While Sanders was underemployed & a Liberty Union candidate in the 1970s, the mother of his child

[highplainsdem]

was on welfare and having a hard time getting landlords to rent to her because she was a single mother on welfare.

Link to tweet

1974, Levi Sanders' mother, Susan Mott, Burlington Free Press:

"refused apartments because she is on welfare & has one child."

Sanders had a degree, isn't working but running for VT Senator, wins 4% of the vote as a socialist


https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DywoqWOWoAAGZE0?format=jpg&name=small

I'd read in Politico about how eccentric and precarious Sanders' lifestyle and income was in the 1970s, when he ran twice for governor and twice for US Senate as a Liberty Union candidate, with a snowball's chance in hell of ever winning. He was supporting himself as a "shitty carpenter" in the words of one friend, though not really supporting himself, since he couldn't pay his electric bills and there wasn't much food in his fridge.

https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/07/bernie-sanders-vermont-119927

It had struck me as odd, when I read about this, that his young son had been living with him at all, given those conditions.

But I didn't know then that the mother of his son was on welfare and apparently finding it hard to rent a place to live.

And yes, this was the end of the counter-culture era, when a lot of people had accentric and precarious lifestyles.

But I'm not aware of any other people who lived like that running for president, let alone winning.

And I think we can expect this part of Sanders' background to be used against him in the GE, if he is our nominee.

[HarlanPepper]

1. Has Bernie ever had a non govt. job as an adult?

[zackymilly]

3. I found this, but don't know the validity.

After graduating from college, Sanders initially worked in New York City in a variety of jobs, including Head Start teacher, psychiatric aide and carpenter. In 1968 Sanders moved to Vermont because he had been "captivated by rural life." After his arrival there he worked as a carpenter, filmmaker and writer.

[democrattotheend]

12. I believe he worked as a journalist and had a company producing short films

There are videos on Twitter and Youtube of him interviewing people for his TV program in the 1970's or early 80's. I don't know all of the details of it though.

[NoDakLinda]

78. Re: I believe he worked as a journalist and had a company producing short films

Did JFK or FDR ever have a non government job. No, but how relevant is that?

Next time the corporate owned media needs to rehash an old story (like the Cuba fiasco) just before a debate, to help the losers out, maybe they could get some help from here.

They keep screaming that people are scared of Bernie Sanders when nobody is but them. Corporate owned (90%) media is scared. The corrupt very expensive medical system is, and pharmaceuticals are.

How can Bernie Sanders beat Trump? That is easy. Start with the medical care plan that he claimed would be better than anything we had and keep going from there. Now if you and your running mate promised Universal Health Care and then gave you Hillary Care you might have a problem.

To say nothing about bailing out all those banks while people were being evicted from their homes.

Remember this blog has been covered with nasty Bernie cracks, which is not a problem, so this should be o.k. too.

[braddy]

14. Being a journeyman carpenter isn't usually something someone just falls into or does for a little

while or part time, I wonder if he was really doing some unskilled or low skilled handyman jobs that involved carpentry, such as fixing a gate or hanging a door, minor repairs, etc.

[highplainsdem]

4. Here's some info on the jobs he held:

https://www.democraticunderground.com/1287545908#post37

[IluvPitties]

13. Great record...

[azureblue]

65. want to compare to Trump

Go ahead. tell us how clean Trump was. You start trying to dig up anything to smear Sanders with, you better make sure that your boy Trump is clean, first

[HarlanPepper]

69. Is this directed at me?

[George II]

71. Here's his resume. From 1964 through 1981 nothing significant:

[LizBeth]

77. Made it to forty without doing much. Then three decades in congress and not much there either.

[onetexan]

80. As i've said in another thread, politics was Bernie's career

And his meal ticket. Nothing wrong with that, he jusr wasn't an accomplished individual. But the fact that a man not having any significant talents or skills and making pie-in-the-sky promises that would bankrupt our economy as a presidential candidate is worrisome, not to mention he hasn't released his tax returns or health report yet.

[BlueMTexpat]

74. I read that his first

full-time job was as Mayor of Burlington.

He was 40 then.

[IronLionZion]

2. I'm sure Bloomberg was enjoying the high life

if only we could all be billionaires

[Mike 03]

5. If only we could invent something as brilliant as the Bloomberg Terminal

I bet we could!

[highplainsdem]

7. Sanders didn't need to be a billionaire to provide for himself and his family. He chose not to.

And with a child involved...

[BlueMTexpat]

75. Exactly.

I was a single mom, providing for two young sons by myself because my ex-husband simply could not provide for us financially. I was nowhere near a billionaire, or millionaire, barely even "thousandaire," although $$$ went further in those days than it does now.

That was one of the main reasons that I opted to change from a career in teaching. I was also fortunate enough to have family support to help out while I was working AND studying for a career to increase my earning power; in fact, I ended up with two new careers - business and law. AND it is also a main reason why I identify strongly with Warren's own personal odyssey. Much of her journey reflects my own. But she is still a stellar performer in comparison.

Bernie was a cop-out when and where it counted.

[Rorey]

9. And this has what to do with Sanders being basically a bum?

I am not a fan of Bloomberg, but I do respect that he created his own wealth.

[IronLionZion]

20. If you hear Sanders tell it, this is why he wants a social safety net

He doesn't hide that period of life but claims that is when he dug in his heels on socialism.

Do you think Trump ever cared for his kids like Joe and Elizabeth and other candidates? Billionaires pay people for that.

[Rorey]

21. I support safety nets when someone needs them through no fault of their own

And I didn't mention a thing about what a loser IQ45 has always been as a father or human. Seems odd that you'd throw that in there.

[Skidmore]

34. Not a Bloomberg fan

but the man worked to move up, like countless other people.

[Skidmore]

50. Yup. I was married to a deadbeat

husband who became a deadbeat ex. I have not much use for men with this ethic.

I think Sanders' ethic carried over throughout his life.

[emmaverybo]

6. A different kind of born in a log-cabin story? "Eccentric and precarious lifestyle" needs to end

when one has a child to support. I don’t find this history admirable. If he wanted to endure deprivation for his political ambitions, that’s one thing. I would think he could have held down a steady job that would have meant his wife and child did not have to depend on welfare.

Hope he has paid the state back now out of his new found wealth.

[RandySF]

8. Oh boy

[Autumn]

10. I think Bloomberg wasted his money on this Oppo shit.

I'm impressed that Sanders ex wife and Levi's mother seemed to not be willing to play the rat fucking game.

[LanternWaste]

11. You bet. Sanders, as a sly career politician with millions, knows better.

[Autumn]

37. He's worth several million dollars less than either Biden and Warren.

Biden is 9 million and Warren is worth 12 million. Are they "sly career politicians" too? Bernie come in at a paltry 2. 5 million.

[ahoysrcsm]

72. 2.5 million more than I have.

Oh, right comparing millionaires to millionaires. Did you forget how much he raked in on his, woops I meant donations received, for his presidential bids? Yep he can spend quite a few more millions in a day than I can.

[Autumn]

84. Hey, welcome to DU.

[ahoysrcsm]

85. Why thank you, been lurking since 2004.

It's weird however, so many familiar names, yet they now support Sanders... It's Like DU turned into Democratic Socialist Underground...

[Autumn]

86. You must have been absent from 2015 on.

But you're back so...

[ahoysrcsm]

88. Nope, supported "teh great one" through ** primary.

Eventually grew up and supported HRC for the General Election. I did take a break from posting, and ended up losing the old account, no access to the email. Ah well, keep your email up to date... never know when a site will get hacked and you have to recover the account. Never in a million did I see that coming.

Last few moths though the Primary forum has spilled out to GD. I had to unblock and see what was up, and did I get an eye full. JPR lurkers must have moved back in, or they never left.

Hope your doing well, being a retired Millionaire and all.

[democrattotheend]

16. I'm glad Bloomberg is spending his money on it, actually

I wrote a post last week about why I hoped he would, since I think he's the only one in the race who can afford to. I supported Bernie in 2016 and I'm open to supporting him now, but I want all of the supposed opposition research the Republicans have been sitting on since 2016 to come out now so 1) Democratic voters can make a more informed decision, and 2) anything the Republicans might throw at him will be old news by November. If there's damaging info on any other candidate, I want that to come out now too. If Bernie survives this he'll be stronger for it, and people won't be able to complain that he hasn't been properly vetted.

[Rorey]

22. You're a respectful voice of reason

Thx

[democrattotheend]

64. Thank you!

I have to believe that between the traditional Republican opposition research firms and the fact that Trump knows he can get away with extorting foreign governments for opposition research, they will find any dirt on any of our candidates. So I'd rather it all come out now. That's true for Bernie and everyone else.

[Lucky Luciano]

67. I agree with you.

[highplainsdem]

18. This isn't coming from Bloomberg.

[Autumn]

27. Where ever it comes from it's the same attempted smear used the last time.

Personally I find that the article humanizes him and there is never back story that the mother of his son was on welfare and apparently finding it hard to rent a place to live. The only time that came up was that sentence in the article and the tweet with the clipping. The author doesn't say who gave him that information and Ms. Mott wouldn't talk to him. Ms, Ferrer posts a newspaper clipping where Ms Mott tells them the bill does nothing to protect women with children on welfare from discrimination. I agree with Levis mother, there must be some protection for women, children and people on welfare to protect them from discrimination.

Oh the horror, women with children on on welfare asking for protection from discrimination to have a roof over their head.
What a commie idea.


"We've come a long way Baby" and I'm willing to bet it wasn't republicans and various billionaires who finally put that protection in place

[mcar]

19. Are you impressed that Sanders did not support his child?

[Autumn]

31. I read the article, his wife nor Levi's mother made that claim, And the author didn't attribute it

anyone. All told I think the person who wrote it was a sloppy writer and filled out the pieces because the main characters wouldn't talk to him.

[TexasTowelie]

15. Completely against gun control.

Abolition of all laws that interfere with the Constitutional right of citizens to bear arms.

[highplainsdem]

17. Yes, that was part of the Liberty Union platform.

[showblue22]

23. This is not what I call pro woman.

[LizBeth]

24. I believe Sanders didn't pay child support either. That is more troubling for me.

[BootinUp]

25. The facts will definitely catch up with him b4 it's all over. Nt

[evertonfc]

28. to be honest

He has zero work experience or history of career. Tax payer subsidised wealth

[highplainsdem]

33. He was on unemployment for a while in the 1970s but reportedly could not answer questions about what

work he'd done to qualify for unemployment. As I understand it this would have been years after the sort of regular but short-term jobs he had in the 1960s. (Sorry I'm vague on this. I can't recall exactly where I read it.)

He also advocated for taking all the time limits off unemployment, which I guess would sort've been a universal basic income.

[StevieM]

29. Levi Sanders' mom was bravely fighting to survive the Baby Scoop Era.

People didn't want to rent to single mothers. And they had a hard time finding work too.

Our society was hellbent on one single-minded goal: relinquishment. We wanted EVERY SINGLE CHILD born out of wedlock to be given up for adoption.

These are the days that Republicans like Mike Pence and Bill Bennett want to go back to. They want a return to the Baby Scoop Era.

[NurseJackie]

30. Easily dismissed and excused by his "followers" and "fans" and "supporters". BUT NOT...

Easily dismissed and excused by his "followers" and "fans" and "supporters". BUT NOT SO EASILY forgiven and excused by the rest of the voters we would need (if he ended up being the nominee). This... on top of the "writings" and the "toddler" thing and the other "writings" and the Socialist thing.

If he's our nominee, he'll lose to Trump. Say hello to eight years of Trump and losing the Supreme Court.

[LizBeth]

39. How many people will be pissed he was privileged enough to go to a good University.

White male privilege of the 60's and not working like the rest slogs and not supporting a child while stealing electricity from the landlord and letting him pay his way, while sleeping on friends couches. I mean, just not going to fly with mainstream.

[NurseJackie]

41. I don't know.

[LexVegas]

32. Ugh. nt

[MontanaMama]

35. This is what we call baggage.

Doesn't matter if it is all true or partly true...these are this things that will become very effective sound bites. Buyer beware.

[NurseJackie]

51. Baggage... steamer-trunks... AND a millstone or two.

I've been told that the "blue no matter who" mantra is wearing thin and that some people have limits to what they're willing to accept. I'm absolutely certain that if Bernie is the nominee then Trump will easily defeat him.

[MontanaMama]

53. Don't forget cement shoes.

When someone has been in government as long as Bernie has, we can expect lots more of this.

[NurseJackie]

54. Honestly, you'd think he'd know better. You'd think he'd be man enough to at least TRY to ...

When someone has been in government as long as Bernie has, we can expect lots more of this.

Honestly, you'd think he'd know better. You'd think he'd be man enough to at least TRY to walk it back or apologize.

The whole thing just makes me sick. What a creepy and pervy and inappropriate thing to say about toddlers. I'll never be able to look at him the same way again. THAT is the one thing I'll think of whenever I see his face.

[ehrnst]

111. Millstone is more like it...

[CTyankee]

36. my exhusband was a nonprovider. We had 3 kids. This guy was always out of work or had a job

briefly but left because his boss was "an idiot." I divorced him and got child support (which his then girlfriend ended up having to pay). I have no sympathy for a man who won't support his child.

[LizBeth]

40. I have a very hard time with a capable man putting his child in that situation, myself.

[Act_of_Reparation]

38. How are things looking for Joe in SC?

Pretty good? Or not so much?

[corbettkroehler]

42. Upside-Down And Backwards, Per Usual

Link to tweet

[Skidmore]

46. Let's read together .

https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/07/bernie-sanders-vermont-119927

Researched article.

[betsuni]

49. K&R

[SunSeeker]

52. The GOP is going to have a field day with this shit.

They're just licking their chops, hoping he gets the nomination.

[Mr.Bill]

61. Yeah, because when you have a baby to feed,

you should be out banging porn stars. And that's exactly how Bernie should answer if Trump were to bring this up in a debate.

[boston bean]

56. Abolition of all laws that interfere with the right to bear all arms.

[MyNameGoesHere]

57. It clearly

Doesn't.

And it was with bad intent.

[blueinredohio]

58. I'm not putting Bernie down for this.

In the seventies some times were bad and I know where I live good jobs were hard to come by. I was a single mother then and I had to use the system until I could get back on my feet. I've been there so I'm not going to knock anyone who has had to do it.

[Sea Turtle]

83. Nobody is knocking the mom

The mother of Bernie’s child figured how to keep the child fed and alive. It seems she did it all without Bernie’s help —except for his sperm donation. There are millions of mother’s like her across the globe. No respect for men who don’t support their children.

Why is it always the single moms working 3 jobs and running ragged? We have social programs to help people who are stuck in life. I am glad there was a program to help Bernie’s child when he wasn’t man enough to do it himself. I am not about creating programs to help more people be irresponsible and let others carry the burden .

If you tell the truth about someone, it isn’t smearing them. It is recognizing who and what they are for better or for worse. Clinton repeatedly has affairs while married to a Hillary. Obama has by all accounts we know been faithful to Michelle and provided for his children. Those are facts about both men.

The times in which we learn things also dictates whether or not something is a deal breaker. Admitting smoking weed was once a deal breaker to becoming president. Now, no one cares. Bernie’s past will be viewed through the lens of today.

[Magoo48]

59. Muckraking any republican could be proud of. Why not speak highly of your own choice instead?

Doesn’t Joe have any fucking little thing worthy of praise, any new ideas for improving the lives of working folks, the poor, the homeless? Or, do y’all talk smack and sling shit because it simply sounds better than your candidate’s limp old status quo, vanilla mayonnaise on Webber’s?

[Warpy]

60. Keep digging. I'm sure he spit puteed beets back at his mom

when he was in diapers, too.

Things were awful in 1970, women impregnated outside marriage or abandoned inside it were put under huge pressure to go to an adoption mill. The ones who wanted to keep their children were heavily punished for it, welfare being parsimonious at best and living conditions appalling. I knew many of those women.

And, of course, there was no legal abortion. I also knew a lot of women who'd faced butchers and barely survived the experience. Sanders was 27 and bursting with idealism, thinking of course he'd win and then he could start taking care of things.

Yes, Sanders should probably have hedged his bets by getting a job. However, don't try to judge 1970 by the way things are 50 years later. Men were only chased for child support if they'd married the mom. Her word wasn't good enough and unmarried women had no hope in the courts. Young men thought raising a kid on welfare was a soft life. They didn't know the reality of the situation because no one told them that part.

[left-of-center2012]

62. "she was a single mother on welfare"

Did Bernie never marry her,
or support the child?

[BlueWI]

63. Ronald Reagan wants his smears back.

Is this the new DU - E! channel chatter from 1970, while oceans warm, pandemics rise, and autocracy gathers
steam?

We had a president who paid off porn stars during his campaign, and we want to talk about 1970?

There's plenty of basis to oppose a Sanders nomination. If this is the best Republicans or Sanders haters can do, Sanders is golden.

[krny9]

66. So now being poor is a crime?

This looks like typical Republican virtue signaling. I don't see any where that Sanders didn't support his kid or did not fulfill his responsibilities. It is implied in your rhetoric without any proof. Is being poor a crime now? This sounds like a post that you cut and pasted from freerepublic. Get a grip.

[rzemanfl]

70. Bookmarking.

[Celerity]

81. might be laundry time

[Celerity]

82. oki, I will play. You, on your 8th or less post, are accusing a 15 year long DUer of being a RW

Free Republic fellow traveller and a Rethug, or at least parroting Rethugs and that shite site?

Seems like a dodgy course to wander down here within your first 8 posts.

Welcome to DU btw.

[Kermit the Prog]

106. No, but not supporting your children

Actually is a crime for which they will lock you up.

As a man who was a single father for several years. I have no sympathies nor respect for any healthy man who shirks the responsibility of food clothing, and shelter for his children.

[dchill]

68. Masterful expos.

When are you going to do one on Biden's plagiarism?

[Sympthsical]

73. You should probably stop this now

Bernie may very well be the nominee. Don’t so gleefully do the Right’s work for them. You may very well have to “swallow” as Jill Biden put it. I will, too.

But this is obnoxious and desperate.

[RandySF]

76. Better to get it out now than wait for the Republicans to do it.

[highplainsdem]

87. +1,000,000

[showblue22]

79. We likely won't know who the nominee is until the convention.

[cry baby]

89. Are you posting this shit from the '70s as a public service? *eye roll*

It seems like this is against the rules of DU. It seems desperate. It’s very divisive, and non-Bernie supporters complain about Bernie supporters being divisive.

You should stop posting dirt from the ‘70s. It won’t change minds anyway. If Bernie is the choice, then all this crap will help trump. You ok with that?

[highplainsdem]

91. It's part of Sanders' background. It's relevant to whether he should be our nominee.

Pretending this didn't happen will not help us in any way.

[cry baby]

92. Public service, then.

Gotcha.







Desperation is ugly.

[highplainsdem]

94. It's discussion of a candidate's background. Which happens constantly here.

Deal with it.

Sanders was in his 30s then and running repeatedly for public office, believing he was qualified to be the governor of Vermont or a US senator from Vermont.

Yet you believe it wasn't relevant that he chose not to work a regular job, when his degree would have made it easy for him to find employment at a decent salary, while the mother of his child was on welfare and finding it hard to rent apartments as a single mom on welfare.

[cry baby]

95. It was an old story at the turn of the CENTURY.

Trump thanks you

Russia thanks you

[highplainsdem]

96. If you don't think Trump, the GOP, and the Russians had this info on Sanders long ago

and have been sitting on it waiting to use it against him in the GE if he ever becomes the nominee, you're naive.

They will use it, and we need to take that into account during the primary.

[cry baby]

97. I'm sure they do have it...

and appreciate you tainting a democratic website with something/anything almost 50 years old that makes their case for them...anything that might suppress the vote.

I like your positive posts supporting your candidate much better.

[highplainsdem]

98. I'm not "tainting" this website. These are facts about Sanders' background, and he and his

supporters should be prepared to respond to any questions about them.

And Democrats who haven't voted yet should have these facts so they can decide how important they are.

There have been lots of posts here about what Biden said and did in the 1960s and 1970s.

I don't recall seeing you post to complain about any of those.

[cry baby]

99. I didn't see them. 50 yr old info is ridiculous/desperate on DU no matter

the candidate...unless the info is about trump, of course.

Thanks again for your public service. I’m very sorry that you don’t see how this will suppress the dem vote if Bernie is our nominee. Please stop doing trump’s/Russia’s bidding.

[highplainsdem]

100. This info on Sanders' background is likely to turn up all over TV and social media ads. A message

board post will not contribute in any way to suppressing the Democratic vote.

I'm concerned about nominating someone the GOP has a ton of oppo research on.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/1287502598

[cry baby]

102. You have no idea of what the unintended consequences might be.

You have no idea what some who read this OP will do with this info or how they’ll process it or what will result it will produce.

You’re so damn sure of yourself that you post 50 yr old negative shit and think to yourself that you’re justified. It’s for our own good.

trump thanks you for doing his work for him while he twitters ignorant nonsense.

Good day.

[ahoysrcsm]

103. Yeah, it's not like Bernie is calling himself a Democratic Socialist...

and its not like he was running for a Socialist party in the 70s called Liberty Union party.

I'm just going to leave this here...
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2019/06/12/watch_live_bernie_sanders_speech_defining_democratic_socialism_as_the_only_way_to_defeat_oligarchy.html

[cry baby]

104. 50 yr old story. It's not like we all don't know this info already. nt

[ahoysrcsm]

105. It was a 45 minute video, did you not want to hear Sanders own words on being a Democratic Socialst?

And it wasn't 50 years ago, June 12, 2019. Sanders Second Bill of Rights, ya know the healthcare, college, living wage, affordable housing, retirement, environment, his policy goals.

It is my very strong belief that the United States must reject that path of hatred and divisiveness — and instead find the moral conviction to choose a different path, a higher path, a path of compassion, justice and love.

It is the path that I call democratic socialism.

and

This is the unfinished business of the Democratic Party and the vision we must accomplish.

In order to accomplish that goal, it means committing ourselves to protecting political rights, to protecting civil rights – and to protect economic rights of all people in this country.

[ehrnst]

108. His MLK March story goes back longer than that, and he considers it relevant.

[KayF]

90. omg look at this picture they found of young Lincoln!

looks like a precarious lifestyle!

[highplainsdem]

93. Lincoln grew up much poorer than Sanders. But before Lincoln was the age Sanders was

when he first ran as a Liberty Union candidate (while being a "shitty carpenter" in his friend's words), Lincoln had co-owned a general store, served as a captain in the Illinois militia, served as New Salem's postmaster and county surveyor, taught himself law and passed the bar, and been elected to the Illinois House of Representatives, where he served four terms.

[ehrnst]

109. Sanders is no Abe Lincoln. Nice try.

[ehrnst]

107. If this was any other candidate...

[Blue_Tires]

110. His veneer is a mile wide and a millimeter thick

It's funny because just a basic search of Sanders' background shows he would fail several of the "liberal purity" tests his people have held the so-called "establishment" Dems to...