Bernie Sanders has suspended his presidential campaign, but he is still making sure his progressive ideas are part of the agenda. While he can’t host rallies during the COVID-19 pandemic, he can still get involved in digital events – and last night, he spoke to Cardi B as part of an Instagram Live interview.
In the short conversation, Cardi spoke to Sanders about healthcare, the economic crisis caused by coronavirus, and what his next move will be politically. They also compared manicures: “They’re looking very quarantine,” Cardi said to Bernie of his nails. “I can tell you’ve been in quarantine for a while now.”
Although Cardi is a vocal supporter of Sanders, this wasn’t necessarily a softball interview. Cardi asked why Sanders, a democratic socialist, was endorsing Joe Biden, who she described as a “conservative”, as the Democratic candidate to face Donald Trump.
“Trump is to my mind the most dangerous president in the modern history of America,” Sanders explained of his stance. “This is a guy who lies all the time, he doesn’t believe in science, he downplayed this whole coronavirus which has led to the deaths of many thousands of people unnecessarily, he doesn’t believe in the Constitution, he thinks he’s above the law. This is a bad news guy who needs to be defeated.”
She also told Sanders that he shouldn’t have dropped out of the primary race: “I had a fit because I was so hurt and upset that you dropped out of the race and everything,” she said. “I keep telling my people and my supporters that you guys really need to go and vote. Now we’re between 45 (Trump), we ain’t going to name him over here, and Joe Biden.”
Sanders said he hopes to push Biden left on certain issues: a $15 minimum wage, cancelling student debt, and immigration and criminal justice reform.
On the issue of coronavirus, Sanders said he wanted to force Trump to guarantee pay to laid-off workers. Cardi herself expressed frustration that the Trump administration “put capitalism, money, trading, goods, before our health”.
Cardi has interviewed Sanders before, and has been a high profile advocate of the Vermont senator’s campaign. Watch the new interview below (the first half of the video is dead air, with the actual interview starting at the 37-minute mark).