It has only been a week and a half since far left activists faced a backlash over following Sen. Kyrsten Sinema into a women’s bathroom with a camera. Apparently they didn’t learn anything. Now a group connected with Sen. Bernie Sanders is vowing to hound Sinema everywhere she goes and make her life “unpleasant” until she signs on to the Build Back Better bill.
Grassroots activists and union groups are preparing to launch a flurry of protests later on Wednesday against Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz) — who they worry could single-handedly sink President Biden’s agenda.
“We’re committed to birddogging Kyrsten Sinema with her constituents until the very end,” Our Revolution Executive Director Joseph Geevarghese said in an interview. “What we want to show is that her constituents are very serious about wanting policies and activism and we’re going to make her life unpleasant or uncomfortable until that happens.”
Our Revolution, the Bernie Sanders-inspired grassroots group, is joining Arizona union leaders, educators and other grassroots activists for a series of demonstrations outside of her Phoenix and Tucson offices over the next several days, according to a strategy outline first shared with POLITICO.
Our Revolution was founded by Sanders in 2016 to continue pressing for more radical, socialist change. As you may recall, the so-called Bernie Bros have a reputation for being a bit unhinged and vicious. Last January the NY Times reported some Democrats had hired private security because of them.
Some progressive activists who declined to back Mr. Sanders have begun traveling with private security after incurring online harassment. Several well-known feminist writers said they had received death threats. A state party chairwoman changed her phone number. A Portland lawyer saw her business rating tumble on an online review site after tussling with Sanders supporters on Twitter…
“Politics is a contact sport,” said Bakari Sellers, a former South Carolina State legislator who supported Ms. Harris in the Democratic primary. “But you have to be very cognizant when you say anything critical of Bernie online. You might have to put your phone down. There’s going to be a blowback, and it could be sexist, racist and vile.”
Sexist, racist and vile is a hell of a reputation for a group of far left activists. Things got so heated that last February, Sen. Warren called out the Bernie Bros and said she was particularly troubled by their treatment of “women in leadership.” “We do not build on a foundation of hate,” she said. There was some debate about whether the tone set for the Bernie Bros was coming from his top aides or from the Senator himself but it was one of the two. At a minimum, Sanders knew about it.
All of that to say, the idea of Our Revolution committing to making Sen. Sinema’s life “unpleasant” shouldn’t be taken for idle chatter. When the Bernie Bros threaten to harass fellow Democrats, they aren’t kidding.
The Politico piece concludes by saying several of the activist groups involved in this plan can’t imagine going as far as following someone into a bathroom with a camera but “they also didn’t apologize for the behavior.” Of course not because they support exactly this kind of harassment. I hope Sen. Sinema has a good security crew around her because she may need them.
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