Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) announced his presidential bid early this morning in an email to supporters and a video on social media and Twitter went nuts.
I'm running for president. I am asking you to join me today as part of an unprecedented and historic grassroots campaign that will begin with at least 1 million people from across the country. Say you're in: https://t.co/KOTx0WZqRf pic.twitter.com/T1TLH0rm26
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) February 19, 2019
Sanders, 77, ran for president in 2016 and ended up losing his primary bid to Hillary Clinton.
But since he lost, his supporters have accused the Democratic party of fixing the primary in Clinton’s favor.
Sanders has spent the intervening time criticizing Democrats for supposedly running on their identities as the party moved to the left, while remaining one of the most staunchly anti-Trump votes in the Senate.
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Related: Bernie Sanders calls out support for ‘Black or Latino or woman or gay’ diversity
And last year, special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation showed that Russian bots promoted Sanders’s campaign in an attempt to get Donald Trump elected.
His supporters have remained steadfast, often denouncing his competitors as “corporate.” They point to the positive effects of the campaign, like their belief that it inspired more progressives to run for office in 2018 and pushed the Democratic Party to the left on issues like health care and income inequality.
To say he’s controversial is an understatement. And so Twitter exploded.
Bernie Sanders is running for President again because…
He’s still got it.
SCOTUS can work through their golden years, so just zip it.#StillSanders#RunBernieRun pic.twitter.com/0NmTO033n1
— 🇺🇸Americans Abroad For Bernie 🇳🇿 (@OzForBernie) February 19, 2019
When you find out that Bernie Sanders is running for president…again pic.twitter.com/aGFRPL96Kb
— Blair Imani (@BlairImani) February 19, 2019
Bernie Sanders has been a civil rights activist since the 1960’s. YALL DID HIM SO FUCKING DIRTY IN 2016 DON’T LET IT HAPPEN AGAIN IN 2020. #Bernie2020 pic.twitter.com/hzWfQV62Ah
— J (@jess_patel) February 19, 2019
Bernie Sanders in a nutshell. pic.twitter.com/JpU6kMebF4
— Allen K. (@AllenK_81) February 19, 2019
Nah, sorry Bern. Not feeling you after that last round where you basically helped @realDonaldTrump win by not conceding gracefully. You are NOT the one that can beat Chump and you are NOT a Democrat, so I am a "no" from jump. pic.twitter.com/wFRxu9ki3H
— ThatGirlAtTheParty (@tgatp) February 19, 2019
Frankly, it's infuriating to see reducing gun deaths not even get a mention in @BernieSanders' 2020 video.
He's allowed @NRA to define his position for years, but if he wants to run as a progressive, he has to move to where most Americans are: building a future with fewer guns.
— igorvolsky (@igorvolsky) February 19, 2019
Bernie Sanders announcing his 2020 run for presidency #Bernie2020 pic.twitter.com/2QzNacxctR
— Renaya (@RenayaMaya7) February 19, 2019
Bernie fucking Sanders
Where is your fucking tax returns? pic.twitter.com/ROvK9YrdZR
— Mr. Weeks 🤴🏾 (@MrDane1982) February 19, 2019
While the left is divided on Sanders, the right apparently thinks that he’s the second coming of Joseph Stalin.
Fox & Friends reacts to Bernie Sanders' 2020 announcement: The US could become Venezuela https://t.co/jPHUrsWTEV pic.twitter.com/nomXF16Z9B
— Media Matters (@mmfa) February 19, 2019
https://twitter.com/NoahKurtz3/status/1097864872463876097
The Trump campaign has now issued a statement on Bernie Sanders, making him the second out of several declared candidates to get one. pic.twitter.com/3bPfFv7jbp
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) February 19, 2019