Sen.
Bernie Sanders
he defended his use of private jets later on Wednesday when he dismissed criticisms over the $220,000 spent on chartered flights throughout his nationwide tour.
Fighting Oligarchy
” tour.
“That’s the only way to get around,” the Independent
Vermont lawmaker
said.
The comments came during an interview with
Fox News
Anchor Bret Baier, where Sanders, a consistent critic of corporate overreach and amassed fortune, gave “no apologies.”
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“You run a
campaign
, and you do three or four or five rallies in a week,” Sanders said. “[It is] the only way you can get around to talk to 30,000 people. You think I’m gonna be sitting in a waiting line at United…while 30,000 people are waiting?”
He went on to say, ‘That’s the only approach we can take.’ He added without regret, ‘Campaign trips involve this. We’ve handled it before, and we will continue doing so in the future.’
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The remarks came as Federal Election Commission filings show Sanders’ campaign committee, Friends of Bernie Sanders, spent more than $221,000 on private jet services during the first quarter of 2025, according to a Fox News
report
.
The travel was part of the high-profile “Fighting Oligarchy”
tour
Sanders launched with Rep.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
(D-NY) in response to the
Trump
administration, the outlet added.
“Among these trips were Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez’s privately chartered jet, which cost as much as $15,000 per hour for multiple stops on the West Coast during their ‘Fighting Oligarchy’ tour,” according to the report.
Despite the criticism, Sanders said in his interview that the tour has been a success.
“I think at a time when the people on top are doing phenomenally well, when seniors, working-class people are struggling, people want to hear action to stand up to the people who have the wealth and the power and create an economy that works for all of us, not just the people on top,” Sanders concluded.
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