Self-proclaimed democratic socialist Bernie Sanders is definitely living up to his political name.
In an email sent to his own campaign’s national email list, Sanders begged his supporters to donate to the “squad,” urging them to split their donations 3 ways.
Specifically, Sanders pushed for a donation of $5 to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, and Rashida Tlaib.
The members of the squad are facing tough reelection campaigns. They’re either facing primary challengers or highly competitive Republican candidates in the general election.
Sanders’ plea comes days after he officially suspended his campaign for president.
But not every Bernie supporter was happy with the email to his national campaign list.
Many people took to social media to express their disgust that Sanders would essentially ask his supporters to redistribute their donations amid the COVID-19 crisis.
See some of the posts below:
Not every member of the "squad" got a shoutout from Bernie Sanders.
Ayanna Pressley was the only squad member to endorse Elizabeth Warren over Bernie Sanders.
The Hill has more details on the fundraising letter that Sanders sent to his national email list:
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) put out a fundraising call using his campaign's email list Sunday night, imploring supporters to split a three-way donation between members of "the Squad."
In the email, Sanders suggested a donation of $5 each to the campaigns of Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) and Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), all of whom endorsed his campaign for president which ended last week.
"Today I am asking you to support some extraordinary congresswomen — and important leaders of our movement — to ensure they can continue fighting for our values in Congress," Sanders wrote.
[...]"Let me be very clear: If we are serious about building a political revolution — and continuing our fight for economic justice, social justice, racial justice, and environmental justice — we need people like Alexandria, Ilhan and Rashida representing our progressive values in Congress," Sanders wrote.
The reactions online continue to be fierce.
Bernie ran a campaign against the Democratic establishment.
Many far left liberals saw him as an outsider candidate, yet now he's asking his supporters to fundraise on behalf of the establishment.
The social media reactions continue to come in fiercely against the democratic socialist.
The timing of Bernie's fundraising plea appears odd to many observers.
Not only did he decide to turn his fundraising machine into high gear after bowing out of the race, but it comes after AOC has publicly distanced herself from Bernie.
The New York Post reveals that AOC has been quietly distancing herself from the failed presidential candidate for weeks:
New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has been quietly distancing herself from Sen. Bernie Sanders in an effort to shift the progressive path forward given his likely defeat in the 2020 Democratic primary, according to a new report.
The relationship began to break down in early February, when Sanders’ campaign manager, Faiz Shakir, complained via text to AOC’s campaign manager about her performance during a three-day stretch campaigning for the senator in Iowa, according to Vanity Fair.
The magazine reported that Shakir was specifically upset about her forgetting to mention Sanders by name when she hosted a campaign event at the University of Iowa.
Sanders’ campaign did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment on the allegations, but denied the remarks to Vanity Fair, adding that any reminder for the progressive Bronx-Queens congresswoman to mention Sanders was “good natured ribbing.”
AOC grew less interested in the campaign after Iowa, according to the Huffington Post, when the campaign opted to publicize the endorsement of Joe Rogan — a controversial podcast host who has been criticized for past remarks by LGBTQ activists.
Ocasio-Cortez did not campaign for the Vermont independent again until just a few days before the New Hampshire primary.
The Sanders campaign told the Huffington Post that no such concerns about Rogan were raised. The campaign also expressed strong appreciation for all that AOC has done as a surrogate for Sanders on the campaign trail.
Regardless, we're sure that AOC's campaign will gladly accept all the money from Bernie supporters that it can.
But as Bernie continues to fundraise for the Democratic establishment, he undermines his key message and image as an outsider.
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