Presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders says that it would be “improper to turn our backs” on Syrian refugees.
Speaking at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., Sanders said that he was “not happy hearing that we should close our borders from men, women, and children who have been displaced.”
He also discussed the fight against ISIS, arguing that the bulk of the battle should be fought by Muslim countries rather than America.
“While the U.S. and other western nations have the strength of our militaries and political systems, the fight against ISIS is a struggle for the soul of Islam, and countering violent extremism and destroying ISIS must be done primarily by Muslim nations – with the strong support of their global partners.”
Sanders also discussed his political philosophy, “democratic socialism,” which he said is rooted in the ideas of Martin Luther King Jr. and President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
“Real freedom must include economic security” said Sanders. “That was Roosevelt’s vision 70 years ago. It is my vision today. It is a vision that we have not yet achieved. It is time that we did.”
“People are not truly free when they are unable to feed their family. People are not truly free when they are unable to retire with dignity. People are not truly free when they are unemployed or underpaid or when they are exhausted by working long hours. People are not truly free when they have no health care.”
Sanders also talked about how education fits into democratic socialism.
“Democratic socialism means that, in the year 2015, a college degree is equivalent to what a high school degree was 50 years ago – and that public education must allow every person in this country, who has the ability, the qualifications and the desire, the right to go to a public colleges or university tuition free.”
“This is also not a radical idea, he said. “It exists today in many countries around the world. In fact, it used to exist in the United States.”