Galindez writes: "Just two days before the Iowa Caucus, Bernie Sanders joined popular pop band Vampire Weekend onstage in Iowa City and sang along to 'This Land Is Your Land.'"



Senator Bernie Sanders. (photo: Matt Rourke/AP)

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Bernie Rocking Iowa in Closing Days

By Scott Galindez, Reader Supported News

ust two days before the Iowa Caucus, Bernie Sanders joined popular pop band Vampire Weekend onstage in Iowa City and sang along to “This Land Is Your Land.” It was the close of a concert for Bernie on the campus of the University of Iowa. A few minutes before, Sanders wrapped up a spirited address to 5,000 Iowans. Nearly 4,000 people were allowed into the venue. Another 500 listened in an overflow area, and 500 were at a watch party set up by the campaign.

It was the largest event put together by any campaign on their own in Iowa this year.

Lead singer Mark Foster of the indie pop band Foster the People performed an acoustic set just before Dr. Cornel West took the stage to introduce Vampire Weekend. West asked the crowd if they were ready to make history on Monday night.

Hunger games actor Joshua Hutchinson also gave an impassioned plea to the crowd to caucus on Monday. Hutchinson talked about how lucky he is that he could pay his younger brother’s tuition at Georgia Tech. He said Bernie Sanders will make sure everyone can afford a college education.

Sanders has surrogates fanned out across Iowa. Minnesota congressman Keith Ellison is stumping throughout the state. “I certainly think that Iowa will start a chain of events … I think you can assume if it’s playing in Iowa, it’s probably playing in Minnesota,” Ellison said, adding that the two states share “common sensibilities.”

Arizona congressman Raúl M. Grijalva and Cook County commissioner Jesus “Chuy” Garcia are leading the senator’s Latino outreach in the last few days before the caucus. Commissioner Garcia said it was Sanders’ plan to address economic inequality, immigration, and unemployment among the nation’s youth that won him over.

“The role for the Latino community is not to be left watching on the sideline,” Grijalva said. “The role for the Latino community is to be driving change.” Sanders’ campaign, he said, is “nurturing a new crop of Latino leadership.”

Even the musical artists have been showing up at various locations to canvass or hit the phones for Bernie.

Dr. West and Jim Hightower have also been stumping for Bernie. The last rally scheduled for today is in Des Moines, where Sanders will give his closing case at a rally sponsored by MoveOn.org. Sanders will remain in Iowa on Caucus Day, likely doing informal meet and greets and taking interviews from the press. He will hold a rally at 9 p.m. on Monday in Des Moines, where he is confident he will declare victory.

Scott Galindez attended Syracuse University, where he first became politically active. The writings of El Salvador's slain archbishop Oscar Romero and the on-campus South Africa divestment movement converted him from a Reagan supporter to an activist for Peace and Justice. Over the years he has been influenced by the likes of Philip Berrigan, William Thomas, Mitch Snyder, Don White, Lisa Fithian, and Paul Wellstone. Scott met Marc Ash while organizing counterinaugural events after George W. Bush's first stolen election. Scott will be spending a year covering the presidential election from Iowa.

Reader Supported News is the Publication of Origin for this work. Permission to republish is freely granted with credit and a link back to Reader Supported News.