Politics

Sen. Bernie Sanders: GOP’s idea of individual liberty is ‘the freedom, literally, to die’ [VIDEO]

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Brendan Bordelon Contributor
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Socialist Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders went hyperbolic while attacking what he views as the Republican Party’s idea of individual liberty on Monday, claiming Republican ideas on the social safety net show that “their definition of freedom is . . . the freedom, literally, to die.”

Sanders, who identifies as a socialist but caucuses with the Democrats, spoke with MSNBC’s Ed Schultz about his views on the Republican conception of liberty.

“Their definition of freedom is, if you are 70 years of age and you are poor, and you have no health insurance, you’re going to have the freedom, literally, to die, because they don’t believe in keeping Medicare strong,” he declared.

“And if you are a low-income person, they’re going to cut you off of Medicaid, and you’re going to have a freedom not to go to the doctor,” the senator continued. “That’s what they’re talking about.”

Sanders claimed that — at least for his own formulation of conservative ideas — “there is no state in the country that supports that right wing agenda . . . Their agenda is the agenda of the Koch brothers and billionaires, maybe 10 percent of the American people. We have infinitely more support for our ideas than they have for theirs.”

The socialist senator is rumored to be running for president in 2016, and he told Schultz he was “prepared” to stand up for his far-left principles in the upcoming Democratic primary.

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