Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) became uncomfortable on Sunday when CBS News anchor Margaret Brennan confronted him for selling expensive tick...
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) became uncomfortable on Sunday when CBS News anchor Margaret Brennan confronted him for selling expensive tickets to events bemoaning capitalism
At the end of his "Face the Nation" interview, Brennan confronted Sanders about ticket prices for his book tour, based on his new tome, "It's Okay to Be Angry About Capitalism." Tickets for tour events will cost supporters of Sanders up to $95, a hefty fee considering the book's topic.The tickets are being sold on Ticketmaster.
"Tickets for your tour apparently are selling for $95 on Ticketmaster, which is accused of anti-competitive behavior," Brennan noted, before asking, "Aren't you benefiting yourself from this system that you're trying to dismantle?"
But the self-declared "democratic socialist" denied all charges of hypocrisy.
"No, I'm not. I — first of all — first of all, those decisions are made totally by the publisher and the bookseller," he said, abdicating all responsibility for the ticket prices.
After defending his tour by noting that some events are cheaper — or even free — Sanders claimed that he doesn't even "make a nickel out of these things at all."
"But you're OK doing business with Ticketmaster?" Brennan shot back.
"No, not particularly. Again, I have nothing to do with that. That is, if you wrote a book, it would probably be the same process," he responded, apparently missing the irony that he accepts the benefits of capitalism while railing against it.
Sen. Bernie Sanders on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" | full interviewyoutu.be
Publishing has been especially lucrative for Sanders.
In 2016, he reportedly snagged nearly $800,000 in advance of his book, "Our Revolution: A Future to Believe In." That year, his gross income topped more than $1 million.
Sanders' newest book, which will be released Tuesday, is his third book since that one. Considering he has enjoyed good sales, that means his subsequent book contracts likely commanded even higher advances. Surely Sanders could have redistributed some of that money to help cover the costs of attending his own anti-capitalism events.
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