S16, Ep11 How To Fail: Bernie Sanders on defeat, defiance and the struggles that shaped him (plus: the power of mittens)

How To Fail With Elizabeth Day

Sony Music

Society & Culture

4.7 • 9.6K Ratings

🗓️ 15 March 2023

⏱️ 46 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

PINCH ME, IS THIS ACTUALLY HAPPENING? Yes, yes it is. Ok. Deep breaths. For my season finale, I bring you the one and only Bernie Sanders: the longest-serving independent member of Congress in American history; unofficial leader of the US progressive movement and a two-time former Presidential candidate.He joins me to talk about his failed attempts to win the Democratic Party nomination, his failure to make his high school basketball team and the time he unwittingly went viral for wearing a pair of mittens to President Biden's inauguration. It's a conversation that will make you think and possibly make you angry (but that, as he explains, can be a good thing).It was an honour to meet Senator Sanders and although he doesn't much like talking about himself, I gave it my best shot. I think this is probably his most personal interview yet. I found his reflections on how his childhood shaped his political outlook really fascinating. And I posed so many questions about whether he cries and where he puts his disappointment that he actually asked me if it was a therapy session. My answer? 'Basically, yes.' He had the good grace to laugh.--Bernie Sanders's new book, It's Ok To Be Angry About Capitalism is out now and available to order here.--My new book, FRIENDAHOLIC: Confessions of a Friendship Addict, is published on 30th March and is now available to preorder - at half price - here.--How To Fail With Elizabeth Day is hosted and produced by Elizabeth Day. To contact us, email howtofailpod@gmail.com--Social Media:Elizabeth Day @elizabdayHow To Fail @howtofailpodBernie Sanders @berniesanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello and welcome to How to Fail with Elizabeth Day. The podcast that celebrates the things
0:19.2	that haven't gone right. This is a podcast about learning from our mistakes and understanding
0:25.5	that why we fail ultimately makes us stronger because learning how to fail in life actually means
0:32.5	learning how to succeed better. I'm your host, author and journalist Elizabeth Day, and every
0:38.5	week I'll be asking a new interviewee what they've learned from failure. Bernie Sanders is the
0:45.2	longest serving independent member of Congress in American history. He has served as the senior
0:51.4	United States senator from Vermont since 2007. A self-described democratic socialist, Sanders is often
0:59.3	seen as a leader of the progressive movement. He sought the Democratic Party nomination in 2016
1:05.8	and 2020. Although he finished in second place both times, Sanders revolutionized the way such
1:12.2	campaigns were fought. Unlike the other major candidates, Sanders focused on small dollar donations.
1:19.4	He raised $1.5 million within 24 hours of his official announcement in 2016. His rallies were
1:27.8	attended by tens of thousands of people, many of them working class Americans who finally believed
1:33.5	their voices were being heard. Sanders was born and raised in Brooklyn with an older brother, Larry.
1:40.8	Their father immigrated from Poland to New York City in 1921 and found work as a paint salesman.
1:47.3	Many of their extended family died in the Holocaust. It was a personal history that informed his
1:54.3	politics. At the University of Chicago, Sanders joined the Young People's Socialist League and took
2:01.0	part in civil rights and anti-war protests. He was elected mayor of Burlington, Vermont, in 1981.
2:08.7	In his new book, it's okay to be angry about capitalism. Sanders takes on the 1% and calls out
2:17.5	an economic system that he says is rigged against the rest of us. They say that the older you get,
2:25.8	the more conservative you become, he writes. Well, that's not me. The older I get, the angrier I
2:32.9	become. Senator Bernie Sanders, welcome to How to Fail. It's a pleasure to be with you. It's an
2:38.9	honor. Can I ask you when you first remember being angry at on fairness? It goes way back. It goes
	...

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