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Bernie Sanders Wins Landslides in Washington, Alaska and Hawaii; Corporate Media Downplays Them

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On Saturday, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders won landslide victories in Washington, Alaska and Hawaii, chipping away at front-runner Hillary Clinton’s lead in the race to win the Democratic Party’s nomination for the White House. Sanders won at least 71 percent of the vote in each state, including 82 percent in Alaska. “The reason we are doing well is because we are talking about the real issues facing America and we’re telling the truth,” said Sanders in a victory speech in Wisconsin. While Saturday may have been the biggest day of the Sanders campaign, the corporate media largely downplayed his victories. We air part of his victory speech.

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Transcript
This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.

AMY GOODMAN: On Saturday, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders won landslide victories in Washington, Alaska and Hawaii, chipping away at front-runner Hillary Clinton’s lead in the race to win the Democratic Party’s nomination for the White House. Sanders won at least 71 percent of the vote in each state, including 82 percent in Alaska. Sanders gave a victory speech in Madison, Wisconsin, ahead of Wisconsin’s primary on April 5th.

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS: Let me—let me begin by thanking the people of Alaska for giving us a resounding victory tonight. … I believe that our campaign is the campaign of energy, of momentum, which will lead to a large voter turnout in November and victory. … All right, are you ready for a news alert? We just won the state of Washington!

AMY GOODMAN: With the three-state sweep, Bernie Sanders was able to chip away at Hillary Clinton’s delegate advantage, but Sanders will still need to pull off big upsets in Wisconsin, New York and California to catch up with Clinton in terms of pledged delegates. On Sunday, Sanders appeared on NBC’s Meet the Press and said this weekend’s big victories in the West have generated momentum for his movement.

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS: I think we can win the pledged delegates. And I think if we continue the momentum we have right now, we will. And the reason is, I’ll tell you, the issues that we are talking about: a corrupt campaign finance system, the disappearance of the American middle class, the grotesque level of income and wealth inequality, the need to deal boldly with climate change, kids graduating college $50,000 in debt. Chuck, those are the issues that the American people want to hear discussed and want to see acted upon.

AMY GOODMAN: While Saturday may have been the biggest day of the Sanders campaign, the corporate media largely downplayed his victories. We’ll begin today’s show with part of Sanders’ victory speech in Madison, Wisconsin.

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS: We are doing something very unusual in American politics. And I know my Republican candidates think that what elections are about are attacking each other’s wives or behaving like they were 10-year-olds in a food fight in a cafeteria. And these Republicans, let me tell you, are not just an embarrassment for the American people, they are an embarrassment for sane Republicans. You know, in a democracy, people can differ with each other. We all have friends who differ with us. But the conduct of this Republican process is literally beyond belief. Can you imagine, with all of the crises that this country faces—a disappearing middle class, income and wealth inequality, all of the other problems—what they are spending their time on are attacking each other’s wives? How crazy is that? But the reason we are doing well is because we are talking about the real issues facing America and we’re telling the truth.

And here is the truth. The truth is that no president, not Bernie Sanders or anybody else, can do it alone. We need a political revolution. We need millions of Americans to begin to stand up and fight back and demand a government that represents all of us. Whether you are a conservative Republican or a progressive, nobody believes that we should have a campaign finance system which allows billionaires to buy elections. Democracy means one person, one vote. And whether Governor Scott Walker likes it or not, that is—that is exactly what we are going to bring to every state in this country, including Wisconsin. And I say to Governor Walker and all of the other cowardly Republican governors, if you cannot win or participate in a free and fair election where everybody votes, get out of politics, get a new job!

CROWD: Bernie! Bernie! Bernie! Bernie! Bernie! Bernie!

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS: At a time—at a time when this country has one of the lowest voter turnouts of any major country on Earth, the idea that Governor Walker or any other governor would make it harder for people to participate in the political process is beyond comprehension. Together, not only are we going to overturn this disastrous Citizens United Supreme Court decision, but we are going to create a situation where everyone in this country 18 years of age or older who is a citizen will have the right to vote, Scott Walker notwithstanding.

When we have, nationally, a situation where the Koch brothers and a handful of other billionaires are—oh, and I forgot the Koch—I hope I didn’t offend the governor. I understand—I understand that he and the Koch brothers are good pals. I didn’t mean to—but when you have the Koch brothers and a handful of billionaires prepared to spend $900 million in this election cycle, that, my friends, is not democracy. That is oligarchy. And we will change that.

I know that our Republican friends and elected officials tremble at the idea of large numbers of Americans participating in the political process. I’ve got bad news for them: That is exactly what is going to happen in this country.

AMY GOODMAN: Bernie Sanders, giving a victory speech in Madison, Wisconsin, after his landslide this weekend, the corporate media hardly paying it any attention, winning all three caucuses, in Alaska, in—as well, in Hawaii and in Washington state. We’ll have more on his campaign in a moment, but when we come back from break, in Women’s History Month, we’ll be speaking with Angela Davis about the race and much more. Stay with us.

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