Bernie Sanders Brings Socialist Message To The Vatican

Sen. Bernie Sanders is taking his socialist message to the Vatican, according to The Washington Post’s John Wagner.

The famous Democratic Socialist will take a break from the campaign trail to speak at a gathering hosted by the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences. The topics include economics and climate change.

Sanders thinks he was invited to the Vatican because his political message aligned with Pope Francis.

“I think the Vatican has been aware of the fact that, in many respects, the pope’s views and my views are very much related,” Sanders said to the Post. “He has talked in an almost unprecedented way about the need to address income and wealth inequality, poverty and to combat the greed that we’re seeing all over this world, which is doing so much harm to so many people. … For me, it is an extraordinary honor to receive this invitation.”

Sanders frequently cites Pope Francis on the campaign trail, in an attempt to bolster his economic message.

“[H]e has been very direct; no, he does not believe in trickle-down economic theory, he does not believe, as many of my more conservative colleagues believe, that if we give more tax breaks to the rich, and we deregulate Wall Street, and deregulate industry, that somehow all of the benefits about the regulation will filter on down to ordinary people,” he said in an interview in February with Salt + Light. “That is a direct critique of conservative politics, and of course he’s going to be attacked for that.”