Sanders Says Democratic Election Wins Reject Trump and Demand Action on Economic Inequality

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) said on Wednesday that Tuesday's election results showed deep public anger at President Donald Trump and a demand for Democrats to confront economic inequality. Democratic candidates beat Republicans in congressional and state-level races across the country, and Politico named Michigan, Texas, Montana and Wisconsin among the places where economic populism won. In a social media post, Sanders said Trump had asked people to vote as if he were on the ballot, and that they did. On MS NOW's "The Beat," Sanders said he saw "profound disgust" with Trump, whom he called the most dangerous president in U.S. history. He accused Trump of running a corrupt administration and of starting an illegal and unconstitutional war. Sanders added that the vote was more than a rejection of Trump. He said 60% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck, 800,000 people are homeless, and the U.S. is the only major country that does not guarantee healthcare. He said Elon Musk owns more wealth than the bottom 53% of households. Voters, he said, want Democrats to take on the greed of oligarchs and pass legislation for working families.

Politico, the left-leaning outlet, frames the results as a long-term vindication of Sanders' ideas. Its headline says he lost the 2016 fight but won the war, and it notes his economic populism once drew criticism inside the party. It centers on the states where that message is now winning rather than on his remarks about Trump. Breitbart, on the right, covers only Sanders' MS NOW interview. Its headline puts his harshest language first, "profound disgust" and "dangerous," and its article quotes his criticisms of Trump at length before the inequality figures and the call on Democrats. Both sides cover Sanders as a central figure in reading the results, but Politico stresses his influence on the party and Breitbart stresses his attacks on Trump. Common Dreams, an alternative outlet, adds a distinct angle by describing the results as a "walloping" of Republicans and a clear repudiation of Trump's policies, drawing on Sanders' social media post.