[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6271114,"mediaKeyId","3029454-d337fe7af0d11eec430bb2334a37252c","parentId",3029454,"title","Sen. Bernie Sanders in Missoula denounces oligarchy, calls to expand Social Security and protect veterans' benefits","audioSeconds",2444,"startMs",2706110,"endMs",5151000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3029454-d337fe7af0d11eec430bb2334a37252c&start=2706&end=5151","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3029454-d337fe7af0d11eec430bb2334a37252c/thumbnail_2706110.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6271114/Missoula/Missoula-County/Montana/Sen-Bernie-Sanders-in-Missoula-denounces-oligarchy-calls-to-expand-Social-Security-and-protect-veterans-benefits","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6271114-059e05bcc065f70841c6738e0926428a/orig.mp4?Expires=1771193809&Signature=DY1TY1Yt~uc1fh7EQFO12qqGa4sYjVUHHsjMP30OwH-R7ekbeVlUJU4cPwulC-0CKSmdGoA688wOJpGJsxTf5R3kYtbeoVJcihsxWl2PVlu3dkLkuO3qydrjMDBr8a7Vqjzs1T4rsx0ltn1XNts-zx2YAxyXLGNdvoltXSwriebye2Ta08uJPIKOBk-G7DM9cOP5bqndlKTk9U2d8QNgglP3Y2hp3W5LF0CQcstloN~WVJ0CfyRFZDEZtP~D0IF2NskAxvY3gPqSGlrvck8Awvas52tEaj792pzN5KhdYuKy0FWI195HE9QvhQzdTJX8iVctzNMJ9cY1OjlTyJ3ECw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Missoula, MT","date","2025-04-17T01:05:19.357Z","article","Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., told a Missoula audience that concentrated wealth and political power threaten democratic institutions and urged expansion of Social Security, protections for veterans, and stronger social-safety programs.

Sanders criticized billionaire influence on politics and singled out private actors he said were reshaping government priorities. He warned that cuts to the Social Security Administration and the Veterans Administration would have human consequences, saying of Social Security staffing cuts: \"People who are old and with disabilities die when they can't get the benefits they are entitled to.\" He also warned against proposed deep Medicaid reductions and large tax breaks for the wealthy, repeating figures cited in the speech that link tax breaks for the top earners with cuts in social programs.

On veterans, Sanders said reductions in VA staffing would \"mean lower quality health care for our veterans and delays in them getting the benefits that they deserve.\" He framed responses to those outcomes as both moral and political imperatives and called for organizing and sustained public pressure to preserve and expand social programs, including Social Security and a living wage: \"No worker who works 40 hours a week should live in poverty.\"

Sanders criticized the Citizens United Supreme Court decision and urged public funding of elections as part of a set of reforms to reduce private money’s role in politics. He also addressed foreign policy and civil liberties briefly, saying that wars and authoritarian tactics abroad and at home require public vigilance; he urged universities and media institutions to resist pressure to censor or collapse under political pressure.

Sanders’s remarks were broad and rhetorical; he did not put forward a new legislative text in Missoula or announce votes by Montana officials. His remarks combined policy prescriptions (expand Social Security, oppose Medicaid/VA cuts) with calls for organizing and public pressure to influence congressional action.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Bernie Sanders Fight Oligarchy Tour 2025","oneSentenceSummary","Sen. Bernie Sanders told a Missoula rally that extreme wealth concentration threatens democracy, warned against cuts to Social Security, Medicaid and Veterans Administration staffing, and urged expansion of social programs and higher wages.","taxTitle","Missoula, Missoula County, Montana","taxId",4050,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6271119,"AOC tells Missoula crowd money in politics fuels inequality, urges local organizing and healthcare fight",1878,820900,2699000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3029454-d337fe7af0d11eec430bb2334a37252c&start=820&end=2699","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3029454-d337fe7af0d11eec430bb2334a37252c/thumbnail_820900.jpg","/articles/6271119/Missoula/Missoula-County/Montana/AOC-tells-Missoula-crowd-money-in-politics-fuels-inequality-urges-local-organizing-and-healthcare-fight","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6271119-d8f4820a158cc8afdef689af56aff81b/orig.mp4?Expires=1771193810&Signature=OhDi4TR7JtNjn6~fc30yhnf0U39DNgWGXWMQNILQltNfaGy5oMzCmvBjdIDBKc3TcOPpjDzl1-IFoSAqGt2o9sdFvy9cumH0zxEzRJZ8QM~u6mHKygYeS4nS8oosFrAHim~u3ElXbEywsaTTmCoOrU57vTFQjGK8PnBIQ8PW-rf88YbJLfer5Wzo30NKfk4XVaHjVP1jQh3HCdd5E8rLdhc~Qp1N5ZG4SvQJwIu9ZhzJfCQrIlUdBNhg0HQ9uQyBHIor~Ue~mrGdcaoA5Du6LLSppSbD18F8VCnY2FR~P7RJGYAsxW0F81eg5X4hW~lsv0pdC5Xx2gEntKz7rU1AzA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, U.S. representative from New York, told a large crowd in Missoula that concentrated wealth and \"dark money\" are undermining democracy and urged sustained local organizing to protect social programs and defeat proposed Medicaid cuts.

Ocasio-Cortez framed the rally as part of a broader movement against what she and other speakers described as an oligarchy. She criticized billionaire influence on elections and policy, saying dark-money spending \"funnel[ed] tons and tons of money trying to buy elections right here in the state of Montana,\" and urged attendees to build local organizing infrastructure — from block associations to PTAs — as a way to defend democracy and expand health and economic rights.

On specific policies, Ocasio-Cortez pressed for Medicare-for-all and a higher minimum wage: \"We must free more as well because not everyone is so lucky... You free me to fight for Medicare for all. You free me to fight for living wage.\" She said opponents in Congress were preparing large tax breaks for the wealthy paired with cuts to Medicaid and other programs, and she called for visible, floor-level votes against those measures rather than symbolic statements: \"I wanna see the no vote on the floor. That's the only thing we will accept.\"

Ocasio-Cortez also raised a criminal-justice and free-speech concern, saying the Trump administration had detained a New Yorker, Mahmoud Khalil, \"without any evidence or charge of a crime,\" and demanded his release. She attributed the claim to the administration’s own statements in her remarks.

Her remarks included appeals to protect civil liberties and to resist divisive rhetoric aimed at distracting working-class unity. She encouraged attendees to translate attendance into activism by forming local groups and attending picket lines: \"A couple of events and you're an activist. Bring 10 friends and you're an organizer.\"

Her Missoula appearance was part of a multi-city tour that she and other speakers said had drawn large crowds in other states. Ocasio-Cortez’s comments were nominations of political strategy and advocacy rather than proposals of local legislation; she did not announce any specific local policy measures or binding commitments from officials who represent Montana.","Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told a Missoula rally that concentrated wealth and dark money threaten democracy, urged local organizing to oppose Medicaid cuts and support Medicare-for-all, and called for release of a detained protester she named in remarks.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6271124,"Association of Flight Attendants president urges solidarity, calls for industry-wide organizing",517,57265,575000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3029454-d337fe7af0d11eec430bb2334a37252c&start=57&end=575","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3029454-d337fe7af0d11eec430bb2334a37252c/thumbnail_57265.jpg","/articles/6271124/Missoula/Missoula-County/Montana/Association-of-Flight-Attendants-president-urges-solidarity-calls-for-industry-wide-organizing","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6271124-7cdd0a016eecedefa87fc4ac1e9db726/orig.mp4?Expires=1771193810&Signature=YKM5DmEllo2PMp9gE4hvDr3rbOjI~KDS3UtaJDfICKs9AHNCTvToA107ovNSVkNp--M4wYT0n41DBpWN5SPS9A1GcZXZhC20RhxDiZNpL52im5dNI7cDoCkfDDmOhszF5WnMaeOhonvpg~n94uek0OqLjZWtz0Ui4DtQKsaM9vf9UWQDBq7DlAZscCLbiKu5VRDzQy37-wwDgnyzFV1WaSg-f9KQTHVt~5-zyfZo6HMWQazkH6be-hq5dfopaJ3G4s8ksXYldKIkyXdlEzCV9snz1~SelW0sHm0dIbc7Fsc6zTrqCywxrf9kVTVy2LiCUvWiolqG7tTTJz6cHzrecg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Sarah Nelson, international president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, told a crowd in Missoula that flight attendants are organizing for higher pay and industrywide protections and urged union solidarity that could expand into broader labor actions.

Nelson said the union represents \"55,000 strong at 20 airlines\" and described ongoing contract fights, including at United Airlines, where she said attendants are seeking \"an industry leading contract that's long overdue.\" She noted that 29,000 Delta flight attendants were organizing to join the Association of Flight Attendants and framed the drive as part of a broader labor struggle against corporate cost-cutting: \"our union is fighting the greedy business model that keeps some flight attendants paid at 45% less doing the same job.\"

Nelson emphasized flight attendants’ safety role, citing a Toronto evacuation: \"These are flight attendants like the flight attendants in Toronto who safely evacuated 80 people from a plane after a crash landed and turned upside down. We are aviation's first responders.\" She tied that safety role to bargaining leverage and public value of the work in arguing for stronger contracts.

Nelson used the platform to push for collective action and preparation: \"Solidarity is a force stronger than gravity. It lifts lifts us up, and we need to get ready for a general strike.\" She encouraged attendees to join picket lines and to move from attending events to active organizing: \"A couple of events and you're an activist. Bring 10 friends and you're an organizer.\"

While urging large-scale tactics, Nelson framed the effort as practical organizing: calling/texting, meeting at picket lines, and building sustained local organizing rather than one-off gestures. She did not propose a specific timeline for any strike or describe an NLRB or legal filing in progress.

The remarks were delivered during a large rally in Missoula that also featured national elected officials and other labor leaders; Nelson’s comments focused on labor organizing, membership counts, and the role of flight attendants in public safety.","Sarah Nelson, international president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, told a Missoula rally that flight attendants are \"aviation's first responders,\" described bargaining fights at United and Delta, and urged solidarity and preparation for broader labor actions including a general strike.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Sen. Bernie Sanders in Missoula denounces oligarchy, calls to expand Social Security and protect veterans' benefits

AOC tells Missoula crowd money in politics fuels inequality, urges local organizing and healthcare fight

Association of Flight Attendants president urges solidarity, calls for industry-wide organizing