Senator Bernie Sanders led a group of Democratic leaders in criticizing Israel’s blockade of the Gaza. Image by getty images

By Nathan Guttman April 24, 2017

Conservative pundit Ann Coulter got some surprising backing over the weekend from Bernie Sanders, the ultra liberal Democratic senator whose views are almost diametrically opposed to hers.

He came out to her defense after students threatened to disrupt Coulter’s planned speech at the University of California Berkley.

“Obviously Ann Coulter’s outrageous ― to my mind, off the wall,” Sanders told the Huffington Post. “But you know, people have a right to give their two cents-worth, give a speech, without fear of violence and intimidation.”

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis of the crisis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

Coulter was invited to speak at Berkley by the college Republican club, but facing threats from students to stage protests outside and inside the hall, campus authorities asked to move her speech to a later date and to the early afternoon.

Sanders made clear he does not believe that disruption was the appropriate way to counter Coulter’s conservative message. “What are you afraid of ― her ideas? Ask her the hard questions,” Sanders said. “Confront her intellectually. Booing people down, or intimidating people, or shutting down events, I don’t think that that works in any way.”

Contact Nathan Guttman at [email protected] or on Twitter @nathanguttman

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse..

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$36 $500

$120 $180 Other amount