Endorsement Photo 1995

This is the Progressive Coalition photo of Bernie endorsing me for the Ward 3 city council seat  being vacated by Brian Pine in 1995.  It was taken this time of year in City Hall Park.  Bernie wasn't super psyched to endorse me.  You can see he wasn't smiling and Brian had to be in the picture to attenuate Bernie's responsibility for the matter.  And the picture is black and white.  Still- he put his arm around me.  That was nice.  I wasn't really a Progressive and I was only 22, but I had the party's nomination for the seat partly because nobody else wanted it, but also perhaps because I threatened to be a spoiler for them in the mayor's race that year if they didn't give it to me.  Before we took the picture Bernie and I took a walk on Church Street and he told me the one condition of his endorsement was my assurance that I would hash out my disagreements within the party to shape its positions, and support those positions publicly once they were shaped, whether or not they mirrored my wishes.

Left to right: Haik Bedrosian, Bernie Sanders and Brian Pine.

This is the essential contract of joining any political party and it was the first and last time I ever made it.  I assured Bernie that I could live with this condition in order to get this photograph and win the election, but once on the city council I deviated from the party line too often for their taste and the party ("coalition") was quick nominate someone else in the very next election.  I have been an independent ever since and ironically have always felt an affinity with Bernie because he is, or was until recently too.  It's hard to win elections as an independent.  I managed to win a write-in race for the school board six years ago but that's about the level of electoral success an independent can reasonably expect.  Bernie's success as an independent is phenomenal, but the presidency is worth the trade I suppose.  A seat on the city council was worth it to me once a long time ago.

Post script... Lest this post seem too "about me," I believe Bernie will win and be a great president. I can see it, and I support that. He'll be called a Democratic president but he'll be a pretty darn independent Democrat.