Bernie Sanders spoke to a small crowd on the eve of the South Carolina Democratic primary, as his top surrogates vowed to put a crack in Hillary Clinton’s firewall.
Normally Sanders’ rallies attract thousands of supporters and are completely packed, but in Orangeburg, S.C., all the bleacher seats in the auditorium were left empty and the floor of the stadium was not very crowded. Sanders beat Hillary Clinton by 22 points in New Hampshire and ran close races with her in both Iowa and Nevada, but he trails her by more than 20 points in the Palmetto State.
Clinton has called both South Carolina and the Southern states voting on Super Tuesday her “firewall.” Sanders supporters disputed this characterization Friday night.
“I want to know about how you feel when someone calls you their firewall. You have to earn the black vote, you don’t own our vote,” Ohio State Representative Nina Turner said at the rally.
During his speech Sanders talked about the importance of voting rights, civil rights, police reform and gun control legislation. Although Sanders talks to issues that affect the African-American community on the campaign trail, Clinton is more popular among black voters.
“With Bernie Sanders I am promised for the first time in my life the civil rights my grandma was promised,” Sanders surrogate Killer Mike said. “A politician, despite popular demands, who will stand with someone on an unpopular thing.”
