The Possible Presidential Candidate Who Agrees the Most with Pope Francis

[Playinghardball]

By: Elizabeth Dias

Time Magazine

Friday, January 9, 2015

Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders is Jewish. He’s also the likely 2016 presidential candidate whose political philosophy lines up most closely with the economic and social theories of Pope Francis.

As he mused on the possibility of a 2016 campaign during an hour-long visit to TIME’s Washington Bureau Thursday, Sanders hit the Pope’s main talking points before even mentioning his name. Health care as a universal right for the elderly. The economic injustices of income inequality. Climate change.

Unlike many leaders who name-drop Pope Francis to score political points—he is, after all, likely the most popular man on the planet—Sanders quotes the Pope because he actually believes his message. When asked about casino capitalism, Sanders points to Pope Francis, who says that is not what human life should be. “He’s saying, you know what…the economy should serve people, not people serving the economy,” Sanders explains. “The market is the billionaire class who want to get richer, that is what it is. I don’t think we should have an economy serving their needs.”

Sanders adds: “The bottom line should be how well we are doing as human beings…The bottom line means that we should not have 20% of our kids living in poverty and elderly people in this country trying to get by on $12,000 a year.”

Sanders’ social media accounts are filled with quotes from the Holy Father about the need to reform socio-economic systems. Some examples include:
•“Some people continue to defend trickle-down theories which assume that economic growth, encouraged by a free market, will inevitable succeed in bringing about greater justice and inclusiveness in the world. This opinion, which has never been confirmed by the facts, expresses a crude and naïve trust in the goodness of those wielding economic power and in the sacralized workings of the economic system. Meanwhile, the excluded are still waiting.”

http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/must-read/the-possible-presidential-candidate-who-agrees-the-most-with-pope-francis

[el_bryanto]

1. This should be an interesting discussion. nt

[SidDithers]

2. Except Bernie's not a bigot with respect to women and sexual minorities...nt

Sid

[Politicalboi]

3. Is that a good thing?

I wouldn't think so. Too much religion is bad, and we need someone who doesn't announce their religion or doesn't care about religion to hold office. The pope belongs to the worst organization who hides pedophiles, and deny children justice for what they did to them.

[ananda]

4. Humanity with soul knows no religious boundaries.

..

[MisterP]

6. yeah, but we got two separate value-systems lining up here, so Blairist Dems better watch out

[Omaha Steve]

5. Gore picked an ass to get the Jewish vote

He should have picked Bernie!

K&R!

[Enthusiast]

10. A proven ass.

[zeemike]

7. I did not know Bernie Sanders was Jewish

But it makes me like him even more because he is willing to join with a religious leader for social justice...that shows integrity.

[Bagsgroove]

8. Pope Bernie

I've always believed that the most "Christ like" person in recent history was a non-Christian -- Mohandas Gandhi. So no, it doesn't surprise me that Bernie Sanders might be the most "Francis like" possible candidate.

[Enthusiast]

9. Both the Pope and Bernie recognize it is the general welfare of the people that should be

the government's greatest priority.

[brooklynite]

11. Question-should Bernie be using his Government-provided web page to promote his Presidential run?

[MRDAWG]

12. Pope Francis should excommunicate Paul Ryan on trickle down**

*

[Bluenorthwest]

13. Except that the Pope agress more with the Republicans, he is stridenly opposed to reproductive

freedom of any kind and he is of course a virulent anti gay activist presiding over an organization that refuses to give women any sort of equality of any kind. The Pope's political ties in the US have been with the Right to Life anti choice movement, he even met with the family that owns Hobby Lobby over their common interests, they are not Catholic but are anti choice and extremely rich....

Any candidate that wants to say he agrees with a bigoted sexist is going to lose my vote fast. I'm thinking I might skip the top line in 2016, I am sick of voting for bigots and friends of bigots and those who used to be bigots before the polling went against it. Really, really sick of it.

Look. The Pope says gay people are disordered and that fighting against our rights is 'God's war'. What if some cartoonist said that about say, Muslims? What if they said it about Catholics? Jews? Would anyone be defending any person or organization that said any of those groups was 'disordered and at war with God'? Hmmmmmm?
Hypocrites.

[freshwest]

14. Plus a million!