OAN Staff Blake Wolf
10:51 AM – Thursday, May 8, 2025
Vermont Independent Senator Bernie Sanders defended his usage of luxurious private jet travel for his cross-country “Fighting Oligarchy” tour after being labeled a hypocrite.
Sanders (D-Vt.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) have continued to hold rallies across the country in opposition to President Donald Trump and Special Government Employee (SGE) Elon Musk, who is planning to step down from his role on May 30th — forced by the “130 days” SGE rule.
It is unclear what role Musk will play in the GOP administration following May 30th.
Meanwhile, despite Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez previously advocating to “combat” climate change, while being critical of the billionaire class, Sanders’ campaign committee has spent over $221,000 in chartering private jets for the tour — according to Federal Election Commission filings.
Some of the private chartered flights have reportedly cost up to $15,000 an hour — all while claiming to “take on the Oligarchs and corporate interests who have so much power and influence.”
Sanders defended his use of lavish private jets in an interview with Fox News, arguing that they are “the only way to get around.”
“You run a campaign, and you do three or four or five rallies in a week. [It is] the only way you can get around to talk to 30,000 people. You think I’m gonna be sitting on a waiting line at United… while 30,000 people are waiting?” he asked.
“That’s the only way to get around. No apologies for that. That’s what campaign travel is about. We’ve done it in the past. We’re gonna do it in [the] future,” Sanders continued.
“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,” he added.
Meanwhile, conservatives have noticed the hypocrisy in Sanders’ messaging, with National Republican Congressional Committee spokesperson Ben Petersen stating: “Champagne socialists Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez demand Americans surrender their pick-up trucks, air conditioning and meat from the luxe leather seats of their private jets that cost more per hour than most Americans earn in months. Their hypocrisy is staggering.”
Sanders, who has an estimated $3 million net worth, according to Finance Monthly, also previously faced criticism after it was revealed that he owns three homes, despite marketing himself as a Democratic Socialist.
“Do I own three residences? Yeah, I do,” Sanders stated last November on the Lex Freidman podcast. However, he attempted to downplay the residences by referring to them as being “middle-class houses.”
Sanders owns one home in Burlington, Vermont, another in Washington, D.C., and a lakefront vacation home situated on Lake Champlain.
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