Note — I think that it is both fair and necessary to point out and document Biden long history of attacking social security.

Like so many Bernie supporters I have been thinking about how to win the senior vote for Bernie. It is crazy that this is his weakest demographic, because his program of increasing social security payments to the poorest seniors, Medicare for All that includes dental, eyeglasses, hearing aides, long term care and so much more, is something that should have strong appeal to those of us north of sixty-five. So why is he polling so far behind Biden with seniors in spite of the fact that Biden has a record of attacking social security? I can only guess, but the main thing is for those of us who support Bernie to turn this around.

Letters to the Editor is a tool I talk about in my book because it works so well at the grassroots level. Letters to the Editor are the most widely read section of any newspaper, so this is a good place to get our message out. Seniors still get their news from newspapers.

The best chance to get your letter printed is to related it to a specific article in the newspaper. Monitor your community newspaper for any articles concerning senior citizens, whether it be housing, healthcare, consumer fraud, or any other story about seniors. Then look at Bernie’s legislature proposals for something that address that issue. I have created a Google Doc spreadsheet of Bernie’s proposed legislation to assist with research. If we all get busy we can get the message out.

DO relate your letter to a specific article, newspapers like to confine letters to actual readers.

DO be brief, less than 500 words.

DO be specific.

DON’T spam your letter to multiple newspapers, they HATE that.

Don’t worry if your letter is not printed. Human beings are social creatures, and visible support for Bernie will influence editorial judgment.

Resist the temptation to go negative on rival candidates, even Trump. Bernie has a great message and his best chance to win is if people know, specifically, how he will make their life better.