Putting a recent “60 Minutes” bombshell into context from the senator’s long legislative history with Taiwan.

The Diplomat
Date: March 04, 2020
By: Kuang-shun Yang/   

Senator Bernie Sanders is famed for his “Democratic Socialism” platform that highlight domestic

policies, including Medicare for All, the Green New Deal, College for All, and so on. However, since the last Democratic Primary against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2016, Sanders has frequently been asked to expand on his foreign policy views as well.

A recent interview on CBS’s “60 Minutes” may be the first time the general public heard Sanders talk at length about his views on many foreign policy issues. One moment that caught many people’s attention came when the host, Anderson Cooper, asked for Sanders’ view, as a potential commander-in-chief, should China take military action against Taiwan. Sanders responded straightforwardly: “I mean, I think we have got to make it clear to countries around the world that we will not sit by and allow invasions to take place, absolutely.”

It was an extraordinary commitment — it was the strongest support for Taiwan any U.S. presidential hopeful has expressed since George W. Bush. It’s remarkable that a frontrunner for the presidential nomination should demonstrate such clear support for Taiwan, which has long been a marginal topic in U.S. politics.

To many, “Bernie Sanders” and “Taiwan” may be an unlikely juxtaposition (although some close observers may know of Sander’s fondness for the island’s healthcare system). Considering Sanders’ long-held noninterventionist, if not pacifist, attitude toward U.S. defense policy, it is hard to connect Sanders to a U.S. intervention in the case of a Chinese invasion in Taiwan. Based on Sanders’ past records on issues related to Taiwan, the commitment he showed on “60 Minutes” is certainly a breakthrough.    [FULL  STORY]