Bernie Sanders backs Cardi B plea for Social Security to be strengthened

Former Democratic presidential nominee Bernie Sanders has backed rapper Cardi B’s plea for America to strengthen social security.

The veteran Vermont Senator said social security needed to be strengthened so the elderly population could retire in a gracious way.

"Cardi B is right. If we are really going to make America great we need to strengthen Social Security so that seniors are able to retire with the dignity they deserve,” Mr Sanders tweeted.

The Bronx-born rapper, who is famed for her forthright “no filter approach”, recently said she was a big fan of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and heaped praise on both his policies and resilience.

“He’s the real ‘Make America Great Again,’ because if it wasn’t for him, old people wouldn’t even get Social Security,” she told GQ in a recent profile.

Mr Sanders, a keen advocate of welfare reform, has long been a supporter of expanding social welfare programs like Social Security and Medicare.

While many have praised the politician for supporting Cardi B others argued Mr Sanders’ applause of the musician was simply an attempt to calm anger over a recent speech, which some interpreted as an attack on Barack Obama.

Speaking on the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King's assassination he said Democrats had lost a record number of legislative seats.

"The business model, if you like, of the Democratic Party for the last 15 years or so has been a failure," he told a crowd in Jackson, Mississippi. "People sometimes don't see that because there was a charismatic individual named Barack Obama. He was obviously an extraordinary candidate, brilliant guy. But beyond that reality..."

Some social media users called the speech "patronising" and "deplorable".

After his praise for Cardi B, some social media users suggested it was a strategic move to appease those angered by his remarks about Mr Obama.

“Bernie: ‘How do I make things right with the Blacks after insulting Obama on the anniversary of MLK's death?’ White staff: ‘Start mentioning Cardi B’,” said freelance writer Marcus Johnson.

Another wrote: “Bernie thinks quoting Cardi B makes up for dissing Obama on MLK day, dismissing the black vote during the primaries, being an all around shithead to Hillary and dismissing 'identity politics.' Black People are not buying it."

Others commended Mr Sanders for his support of Cardi B, and argued they were an “iconic duo”.

Mr Sanders’ tweet about Cardi B is not the first time he has endorsed a rapper's views - he shared a New York Times interview with Jay-Z in a 2016 tweet, writing "Jay Z is right: we have to end the war on drugs."

The politician was also joined by rapper Killer Mike on the presidential campaign trail.