Senator Bernie Sanders got a blue-sky morning. And weather does mean something in MN. By 8 a.m. the line began to form at the Minneapolis American Indian Center for the 10:00 a.m.rally. The candidate arrived promptly, and with a minimum of fuss. That is one of the joys of supporting "marginal" candidates early in the game. This campaign conveys a sense respect for its supporters. Sanders described a door to door revolution of grassroots actions. "It breaks my heart," he said, "to think of middle class Americans being tricked into voting against their own interests."
Here's a look at three people who may be part of that grassroots effort.
Jim, from St. Joseph, MN munches a Bernie bagel and talks about the last candidate he was on fire for - Paul Wellstone. Jim’s daughter worked for Paul at MPIRG (MN Public Interest Research Group). Paul stopped by Jim's house for dinner one night in the early 1990s. “He said he was thinking of challenging Rudy Boschwitz for the US Senate. I said he was crazy.” About Bernie Jim says, ”This guy stands for the things I’ve stood for my whole life, social justice, break up the banks. Us people who aren’t rich,” he concludes with a benedictory wave of his bagel across the crowded room.
Lindsay’s come from Winona with her boyfriend. She made the sign last night and says she has plans for several more. “I’m trying to get the hash tags out there.” She likes #FeelTheBern. Lindsay has also started a Facebook Community page: Winona MN for Bernie Sanders 2016.
Steve from Chisago County has been active in progressive politics for a decade. A veteran of DFL committees, before the rally he says he's not sure how much energy he has for all of it. After the rally he says, "maybe, just maybe this could be fun."