Reported today on The New York Times For the full article visit:
Why Bernie Sanders Is Tough to BeatHis supporters are loyal, and in Iowa they don't really have eyes for anyone else. GARNER, Iowa - Dawn Smallfoot put up a Bernie Sanders sign in her yard after hearing him speak in spring 2015. It's been there ever since. "Why take it down?" she said on a recent Monday evening, during a break from making calls to potential Sanders supporters. "I was waiting for his return."His campaign is counting on that kind of devotion.With less than six weeks until voting begins, the loyalty Mr. Sanders commands has turned him into a formidable contender in the 2020 race. Despite having a heart attack in October that threatened to derail his second quest for the Democratic nomination, he remains at or near the top of polls in Iowa and other early states, lifted by his near ubiquitous name recognition and an enviable bank account. His anti-establishment message hasn't changed for 50 years, and it resonates with working-class voters and young people who agree the system is corrupt and it will take a revolution to fix it.The scenario seemed unlikely just months earlier. As Mr. Sanders, 78, lay recovering in a hospital in Las Vegas, two new stents in one of his arteries, some of his staff members were unsure if he would continue his campaign. With Mr. Sanders, Vermont's junior senator, already slumping in the polls, even some allies thought he should drop out and throw his support behind Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, a fellow progressive who was surging.But then he secured the coveted endorsement of Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Democrat of New York, giving his campaign a much-needed shot of energy. In the debates, he was steady, loose and largely unscathed. On the trail, he began to display a newfound joy and humor. And Ms. Wa
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