzi | How Bernie Sanders is challenging Hillary Clinton’s inevitability as the Democratic presidential nominee on Penn’s campus

By Louis Capozzi 10/12/15 12:13am

The coronation has been scheduled. For months, the media has declared Hillary Clinton the inevitable nominee, while the Democratic Party has actively protected her by limiting the number of debates and obstructing other candidates from entering the race. Many liberal students on campus have accepted the party’s heir apparent and are currently bored out of their minds while waiting for Clinton’s inevitable crowning.

And then there are the party crashers, led by the Penn Students for Bernie Sanders movement. These rebels have the audacity to demand the coronation’s postponement. “This isn’t a monarchy where your sons or spouses become the next leader. People want new ideas,” College freshman and Penn Students for Bernie co-founder Daniel Fradin argued. According to College junior and Penn Students for Bernie co-founder Matre Grant, “Over 300 students have engaged with the pro-Sanders movement on campus.” Several Penn Students for Bernie leaders also acknowledged they were surprised taht Sanders was so popular with a student body that included many seeking jobs on Wall Street.

Alarmed by Clinton’s connection to big money, many Bernie supporters think the Democratic coronation might as well be hosted in the Wharton School. While canvassing for Sanders outside this capitalist palace, College sophomore Jordyn Tannenbaum lamented that Clinton has “received a huge sum of money from corporations.” College sophomore Ari Lewis agreed, saying, “A lot of Hillary’s money is coming from corporations and super PACs. For that reason, I don’t really trust her and think she can be bought.”

Some of these Sanders supporters have confessed to plotting revolution against queen-elect Clinton. Fradin acknowledged, “Bernie is trying to start a political revolution against money in politics. The conversation should be more about taking money out of politics. It shouldn’t be about who can buy the most advertisements, but about who can do the best job for our country.” School of Design first-year graduate student Aidan Smith acknowledged complicity in the plot, saying, “Campaign finance reform is my most important issue, and Bernie has been talking about it.”

As the Democratic Party’s high priestess Debbie Wasserman Schultz ignores objections, these unruly party crashers demand a discussion of issues. According to Grant, Sanders is winning support on Penn’s campus because Sanders is “talking about issues college students really care about” like “free college, raising the minimum wage, social justice and police brutality.” For Lewis, Sanders’ attention to the “racial aspects of police brutality and criminal justice” won her support.

These Sanderistas are also terrifying the party dignitaries with one of the dirty words of American politics: socialism. While College sophomore Yasmeen Kaboud acknowledges “socialism has a bad reputation in America,” she argues that “taxing the wealthy more is fair. A more progressive tax helps a greater number of people.” Tannenbaum agreed, saying, “Rich people are getting away with not paying as much taxes as they should. Income inequality is the great issue of our time. The top one percent have all the money and all the influence, and the poor are being hurt by this.”

While Bernie supporters would prefer no coronation, they differ on whether they will eventually clap when Clinton wears the crown. Reluctantly, Grant acknowledged she would vote for Clinton if Sanders falls short. Lewis agreed with a caveat, stating, “I won’t support Clinton, but I will vote for her.” Others like Smith disagreed, saying he might prefer the Republican or a third-party candidate. “I’m not interested in a candidate who doesn’t shake things up,” Smith said.

Eventually, Bernie supporters will probably have to decide between joining Clinton’s royal procession and standing outside in the cold. While Clinton has been endorsed by 354 Democratic representatives, senators and governors, Sanders has the support of exactly one. Even in Sanders’ home state of Vermont, Gov. Peter Shumlin and Sen. Patrick Leahy, Sanders’ Senate colleague, have endorsed Clinton. On a related front, Clinton has outraised Sanders by almost 45 million dollars. And while Sanders has made progress in the polls against Clinton, he’s still behind by over 16 points.

This reality check does not bother some Sanders supporters. For Fradin, “Bernie is raising questions that wouldn’t have been asked if he didn’t run for president.” Even though Sanders is unlikely to stop the coronation, he has already energized the Democratic primary process by starting important conversations. For that reason, even though I am unlikely to vote for him and disagree with many of his positions, I’m “feeling the Bern.”

LOUIS CAPOZZI is a College senior from Mechanicsburg, Pa., studying classics and history. His email address is capozzil@sas.upenn.edu. “Citizen Capozzi” usually appears every other Monday.

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