U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders didn't disappoint his supporters during a Thursday visit to Fulton to deliver the 58th Green Lecture at Westminster College.
Speaking for about an hour, Sanders, I-Vt., left the hall "feeling the Bern" while the audience chanted "Bernie, Bernie, Bernie." On his way out following two standing ovations, the former presidential candidate shook hands with some students.
Rob Crouse, the college's director of media and public relations, was relaxed in a wing chair following a private reception with Sanders in the National Churchill Museum. Crouse and others put weeks of work trying to figure out logistics for incoming media, including dozens of national, regional and local reporters.
He said Sanders' speech was rousing.
"I've been here for 11 years and I've never heard such a reaction," Crouse said. "He has such an invigorating effect on people because his passion just comes across. This was a home run for Westminster."
Crouse said this also was a record for live-streamed events at the college.
Tim Riley, director and chief curator for the National Churchill Museum on the campus, said Sanders is now part of a long tradition of distinguished speakers who've come to Westminster.
Other notable speakers include former British prime ministers Sir Winston Churchill and Lady Margaret Thatcher and former President Ronald Reagan. Ralph Nader and Bob Geldof spoke at Westminster Green Lectures, as well as other world leaders including former President Gerald Ford, Lech Walesa and Mikhail Gorbachev.
During his speech, Sanders articulated his ideas about foreign policy.
"Sen. Sanders certainly gave us a lot to think about," Riley said following the event. "These words will resonate not only in this hall but throughout (the world)."
As a gift, Riley presented Sanders with a framed, original ticket to the March 5, 1946, Green Lecture during which Churchill presented his "Iron Curtain" speech. This lecture famously told the world about the potential threat of the Soviet Union.
Paul M. Robinette, a former NBC executive from Penn Valley, California, who worked for the "Today Show" and Johnny Carson, came to the lecture with his wife, Wendy Hornsby Robinette, author of the Maggie MacGowen mystery series and winner of the Edgar Award.
Related to former Vice President Joe Biden, Paul Robinette said politics run strong in their family.
"Bernie's positions are going to definitely be a driver, in part, of the conversations in both the 2018 and 2020 elections," he said. "I think the human rights element, as we go forward, will be more and more of an important part of the conversation. Foreign policy is going to take a different turn because of human rights issues."
He bought a "Feel the Bern" hat for a relative who is a big Sanders supporter.
Sanders' lecture touched on many topics relating to foreign policy. He often connected the subject back to domestic policy and in-country concerns.
"Here is the bottom line," he concluded. "My view is the United States must seek partnership, not just between governments, but between people."
This holistic viewpoint creates a grassroots level of governing and communication, Sanders said. He added people must resist the forces that attempt to drive wedges between them.
"Every person on this planet shares a common humanity," he said. "We all want to live in peace. That is what being human is all about."
The Fulton Sun will have a full accounting of Sanders' speech in the Sunday edition.