--- title: Bernie Sanders Launches First Presidential Rally In Vermont description: Bernie Sanders holds the first big rally of his presidential candidacy in Vermont on Tuesday. canonical: https://time.com/3895770/bernie-sanders-hillary-clinton-vermont/ author: Sam Frizell article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-05-26T02:46:07.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T05:03:21.258Z article:section: Politics og:title: Bernie Sanders Launches First Presidential Rally In Vermont og:description: Bernie Sanders holds the first big rally of his presidential candidacy in Vermont on Tuesday. og:url: https://time.com/3895770/bernie-sanders-hillary-clinton-vermont/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdfd12f12bdbed781/6988518f55a85974aba8c2da/gettyimages-473979104.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) Speaks On Legislation To Eliminate Undergraduate Tuition At Public Schools og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Bernie Sanders Launches First Presidential Rally In Vermont twitter:description: Bernie Sanders holds the first big rally of his presidential candidacy in Vermont on Tuesday. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdfd12f12bdbed781/6988518f55a85974aba8c2da/gettyimages-473979104.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Bernie Sanders Rallies a Progressive Campaign With a Realist's Eye by [Sam Frizell](/author/sam-frizell/) ## Sam Frizell May 26, 2015 2:46 AM CUT  Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) speaks about college tuitions during a news conference on Capitol Hill May 19, 2015 in Washington, DC. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) speaks about college tuitions during a news conference on Capitol Hill May 19, 2015 in Washington, DC.Mark Wilson—Getty Images by [Sam Frizell](/author/sam-frizell/) ## Sam Frizell May 26, 2015 2:46 AM CUT Bernie Sanders will hold the first major rally of his presidential candidacy Tuesday in a Burlington, Vt., waterfront park that he helped create as the city’s mayor. Attendees will eat free Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, and a homegrown Vermont band will bring on the senator. When Sanders speaks in the late afternoon sun, he’ll be framed Lake Champlain and the Adirondack Mountains. The setting will be as wholesome and uncompromised as Sanders’ progressive platform. But nothing is as unblemished as it seems in politics, and Sanders long ago proved himself a far cannier politician than his idealistic trappings might suggest. Tuesday’s speech, for instance, probably would never have happened had the cantankerous Vermont senator not opposed a tax increase during his 1981 mayoral race. The five-term incumbent Burlington mayor, Gordon Paquette, supported raising residential taxes in the city; Sanders, the self-professed socialist, argued it was unnecessary and would hurt middle class residents. It was also a savvy political move: he won the mayoral race by 10 votes, and went on to serve in the House and Senate. There, he negotiated a major deal with Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain on veterans care last year. An avowed opponent of larger defense spending, he nonetheless endorsed the decision to bring F-35 aircraft bases to Vermont, and has a somewhat [hawkish record on guns rights](http://www.ontheissues.org/domestic/Bernie%5FSanders%5FGun%5FControl.htm "undefined"), voting against the Brady Act in 1993, which required background checks for gun purchasers, and supporting a bill to protect gun manufacturers from lawsuits. Military bases and gun freedoms may satisfy his base in Vermont, but are negative notches for many progressives who demand ideological purity. Sanders has also made a major concession in his preparation to run for president. After years of refusing to join the Democratic Party, his decision to run as a Democrat rather than an Independent gives him a shot at challenging Hillary Clinton in a debate. But it disqualifies him among some voters who want to see him shake up the two-party system. “The main reason I would not vote for Bernie is that he’s running as a Democrat,” says Scott Tucker, a progressive activist in California. “That’s a deal-breaker for me in a much bigger way that goes to the roots of democracy.” ### See the 2016 Candidates' Campaign Launches  Sen. Ted Cruz kicked off his campaign for 2016 Republican presidential nomination at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va. on March 23. Tom Williams—CQ-Roll Call/Getty Images  Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul launched his bid for the Republican nomination at the Galt House Hotel in Louisville on April 7\. Supporters held signs with the slogan "Defeat the Washington Machine / Unleash the American Dream." Amy Harris—Corbis  Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced her campaign in a YouTube video posted April 12 that has been seen nearly 4.5 million times. One boy featured in the video boasted about playing a fish in a school play. Hillary For America  Florida Sen. Marco Rubio announced his campaign for the Republican nomination during a rally at the Freedom Tower in Miami on April 13\. He took a drink of water during the speech, a callback to his State of the Union response in 2013. Wilfredo Lee—AP  Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders announced his bid for the Democratic nomination across the street from the U.S. Capitol on April 30, 2015\. The backdrop was unusual, since most candidates rail against Washington. Jonathan Ernst—Reuters  Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson announced his bid for the Republican nomination at the Music Hall Center for the Performing Arts May 4, 2015 in Detroit, Michigan. The launch featured a gospel choir covering Eminem's "Lose Yourself." Bill Pugliano—Getty Images  Former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina announced her campaign for the Republican nomination in a conference call on May 4, then went on "Good Morning America" to talk to George Stephanopoulos. Lou Rocco—Getty Images  Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee announced his campaign at a community college in his hometown of Hope, Ark., on May 5\. Singer Tony Orlando (right) performed. Left: Danny Johnston; Right: Matt Sullivan—Getty Images  Republican presidential candidate and former New York Governor George Pataki (C) greets supporters after formally announcing his candidacy for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination in Exeter, N.H. on May 28, 2015. Dominick Reuter—Reuters  Former Rhode Island Sen. Lincoln Chafee announces his candidacy for the democratic presidential nomination at George Mason University in Arlington, Va. on June 3, 2015. Win McNamee—Getty Images  Republican Senator Lindsey Graham announces his 2016 presidential candidacy in Central, S.C. on June 1, 2015. Erik S. Lesser—EPA  Former Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley is joined by his wife Katie O'Malley (R) as he announces his intention to seek the Democratic presidential nomination during a speech at Federal Hill Park in Baltimore on May 30, 2015. Jim Bourg—Reuters  Former Texas governor Rick Perry announces his candidacy for Republican presidential nominee at an event held at Addison Airport in Addison, Texas on Thursday, June 4, 2015. Louis DeLuca—Dallas Morning News/Corbis  Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush waves on stage as he announces his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination during an event at Miami-Dade College - Kendall Campus in Miami on June 15 , 2015. Joe Raedle—Getty Images  Donald Trump holds up his financial statement showing his net worth as he formally announces his campaign for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination during an event at Trump Tower in New York City on June 16, 2015. Brendan McDermid—Reuters  Republican presidential candidate and Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal formally announces his campaign for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination in Kenner, La. on June 24, 2015. Jonathan Bachman—Reuters  Republican presidential candidate and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie formally announces his campaign for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination during a kickoff rally at Livingston High School in Livingston, N.J. on June 30, 2015. Brendan McDermid—Reuters  Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker greets supporters after announcing that he will seek the Republican nomination for president in Waukesha, Wis. on July 13, 2015 . Scott Olson—Getty Images  Ohio Governor John Kasich arrives on stage to formally announce his campaign for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination during a kickoff rally in Columbus, Ohio on July 21, 2015. Aaron P. Bernstein—Reuters In an interview with TIME in his office earlier this month, Sanders explained his willingness to compromise. “The way things evolve is you find yourself where you are and how you apply your values and what you believe in in the strongest way possible within the context you are functioning,” said Sanders. “But there is a political reality—there is a legal reality of what you can do.” Sanders likes to tell reporters not to underestimate him. He is challenging Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination in earnest. He’s got around 15% in the polls in early primary states to Clinton’s 60% or so, but his career has a long list of unlikely victories. In 2012, he won reelection in Vermont to the Senate with over 70% of the vote. There’s good reason the son of a Brooklyn paint salesman has acquired a reputation over many years as an uncompromising populist, and as the Senate’s eccentric progressive. Sanders’ commitment to getting unaccountable money out of politics and addressing income inequality is unwavering. He wants to spend over $1 trillion on America’s infrastructure and he is a staunch advocate of raising the minimum wage. He embraces the moniker of “socialist,” a term more often used as coup de grace insult on Fox News than a proud label. “In America today, objectively, if you add it all up, we are the wealthiest country in the history of the world. But the problem is that a very large amount of that wealth rests in the hands of a very few people. And huge numbers of people have virtually nothing,” Sanders tells TIME. “And that’s what propels me.” He has his quirks: on a recent visit to his office in the stately Dirksen building, a TIME reporter encountered a life-size paper cutout of a Holstein cow, udders bright pink beneath folded blue window drapes, and a portrait of socialist hero Eugene V. Debs. In the 1980s, Sanders recorded a folk album in which he delivers a speech over a choir singing “We Shall Overcome”—the evidence of Sanders’ musical dalliance is easily available on YouTube. But if Sanders’ first ideology is liberal socialism, his second is a more helpful one in American politics: realism. It’s realism that will bring him to Tuesday’s edenic rally on Burlington’s waterfront, rallying Vermont supporters for his presidential candidacy. And his realism may make him a stronger Democratic candidate than a socialist might appear. Still, Sanders’ chances of beating Clinton in the primary are about as slim as the likelihood of rain Tuesday on Lake Champlain. 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