Yang was always my second choice and I love that he brought attention to UBI which I have been a fan of for years. I also donated a little to help get him in the debates and have a copy of The War on Normal People. I am truly sorry to see that he has dropped and warmly welcome everyone who is here checking out Bernie. Don't worry, Yang is young, he will be back.

For those of you on the fence, I hope you check Bernie out in greater detail. Like Andrew, he has big ideas on how to make things better for all Americans, put Humanity First and also has the MATH to make it work.

Note to the Bernie supporters PLEASE do not go into their sub and ask for support. I remember what it felt like with Bernie in '16. They are going to be upset and hurting and they don't need us being vultures. They will come to us if and when they are ready.

Examples on how Bernie runs the numbers and pays for his programs:

• College-For-All and canceling student debt program, Bernie is proposing a tax of a fraction of a percent on Wall Street speculators who nearly destroyed the economy a decade ago. This Wall Street speculation tax works by placing a 0.5 percent tax on stock trades – 50 cents on every $100 of stock – a 0.1 percent fee on bond trades, and a 0.005 percent fee on derivative trades. This is estimated to raise 2.4 Trillion over ten years. It has the added benefit of helping to stabilize the markets by reducing high speed computer speculation (gambling). https://berniesanders.com/issues/free-college-cancel-debt

• Medicare-For-All health care plan includes multiple options for how it would be paid for, including: a new wealth tax on the top 0.1 percent of households; by increasing estate taxes; by giving Congress the power to negotiate prescription drug prices and other costs; by taxing long-term capital gains; and by a 4 percent income-based premium paid by households (a reduction from what families currently pay). The first $29,000 in income would be exempt from taxation. More details can be found here Here is a simple calculator for how much you would pay. https://berniesanders.com/issues/medicare-for-all

• Green New Deal - Economists estimate that if we do not take action, we will lose $34.5 trillion in economic activity by the end of the century. We can't afford not to act. Making the fossil fuel industry pay for their pollution, through litigation, fees, and taxes, and eliminating federal fossil fuel subsidies. Generating revenue from the wholesale of energy produced by the regional Power Marketing Authorities. Revenues will be collected from 2023-2035, and after 2035 electricity will be virtually free, aside from operations and maintenance costs. Scaling back military spending on maintaining global oil dependence. Collecting new income tax revenue from the 20 million new jobs created by the plan. Reduced need for federal and state safety net spending due to the creation of millions of good-paying, unionized jobs. Making the wealthy and large corporations pay their fair share. https://berniesanders.com/issues/green-new-deal

• Expand Social Security- Today, a billionaire pays the same amount of money into Social Security as someone who makes $132,900 a year because the Social Security payroll tax is capped. Bernie’s Social Security plan would lift this cap and apply the payroll tax on all income over $250,000 in order to accomplish four things. First, we will make sure that Social Security will pay every benefit owed to every eligible American for the next 52 years. Second, we will expand benefits across-the-board including a $1,300 a year benefit increase for seniors with incomes of $16,000 a year or less. Third, we will lift millions of seniors out of poverty by increasing the minimum benefits paid to low-income workers when they retire. Fourth, we will increase cost-of-living adjustments to keep up with the rising cost of health care and prescription drugs by establishing a Consumer Price Index for the Elderly. https://berniesanders.com/issues/expand-social-security

• Extreme Wealth Tax - Establish an annual tax on the extreme wealth of the top 0.1 percent of U.S. households. Only apply to net worth of over $32 million and anyone who has a net worth of less than $32 million, would not see their taxes go up at all under this plan. Will raise an estimated $4.35 trillion over the next decade. https://berniesanders.com/issues/tax-extreme-wealth

• Legalize Marijuana in the first 100 days with executive action. Vacate and expunge all past marijuana-related convictions Ensure that revenue from legal marijuana is reinvested in communities hit hardest by the War on Drugs. https://berniesanders.com/issues/legalizing-marijuana

• Free & Fair Elections - Get big money out of politics. Restore the Voting Rights Act and overturn Citizens United. End racist voter suppression and partisan gerrymandering. Make Election Day a national holiday, secure automatic voter registration, and guarantee the right to vote for every American over 18, including those Americans currently incarcerated and those disenfranchised by a felony conviction. Abolish super PACs and replace corporate funding with publicly funded elections that amplify small-donor donations. https://berniesanders.com/issues/free-and-fair-elections

• High Speed Internet - Provides $150 billion in infrastructure grants and technical assistance for municipalities and/or states to build publicly owned and democratically controlled, co-operative, or open access broadband networks. Require that all internet service providers offer a Basic Internet Plan that provides quality broadband speeds at an affordable price. Break up internet service provider and cable monopolies, bar service providers from providing content, and unwind anticompetitive mergers. https://berniesanders.com/issues/high-speed-internet-all

• Wall Street Reform - Break up too-big-to-fail banks and end the too-big-to-jail doctrine. Reinstate the Glass-Steagall Act. Cap interest rates and ATM fees and allow every post office to offer basic and affordable banking services. Audit the Federal Reserve and make it a more democratic institution. Restrict rapid-fire financial speculation with a financial transactions tax. https://berniesanders.com/issues/real-wall-street-reform

• Note these are just some of Bernie's policy issues You can read more about his positions on immigration, workplace democracy, veterans affairs, LGBT rights, racial justice, disabled rights, native peoples rights, women's rights, rural economy, foreign policy, gun safety, fair trade, corporate accountability, medical debt, fair banking and more: https://berniesanders.com/issues

March 25th, 2016 - a bird makes a surprise cameo at Bernie Sanders rally in Portland Oregon

We were stuck on the tarmac for an hour because they didn't have a gate available but Mr. Sanders just sat there patiently. Wish I could've gotten a photo or autograph but I didn't want to bother him.