Bernie Sanders says he supports letting terrorists, rapists, and other criminals vote in elections.
Democrats’ leading 2020 candidate offered the candid comments during a CNN town hall event in Manchester, N.H.
A student at Harvard asked Sanders if his call for letting ex-felons vote in elections included people like the Boston bomber and convicted rapists. Sanders said it was a “slippery slope” to draw lines around certain crimes.
After telling the student he supports letting all ex-felons vote, CNN’s Cuomo predicted his comments would soon be turned into an attack ad. “Are you sure about that,” Cuomo asked.
“This is what I believe,” Sanders responded.
Here’s an excerpt:
CUOMO: “Next question, Ann Carlstein, junior at Harvard, studying Mathematics from Chape Hill, North Carolina.”
STUDENT: “Senator Sanders, you have said that you believe that people with felony records should be allowed to vote while in prison. Does this mean you would support in franchising people like the Boston marathon bomber, a convicted terrorist and murderer? Do you think that those convicted of sexual assault should have the opportunity to vote for politicians who could have a direct impact on women’s rights?”
SANDERS: “Thank you for the question. Let me just say this, what our campaign is about and what I believe is creating a vibrant democracy. Today as you may know, we have one of the lowest voter turn outs of any major country on Earth. I want to see us have one of the highest voter turn outs. And by the way, what we’re seeing more young people getting involved in the political process but not enough. And in my view, if young people voted at the same percentage that older people voted in this country, we would transform this nation. But to get to your point, we live in a moment where cowardly Republican vote governors are trying to suppress the vote. In fact, tight here in New Hampshire they’re working hard to make it more difficult for young people to vote and to me that is incredibly un-Democratic, un-American process and I say to those people, by the way, if you don’t have the guts to participate in free and fair elections, you should get another job and get out of politics. All right? So — to answer your question, as it happens in my own state of Vermont, from the very first days of our state’s history — where our constitution says everybody can vote. So people in jail can vote. Here is my view, If somebody commits a serious crime, sexual assault, murder, they’re going to be punished. They may be in jail for 10 years, 20 years, 50 years, their whole life. That’s what happens when you commit a serious crime but I think the right to vote is inherent to our democracy. Yes, even for terrible people because once you start chipping away and you say well that guy committed a terrible crime, not going to let him vote. Well that person did that. Not going to let that person vote, you’re running down a slippery slope. So I believe that people commit crimes, they paid the price and when they get out of jail, they have the right to vote. I believe even if they’re in jail, they’re paying their price to society but that should not take away their American right to participate in our democracy.”
CUOMO: “Applause for the answer, my follow up question goes to being like, you’re writing an opposition ad against you by saying, ‘you think the Boston marathon bomber should vote not after he pays his debt to society but while he’s in jail.’ Are you sure about that?”
SANDERS: “Well Chris, I think I have written many 30 second opposition ads throughout my life. This will be just another one. But I do believe — this is what I believe. You believe in democracy. You believe that every single American 18 years of age or older who is an American citizen has the right to vote. Once you start chipping away at that — believe me — that’s what our Republican governors all over this country are doing. They come up with all kinds of excuses. Like people of color, young people, poor people can’t vote and I will do everything I can to resist it. This is a democracy and we have to expand that democracy and I believe every person has the right to vote.”