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2020: Senator Bernie Sanders Declares to Run for President Again

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Sen. Bernie Sanders announced Tuesday he is a candidate for president in 2020.

Sanders, 77, made his decision known with an online video and separate email blast to millions of supporters.

NBC5’s Stewart Ledbetter obtained the announcement Monday night before it was announced publicly.

Sanders addresses his email to “Sisters and Brothers.

“I am writing to let you know I have decided to run for president of the United States.”

The email asks for a grassroots campaign of at least one million supporters across the country.

By Tuesday evening, aides said he had signed up more than 250,000 volunteers — and received 100,000 campaign donations.

“Our campaign is not only about defeating Donald Trump, the most dangerous president in modern American history,” Sanders writes. “It is not only about winning the Democratic nomination and the general election.”

The campaign email carries the many themes Sanders has championed since he announced his previous presidential campaign in 2015.

“Our campaign is about transforming our country and creating a government based on the principles of economic, social, racial and environmental justice,” Sanders writes. “Our campaign is about taking on the powerful special interests that dominate our economic and political life.”

He says he will take on Wall Street, health insurance companies, drug companies, the fossil fuel industry, the military industrial complex, the private prison industry and the multinational corporations that he says exert an enormous influence over Americans’ lives.

“Our campaign is about redoubling our efforts to end racism, sexism, homophobia, religious bigotry and all forms of discrimination,” Sanders writes. “Our campaign is about creating a vibrant democracy with the highest voter turnout of any major country while we end voter suppression, Citizens United and outrageous levels of gerrymandering.”

He says his campaign is about creating a government and economy that work for the many, not the few.

“We are the wealthiest nation in the history of the world,” Sanders writes. “We should not have grotesque levels of wealth inequality in which three billionaires own more wealth than the bottom half of the country.”

He says 30 million Americans live without health insurance and even more who are underinsured.

“We should not have an economy in which tens of millions of workers earn starvation wages and half of older workers have no savings as they face retirement,” Sanders writes. “We should not have the highest rate of childhood poverty of almost any major country on Earth and a dysfunctional childcare system which is unfair to both working parents and their children.”

He says the American tax system benefits large corporations, like Amazon.

“Make no mistake about it. The powerful special interests in this country have unbelievable power and they want to maintain the status quo,” Sanders writes. “They have unlimited amounts of money to spend on campaigns and lobbying and have huge influence over the media and political parties.”

He calls the political environment a pivotal and dangerous moment in American history and calls out President Trump.

“We are running against a president who is a pathological liar, a fraud, a racist, a sexist, a xenophobe and someone who is undermining American democracy as he leads us in an authoritarian direction,” Sanders writes. “I’m running for president because, now more than ever, we need leadership that brings us together — not divides us up. Women and men, black, white, Latino, Native American, Asian American, gay and straight, young and old, native born and immigrant. Now is the time for us to stand together.”

He says the government needs to operate for working families and the middle class.

“We need a president who understands that we can create millions of good-paying jobs, rebuild our crumbling infrastructure and construct the affordable housing we desperately need,” Sanders writes. “I’m running for president because we need trade policies that reflect the interests of workers and not multi-national corporations.”

He renews his call for a $15 minimum wage, Medicare-for-all and paid family leave.

“I’m running for president because a great nation is judged not by how many billionaires and nuclear weapons it has, but by how it treats the most vulnerable — the elderly, the children, our veterans, the sick and the poor,” Sanders writes. “I’m running for president because we need to make policy decisions based on science, not politics.”

He says he believes climate change is real and calls it an existential threat to America and the planet.

Sanders adds he plans to create massive job creation by transforming the energy system from fossil fuels to sustainable sources.

He also outlines his education policy, saying America needs to eliminate student debt and provide free tuition to students at state colleges and universities.

“I’m running for president because we must defend a woman’s right to control her own body against massive political attacks taking place at the local, state and federal level,” Sanders writes. “I’m running for president because we need real criminal justice reform. We need to invest in jobs and education for our kids, not more jails and incarceration.”

He calls for ending the war on drugs, eliminating private prisons and cash bail and reforming local police departments.

“I’m running for president because we need to end the demonization of undocumented immigrants in this country and move to comprehensive immigration reform,” Sanders writes. “We need to provide immediate legal status for the young people eligible for the DACA program and develop a humane policy for those at the border who seek asylum.”

He wants to take on the NRA to end gun violence by expanding background checks, ending the gun show loophole and banning the sale and distribution of assault weapons.

“I’m running for president because we need a foreign policy which focuses on democracy, human rights, diplomacy and world peace, Sanders writes. “The United States must lead the world in improving international cooperation in the fight against climate change, militarism, authoritarianism and global wealth inequality.”

He says his progressive policies are now supported by a majority of Americans.

“Together, you and I and our 2016 campaign began the political revolution,” Sanders writes. “Now, it is time to complete that revolution and implement the vision that we fought for.”

He ends by saying he can defeat Trump and begin repairing “the damage he has done to our country.”

Sanders signs his email announcement: “In solidarity.

“Brothers and sisters, if we stand together, there is no limit to what we can accomplish.”

Sanders served as the Mayor of Burlington from 1981 to 1989.

He was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1990.

Sanders was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2006 and serves with Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy.

Sanders won re-election to the Senate in 2018 with a 2-to-1 vote margin over Republican Lawrence Zupan.

He describes himself as a Democratic Socialist.

Sanders lost the Democratic nomination for president in 2016 to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

He won 23 primaries and 1,865 delegates to Clinton’s 34 primary wins and 2,842 delegates.

Sanders spoke at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia and called for party unity behind Clinton.

He is the tenth major candidate to declare candidacy for the 2020 election.

Sanders begins his campaign with about $13 million already in the bank.

He raised more than $1 million more within hours of announcing his candidacy.

Right now, Trump is the oldest president in U.S. history at 72.

If Sanders wins in 2020, he would break that record — at 79 years old.

NBC5 News

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World

Trump Gives Iran Two Weeks Ultimatum to Negotiate or Face Imminent Strike

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The President of the United States, Donald Trump, on Friday, warned that Iran has a “maximum” of two weeks to avoid possible US air strikes, indicating he could take a decision before the fortnight deadline he set a day earlier.

Trump added that he is not inclined to stop Israel attacking Iran because it was “winning,” and was dismissive of European efforts to mediate an end to the conflict.

“I’m giving them a period of time, and I would say two weeks would be the maximum,” Trump told reporters when asked if he could decide to strike Iran before that.

He added that the aim was to “see whether or not people come to their senses.”

Trump had said in a statement on Thursday that he would “make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks” because there was a “substantial chance of negotiations” with Iran.

Those comments had been widely seen as opening a two-week window for negotiations to end the war between Israel and Iran, with the European powers rushing to talks with Tehran.

But his latest remarks indicated Trump could still make his decision before that if he feels that there has been no progress towards dismantling Iran’s nuclear program.

Trump meanwhile dismissed talks that European powers Britain, France, Germany and the EU had with Iran’s foreign minister in Geneva on Friday.

“They didn’t help,” he said as he arrived in Morristown, New Jersey, ahead of a fundraising dinner at his nearby golf club.

“Iran doesn’t want to speak to Europe. They want to speak to us. Europe is not going to be able to help in this.”

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said after the talks in Geneva that Tehran would not resume negotiations with the United States until Israel stopped its attacks.

But Trump was reluctant.

“It’s very hard to make that request right now,” Trump said.

“If somebody’s winning, it’s a little bit harder to do than if somebody’s losing, but we’re ready, willing and able, and we’ve been speaking to Iran, and we’ll see what happens.”

Trump meanwhile doubled down on his claims that Iran is weeks away from being able to produce a nuclear bomb, despite divisions in his own administration about the intelligence behind his assessment.

Trump’s Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, said in a report in March that Iran was not close to having enough enriched uranium for a nuclear weapon.

“She’s wrong,” Trump said of Gabbard, a longtime opponent of US foreign intervention whom Trump tapped to coordinate the sprawling US spy community.

Iran says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.

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Middle East

Israel kills Iranian Armed Forces Chief Two Days after Appointment

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The Israel Defense Force has announced the elimination of Major General Ali Shadmani, the Commander of the Khatam-al Anbiya Central Headquarters of the Iranian General Staff.

He was just appointed to the position two days ago by Iranian Supreme-Leader Major Ali Khamenei,

He was appointed after the assassination on Friday of the previous Commander, Major General Gholam Ali Rashid, in an Israeli strike on Tehran.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he believes that neutralising Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei would not escalate the conflict in the Middle East but instead bring it to an end.

Netanyahu made the controversial remarks during an interview with ABC News on Monday, saying that previous U.S. concerns about targeting Iran’s leadership were misplaced.

“It’s not going to escalate the conflict, it’s going to end the conflict,” he said, alluding to reports that the former U.S. President Donald Trump had rejected similar suggestions out of fear of provoking further instability.

The Israeli leader blamed Tehran for decades of unrest, stating, “We’ve had half a century of conflict spread by this regime that terrorises everyone in the Middle East… What Israel is doing is preventing this, bringing an end to this aggression.”

When asked if Israel would directly target Ayatollah Khamenei, Netanyahu responded cryptically, “I’m not going to get into the details, but we’ve targeted their top nuclear scientists. It’s basically Hitler’s nuclear team.”

The interview comes amid escalating violence between the two regional rivals. On Monday, Iran fired another round of missiles at northern Israel, triggering air raid sirens throughout the region.

In retaliation, Iranian state media warned of what it described as “the largest and most intense missile attack in history on Israeli soil.”

As tensions soar, Netanyahu reaffirmed Israel’s commitment to defending its sovereignty: “We can only do so by standing up to the forces of evil. We’re doing what we need to do.”

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Middle East

Netanyahu Incites Iranians to Rise Against Country’s ‘Evil, Oppressive Regime’

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Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, called on Iranians Friday to unite against what he described as an “evil and oppressive regime”, telling them Israel was engaged in “one of the greatest military operations in history”.

“The time has come for the Iranian people to unite around its flag and its historic legacy, by standing up for your freedom from the evil and oppressive regime,” Netanyahu said in a video statement after Israel struck over 200 military and nuclear sites in the Islamic republic.

“We are in the midst of one of the greatest military operations in history, Operation Rising Lion,” he added.

“As we achieve our objective, we are also clearing the path for you to achieve your freedom,” he said, referring to Israeli strikes that hit targets across Iran, including nuclear sites, killing several top military commanders and nuclear scientists.

“The regime does not know what hit them, or what will hit them. It has never been weaker,” Netanyahu said in his video published shortly after a salvo of Iranian missiles reached Israel.

“Our fight is against the murderous Islamic regime that oppresses and impoverishes you,” he said, adding: “This is your opportunity to stand up and let your voices be heard.”

Netanyahu also promised that “more is on the way”, having said earlier that Israel’s attack on Iran would “continue for as many days as it takes”.

Iran called the attack “a declaration of war” and threatened to retaliate by opening “the gates of hell” on Israel.

It first sent about 100 drones towards Israel, many of which were intercepted before reaching the country.

The drones were followed by dozens of missiles, some of which caused physical damage in Israeli cities, and injured at least seven people, according to first responders.

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