Bernie Sanders, the junior senator from Vermont, has been a frequent visitor to the Granite State. Sanders is considered an independent; but he caucuses with the Democratic Party and is counted as a Democrat for purposes of committee assignments. While campaigning here for Democrat candidates, there has been considerable interest for his candidacy for president in 2016.
Voters seem to be reacting favorably to the way that Senator Sanders hammers away at economic issues like the shrinking of the middle class, the increased income division between rich and poor, and the continued problem of US corporations taking jobs overseas. In order to insure that these issues are part of the discussion with the 2016 Democrat candidates, Sanders is considering a run for president. The challenges of fundraising and developing an organization for an independent candidate for president are daunting, but Bernie Sanders is interested in taking on that struggle.
Senator Sanders believes that the media needs to pay more attention to economic issues like the closing of 50,000 factories in the United States in the last 15 years or the fact that American workers have increased their productivity but their wages have not kept pace. Sanders also questions why the Obama administration let Wall Street big shots get away with causing so much damage to the lives of the American people. In the interview, he also blamed the Republicans in the House and Senate for blocking necessary legislation to raise the minimum wage, college affordability, pay equity, and climate change.
When Senator Sanders was asked about what could be done about the projected increased rates for electricity in New Hampshire, he stated that climate change is real and that we must increase energy conservation and renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, geothermal, and biomass.
