Discover video-sourced quotes by politicians

Bernie Sanders: “We're living in an oligarchic form of society.”

Featuring: Bernie Sanders, Independent | U.S. Senate, Vermont

Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET)

Published February 21, 2025 | Video Starts at 1:07:24

Why is it that the rich get richer and working class people die younger than they should? Well, it has everything to do with. With the fact that We're living in an oligarchic form of society. You know, I've been talking about that for a few years, but I think the rest of the world is catching on to what I was talking about. (1:07:24–1:07:28)

CLAIM

Asserts that the U.S. is currently an oligarchy.

This is an excerpt from a raw transcript. The assertions have not been audited or verified. Tap the video to view the source footage and understand the context.

Discover more from

Bernie Sanders

“When Alexandria was a kid, you correct me if I'm wrong, she cleaned houses with her mom in order to make enough money for the family to…”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 38:45-38:59
“After she graduated college, she was a barista, working paycheck to paycheck.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 39:00-39:08
“The guy who represents the district was one of the most powerful members of Congress. He had access to unlimited kinds of money.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 39:28-39:40
“There are millions of young people out there who love this country, who are disgusted with what they are seeing, who are prepared to get…”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 40:58-41:16
“The American people are outraged at what's going on.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 43:02-43:08
“We will not accept an oligarchic form of society.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 43:20-43:26
“We will not accept the richest guy in the world running all over Washington, making cuts to the Social Security Administration, cuts to the…”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 43:33-44:06
“Under Trump, this country is moving very rapidly to an authoritarian form of society.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 44:12-44:21
“Today we have a president who is undermining our Constitution every single day, who is threatening freedom of speech and freedom of…”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 44:24-44:40
“Trump has sued abc, cbs, Meta, and he sued the Des Moines Register because he didn't like a poll that they did.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 47:00-47:13
“His FCC is now threatening to investigate PBS and npr.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 47:14-47:22
“He has called CNN and MSNBC illegal.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 47:26-47:33
“Congress, under the Constitution, has the power of the purse. And every day he is challenging that, slashing funding without authority that…”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 48:42-49:05
“Today we have more income and wealth inequality than we have ever had.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 52:45-52:54
“Today we have three multi billionaires. Mr. Musk, Mr. Bezos, Mr. Zuckerberg. These three combined own more wealth than the bottom half of…”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 52:53-53:19
“Today you have more concentration of ownership in America than we have ever had in the history of this country.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 54:03-54:11
“Combined, these three investment firms [BlackRock, Vanguard, and State Street] are the majority stockholders in 95% of American…”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 54:51-55:03
“They are prepared to destroy Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare, the Veterans Administration in order to make themselves even richer.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 56:51-57:02
“60% of our people are living paycheck to paycheck.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 57:42-57:47
“Real inflation accounted for. Wages today are lower than they were 52 years ago.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 59:42-59:49
“There has been a $75 trillion treasury transfer of wealth from the bottom 90% to the top 1%.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 59:51-1:00:00
“We are spending twice as much per capita on health care.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:00:35-1:00:41
“85 million are uninsured or underinsured.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:00:46-1:00:50
“60,000 Americans die each year because they don't get to a doctor on time because they're underinsured or they're underinsured.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:01:31-1:01:40
“Our life expectancy, how long we live, is about four years younger, four years shorter than other major countries.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:02:13-1:02:23
“If you are working class in America, you will live, on average about seven or eight years shorter lives than if you are wealthy.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:02:31-1:02:45
“Working class people are dying seven years earlier than the rich.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:05:03-1:05:10
“One out of four Americans cannot afford to fill the prescriptions that their doctors write for prescription drugs.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:06:06-1:06:16
“In the richest country on Earth, 800,000 Americans are homeless.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:06:17-1:06:27
“20 million people, including people in this room, pay 40, 50% of your incomes for housing.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:06:26-1:06:34
“Our child care system is a disaster, outrageously expensive, while workers there are being paid low wages.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:06:41-1:06:49
“No teacher in America should make less than $60,000 a year.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:06:55-1:07:01
“Trump has a government of the billionaires, by the billionaires and for the billionaires.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:08:32-1:08:39
“We must end this corrupt campaign finance system.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:10:24-1:10:29
“The richest guy in the world could spend $270 million to get Trump elected.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:10:44-1:10:51
“Billionaires are Funding the Democratic Party and preventing that party from standing up for working families.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:10:58-1:11:06
“We need to end Citizens United, move to public funding of elections.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:11:09-1:11:15
“Trump wants to give massive tax breaks to billionaires.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:11:20-1:11:25
“Republicans refuse to raise the minimum wage.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:11:33-1:11:37
“We want to raise that minimum wage to a living wage, at least 17 bucks an hour.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:11:37-1:11:43
“Musk and Bezos and others want to break unions.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:11:45-1:11:50
“Workers all over this country want to join unions. They're being stopped by the illegal activities of corporations.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:11:56-1:12:04
“Let's pass the pro act.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:12:06-1:12:08
“Trump and his friends want to cut Social Security.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:12:12-1:12:17
“We're going to expand Social Security by lifting the cap.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:12:16-1:12:21
“Trump and his friends want to cut Medicaid.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:12:25-1:12:29
“We're going to join the rest of the industrialized world, guarantee health care to all.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:12:29-1:12:35
“We're going to fight and pass Medicare for all. Single payer.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:12:41-1:12:46
“We need to make our public colleges, universities and community colleges tuition free.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:13:23-1:13:29
“We need to save the planet and create millions of good paying jobs by transforming our energy system.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:13:33-1:13:49
“We must absolutely guarantee that it is the women of America who control their own bodies, not the government.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:15:16-1:15:24
“Republicans did not vote for Donald Trump in order to give tax breaks to billionaires and cut Social Security.”
Fighting Oligarchy with Bernie and AOC (LIVE at 3PM ET) | Uploaded February 21, 2025 | 1:17:06-1:17:13