Meanwhile in Vermont... A hardcore conservative Tea Partier has a Bernie sign...

Meanwhile in Vermont... A hardcore conservative Tea Partier has a Bernie sign...

It is a real thing.

Now before you all naysayers say "It's just Republicans who want Bernie to win so they can beat them in the GE!" Well maybe the politicians think that... but not the people who are calling themselves Republicans for Bernie Sanders. I believe that there are lot of Republicans who would actually going to vote for him in the general election.

What is my proof for this? Take a look at that sign in the top there. It's from Vermont. A sign on a rabid anti government person's store. Tea party to the extreme. And guess what... there's a sign promoting the "socialist" Bernie Sanders.

"Experience that money just can't buy." <--- That, right there, in a nutshell, is the essence of his crossover appeal.



Crazy big time anti-gov... yet PRO the "socialist" Bernie Sanders

He's anti-government - pro socialist Bernie Sanders. Let that sink in for a moment there.

Then there's this ad that Bernie Sanders ran during his 2006 Senate campaign:





Bernie Sanders - Diner from Devine Mulvey Longabaugh on Vimeo.

Here's a rough transcription by yours truly on the fly:



PERSON 1 - "I'm a lifelong Republican and I support Bernie Sanders and the work he's done for the seniors and also for his honesty." PERSON 2 -"Bernie... what you see is what you get. He tells it like it is and that's what we like about him." PERSON 3 - "You know where he stands. He's had years of experience doing this job." PERSON 4 - "I'm really concerned about healthcare as is every Vermonter and I really feel like Bernie Sanders is on the right page." PERSON 5 - "He's working for the people and he's not in anybody's pocket. Not Bernie."



I bolded the above portions which I believe are what is really driving his crossover appeal.

Still not convinced... Check out this clip from Morning Joe on Monday, 6/22/15 where they have a piece on how large the crowds were over the weekend at Denver.

Joe says it's "Incredible stuff."

Howard Dean lays it out after they ask him why he's chuckling:



"Because I've seen this for 40 years... people underestimate him. ... I remember my last election after I did civil unions and I got clobbered and in a certain part of the state that always votes conservative Bernie Sanders got every vote that my very conservative opponent got. He has a tremendous appeal to ordinary working people who feel like they're getting screwed."



"You know I like that Bernie Sanders guy. I like everything that he says..... because unlike everybody else... he's for the common man."

And then at the end of the clip Joe says that one of his conservative friends told him completely out of the blue:

More evidence (again anecdotal) in the reddit thread My dad, a hardcore Conservative, of the Fox News variety told me yesterday that he'd vote for Sanders if he got the nomination



I told him that I thought that Bernie was a real person with an honest agenda and one that helps that people of this country. And not only was my dad receptive to this, he actually agreed. He was in support of Bernie's campaign and hoped that he got the nomination. My father even went so far as to say that he'd vote for Bernie over a Republican nominee who didn't have the same kind of authenticity.

Oddly enough I also spoke to my dad yesterday about Bernie. My dad and I have kind of a rocky relationship, and conversation doesn't come easily to me. However I'm slowly trying to have conversations with people about Bernie so as the campaign progresses I'm more comfortable with it. I asked my dad if he had been following any of the Presidential campaigns and who he was leaning towards at this point. "Bernie's got my vote." I was floored. My dad is a retired Marine so he has some conservative views but seemed in favor of a lot of what Bernie preaches.

It's a real thing people. I don't understand why people say he'll lose in the General Election.

He's going to clobber anyone from the clown bus in a general election. Again see that sign above.

Can you imagine that guy having a sign for any other Democrat on his store?

Bernie is going to get crossover voters from people who usually vote Republican.

Bernie is going to get votes from people who haven't voted to a long time because they're disillusioned.

Bernie is going to get votes from young millennials who have never voted before.

Why? To quote that perosn in the campaign video:



"He's working for the people and he's not in anybody's pocket. Not Bernie."

He'll clobber the Republicans in the debates. There is no doubt.

But he can't win!?! He's a socialist!?!? Wahhh!!!

People don't know who the heck he is. He got elected with 70% of the vote in Vermont. Even the rabid tea partier voted for him. Howard Dean himself said all the conservative votes went to Bernie Sanders.

Why?



"He's working for the people and he's not in anybody's pocket. Not Bernie."

And what about that poll today saying people won't vote for a socialist.

It says 47% won't vote for a socialist.

47% 16 months away from the general election.

47% when people don't know what a socialist means after 50 years of propaganda.

Seems like a great starting point to me.

I'd say we can easily add 10% to that number in the 16 months when Bernie shows himself to the public and people start to realize who Bernie is and what he stands for.

At this point 60-70% of the American people have no idea who Bernie Sanders is. When people hear about Bernie Sanders... most of them like him.

Just like Joe's friend conservative said:



"You know I like that Bernie Sanders guy. I like everything that he says..... because unlike everybody else... he's for the common man."

Poll 867 votes Show Results Have you seen evidence of REAL Republicans for Bernie? Yes and I believe them. Yes, but I think they're just doing a Rush Operation No 867 votes Vote Now! Have you seen evidence of REAL Republicans for Bernie? Yes and I believe them. 559 votes Yes, but I think they're just doing a Rush Operation 4% 37 votes No 271 votes

He's got this.