In his closing remarks at the Democratic debate, Bernie Sanders got personal, drawing from his family's immigrant story to make one of the most emotional pitches for his candidacy yet. It was a rare moment for Sanders, who normally insists on sticking to the issues — but he managed, in my mind, to successfully weave his policy platform to his own story.
Here's the full transcript of his remarks:
My dad came to this country at the age of 17 from Poland. Didn't have any money, couldn't speak English. He died pretty young, and I think it would have been beyond his wildest dreams to see his son up here on this stage today running for president.
I love this country, and my dad loved this country, and he was the most proud American because of what it gave him in terms of raising his family — even though we never had much money.
But today in America we are the only major country on Earth that doesn't guarantee health care to all people, that doesn't guarantee paid family and medical leave. We have the highest rate of childhood poverty of almost any major country on Earth. We are seeing millions of families unable to send their kids to college in the United States of America.
I'm running for president because I believe it is just too late for establishment politics and establishment economics. I do believe we need a political revolution, where millions of people stand up and say loudly and clearly that our government belongs to all of us and not just a handful of wealthy campaign contributors. Thank you all.
