Hillary Clinton Officially Has a Democratic Challenger as Bernie Sanders Announces Presidential Run
“Most people in America have never heard of Bernie Sanders. More than 90% of Americans have heard of Hillary Clinton,” Vermont senator says
Jordan Chariton | April 30, 2015 @ 6:15 AM
Last Updated: April 30, 2015 @ 7:13 AM
Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders will announce his run for president Thursday.
“I’ve been traveling around the country for the last year trying to ascertain whether there really is grass-roots support in terms of people standing up and being prepared to take on the billionaire class,” he told USA Today Wednesday. “I believe that there is.”
Sanders, an independent senator and self-described Democratic socialist, is known for being a fiercely progressive politician, fighting for tax hikes on the wealthy and opportunity for the middle class and poor.
He’s often railed against corporate America on the Senate floor, notably Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein. He knows he has an uphill climb against the heavy favorite on the Democratic side, Hillary Clinton.
“I am running in this election to win,” he said. “We’ve got a long path forward. Most people in America have never heard of Bernie Sanders. More than 90% of Americans have heard of Hillary Clinton … I will absolutely be out-spent. But I do believe we have a chance to raise significant amounts of money through small, individual contributions.”
Sanders will surely create some great sound bites for the media in speeches where he mentions Clinton’s record on economic issues as well as during Democratic primary debates. Political pundits think his entrance into the race will pull Clinton to the political left in the primary.
13 Unforgettable Hillary Rodham Clinton Moments: Secretary of State, Candidate and First Lady (Photos)
Photos of then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton checking her email went viral in 2011. When Clinton joined Twitter last month, she chose a shot like this for her profile page, quickly racking up 650,000 followers.
In December 2011 Hillary joyfully greeted Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi in Burma. Suu Kyi led the fight against military rule in Burma, where she spent years under house arrest.
Hillary Rodham Clinton made her debut in politics back in 1974 during the Watergate Scandal as a member of the impeachment inquiry staff. She was a recent Yale Law School graduate and not yet married to Bill Clinton.
Hillary Clinton became a lightening rod on the 1992 campaign trail, drawing criticism for remarks that she could have "stayed home and baked cookies and had tea but what I decided to do was fulfill my profession" and that she was not a "some little woman standing by my man like Tammy Wynette."
In 1996, then First Lady HIllary Clinton was put on the cover of Time magazine, with the story depicting the truth about the Whitewater real-estate scandal.
Hillary Clinton delivers a speech on the Monica Lewinsky affair with her husband and former President Bill Clinton standing by her side.
After taking on two ads that she claims misrepresented her stance on healthcare plans, an enraged presidential candidate Hillary Clinton delivers a speech on the shameful tactics used by rival Barack Obama in 2008. "Shame on you, Barack Obama!"
After losing the race for the Democratic candidacy for the 2008 election, Clinton ended her campaign with a memorable speech. "Even though we were not able to shatter that highest, hardest glass ceiling this time, thanks to you, it's got about 18 million cracks in it, and the light is shining through like never before."
Alongside President Obama and other senior members of the White House staff, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton watches as the US Naval Seals take down terrorist Osama bin Laden on May 1, 2011.
Hillary Clinton and actress Meryl Streep share a laugh at the 2012 Kennedy Center Honors gala.
After returning to work from hospitalization from a blood clot, then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton received joke gifts from her colleagues to celebrate her return. She received a football jersey and helmet.
In January, Clinton delivered a fiery speech to Congress about the Benghazi attacks on U.S. soldiers.
In 2013, Hillary Clinton joined the Human Rights Campaign for same sex marriage. Her support for equal marriage was received as one of her biggest contributions to the campaign upon retiring as Secretary of State in February 2013.
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A look at 10 of former First Lady's biggest moments in the White House, as Secretary of State and as Democractic candidate for president.
Photos of then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton checking her email went viral in 2011. When Clinton joined Twitter last month, she chose a shot like this for her profile page, quickly racking up 650,000 followers.