Sanders: Trump bears some blame for rise of hate groups

ST. ALBANS - U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders says the administration of President Donald Trump bears some responsibility for the behavior of neo-Nazis and white Supremacists during deadly, race-fueled clashes in Charlottesville, Virginia, by failing previously to condemn the groups.

Under pressure, Trump on Monday named and condemned hate groups as “repugnant” and declared “racism is evil.”

Trump had been under increasing pressure to call out the groups by name after his previous remarks criticized violence on “many sides” prompted criticism. The president described members of the KKK, neo-Nazis and white supremacists who take part in violence as “criminals and thugs” in a prepared statement from the White House.

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Sanders, the independent senator and former presidential hopeful, called the events in Charlottesville "a very, very sad moment in American history."

Medicare for all

Earlier, during an event in St. Albans, Sanders told a group of seniors that the solution to the country’s health care crisis is to make Medicare available to all, a proposal he plans to introduce shortly after Congress reconvenes in September.

The Vermont independent visited the Franklin County Senior Center in St. Albans on Monday to answer questions about health care, social security and President Donald Trump’s budget before heading to an East Fairfield dairy farm to hear from several dairy farmers about the challenges facing the industry, along with their health care concerns.

“Well, we kept the affordable care act alive by the slimmest of margins. Some of us worked very, very hard on that,” said Sanders.

He acknowledged that a “Medicare for all” bill likely won’t pass in the Republican-controlled Congress and with Trump as president. But he said change takes time, and would involve organizing effectively in every state to make it happen.

“If we pass this thing, it’s not going to be tomorrow, it would be the most significant step forward legislatively since I suspect the creation of Social Security in the 1930s. It’s a big deal,” he said.