OPINION: Andrew Yang Gives up Fighting the Establishment, Joins CNN Days After Dropping Out

Former presidential candidate Andrew Yang, who ran as a progressive Democrat who wanted to give every American a $1000 a month freedom dividend if elected, was looked at by many as an outsider. Despite his crazy and controversial views, he even drew some fans on the right in addition to a good-sized fan base of young people and others on the left as well. Although he didn’t make it this time, many people may have held on to hope that he may stay politically involved on a grassroots level to further the idea that big corporations are hurting the little guy.

Perfect @The_War_Economy pic.twitter.com/Kc77eri2mv

— Jack Posobiec ?? (@JackPosobiec) February 19, 2020

Today some of his fans and supporters may be a little disappointed as the “independent thinker” just signed on to work for CNN, although it’s unclear if he will be getting paid more than $1,000 a month. CNN reported about the news:

“I’m excited to join @CNN to help shed light on the election and the candidates’ experiences,” Yang wrote in a tweet following the announcement. “Learned a lot these past months and am glad to contribute to the public discussion.”

He’ll appear on the network in his new capacity later Wednesday, he added.

Yang, a businessman who ended his campaign last week, rose from obscurity to become a highly-visible candidate, rallying a coalition of liberal Democrats, libertarians and some disaffected Republicans to form a devoted group of followers known as the Yang Gang.

A prominent platform in his campaign was his so-called Freedom Dividend, a plan to give every American adult $1,000 a month universal basic income that he argued would alleviate a host of social ills and eradicate poverty.

Yang’s campaign was defined by the candidate’s happy go-lucky style. Videos of him singing in a church choir, dancing to the “Cupid Shuffle” and crowdsurfing at events regularly went viral, helping burnish his image as a candidate just happy to be with his fans.

He also often used high-profile moments to compliment his opponents. After former Texas Rep. Beto O’Rourke dropped out and before a Democratic debate where they would have been standing next to each other, Yang simply tweeted, “I miss Beto.” After New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker failed to qualify for a debate stage, Yang used yet another debate stage moment to tell voters, “Cory will be back,” a move that was appreciated by Booker and his top campaign aides.