佛蒙特州参议员伯尼·桑德斯。，称他的“打击寡头”之旅是试图对抗唐纳德·特朗普总统的议程。
“我试图向全世界和我们自己国家的人民表明，美国人民不会坐视不管，允许特朗普建立一个寡头政府，马斯克和其他亿万富翁正在管理我们的政府，”桑德斯在丹佛站接受《本周》联合主播乔纳森·卡尔的独家采访时说。
“我们不会坐视不管，允许他形成一种专制的社会形式，破坏宪法、言论自由、集会自由，破坏这个国家的开国元勋在18世纪90年代所做的事情，即分权，确保没有人拥有巨大的权力，这正是特朗普试图做的，”他补充道。
桑德斯与纽约州众议员亚历山大·奥卡西奥·科尔特斯(Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez)一起进行的“打击寡头”之旅，在左倾和右倾选区都有停留。集会吸引了数千人，但丹佛的出现吸引了迄今为止最多的人群，有3.2万人参加。桑德斯说，这是他主持过的最大的集会——比他两次竞选总统的集会都大。
论政府成为寡头政治
桑德斯多年来一直警告亿万富翁在政府中施加影响的危险。当被问及这些危险是否已经改变时，桑德斯回答说，“我认为任何不是哑巴、聋子或瞎子的人都清楚地看到了正在发生的事情——特朗普的就职典礼，就在他们身后的三个美国最富有的人。你知道，林肯谈到一个民有、民治、民享的政府，记得吗?嗯，我们有一个亿万富翁阶层的政府，由亿万富翁阶层领导，为亿万富翁阶层服务。”
关于民主党对特朗普的回应
卡尔:因此，我们进入特朗普时代，第二个特朗普时代大约60天了。你如何评价民主党的回应?
桑德斯:“嗯，我会让我们回到两年前，特朗普当选之前，并说当民主党控制参议院时，他们几乎没有为劳动人民做任何事情，这让我感到难过。我不得不说，我是民主党核心小组的一员，是一名独立人士，所以我不会对你撒谎，告诉你别的事情。从那以后，我认为民主党在团结美国人民阻止特朗普走向寡头和威权主义方面有效吗?不，我没有。”
民主党如何减缓共和党的议程
卡尔:所以，实际上，共和党控制了众议院。他们控制了白宫。他们控制了参议院。那么，现实地说，我们能做些什么呢?
桑德斯:对于主要的立法，你仍然需要参议院的60票。让我们明确一点，我们——我们选择了我去过的许多地方，在威斯康辛州、爱荷华州、密歇根州，我们——我们仔细地选择了它们。那些[地区]有以微弱优势获胜的共和党议员。现在，我不知道号码是多少。我认为，如果200个共和党人中的两三个，不管是什么，18个或他们得到的任何东西，选择不支持给亿万富翁减税，削减医疗补助和教育，我们可以击败这个大的补充法案，特朗普希望看到通过的美丽法案。"
关于批判民主党
卡尔:你说这个法案的通过，持续的决议，是一个“民主领导的绝对失败。”你在说谁?
桑德斯:嗯，[参议员查克]舒默是党的领袖，这不应该发生，期间。毫无疑问……但底线是，不仅仅是查克·舒默。不仅仅是查克·舒默。这是，你有一个由亿万富翁主导的民主党，就像共和党一样...在一群圈内顾问的领导下运作，他们收入很高，却和今天在这里的32，000人完全脱节。"
亚历山大·奥卡西奥·科尔特斯众议员
当卡尔开始询问奥卡西奥-科尔特斯是进步党团的未来时，桑德斯插话说，“我们有一个不为人知的故事……关于当前美国政治的一个故事是，在众议院，你有几十个强大、聪明、守纪律、勤奋的年轻人参加进步党团。你知道，很久以前，当我第一次来到众议院的国会时，我帮助成立了进步党团。当时我们有五个人在里面。现在，他们接近100人，所以你有很多优秀的人。亚历山大是非凡的。她在国会的工作给我留下了深刻的印象，她激励着全国的年轻人。”
Americans won't let Trump 'establish an oligarchic form of government': Bernie Sanders
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., said his "Fighting Oligarchy" tour is an attempt to stand up to President Donald Trump's agenda.
"I'm trying to make it clear to the people throughout the world and throughout our own country, that the American people are not going to sit idly by and allow Trump [to] establish an oligarchic form of government where Musk and other billionaires are running our government," Sanders said in an exclusive interview with "This Week" co-anchor Jonathan Karl during the tour's Denver stop.
"We're not going to sit back and allow him to form an authoritarian form of society, undermining the Constitution, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly and undoing what the, you know, what the Founding Fathers of this country did in the 1790s, separation of powers, making sure that no one person had an extraordinary amount of power, and that is precisely what Trump is trying to do," he added.
Sanders' "Fighting Oligarchy" tour, which he is conducting alongside Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., is making stops in both right- and left-leaning districts. The rallies have attracted thousands of people, but the Denver appearance brought in the largest crowds so far, with 32,000 attendees. Sanders said it was the largest rally he's ever hosted -- bigger than the rallies on his two presidential runs.
On the government becoming an oligarchy
Sanders has warned for years of the dangers of billionaires having influence in the government. Asked if those dangers have changed, Sanders replied, "I think anybody who is not dumb, deaf or blind is seeing precisely what is happening -- Trump's inaugural, right behind them three wealthiest guys in America. You know, Lincoln talked about a government of the people, by the people, for the people, remember? Well, we got a government of the billionaire class, by the billionaire class and for the billionaire class."
On the Democratic response to Trump
Karl:So we're about 60 days into the Trump era, the second Trump era. How would you grade the Democratic Party's response?
Sanders:"Well, I would take us back even two years before that, before Trump was elected, and saying that it saddens me that when the Democrats had control of the Senate, they did virtually nothing for working people. I have to say that I'm a member of the Democratic Caucus as an independent, so I'm not going to lie to you and tell you otherwise. Since then, do I think the Democrats have been effective in rallying the American people in stopping Trump's movement toward oligarchy and authoritarianism? No, I don't."
On how Democrats can slow the Republican agenda
Karl:So, realistically, Republicans control the House. They control the White House. They control the Senate. So what, realistically, can be done?
Sanders:Well, for major pieces of legislation, you still need 60 votes in the Senate. And let's be clear, and we -- we have picked many of the spots that I've gone to in Wisconsin, in Iowa, in Michigan, have -- we -- we chose them carefully. Those [districts] have Republican congressmen who won by small margins. Right now, I don't know what the number is. I think if two or three Republicans out of 200 and whatever it is, 18 or whatever they got, choose not to support giving tax breaks to billionaires and cutting Medicaid and education, we can defeat this big supplemental bill, the beautiful bill that Trump wants to see passed."
On critiquing the Democratic Party
Karl:You said that the passage of this bill, the continuing resolution, was a, “absolute failure of Democratic leadership.” Who are you talking about?
Sanders:Well, [Sen. Chuck] Schumer is the leader of the party, and it should not have happened, period. No question about it … But the bottom line, it's not just Chuck Schumer. It's not just Chuck Schumer. It is, you've got a Democratic Party in general that is dominated by billionaires, just as the Republican Party is, that ... operates under the leadership of a bunch of inside-the-Beltway consultants, very well paid, who are way out of touch with the 32,000 people who are here today."
On Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
As Karl started to ask about Ocasio-Cortez being the future of the Progressive Caucus, Sanders jumped in, saying, "We have one of the untold stories… of what's going on in current American politics, is that in the House of Representatives, you have dozens and dozens of strong, smart, disciplined, hard-working young people in the Progressive Caucus. And, you know, way back when, when I first came to the Congress in the House, I helped form the Progressive Caucus. We had five people in it at that time. Now, they got close to 100, so you got a whole lot of good people. Alexandria is extraordinary. I am so impressed by her work in Congress and her, just, she inspires young people all over the country."
