Bernie Sanders criticises Trump and Elon Musk: the fight against oligarchy and authoritarianism

The independent senator from Vermont, Bernie Sanders, 83, confirms himself as a clear anti-Trump voice. Together with Congresswoman Alexandra Ocasio Cortez, he stands out for anti-presidential outbursts that are among the most combative stances against the current US administration. Even on the trade war unleashed by Trump, Sanders had his say at a CNN town hall. "We don't have to hate China, we don't have to hate other people. We have to find ways to work together," the senator said. "The goal must be to break down these barriers that separate us as human beings, unite us as Americans and unite us globally as human beings."

Sanders answered several questions, not only on Trump's tariffs, but also on the administration's cuts to federal staff, on the Democrats' difficulties with young Latino voters. The themes are still his own, the same ones he has been pursuing since he ran for the White House in 2015, but now Sanders pushes hard on Elon Musk, how much he spent to get Trump elected, his role in the White House in the cuts Trump wanted, and above all as a symbol of what he described as a 'terrible drift towards oligarchy and authoritarianism'.

Sanders is among the few left-wing politicians who has always criticised free trade agreements and supported tariffs. But now he criticises Trump's tariff policy and the way it has been conducted. A Republican voter asks him how he assesses the effectiveness of tariff strategies in protecting American jobs. Precisely the issue at the centre of the debate right now, in America and around the world. Sanders replied that he is against trade agreements such as the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). "What these trade agreements were basically saying to American companies was, 'Hey, no problem. You can throw American workers on the street. You can go to Mexico, you can go to China and hire people for pennies an hour,'" Sanders said. "And I thought it was a horrible idea. It was a horrible idea'".Sanders said that "selectively applied" tariffs are a good idea. "But to arbitrarily invent, out of thin air, a duty that you can't even justify or explain to virtually every country in the world is absolutely counterproductive," he said.

Moderator Anderson Cooper asked Sanders to comment on White House claims that Apple's iPhones could be made in America, despite economists' assessments that US-made phones would cost thousands of dollars more. Sanders does not know, he says, whether it is realistic to produce the devices in the US, but points out that Trump's tariff policies would cause 'immediate harm' to workers due to increased costs.

Sanders says democracy is at risk with Trump and is heading towards authoritarianism given the way the president gets rid of obstacles or targets those who oppose him. The senator recalled that Trump went after the media, law firms, universities, judges. He thinks he really wants to run for a third term despite the Constitution forbidding it. He thinks he wants to centralise power and that the alternative now for the American people is 'Wake up or bow down to the new king'.