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Sanders Still Wants a Revolution, But Now He's Got Company

Associated Press

   LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - Bernie Sanders is still leading a revolution. But
   his ideas no longer feel quite so revolutionary.

   The Vermont senator acknowledges that many of his top proposals, which
   were dismissed as radical four years ago, have been adopted by much of
   the crowded 2020 Democratic presidential primary field: "Medicare for
   All," tuition-free college, spending trillions to combat climate change
   and a national $15 per hour minimum wage. But he's out to prove that
   his second presidential campaign is still about fresh energy and ideas
   even if its refrains now sound familiar.

   "Not only can I lead it, I think I am the person to lead it," Sanders
   said in an interview at a plumbers and pipefitters union hall in Las
   Vegas, when asked if he could helm a revolution when so many of his
   presidential rivals agree with him.

   "What we need to do is to look at somebody who four years ago had the
   courage to break new ground in this country," he added. "We're
   continuing to break new ground today."

   But there are signs that may not be enough. The campaign is
   restructuring its staff in key early voting states as the 78-year-old
   Sanders faces crosscurrents that weren't in play four years ago. No
   longer the sole progressive alternative to an overwhelming favorite in
   Hillary Clinton, Sanders is one of several candidates making explicit
   appeals to the party's left wing. This time, his rivals have taken him
   seriously from the start, a sign of his name recognition but also a
   status that subjects Sanders to more scrutiny and criticism than at
   this stage of the 2016 campaign.

   And some of Sanders' younger competitors are calling for generational
   change, an issue that could resonate because of questions raised about
   the readiness for the presidency of another senior candidate,
   76-year-old former Vice President Joe Biden.

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