Sanchez 1

Gustavo Sanchez
English 115
Professor Lawson
9 December 2016
Project 3: Argument Proposal Final Draft
1053 words
Bernie Sanders impact on the Millennial Generation
This years 2016 presidential election was one election in which we havent expected to
have such a disappointing turnout. By having the controversial candidate Donald Trump as our
presidential nominee, there is no sense of clarity of what is in store for our countrys future.
However, the fact of the matter is that the one positive aspect that came out of this presidential
election was the rising popularity and influence of the Senator from Vermont, Bernie Sanders.
Having a significant strong appeal, especially to Millennial voters, Bernie Sanders policies and
ideals have changed and paved the way in which Millennial voters think of American politics.
Because of his strong favorability, Bernie Sanders has moved an entire generation as a whole and
has influenced the direction we want the country to move into. But before we can delve into what
made Sanders the most popular and favorable candidate out of this election, we have to first
answer this question: How did Bernie Sanders become the Millennial generations most popular
and favorable presidential candidate and how has his portrayal in social media impacted us?
According to Professor of International Affairs and Comparative Literature at the
Pennsylvania State University Sophia A. McClennen, the reason why that Bernie Sanders and his
campaigns core issues have became so popular amongst Millennial voters is because Sanders is

Sanchez 2

the first candidate ever to put the issue of student debt on the map (McClennen) and also due
to the fact that his campaign recognizes the very real economic challenges facing young voters
(McClennen). Sanders primary policy plans was to make public colleges and universities tuition
free where as of 2016 nationally, the total student loan debt is 1.3 trillion dollars and that the
average 2015 college graduate owes, an average of $30,100, up four percent from the 2014
average of $28,950 according to the independent, nonprofit organization, the Institute for
College Access and Success (TICAS). Another reason why Millennials were attracted to Bernie
Sanders and his campaign was the fact that the Millennial generation grew up in the recession,
during the late 2000s and early 2010s, and that Millennial voters want actual change to be made
in the government and institutions they thought they could depend on (Wagner), as stated by a
Washington Post reporter John Wagner. On one of the latest series of public polls conducted by
Harvards Institute of Politics, according to Wagner on Sanders success with Millennial voters,
was that the polls showed that only 25 percent of voters ages 18 to 29 express trust in the
federal government. Another factor to consider on how Bernie Sanders garnered the Millennial
demographics attention was on the basis of his social media outreach. As stated by Nick

Corasaniti a digital correspondent at The New York Times, it was Sanders facebook posts that
attracted tens of thousands of likes and shares (Corasaniti) and threads about him often break
through to the homepage of Reddit, where the cluster of topics rarely focuses on presidential
election politics (Corasaniti). Although Bernie Sanders is predominantly viewed as a champion
to the majority of Millennials, other opposing parties might argue otherwise.

One argument against Bernie Sanders and his overall political stance is that, according to
Jonathan Chait who is a commentator and writer for New York Magazine, is that Bernie Sanders

Sanchez 3

self-identification as a socialist poses an enormous obstacle, as Americans respond to

socialism with overwhelming negativity (Chait). Another opposing claim against Bernie
Sanders in Jonathan Chaits article is that Sanders has had trouble in the past addressing
international issues in which he rarely points out such as the Debate after the Paris attacks where
Sanders briefly and vaguely gestured toward the attacks before quickly turning back to his
economic themes (Chait). Having a House of Representatives for the majority of which is
Republican, it would pose a quite obscure obstacle against Sanders most important and
influential progressive legislation programs in which it would make it merely impossible for
Sanders to accomplish anything if he were to be elected president of the United States. Quite
frankly, Sanders doesnt have that much experience relating to foreign policy and affairs such as
his opponent Hillary Clinton who was Secretary of State under President Obamas
administration. According to John Haltiwanger, Senior Politics Writer at Elite Daily, Sanders
anti-interventionist approaches to foreign policy could translate into a decline in American
influences across the globe (Haltiwanger). Haltiwanger also adds that since Bernie Sanders does
take a critical position on how much the United States spends on defenses, that overall taking
such a stance can be politically unpopular against partisan lines (Haltiwanger).
Although these arguments and opposing claims about Bernie Sanders appears to be in a
sense logical, the fact of the matter is that Bernie Sanders is and always has been an overall
progressive and Sanders only intentions, during his time as a presidential candidate, was to fix
the national problems that this country faces and not the issues at an foreign/international level.
We also have to analyze that Bernie Sanders is one of the few politicians who is not bought by
Wall Street nor does he have a Super PAC as said by Dennis Williams Senior Editor-in-Chief

Sanchez 4

for Fresh U NYU, whereas his former opponent Hillary Clinton made over $11 million in a span
of two years just from giving speeches to these big banks (Williams). With these arguments
against Sanders are primarily on his stance on foreign affairs, the main point we have to consider
is that Sanders has had a 40-year long record fighting for human rights since he attended college
at the University of Chicago. Even though Sanders didnt win the Democratic nomination,
Bernie Sanders became and still is popular amongst Millennials by his plan for a single-payer
universal healthcare system, colleges and university tuition free and debt free, creating a living
wage, and getting big money out of politics. Now compare Bernie Sanders resume with that of
Donald Trump, who has no political experience and is clearly unqualified to be president. The
fact of the matter is because of his strong and passionate stance on these core issues that are
affecting the lives of the average American, Bernie Sanders has moved an entire generation on
how we think of politics and is veering us closer and closer towards a more progressive country.

Sanchez 5

Work Cited
Chait, Jonathan. "The Case Against Bernie Sanders." Daily Intelligencer. N.p., 18 Jan. 2016.
Web. 14 Nov. 2016.
Corasaniti, Nick. "Seeking the Presidency, Bernie Sanders Becomes Facebook Royalty Through
Quirky Sharing." The New York Times. The New York Times, 18 May 2015. Web. 17
Nov. 2016.
Haltiwanger, John, ed. "A No-Nonsense Guide To The Pros And Cons Of Hillary And Bernie."
Elite Daily. N.p., 17 Feb. 2016. Web. 17 Nov. 2016.
McClennen, Sophia A. "Why Millennials Love Bernie Sanders: This Is What Trump, Hillary
and Chris Matthews Dont Understand about How Politics Has Changed." Salon. N.p.,
3 June 2016. Web. 14 Nov. 2016.
"The Institute For College Access and Success." Home | The Institute For College Access and
Success. N.p., 20 Feb. 2015. Web. 18 Nov. 2016.
Wagner, John, ed. "Why Millennials Love Bernie Sanders, and Why That May Not Be Enough."
Washington Post. The Washington Post, 27 Oct. 2015. Web. 18 Nov. 2016.
Williams, Dennis. "The Pros and Cons of Each Presidential Candidate | Fresh U." Fresh U. N.p.,
1 Mar. 2016. Web. 17 Nov. 2016.

Sanchez 6