As college students, we're used to being the ones writing the cover letters and applying for job after job, asking others to choose us for the job we want. But in Election 2020, the tables are turned, and we as college students get to be the ones "doing the hiring." We'll be deciding who will hold the most important role in the entire country—the role of President of the United States—through the power of our vote. So we've turned the job application process on its head to bring you 'Cover Letters from the Candidates', and this time we've asked Senator Bernie Sanders to write his own cover letter, addressed to you, for his application for the job of President. Read his cover letter below (written by Senator Sanders himself, just for Her Campus), tune in to Sunday night's debate, and then decide—Will you move him to the next round of the application process?
March 13, 2020
Senator Bernie Sanders
1 Church Street, 3rd Floor
Burlington, VT 05401
College Women
United States of America
To the college women of the United States of America:
Please consider my sincere application for the available role of President of the United States.
First, I wanted to convey the importance of filling this role with the right candidate. This is a campaign not just to win the Democratic primary, and not just to defeat Donald Trump — although we must and we will. This is a campaign to bring fundamental political change to America. Today in our country, 45 million people hold some $1.6 trillion in student debt. Almost two-thirds of all student debt — nearly $929 billion as of 2019 — in the U.S. is held by women.
And here’s why I’m the best choice for the job. I will cancel all student debt and make public colleges and universities tuition and debt-free. And I will protect students from harassment, discrimination, and violence in educational institutions by protecting and enforcing Title IX. 87 million Americans are uninsured or underinsured. In 2017, there were 10.6 million women uninsured in the U.S. Millions more were underinsured. If I am given the opportunity to serve in this role, we will pass a Medicare for All to guarantee health care as a human right, and I will introduce that legislation in my first week on the job. Under my Medicare for All program, we will fully repeal the Hyde Amendment and guarantee comprehensive reproductive care to every person in this nation. Abortion is a constitutional right.
Climate change is an existential threat, and we must act now. This is about whether we save the planet for our children and grandchildren. We are going to pass a Green New Deal to save the planet from climate catastrophe and create 20 million jobs. A minimum wage of $7.25 an hour is a starvation wage. We will raise it to at least $15 an hour and enact Bernie’s Workplace Democracy plan to expand workers’ rights and double union membership in this country. I will ensure minimum wage workers, who are disproportionately adults and women of color, earn a living wage of at least $15 an hour. This would result in a raise for the 53 percent of women working in minimum wage labor. And we will end the gender pay gap in this country. We’re going to end ICE raids which are terrorizing communities and put a moratorium on deportations. We will undo every one of Trump’s racist executive actions, including the wall and the Muslim ban. We will guarantee the right to community living for people with disabilities by ensuring everyone has the support and services they need to thrive. We’ll transform our criminal justice system that is racist and broken, invest in k-12 education, enact universal childcare, expand Social Security, protect and expand LGBTQ+ rights, and implement Bernie’s Housing for All plan to guarantee housing as a human right. We will do all of this and more to fundamentally transform this country to work for all of us, and all of you.
So why should you hire me? When I am President, the principles of our government will not be greed, hatred and lies. It will not be racism, sexism, xenophobia, homophobia and religious bigotry. The principles of our government will be based on justice: economic justice, social justice, racial justice, disability justice, and environmental justice. Together, we will tell the powerful special interests who control so much of our economic and political life that we will no longer tolerate the greed and corruption of corporate America and the billionaire class – which has resulted in this country having more income and wealth inequality than any other major country on earth. The only way we achieve this is through a political revolution – where millions of people get involved in the political process, just as all of you have done, and work together to reclaim our democracy. Nothing will fundamentally change in America unless we have the guts to take on Wall Street, the insurance industry, the pharmaceutical industry, the military-industrial complex, private prisons and the fossil fuel industry. As President, that is exactly what I will do. At the end of the day, the one percent may have enormous wealth and power, but they are just the one percent. When the 99 percent stand together, we can transform society. Together, we will build a world based on peace and justice, not war and destruction. We will invest in our people, not spend unlimited money on endless wars.
Thank you in advance for considering me for this important position, and please do not hesitate to follow up with me if I can provide further materials or information. I look forward to hearing from you and hope to prove to you that I am the best choice for this job.
Sincerely,
Bernie Sanders