dr Cornel West offered a sharp defeat to the Democratic Party in an appearance on Tuesday’s The Hill show Rising, in which he accused the party of complicity in the suffering of the working class and of being totally “unsalvageable”.
Addressing Senator Bernie Sanders’ recent endorsement of President Joe Biden, the third-party 2024 presidential nominee called the self-proclaimed Democratic Socialist’s support for the incumbent president “steady” but disappointing.
“Oh no. I think Brother Bernie is consistent,” West said, referring to Sanders’ belief that Biden is the best way to keep Donald Trump from being elected to a second term.
“You know, that’s what he’s been saying all along, and I can understand the argument. I think that’s a plausible argument,” West claimed. “I just don’t think it’s convincing.”
For the progressive scholar, maintaining the political status quo meant there was “never a way to break out of the corporate duopoly” or “any way to try to address the needs of the working poor.”
Francine Orr via Getty Images
West referenced his recent campaign freeze in Mississippi, where he said local leaders “are grappling with issues that the Democratic Party doesn’t want to address, which are issues of poverty and intense police brutality.” And we’re not even getting there military adventurism abroad.”
“So I think Brother Bernie is making a plausible argument in many ways, but I think deep in his heart he knows that the Democratic Party has no fundamental intention to address the needs of the poor and working people.”
The far-left candidate also accused Democrats of being “dominated by the corporate wing” and supporting a “militaristic” foreign policy, before describing Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (DN.Y.) as progressive “window dressing” for an otherwise moderate Political party.
“The Democratic Party is beyond salvation at this point when it comes to seriously addressing the needs of poor and working people,” West said.
At the weekend, Sanders defended himself against the criticism of his friend Dr. West and told CNN’s Dana Bash that Biden is the right politician to support in “these really, really difficult times where there’s a real question of whether democracy is going to stay in the United States of America.”
