MSNBC "The Ed Show"- Transcript:

Interview

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Senator, good to have you with us tonight this is a very forward-thinking
problem solving issue as I see it. It`s what American families are dealing
with every summer, how`s my kid going to go to college.

But the number that I think people have got to consume where the debt is
$1.2 trillion, and I have to ask the question, Senator. If we don`t do
something where we going to be in five years, where we going to be in 10
years?

SANDERS: Ed, this is disastrous situation. That`s really an embarrassment
for a great country like ours.

We got hundreds of thousands of bright young people who now have given up
the dream of going to college. We`re losing all of their intellectual
potential. And as you`ve just mentioned, we have millions more who are
leading school 30,000, 50,000. I talked to a young doctor last year, she
is $300,000 of debt. This is insane.

So it`s time for us to learn from what countries around the world that
doing Germany, Scandinavia, countries all over the world. And they are
saying that they want a capitalized on the intelligence and energy of their
young people that all young peoples deserve the ability to get higher
education, regardless of the income of their family. And if furthermore,
young people should not be strangled by this oppressive debt around there
next which go on year, after year, after year so...

SCHULTZ: Yeah. Senator those who oppose this plan are going to be saying,
why do we have to shake down Wall Street? Why is Wall Street the target
here? Your thoughts.

SANDERS: Well, the answer is two fold. Number one, folks on Wall Street
and people were trading in huge amounts of stocks are becoming phenomenally
wealthy. Hedge fund managers are doing extraordinarily, extraordinarily
wealth and they have got to help us build with some of the major crisis
that we face as a nation including making college affordable.

Second of all, Ed, what this legislation most is not only race a very
substantial sum (ph) of money and a fair and progressive way and also puts
a damper on the speculation that is ramping Wall Street. So it serves a
purpose in that direction as well.

SCHULTZ: So it`s a 2 for 1, you`ve always been concerned about the
speculation on Wall Street...

SANDERS: Right.

SCHULTZ: . and this would be throwing some cold waters on a hot field (ph)
so to speak...

SANDERS: Exactly. Yup.

SCHULTZ: ... which, of course, would bring down the risk on our economy,
all right.

Now, what has been the response since you`ve announced this legislation and
the mechanism you want to use?

SANDERS: It`s been extraordinary. I think all over the country young
people are writing us and their families are writing us, in terms of e-
mail, in terms of signing a petition that we have out there.

Look, as you`ve just indicated every parent who`s thinking about sending
their kid to college is scared to death and worried about what kind of a
debt their children are going to incur and what kind of debt they are going
to occur.

This is a no brainer. If you want a strong economy, you have to have the
best educated workforce in the world it is insane.

SCHULTZ: Yeah.

SANDERS: . to tell kids they can`t get that education.

SCHULTZ: All right. So tell us about the second Robin Hood bill, which is
similar to the one introduce by Congressman Keith Ellison.

SANDERS: Right. This is the same bill as Keith introduced and it`s
actually.

SCHULTZ: OK.

SANDERS: . you know, is the same bill. And we`re introducing an
independently, we`re also introducing it to pay of for this higher
education refinancing bill. And by the way we`ll raising (inaudible) to do
some other things as well.

Look, the bottom line here is that, the rich are getting much richer. You
have corporations making huge profits. These guys are going to have stop
paying their fair share of taxes, so we can address the major issues facing
our country and that includes making education affordable and lifting this
yolk (ph) of debt that so many of our young people are dealing with.

SCHULTZ: Senator, if I may profoundly point out in the news in the last
week, other candidates are talking about war, you`re talking about kitchen
table issues, where do you think the public is?

SANDERS: I think the public understands that we need to fundamentally
reshape our priorities that we cannot, cannot, cannot, get involved in
endless war in the Middle East which will cause us lives, which will cause
us trillions more of taxpayer dollars, that we have got to address, Ed, the
crisis facing a disappearing middle-class. And that`s where we`ve got to
put our (inaudible). We got to create millions of decent paying jobs,
rebuilding our infrastructure. We have to raise the minimum wage to a
living wage. We have to make college affordable. We got to deal with
student debt. We have to deal with climate change.

SCHULTZ: Yeah.

SANDERS: . we can`t keep pushing these issues aside and get involved in
more, more war.

SCHULTZ: Are you enjoying running? I mean, this -- what, you know, I know
you thought about this a lot your early into it, are you enjoying it?

SANDERS: It`s a quite a trip to tell you the truth. It`s very
interesting, yes. The answer is I am and I`m looking forward to getting
out, all over this country, into New Hampshire, into Iowa. We got to make
our formal announcement next week in Burlington, Vermont.

SCHULTZ: Senator Bernie Sanders, always a pleasure here on the Ed Show.
Thanks so much, Senator.

SANDERS: Thank you.

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