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Veterans for Bernie Sanders (also known as Vets for Bernie) was the national grassroots association of military veterans organized on behalf of Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders during his
2016 presidential campaign This national electoral calendar for 2016 lists the national/ federal elections held in 2016 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *7 January: Kiri ...
. Vets for Bernie was independent from the official campaign and largely organized via social media, with more than 50,000 military members and over 100,000 followers on
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,
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, and Instagram. Founded by veterans of the
Iraq war {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق ( Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict and the War on terror , image ...
and Afghanistan war, Vets for Bernie became a key organizing force for progressives and military voters for the Sanders campaign.


Origins

Vets for Bernie was founded in June 2015 by former
United States Marine The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...
Tyson Manker, a veteran of the
2003 Iraq invasion The 2003 invasion of Iraq was a United States-led invasion of the Republic of Iraq and the first stage of the Iraq War. The invasion phase began on 19 March 2003 (air) and 20 March 2003 (ground) and lasted just over one month, including 26 ...
, at Sanders' first town hall event at
Drake University Drake University is a private university in Des Moines, Iowa. It offers undergraduate and graduate programs, including professional programs in business, law, and pharmacy. Drake's law school is among the 25 oldest in the United States. His ...
in
Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, ...
. After ''
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'' indicated wider military support for the Senator, Manker and several other veterans began organizing themselves and working to identify other like-minded members of the
United States Armed Forces The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is ...
. Air Force veteran Alexandra Ducatte joined VFB as National co-director, and membership eventually grew across all fifty states,
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, and
Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...
.


Activities


2016 primary

Bernie Sanders served as chair of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, and was the first 2016 candidate for
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
to fully embrace the U.S. military with a robust veterans platform. He faced criticisms, however, for not preventing the
Veterans Health Administration Scandal of 2014 The Veterans Health Administration controversy of 2014 is a reported pattern of negligence in the treatment of United States military veterans. Critics charged that patients at the VHA hospitals had not met the target of getting an appointment ...
that occurred during his tenure as committee chair. Through their website, Vets for Bernie highlighted the various awards and honors given to Sanders for his career of veterans advocacy and handling of the 2014 scandal. VFB was credited for developing innovative "social media content based around endorsements from individual veterans." On July 30, 2015, Manker promoted Vets for Bernie and military support for Sanders in a live interview with John Seigenthaler on
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. Vets for Bernie volunteers worked loosely with the Sanders campaign to organize veterans to attend local rallies. Early on, the Sanders campaign staged a military veterans press conference in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, with assistance from Vets for Bernie. VFB participated in Enough is Enough,
Netroots Nation Netroots Nation is a political convention for American progressive political activists. Originally organized by readers and writers of Daily Kos, a liberal political blog, it was previously called YearlyKos and rebranded as Netroots Nation ...
, and People's Summit. Along with the larger People for Bernie group, VFB was credited with using effective mobilization techniques. On March 25, 2016, the Sanders campaign held a national conference call on Veterans' Issues with Congresswoman
Tulsi Gabbard Tulsi Gabbard (; born April 12, 1981) is an American politician, United States Army Reserve officer and political commentator who served as the U.S. representative for Hawaii's 2nd congressional district from 2013 to 2021. Gabbard was the fi ...
(D-HI), Manker and VFB Senior Advisor, Colonel Gordon Sumner, U.S. Army, ret. Later, Vets for Bernie organized veterans to take part in a
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photo session in support of Sanders' candidacy.


Gettysburg rally

On April 22, the Sanders campaign held a military rally for veterans at
Gettysburg College Gettysburg College is a private liberal arts college in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1832, the campus is adjacent to the Gettysburg Battlefield. Gettysburg College has about 2,600 students, with roughly equal numbers of men and women. ...
in
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania Gettysburg (; non-locally ) is a borough and the county seat of Adams County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The Battle of Gettysburg (1863) and President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address are named for this town. Gettysburg is home to th ...
, with help from Vets for Bernie.


VetsForBernie.org

Through a website (now restored), Vets for Bernie published over one hundred original news-style blog posts, which were shared more than one million times on social media. Most popular posts included: * ''Who Are Bernie Sanders’ Top Contributors? Active Duty Army, Navy, & Air Force, That’s Who'' * ''Bernie Sanders Remains Top Choice of U.S. Troops'' * ''The Lack of Military and Veteran Support for Hillary Clinton Should Concern You'' Individual outreach blogs, including: * ''95 Year-Old WWII Vet Voted for Bernie Sanders Today in Mississippi'' * ''Meet Mark Maxey, the Bearded Man at Bernie’s OKC Rally'' * ''Meet Leslie Lee III – Writer, Teacher, Bernie Sanders Supporter'' * ''Police Chief: Bernie Is the First Candidate to Ever Offer and Pay Police Overtime'' And at least one instance of serious journalism in a blog that analyzed video and photographic evidence to effectively debunk false accusations being leveled at the time that the Sanders campaign shared photographs from the
Civil Rights Movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...
that were not of Sanders, when in fact they were.


Post-election and beyond

Along with other grassroots associations, Vets for Bernie continues to organize military veterans across America. Democratic candidate
Tim Canova Timothy A. Canova (born May 17, 1960) is an American politician and law professor specializing in banking and finance. Canova was a candidate for Florida's 23rd congressional district, unsuccessfully challenging Debbie Wasserman Schultz in the 20 ...
earned the first official endorsement from VFB in his first unsuccessful bid to unseat
Debbie Wasserman Schultz Deborah Wasserman Schultz (née Wasserman; born September 27, 1966) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative from , first elected to Congress in 2004. A member of the Democratic Party, she is a former chair of the Democrat ...
. Vets for Bernie advises progressive candidates for Congress on military issues, most recently in drafting the veterans platform for Stephen Jaffe, candidate for
California's 12th Congressional District California's 12th congressional district is a congressional district in northern California. Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat, has represented the district since January 2013. She has represented ...
.


References

{{Bernie Sanders Bernie Sanders 2016 presidential campaign