I went inside AOC & Bernie Sanders Fighting Oligarchy tour heres what the right should know

One gets the sense that the circus doesn’t stop in Boise much — at least not the political kind.On Monday night, an estimated 12,500 people — mostly retired Boomers, with a smattering of Gen X and Gen Z — packed in an arena in Nampa, Idaho, a 30-minute drive from the Gem State capital.They were there for the latest stop on Sen.

Bernie Sanders and Rep.Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s “Fighting Oligarchy” tour.Sanders did speak here in 2016.

But “Fighting Oligarchy” is a new beast — progressive Democrats zagging into what is mostly Republican territory.On Sunday, the two were in Salt Lake City, and Missoula, Montana, is on tap for Wednesday.Geri Lynn Green, who owns a salon in downtown Boise, said “a chance to be with Bernie and AOC is a once in a lifetime thing.

Especially for Idaho.” She choked up talking about the Vermont senator.College student Charlotte Konkol, who came with her grandparents, was giddy to see her oft-ignored hometown embraced by her favorite politicians.“Boise is such a little blue dot and we get overlooked because we are one of the most red states,” she told me.Some, like nurse practitioner Ginger Jensen, traveled four hours to attend.

Retired educator Carolyn Walpole, who is recovering from a knee replacement and ankle fusion, drove more than 100 miles because she is so worried about Social Security — a bogeyman fear stoked by MSNBC and Joe Biden himself.“Being here, being counted is going to make my heart feel a little better.Like I’ve done something,” said Walpole.The crowd went wild when Sanders said, “We don’t accept this blue state-red state nonsense.

We are one people.”If arena rock is a thing, so now is arena politics.With his 2016 campaign, Donald Trump turned campaigning into a touring entertainment experience.

He drew supporters to large venues to cheer and jeer.He obsessed over crowd size.

The failed Kamala Harris campaign took up the same model — as well as the fixation on crowd size.A...