FIGHT OLIGARCHY (audiobook) by Bernie Sanders

Published in 2025 by Random House Audio.
Read by the author, Bernie Sanders.
Duration: 2 hours, 41 minutes.
Unabridged.

When I picked up this book, I had forgotten all about Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders' cross country "Fighting Oligarchy" tour that he initiated in February of 2025 - just one month after Donald Trump started his second term as President. He intentionally visited places you wouldn't expect Bernie Sanders to speak, such as West Virginia, Montana, Iowa, North Carolina and Texas, often with political allies such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC).

This book was designed to accompany that tour. It is a more detailed version of the speeches he delivered on that tour.

When I picked the book I was in the mood for something different. I had seen Sanders on television and social media and thought he was a pretty solid speaker, but I was curious what he would be like in a much larger dose. 

Turns out that Bernie is a compelling speaker, even though he does nothing particularly special beyond giving an earnest speech with his familiar New York City accent. 

Bernie's message is simple: “Oligarchy is a system in which a small number of extremely wealthy individuals control the economic, political, and media life of a nation. It is a system in which ordinary people have very little power to determine the future of their country. If you’re an American, it is the system in which you’re living. That must change. In the wealthiest nation on earth we must build a political movement that creates a government that represents all Americans, not just a handful of billionaires.”

On tour in West Virginia

He describes the problems we face, then he tells his audience that America has always faced tough problems and has often successfully dealt with them in the past (with examples), and then he tells how he thinks they can be dealt with. 

The problems he identifies include unlimited political spending by billionaires and corporations and severely lagging wages when compared to the growth of worker productivity (translated - you create more at work than ever before but you get paid the same).

I finished the audiobook in almost no time. Bernie was an engrossing speaker.

I rate this audiobook 5 stars our of 5. It can be found on Amazon.com here: Fight Oligarchy by Bernie Sanders.