The Dueling New Yorkers

Donald Trump and Sen. Bernie Sanders are different sides of the same coin, twin sons separated at birth, two peas in a pod, brothers from the same moth— You get the point.

Think about it: Both decry the fundamental unfairness across the land that has squelched growth and created an underclass unable to rise. Both are sick of big money in politics, pushing special interests that don’t help the common man. Each blame government incompetence, even corruption, for America’s woes. And each bash Wall Street for its shameless greed.

At least in their early campaigns, they are far more alike than different.

“The hedge fund guys are getting away with murder,” Trump said last month. “The hedge fund guys didn’t build this country. … They make a fortune. They pay no tax. It’s ridiculous, OK?”

“We are the 99 percent, and it’s time we took power from the 1 percent,” Sanders, Vermont’s junior U.S. senator, told a crowd of supporters Monday in Virginia. “This great country and our government belong to all of us, not just a handful of billionaires.”

Of course, there are critical differences. Sanders, a Brooklyn, New York-born independent running for the Democrat nomination for president, is all for increasing the minimum wage to $15 an hour, plans to offer free college tuition to everyone and can’t wait to move into the White House so he can tax the rich. Trump, a Republican contender who made his billions buying and building hotels, casinos and golf courses, makes $60 million a year and has his own jet and helicopter — not exactly a Regular Joe.

Related: Trump No Longer Just a Diversion

But at least in their early campaigns, they are far more alike than different. Each has tapped into the boiling hot magma at the center of voter discontent. From the Right, Trump assails big government and the air of arrogance that surrounds career politicians. Sanders, while looking to government for some solutions, agrees — smug, out-of-touch politicians are inept, and, like Trump, he thinks the whole system has to be blown up.

And there’s more. Both say exactly what’s on their minds — no Politispeak, not even a hint of self-editing. They’re angry, and every day, they rage before their cheering supporters at stadiums, arenas, fairgrounds. They acknowledge just who they are, have always been: Trump — “I’m very rich”; Sanders — I’m a Socialist, so what? Unpackaged products.

In the end, the two native New Yorkers are both one very clear and definable thing that Americans not only understand, but are clearly gravitating toward: Real. They’re real people, not candidates massaged by PR men and packed full of talking points to spout when you pull the string. These guys make mistakes, lash out at critics, get knocked about, but stand back up and battle on.

Voters heading into 2016 are sick and tired of business as usual in Washington, of the endless political campaigns by robotic candidates. With the bailout of banks of 2008 still hammering the U.S. economy, both candidates are tapping into the powerful anger felt on both sides of the political spectrum. They are preaching the fundamentals of populism, which is defined simply as: “the political doctrine that supports the rights and powers of the common people in their struggle with the privileged elite.”

They’re both right. There is a movement, a revolution, underway. Americans have moved past frustration into full-fledged anger.

The two held dueling campaign appearances Monday. Sanders hit a fairgrounds in the Virginia hills with 2,000 backers, while Trump wowed 20,000 supporters in Dallas. Both spoke for more than hour — neither from a teleprompter or from a prepared speech. And they both tilled similar ground.

“If I’m elected president, you are going to be so proud of your country again,” Trump told the cheering crowd. “You’re going to remember this evening … and you’re going to say we were part of a movement to take back our country. And we will make America great again.”

In Virginia, with the smell of cow pies and horse dung wafting through the air, Sanders said much the same thing.

“No president, not Bernie Sanders or anybody else, can transform America and make our government start working for working people unless we have a political revolution,” Sanders said to wild cheers.

Related: What Bernie Sanders Really Believes

Sanders ticked through a slew of points that brought more cheers: “The One Percent wins because it divides the 99 percent. They slice us and dice us.” America, he said, has “the worst income inequality in the world.” Workers suffer in a “rigged economy,” he said. “Wages are too damn low! We have got to take on Wall Street.” And his big rabble-rousing declaration: “Enough is enough!”

Trump, for his part, did much the same. “They’re saying the ‘silent majority’ is back,” he said. “But maybe we should call it the noisy, the aggressive, the wanting-to-win majority.” And, “We want to win. We’re tired of being pushed around by incompetent people.” And, “This is a movement that’s happening. Now it’s time to really start, because this is going to happen, I’m telling you, I’m not going anywhere.”

They’re both right. There is a movement, a revolution, underway. Americans have moved past frustration into full-fledged anger. Both candidates have been mocked. Sanders pointed out he’s been called “fringe,” and Trump noted he’s been dubbed a “clown.” But both are viable candidates for this reason. Americans are fed up, so frustrated they’re supporting a self-obsessed billionaire who moonlighted as a reality star and a socialist senator from Vermont who’s 74 and shouts himself hoarse every night.

It’s the 1978 movie “Network” finally coming true: “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore!”

Where we go from here is uncharted territory. But you might want to go to your window to see if anyone’s shouting.