{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "is_view": false, "human_description_en": "where party = \"Independent\", state = \"VT\" and year = 2017 sorted by date descending", "rows": [["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-republican-tax-plan", "Sanders Statement on Republican Tax Plan", "2017-12-27", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Republican Tax Plan\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, December 27, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Dec. 27  U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Wednesday regarding the Republican tax plan:\r\n\"The Republicans are so desperate to spin their disastrous tax plan that they have resorted to taking comments I recently made completely out of context. Let me set the record straight.\r\n\"The Trump-Republican tax plan is one of the worst pieces of legislation in the modern history of our country. At a time of massive income and wealth inequality, 83 percent of the tax benefits in that bill go to the top 1 percent at the end of 10 years and 60 percent of the benefits go to the top one-tenth of 1 percent. On the other hand, by the end of the decade, 92 million middle-class Americans will actually be paying more in taxes, including 8 million in the first year alone. Further, this legislation will result in 13 million people losing their health insurance while substantially raising premiums all across the country. It also raises the deficit by $1.4 trillion, laying the groundwork for House Speaker Paul Ryan and other Republicans to call for cuts to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and other important programs in the name of 'deficit reduction.'\r\n\"Instead of this grossly obscene piece of legislation, let's pass tax reform that permanently benefits all middle-income and working-class families without giving tax breaks to the top 1 percent. Instead of providing huge tax breaks to the rich and large corporations that explode the deficit, which this bill does, millionaires, billionaires and large, profitable corporations must begin paying their fair share of taxes. Then, among other things, we can permanently double the standard deduction, expand the Earned Income Tax Credit, re-instate the personal exemptions and make the Child Tax Credit fully refundable  without increasing the debt future generations will inherit.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-statement-on-republican-tax-plan", "Sanders Statement on Republican Tax Plan", "2017-12-27", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Republican Tax Plan\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, December 27, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Dec. 27  U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Wednesday regarding the Republican tax plan:\r\n\"The Republicans are so desperate to spin their disastrous tax plan that they have resorted to taking comments I recently made completely out of context. Let me set the record straight.\r\n\"The Trump-Republican tax plan is one of the worst pieces of legislation in the modern history of our country. At a time of massive income and wealth inequality, 83 percent of the tax benefits in that bill go to the top 1 percent at the end of 10 years and 60 percent of the benefits go to the top one-tenth of 1 percent. On the other hand, by the end of the decade, 92 million middle-class Americans will actually be paying more in taxes, including 8 million in the first year alone. Further, this legislation will result in 13 million people losing their health insurance while substantially raising premiums all across the country. It also raises the deficit by $1.4 trillion, laying the groundwork for House Speaker Paul Ryan and other Republicans to call for cuts to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and other important programs in the name of 'deficit reduction.'\r\n\"Instead of this grossly obscene piece of legislation, let's pass tax reform that permanently benefits all middle-income and working-class families without giving tax breaks to the top 1 percent. Instead of providing huge tax breaks to the rich and large corporations that explode the deficit, which this bill does, millionaires, billionaires and large, profitable corporations must begin paying their fair share of taxes. Then, among other things, we can permanently double the standard deduction, expand the Earned Income Tax Credit, re-instate the personal exemptions and make the Child Tax Credit fully refundable  without increasing the debt future generations will inherit.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-votes-against-continuing-resolution", "Sanders Votes Against Continuing Resolution", "2017-12-21", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Votes Against Continuing Resolution\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, December 21, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Dec. 21  Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Thursday after voting against a temporary spending bill:\r\n\"I voted no on the continuing resolution because it is unconscionable for Congress to go home for the holidays while leaving major crises unresolved. There are 800,000 Dreamers in this country who are on the verge of losing their legal status and who could soon be subject to deportation if we do not act. For three months, the Childrens Health Insurance Program and the community health center program have not been reauthorized or fully funded. Millions of children and families are wondering whether they will be able to continue to receive health care. Over 1.5 million older workers and retirees will soon see the pensions they were promised cut by up to 60 percent if Congress does not do its job.\r\n\"It would simply be wrong to pass another continuing resolution. These problems must be addressed, and they must be addressed now.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-votes-against-continuing-resolution", "Sanders Votes Against Continuing Resolution", "2017-12-21", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Votes Against Continuing Resolution\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, December 21, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Dec. 21  Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Thursday after voting against a temporary spending bill:\r\n\"I voted no on the continuing resolution because it is unconscionable for Congress to go home for the holidays while leaving major crises unresolved. There are 800,000 Dreamers in this country who are on the verge of losing their legal status and who could soon be subject to deportation if we do not act. For three months, the Childrens Health Insurance Program and the community health center program have not been reauthorized or fully funded. Millions of children and families are wondering whether they will be able to continue to receive health care. Over 1.5 million older workers and retirees will soon see the pensions they were promised cut by up to 60 percent if Congress does not do its job.\r\n\"It would simply be wrong to pass another continuing resolution.These problems must be addressed, and they must be addressed now.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-demands-congress-protect-dreamers-fund-chcs-and-chip-before-going-home", "Sanders Demands Congress Protect Dreamers, Fund CHCs  CHIP Before Going Home", "2017-12-20", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Demands Congress Protect Dreamers, Fund CHCs & CHIP Before Going Home\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, December 20, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Dec. 20  In a speech on the Senate floor Wednesday, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said it would be unacceptable for Congress to break for the holidays without protecting Dreamers, funding community health centers and the Childrens Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and addressing a number of other issues critical to working families.\r\nIt really would be unconscionable to leave Washington after giving tax breaks to billionaires and large corporations, while we ignore the enormous problems facing the middle class and working families of our country, Sanders said.\r\nIn his speech, he outlined the priorities that must be addressed before the end of the year.\r\nDACA:Any end of the year spending agreement must address the fear and uncertainty unnecessarily caused by the administrations reckless actions, and a clean DREAM Act must be signed into law. This is not just what Bernie Sanders wants.A Quinnipiac poll came out the other day in which 77 percent of the American people supported maintaining legal status for these young people and allowing them to move forward towards citizenship.\r\nCommunity Health Centers:If we do not act soon, 70 percent of community health center funding will be cut, and 2,800 health centers will close their doors.Further, 51,000 jobs will be lost, and 9 million patients will lose access to their health care. That would be unacceptable. Community Health Centers must funded at the levels contained in the bipartisan legislation introduced earlier this year by Senators Blunt and Stabenow.\r\nChildrens Health Insurance Program (CHIP):If CHIP is not reauthorized,9 millionchildren in working families will lose their health insurance. These children are covered by CHIP because their families earn too much to qualify for Medicaid but too little to afford private health insurance. Anything short of a full CHIP reauthorization will cause unnecessary confusion and stress for working families and their children.And this re-authorization must not be offset by slashing the prevention fund or other unacceptable offsets.\r\nMulti-Employer Pensions:If Congress does not act soon, the earned pension benefits of more than 1.5 million workers and retirees in multi-employer pension plans could be cut by up to 60 percent. When a worker is promised a pension benefit after a lifetime of hard work that promise must be kept. Congress needs to act before the end of the year to make sure that no one in America in a multi-employer pension plan will see their pension cut.\r\nSocial Security Administration:Since 2010, Congress has cut Social Securitys operating budget by 16 percent and Republicans want to cut it another 4 percent this year.According to a recentWashington Post article, 10,000 people died in the past year waiting for a decision on Social Security disability benefits. We need to increase funding for these vital services by at least $1.4 billion just to bring staffing back up to 2010 levels.\r\nStudent Loan Forgiveness:Because of problems with student loan servicing and complicated program requirements, there are tens of thousands of student loan borrowers who might not get the forgiveness theyve earned. That would be unacceptable. Congress must fix this problem now to make sure that 150,000 Americans can receive the student loan forgiveness they have earned and deserve.\r\nRural Infrastructure:Rural America is being shortchanged by the current, arbitrary funding caps set under the Budget Control Act.We need to bolster infrastructure investments in rural America by more than $2 billion, which are not being adequately funded under the current, arbitrary funding caps set by the Budget Control Act.\"\r\nFight the Opioid and Mental Health Epidemic: With this upcoming funding bill, Congress needs to double funding for mental health. That would send an extra billion dollars to programs that right now support treatment for more than 7 million people and provide training and resources to help identify mental health crises.\r\nTo watch Sanders' speech,click here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/video-audio/sharing-the-holidays-with-vermont-seniors", "Sharing the Holidays with Vermont Seniors", "2017-12-20", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", null, 0, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/report-republican-tax-bill-hands-15-corporations-236-billion-tax-break", "Report: Republican Tax Bill Hands 15 Corporations $236 Billion Tax Break", "2017-12-18", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Report: Republican Tax Bill Hands 15 Corporations $236 Billion Tax Break\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tMonday, December 18, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Dec. 18  The Republican tax bill, which will be voted upon this week, will provide 15 of the largest and most profitable American corporations a $236 billion tax cut, according to a report prepared for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) by the Senate Budget Committee Democratic staff.\r\nIn the final legislation released Friday night, Republicans are offering corporations a nearly 20 percent tax cut to repatriate trillions of dollars stashed in offshore tax havens. The proposed 15.5 percent rate would be a boondoggle for profitable, multinational corporations.\r\nAfter making $59 billion in profits last year, Apple would be the biggest winner with a tax break as large as $47.97 billion on the $246 billion it has stashed in offshore tax havens.\r\nPfizer, with $775 million in 2016 profits, would receive up to a $38.8 billion tax cut; Microsoft up to a $27.7 billion cut after last years profits topped $20 billion; and, with $10.2 billion profits last year,General Electric would receive a tax break of up to $15.99 billion.\r\nA repatriation tax holiday has not worked in the past and will not work now, according to the report. As part of the 2004 American Jobs Creation Act, corporations were allowed to repatriate funds at a 5.25 percent tax rate with the assumption that the money would be used to boost the economy and create jobs. Instead, corporations brought $312 billion to the US and spent it on executive pay raises and stock buy backs.\r\n- In 2004, Pfizer repatriated $35.5 billion, fired 11,748 workers and gave its executives a raise of $12.8 million.\r\n- In 2004, Johnson & Johnson repatriated $10.6 billion, fired 4,062 workers, and gave its executives a raise of more than $32.8 million. The companystands to gain a tax cut of up to $12.9 billion tax break as a result of the Republican tax bill.\r\nDuring the debate over tax reform, corporate leaders have acknowledged that they will use repatriated funds to pay down debt or turn the gains over to their shareholders. They have made it clear that they have no intention of using the influx of cash to create jobs or invest in the American economy.\r\nThis report is further proof that the Republican tax bill is a massive giveaway to the largest corporations in the country and the wealthiest individuals. Meanwhile, while the very rich get much richer more than half of middle class families will pay more in taxes at the end of ten years. Further, by running up a $1.4 trillion deficit, the Republicans are paving the way for massive cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. This is a tax bill written for wealthy Republican campaign contributors, not for the average American. It must be defeated,\" Sanders said.\r\nTo read the report,click here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-congress-must-not-break-until-it-deals-with-major-crises", "Sanders: Congress Must Not Break Until it Deals With Major Crises", "2017-12-18", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders: Congress Must Not Break Until it Deals With Major Crises\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tMonday, December 18, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Dec. 18  U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Monday regarding the end-of-year spending bill:\r\n\"As I have stated many times, Congress must not break for recess unless it addresses some of the major crises facing this country. While Republicans believe that tax breaks for billionaires and large corporations is the nation's major priority, I strongly disagree. Here are some of the issues that Congress must deal with now.\r\n\"We must act now to prevent 800,000 Dreamers, young people who were raised in this country and know no other home, from losing their legal status. Any end of the year spending agreement must address the fear and uncertainty unnecessarily caused by the administration's reckless actions, and a clean Dream Act must be signed into law.\r\n\"We must not allow 9 million children to lose their health insurance because the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) has not been re-funded. As of December 6th, nine states have already exhausted their 2017 funding, and 16 more states will exhaust their funding by the end of next month. Full funding for CHIP must be reauthorized.\r\n\"It has been more than two months since funding for the Community Health Center program has lapsed. If we do not act very soon, health care for the 27 million Americans who utilize community health centers will be threatened. Lives will be lost. Unnecessary suffer will occur. The community health center program must be fully funded.\r\n\"If Congress does not act soon, the earned pension benefits of more than 1.5 million workers and retirees in multi-employer pension plans could be cut by up to 60 percent. When a worker is promised a pension benefit after a lifetime of hard work that promise must be kept. Congress needs to act before the end of the year to make sure that no American in a multi-employer pension plan will see their pension cut.\"\r\nSanders and U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) authored an op-ed in The New York Times Monday detailing the priorities that should be at the top of Congress' agenda at the end of the year.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-final-gop-tax-bill", "Sanders Statement on Final GOP Tax Bill", "2017-12-15", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Final GOP Tax Bill\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tFriday, December 15, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Dec. 15  U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Friday after Congressional Republicans released their final tax bill:\r\n\"This tax bill is a moral and economic obscenity. It is a gift to wealthy Republican campaign contributors and an insult to the working families of our country. At a time of massive income and wealth inequality this bill would provide the majority of benefits to the top 1 percent and the largest corporations. Unbelievably, at the end of 10 years it would actually raise taxes on millions of middle-class families and, by creating a $1.4 trillion deficit, would pave the way for massive cuts to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and other important programs. No member of Congress should vote for this disastrous legislation.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-statement-on-final-gop-tax-bill", "Sanders Statement on Final GOP Tax Bill", "2017-12-15", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Final GOP Tax Bill\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tFriday, December 15, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Dec. 15 U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Friday after Congressional Republicans released their final tax bill:\r\n\"This tax bill is a moral and economic obscenity. It is a gift to wealthy Republican campaign contributors and an insult to the working families of our country. At a time of massive income and wealth inequality this bill would provide the majority of benefits to the top 1 percent and the largest corporations. Unbelievably, at the end of 10 years it would actually raise taxes on millions of middle-class families and, by creating a $1.4 trillion deficit, would pave the way for massive cuts to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and other important programs. No member of Congress should vote for this disastrous legislation.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/-sanders-statement-on-fcc-decision-to-repeal-net-neutrality", "Sanders Statement on FCC Decision to Repeal Net Neutrality", "2017-12-14", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on FCC Decision to Repeal Net Neutrality\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, December 14, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Dec. 14 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Thursday after the Federal Communications Commission voted to repeal net neutrality protections:\r\n\"Once again, the Trump administration has sided with big money and against the interests of the American people. The FCC\u2019s vote to end net neutrality is an egregious attack on our democracy. With this decision the internet and its free exchange of information as we have come to know it will cease to exist. The end of net neutrality protections means that the internet will be for sale to the highest bidder, instead of everyone having the same access regardless of whether they are rich or poor, a big corporation or small business, a multimedia conglomerate or a small online publication. At a time when our democratic institutions are already in peril, we must do everything we can to stop this decision from taking effect.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/-sanders-statement-on-fcc-decision-to-repeal-net-neutrality", "Sanders Statement on FCC Decision to Repeal Net Neutrality", "2017-12-14", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on FCC Decision to Repeal Net Neutrality\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, December 14, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Dec. 14 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Thursday after the Federal Communications Commission voted to repeal net neutrality protections:\r\n\"Once again, the Trump administration has sided with big money and against the interests of the American people. The FCC\u2019s vote to end net neutrality is an egregious attack on our democracy. With this decision the internet and its free exchange of information as we have come to know it will cease to exist. The end of net neutrality protections means that the internet will be for sale to the highest bidder, instead of everyone having the same access regardless of whether they are rich or poor, a big corporation or small business, a multimedia conglomerate or a small online publication. At a time when our democratic institutions are already in peril, we must do everything we can to stop this decision from taking effect.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/video-audio/listening-to-vermont-students", "Listening to Vermont Students", "2017-12-14", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", null, 0, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/video-audio/listening-to-vermont-students_", "Listening to Vermont Students", "2017-12-14", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", null, 0, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/tax-conference-committee-statement", "Tax Conference Committee Statement", "2017-12-13", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Tax Conference Committee Statement\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, December 13, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tSen. Bernie Sanders' prepared statement for the tax conference committee. Sanders is the ranking member of the Budget Committee.\r\nMr. Chairman, as you well know, this is not a real conference committee. It is a sham. According to media reports, much of this legislation has already been written behind closed doors which is consistent with the entire process for this bill from day one.\r\nIn legislation that will have a major impact on our economy there has not been one public hearing, no opportunity to hear from economists, governors, mayors or ordinary Americans who will be impacted by this legislation. \u00a0\r\nThis is legislation that was written for wealthy campaign contributors, for the billionaire class and by the billionaire class. In fact, it is my understanding that over 6,000 lobbyists have worked on this legislation behind closed doors. \u00a0\r\nMr. Chairman, every poll that I have seen shows that by overwhelming numbers the American people do not want this bill to be passed. They know that in the Senate bill, in the midst of massive wealth and income inequality, 62 percent of the tax benefits go to the top 1 percent and 42 percent of the benefits go to the top one-tenth of 1 percent.\r\nIn America today, the very rich are becoming much richer while the middle class continues to shrink, and your solution is to provide 62 percent of the benefits to the top 1 percent.\r\nThe American people also understand that at the end of 10 years, 83 million middle class Americans will see their taxes go up under the Senate bill. They know that, with 13 million Americans losing their health insurance, health care premiums on the individual market will increase by 10 percent. And they also know, that despite years of Republicans telling us how concerned they are about deficits and the national debt, this legislation will increase the deficit by $1.4 trillion over 10 years. \u00a0\r\nAnd, furthermore, the American people are outraged by what Speaker Paul Ryan is proposing. And that is that he wants to offset this $1.4 trillion deficit by making massive cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. And that is where the Republican Party is today. Huge tax breaks for billionaires. And proposals to cut programs that are life and death for working families, the elderly, the children, the sick and the poor.\u00a0\r\nMr. Chairman, just a few examples of the absurdity of this legislation.\u00a0\r\nThe Senate bill provides a 90 percent tax deduction to Wall Street hedge fund managers who become residents of the Virgin Islands, while the House bill increases the taxes of working class graduate students by treating their tuition waivers as taxable income.\r\nAt a time when climate change is ravaging the planet, the Senate bill gives investors in the Keystone Pipeline a 23 percent tax deduction on their profits after this pipeline leaked 210,000 gallons of oil in South Dakota.\r\nThe Senate bill provides Pfizer, one of the largest and most profitable drug companies in the country with a $24 billion tax break on their offshore profits, while the House bill tells cancer patients they can no longer receive a tax deduction on their out-of-pocket medical expenses.\r\nThe House bill gives the Koch brothers, who have contributed hundreds of millions into Republican candidates, a tax break on their dark money political contributions, while taking away the tax deduction teachers get for buying school supplies for low-income students who can\u2019t afford pencils, notebooks and crayons.\u00a0\r\nAt a time of massive wealth and income inequality, we need to rebuild the disappearing middle class. We do not need to provide tax breaks to billionaires.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/trumps-dod-unprepared-for-climate-adaptation-rejected-recommendations-for-improvement", "Trump's DOD Unprepared for Climate Adaptation, Rejected Recommendations for Improvement", "2017-12-13", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, Dec. 13 \u2013 After reviewing mounting evidence from the Government Accountability Office that climate change has reduced military readiness, President Donald Trump's administration rejected the science attributing extreme weather events to climate change as well as recommendations to monitor the effects of climate change.\r\nThe Pentagon\u2019s rejection of established climate science comes in response to a new GAO report prepared for Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Richard Durbin (D-Ill.). The study, reviewing the Pentagon\u2019s efforts to plan for the impact of climate change on military bases in overseas locations, was requested in early 2016.\r\n\u00a0DOD has publicly acknowledged since 2010 that climate change is a threat to national security, and has said in the past that climate change will have serious implications on the ability to maintain and sustain military infrastructure and ensure military readiness. However, the Pentagon does not track how much the impacts of climate change will cost the department and regularly exempts key national security sites from vulnerability assessments, making it harder for DOD to effectively manage and budget for climate-related risks, according to a new report GAO prepared. New installations are rarely designed to include climate change adaptation because DOD inconsistently includes the relevant information in training and design standards.\r\nIn its review of overseas military installations, GAO found numerous examples of potential and observed impacts of climate change-related extreme weather on DOD infrastructure and operations, including flooding, facility damage, water shortages, power outages, increased maintenance and encroachment on training. Many of these events threaten the United States\u2019 military preparedness.\r\nIn response to GAO\u2019s recommendation that DOD require installations to systematically and comprehensively track the costs associated with extreme weather and climate change, President Trump\u2019s Department of Defense said last month that the science attributing extreme weather events to climate change \u201cis not supported\u201d by previous GAO reports, and that associating extreme weather events to climate change \u201cdoes not warrant the time and money\u201d necessary to do so.\r\nDOD also rejected recommendations that the Army, Navy and Air Force take steps to administer climate-change vulnerability assessments to relevant locations, saying that the qualitative nature of the assessments render them \u201cnot a useful tool\u201d for making long-term decisions.\r\n\"With President Trump as commander in chief, the Department of Defense, which previously called climate change a national security threat, now questions the science linking increasingly common extreme weather events to climate change. This is unacceptable and could severely jeopardize our military readiness. The Department of Defense should be doing all it can to fight the causes and prepare for the impacts of climate change to prevent threats to our national security, not questioning virtually the entire scientific community,\" Sanders said.\r\n\u201cIn this report, the nonpartisan GAO finds that climate change is real, that its effects (like sea level rise) are tangibly impacting military bases around the world, and that there is clear public benefit to doing something about it,\u201d said Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Service Committee. \u201cThis follows on previous GAO reports showing clear challenges facing domestic military bases like Naval Station Norfolk. When scientists, the Department of Defense, Hampton Roads military and civilian leaders, and the federal government\u2019s accountability watchdog all agree that climate change is real and needs to be addressed, we should listen to them. Denial is not an option.\u201d\r\n\u201cThe U.S. defense community has consistently issued warning about climate change being a \u2018threat multiplier.\u2019 To postpone action to address and adapt for greater certainty on the causes and effects of climate change, as the Trump Administration is proposing, would be wholly irresponsible and potentially very costly,\u201d said Cardin. \u201cThe findings of this report demonstrate that DOD has worked to understand the challenge, but needs a willingness at the political level, and adequate resources, to do more to lower risk and ensure military readiness in the face of our changing global climate.\u201d\r\n\u00a0Click\u00a0here\u00a0to read the GAO report.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/trumps-dod-unprepared-for-climate-adaptation-rejected-recommendations-for-improvement", "Trump's DOD Unprepared for Climate Adaptation, Rejected Recommendations for Improvement", "2017-12-13", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, Dec. 13 \u2013 After reviewing mounting evidence from the Government Accountability Office that climate change has reduced military readiness, President Donald Trump's administration rejected the science attributing extreme weather events to climate change as well as recommendations to monitor the effects of climate change.\r\nThe Pentagon\u2019s rejection of established climate science comes in response to a new GAO report prepared for Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Richard Durbin (D-Ill.). The study, reviewing the Pentagon\u2019s efforts to plan for the impact of climate change on military bases in overseas locations, was requested in early 2016.\r\n\u00a0DOD has publicly acknowledged since 2010 that climate change is a threat to national security, and has said in the past that climate change will have serious implications on the ability to maintain and sustain military infrastructure and ensure military readiness. However, the Pentagon does not track how much the impacts of climate change will cost the department and regularly exempts key national security sites from vulnerability assessments, making it harder for DOD to effectively manage and budget for climate-related risks, according to a new report GAO prepared. New installations are rarely designed to include climate change adaptation because DOD inconsistently includes the relevant information in training and design standards.\r\nIn its review of overseas military installations, GAO found numerous examples of potential and observed impacts of climate change-related extreme weather on DOD infrastructure and operations, including flooding, facility damage, water shortages, power outages, increased maintenance and encroachment on training. Many of these events threaten the United States\u2019 military preparedness.\r\nIn response to GAO\u2019s recommendation that DOD require installations to systematically and comprehensively track the costs associated with extreme weather and climate change, President Trump\u2019s Department of Defense said last month that the science attributing extreme weather events to climate change \u201cis not supported\u201d by previous GAO reports, and that associating extreme weather events to climate change \u201cdoes not warrant the time and money\u201d necessary to do so.\r\nDOD also rejected recommendations that the Army, Navy and Air Force take steps to administer climate-change vulnerability assessments to relevant locations, saying that the qualitative nature of the assessments render them \u201cnot a useful tool\u201d for making long-term decisions.\r\n\"With President Trump as commander in chief, the Department of Defense, which previously called climate change a national security threat, now questions the science linking increasingly common extreme weather events to climate change. This is unacceptable and could severely jeopardize our military readiness. The Department of Defense should be doing all it can to fight the causes and prepare for the impacts of climate change to prevent threats to our national security, not questioning virtually the entire scientific community,\" Sanders said.\r\n\u201cIn this report, the nonpartisan GAO finds that climate change is real, that its effects (like sea level rise) are tangibly impacting military bases around the world, and that there is clear public benefit to doing something about it,\u201d said Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Service Committee. \u201cThis follows on previous GAO reports showing clear challenges facing domestic military bases like Naval Station Norfolk. When scientists, the Department of Defense, Hampton Roads military and civilian leaders, and the federal government\u2019s accountability watchdog all agree that climate change is real and needs to be addressed, we should listen to them. Denial is not an option.\u201d\r\n\u201cThe U.S. defense community has consistently issued warning about climate change being a \u2018threat multiplier.\u2019 To postpone action to address and adapt for greater certainty on the causes and effects of climate change, as the Trump Administration is proposing, would be wholly irresponsible and potentially very costly,\u201d said Cardin. \u201cThe findings of this report demonstrate that DOD has worked to understand the challenge, but needs a willingness at the political level, and adequate resources, to do more to lower risk and ensure military readiness in the face of our changing global climate.\u201d\r\n\u00a0Click\u00a0here\u00a0to read the GAO report.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/must-read/lives-at-risk-inside-a-senior-complex-in-puerto-rico-with-no-power", "Lives at Risk Inside a Senior Complex in Puerto Rico With No Power", "2017-12-11", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Lives at Risk Inside a Senior Complex in Puerto Rico With No Power\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tMonday, December 11, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\tSAN JUAN, P.R. \u2014 Altagracia Rodriguez de Jesus woke up on a recent morning and cranked open the aluminum shutters along one wall of her small, eighth-floor apartment overlooking the capital.\r\nShe took a cold shower and kept the bathroom door open to let in the sunlight. Her cockatiel, Precious, sat in a cage on the toilet. Ms. Rodriguez de Jesus, 80, sang to the bird.\r\nShe and other residents at the subsidized apartment tower where she lives could not switch on lights, cook on electric stoves, turn on bedroom air-conditioners or use washing machines.\r\nHurricane Irma cut power to the San Juan neighborhood of Hill Brothers on Sept. 6. Then, two weeks later, Hurricane Maria devastated the entire island\u2019s electrical grid. It was not until early December that part of the neighborhood had power again.\r\nContinue reading here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/must-read/people-dont-take-their-pills-only-one-thing-seems-to-help", "People Dont Take Their Pills. Only One Thing Seems to Help.", "2017-12-11", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "People Don\u2019t Take Their Pills. Only One Thing Seems to Help.\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t By:\u00a0 Austin Frakt \n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tMonday, December 11, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\tFor all that Americans spend on prescription drugs \u2014\u00a0$425 billion last year \u2014 you\u2019d think we\u2019d actually take our medicine.\r\nBut one of the frustrating truths about American health care is that half or more of prescribed medication is never taken.\r\nIt\u2019s called medication nonadherence, and it\u2019s a\u00a0well-documented\u00a0and\u00a0longstanding\u00a0problem, particularly for patients with chronic conditions. The drugs they\u2019re prescribed are intended to\u00a0prevent costly complications, reduce hospitalization, even keep them alive. But even when the stakes are high, many patients don\u2019t take their meds.\r\nThis seems like a problem we ought to be able to solve. It motivates high tech approaches,\u00a0like digital pills\u00a0that can automatically communicate to doctors that they\u2019ve been taken.\r\nContinue reading here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-government-spending-deadline", "Sanders Statement on Government Spending Deadline", "2017-12-09", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Government Spending Deadline\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tSaturday, December 9, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tThe Republicans, who control the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House and the White House, must not be allowed to shut the government down at the end of the year.\u00a0 Since the passage of the Budget Control Act in 2011, every budget agreement reached between Republicans and Democrats has maintained parity between defense and non-defense spending.\u00a0 That must not change. \u00a0\r\nWhile the rich become much richer, many millions of middle class families are struggling to survive.\u00a0 The Republicans cannot ask for $54 billion more in military spending, and ignore the health care needs of our children and working families in the CHIP and Community Health Center programs.\u00a0 They cannot ignore millions of older workers who are about to lose the pensions they were promised, younger people burdened with outrageous levels of student debt or veterans unable to get the quality health care they were promised.\u00a0 They cannot ignore the reality that 800,000 Dreamers will start losing their legal status in a few months and that an opioid epidemic is sweeping the country. \u00a0\r\nIn short, the Republicans must work in a bi-partisan way to pass a budget which reflects the needs of all Americans, not just wealthy campaign contributors.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-statement-on-government-spending-deadline", "Sanders Statement on Government Spending Deadline", "2017-12-09", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Government Spending Deadline\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tSaturday, December 9, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tThe Republicans, who control the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House and the White House, must not be allowed to shut the government down at the end of the year.\u00a0 Since the passage of the Budget Control Act in 2011, every budget agreement reached between Republicans and Democrats has maintained parity between defense and non-defense spending.\u00a0 That must not change. \u00a0\r\nWhile the rich become much richer, many millions of middle class families are struggling to survive.\u00a0 The Republicans cannot ask for $54 billion more in military spending, and ignore the health care needs of our children and working families in the CHIP and Community Health Center programs.\u00a0 They cannot ignore millions of older workers who are about to lose the pensions they were promised, younger people burdened with outrageous levels of student debt or veterans unable to get the quality health care they were promised.\u00a0 They cannot ignore the reality that 800,000 Dreamers will start losing their legal status in a few months and that an opioid epidemic is sweeping the country. \u00a0\r\nIn short, the Republicans must work in a bi-partisan way to pass a budget which reflects the needs of all Americans, not just wealthy campaign contributors.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/bernies-podcast/-episode-12-our-budget-priorities-with-elizabeth-warren-120717", "Episode 12: Our Budget Priorities with Elizabeth Warren", "2017-12-07", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "While Republicans are busy trying to give enormous tax breaks to billionaires and corporations, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and I are here to talk about what we really should be prioritizing in our budget to invest in working families and put the middle class first.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-tax-reform-conference-committee", "Sanders Statement on Tax Reform Conference Committee", "2017-12-07", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Tax Reform Conference Committee\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, December 7, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Dec. 7 \u2013\u00a0Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Thursday after\u00a0Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) named him to the conference committee on the Republican tax legislation:\r\n\"I thank Leader Schumer for putting me on the so-called 'tax reform' conference committee. Let me be very clear: Both versions of the Senate and the House tax bills are morally grotesque and terrible economic policy. Both bills would provide massive tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires, increase taxes on millions of middle class Americans, raise the deficit by more than $1 trillion, and lead to savage cuts in Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. And, by the way, both of these bills would provide major tax incentives to move American jobs and profits overseas. As a member of the conference committee, I will do everything I can to defeat these bills. We need to rebuild the disappearing middle class, not provide more tax breaks to billionaires. \"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-statement-on-tax-reform-conference-committee", "Sanders Statement on Tax Reform Conference Committee", "2017-12-07", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Tax Reform Conference Committee\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, December 7, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Dec. 7 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Thursday after Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) named him to the conference committee on the Republican tax legislation: \"I thank Leader Schumer for putting me on the so-called 'tax reform' conference committee. Let me be very clear: Both versions of the Senate and the House tax bills are morally grotesque and terrible economic policy. Both bills would provide massive tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires, increase taxes on millions of middle class Americans, raise the deficit by more than $1 trillion, and lead to savage cuts in Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. And, by the way, both of these bills would provide major tax incentives to move American jobs and profits overseas. As a member of the conference committee, I will do everything I can to defeat these bills. We need to rebuild the disappearing middle class, not provide more tax breaks to billionaires. \"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-franken", "Sanders Statement on Franken", "2017-12-06", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Franken\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, December 6, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Dec. 6 \u2013\u00a0Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement on Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.):\r\n\"Sen. Franken has said that he will be making an announcement about his political future tomorrow. The right thing is for him to resign. We are now at a crossroads in American culture. And it is an important one. The way we treat women in our country has been abysmal in almost every way. We are finally addressing the issue of sexual harassment, and we need to get it right. But the conversation we are having now is only the tip of the iceberg. It needs to be an ongoing movement of women and men that includes a national discussion about sexism, sexual harassment, objectification, inequality and abuse of power.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-statement-on-franken", "Sanders Statement on Franken", "2017-12-06", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Franken\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, December 6, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Dec. 6 \u2013\u00a0Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement on Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.):\r\n\"Sen. Franken has said that he will be making an announcement about his political future tomorrow. The right thing is for him to resign. We are now at a crossroads in American culture. And it is an important one. The way we treat women in our country has been abysmal in almost every way. We are finally addressing the issue of sexual harassment, and we need to get it right. But the conversation we are having now is only the tip of the iceberg. It needs to be an ongoing movement of women and men that includes a national discussion about sexism, sexual harassment, objectification, inequality and abuse of power.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-trumps-plan-to-recognize-jerusalem-as-the-capital-of-israel", "Sanders Statement on Trump's Plan to Recognize Jerusalem as the Capital of Israel", "2017-12-05", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Trump's Plan to Recognize Jerusalem as the Capital of Israel\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tTuesday, December 5, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Dec. 5 \u2013\u00a0Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) responded to reports Tuesday that President Donald Trump plans\u00a0to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel:\r\n\"I\u2019m extremely concerned by reports that President Trump plans to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of the state of Israel. There\u2019s a reason why all past U.S. administrations have avoided making this move, and why leaders from all over the world, including a group of former Israeli ambassadors, have warned Trump against doing it: It would dramatically undermine the prospects for an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement, and severely, perhaps irreparably, damage the United States\u2019 ability to broker that peace. What the U.S. should be doing now is bringing adversaries in the Middle East together to seek common solutions, not exacerbating tensions in this highly volatile region.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-to-trump-keep-your-promises-to-protect-social-security-and-medicare", "Sanders to Trump: Keep Your Promises to Protect Social Security and Medicare", "2017-12-05", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders to Trump: Keep Your Promises to Protect Social Security and Medicare\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tTuesday, December 5, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Dec. 5 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) challenged President Donald Trump to keep his repeated promise to protect Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid from Republican attempts to cut the programs.\r\n\u201cMr. President, on the campaign trail you said over and over again you would not cut Social Security or Medicare or Medicaid. And today, I am asking you nothing more than to keep your word. Don't lie to the American people. Millions of people voted for you because you said you would not cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Keep your word. Tell Senate Leader McConnell and tell House Speaker Paul Ryan that you will veto any legislation that cuts these programs,\u201d Sanders said on the Senate floor Tuesday.\r\nTrump said\u00a0repeatedly\u00a0during the campaign that he would not cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.\u00a0\r\nIn March 2016, then-candidate Trump said that unlike House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) he would protect the programs.\r\n\u201cYou know, Paul [Ryan] wants to knock out Social Security, knock it down, way down. He wants to knock Medicare way down,\u201d Trump\u00a0told\u00a0WROK radio in Wisconsin. \u201cI\u2019m not going to cut it, and I\u2019m not going to raise ages, and I\u2019m not going to do all of the things that they want to do. But they want to really cut it, and they want to cut it very substantially, the Republicans, and I\u2019m not going to do that.\u201d\r\nAccording to The New York Times, Republicans plan to focus on cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid following tax reform.\r\n\u201cAs the tax cut legislation passed by the Senate early Saturday hurtles toward final approval, Republicans are preparing to use the swelling deficits made worse by the package as a rationale to pursue their long-held vision: undoing the entitlements of the New Deal and Great Society, leaving government leaner and the safety net skimpier for millions of Americans,\u201d\u00a0the Times\u00a0reported\u00a0in a front-page story last weekend.\r\nLast\u00a0week, a number of Republicans publicly said that they plan to cut \u201centitlement programs\u201d after passing their tax bill.\r\nAt a FOX News town hall this week,\u00a0Ryan said, \u201cThere\u2019s two things you got to do to get this debt under control. Cut spending \u2013 most importantly reform entitlement programs \u2013 and grow the economy.\u201d\r\n\u201cMany argue that you can\u2019t cut taxes because it will drive up the deficit,\u201d Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) told business leaders. \u201cBut we have to do two things. We have to generate economic growth, which generates revenue, while reducing spending. That will mean instituting structural changes to Social Security and Medicare for the future.\u201d\r\nAnd\u00a0in an exchange\u00a0with Sanders on the Senate floor before the tax bill passed, Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) refused to say that he would not support cutting Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid \u2013\u00a0saying only that he would protect people currently on the programs.\r\nTo watch and download Sanders' challenge to Trump on the Senate floor,click here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-statement-on-trumps-plan-to-recognize-jerusalem-as-the-capital-of-israel", "Sanders Statement on Trump's Plan to Recognize Jerusalem as the Capital of Israel", "2017-12-05", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Trump's Plan to Recognize Jerusalem as the Capital of Israel\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tTuesday, December 5, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Dec. 5 \u2013\u00a0Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) responded to reports Tuesday that President Donald Trump plans\u00a0to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel:\r\n\"I\u2019m extremely concerned by reports that President Trump plans to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of the state of Israel. There\u2019s a reason why all past U.S. administrations have avoided making this move, and why leaders from all over the world, including a group of former Israeli ambassadors, have warned Trump against doing it: It would dramatically undermine the prospects for an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement, and severely, perhaps irreparably, damage the United States\u2019 ability to broker that peace. What the U.S. should be doing now is bringing adversaries in the Middle East together to seek common solutions, not exacerbating tensions in this highly volatile region.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-to-trump-keep-your-promises-to-protect-social-security-and-medicare", "Sanders to Trump: Keep Your Promises to Protect Social Security and Medicare", "2017-12-05", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders to Trump: Keep Your Promises to Protect Social Security and Medicare\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tTuesday, December 5, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Dec. 5 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) challenged President Donald Trump to keep his repeated promise to protect Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid from Republican attempts to cut the programs.\r\n\u201cMr. President, on the campaign trail you said over and over again you would not cut Social Security or Medicare or Medicaid. And today, I am asking you nothing more than to keep your word. Don't lie to the American people. Millions of people voted for you because you said you would not cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Keep your word. Tell Senate Leader McConnell and tell House Speaker Paul Ryan that you will veto any legislation that cuts these programs,\u201d Sanders said on the Senate floor Tuesday.\r\nTrump said\u00a0repeatedly\u00a0during the campaign that he would not cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.\u00a0\r\nIn March 2016, then-candidate Trump said that unlike House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) he would protect the programs.\r\n\u201cYou know, Paul [Ryan] wants to knock out Social Security, knock it down, way down. He wants to knock Medicare way down,\u201d Trump\u00a0told\u00a0WROK radio in Wisconsin. \u201cI\u2019m not going to cut it, and I\u2019m not going to raise ages, and I\u2019m not going to do all of the things that they want to do. But they want to really cut it, and they want to cut it very substantially, the Republicans, and I\u2019m not going to do that.\u201d\r\nAccording to The New York Times, Republicans plan to focus on cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid following tax reform.\r\n\u201cAs the tax cut legislation passed by the Senate early Saturday hurtles toward final approval, Republicans are preparing to use the swelling deficits made worse by the package as a rationale to pursue their long-held vision: undoing the entitlements of the New Deal and Great Society, leaving government leaner and the safety net skimpier for millions of Americans,\u201d\u00a0the Times\u00a0reported\u00a0in a front-page story last weekend.\r\nLast\u00a0week, a number of Republicans publicly said that they plan to cut \u201centitlement programs\u201d after passing their tax bill.\r\nAt a FOX News town hall this week,\u00a0Ryan said, \u201cThere\u2019s two things you got to do to get this debt under control. Cut spending \u2013 most importantly reform entitlement programs \u2013 and grow the economy.\u201d\r\n\u201cMany argue that you can\u2019t cut taxes because it will drive up the deficit,\u201d Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) told business leaders. \u201cBut we have to do two things. We have to generate economic growth, which generates revenue, while reducing spending. That will mean instituting structural changes to Social Security and Medicare for the future.\u201d\r\nAnd\u00a0in an exchange\u00a0with Sanders on the Senate floor before the tax bill passed, Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) refused to say that he would not support cutting Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid \u2013\u00a0saying only that he would protect people currently on the programs.\r\nTo watch and download Sanders' challenge to Trump on the Senate floor,\u00a0click here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-speaks-with-vermont-high-school-students_about-goals-after-graduation-", "Sanders Speaks With Vermont High School Students  About Goals After Graduation", "2017-12-04", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "MORRISVILLE, Vt., Dec. 4 \u2013 U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) visited Peoples Academy in Morrisville Monday morning to have an open conversation with students about their aspirations and goals after graduating high school.\r\n\u201cIt\u2019s important that we understand how students see their options as they prepare to graduate high school,\u201d said Sanders, who serves on the Senate education committee.\r\n\u201cDo they have adequate information to determine the best college for them and how they can finance a higher education? If they are not going to college, do they know how to get training to secure the best jobs that are out there?\u201d Sanders said.\r\nSanders was joined by Vermont Agency of Education Secretary Rebecca Holcombe, Vermont Department of Labor Commissioner Lindsay Kurrle, local business owners, and other state and regional education and workforce development leaders.\u00a0\r\n\u201cThe economic return to education is increasing. Students need to understand -- and need help leveraging -- the benefit of some post-secondary credential, whether it is an industry recognized credential in a trade or a college degree,\u201d Holcombe said, adding, \u201cAnd, particularly in some of our rural communities, wouldn\u2019t it be great if some of our students grew up to be the doctors, skilled tradespeople and other professionals their communities desperately need to grow a more prosperous future?\u00a0 We need to work together to make this happen.\u201d\r\nSanders visited the Vermont high school to seek candid input from young Vermonters to help inform his work in the Senate.\r\nPhilip Grant, principal of Peoples Academy, said high schools throughout Vermont have become \u201cincreasingly more collaborative and creative to help prepare students for their path beyond graduation.\u201d\r\n\u201cIncreased and flexible opportunities, such as early college, dual enrollment, online learning, internships, and expanding tech centers are also greatly improving students\u2019 focus and access to postsecondary aspirations. As a result, seniors are becoming more prepared for what they want to do in life,\u201d Grant said.\r\nIn October, Sanders held a series of college fairs in Vermont to help high school students and their families learn about higher education options. Next spring, Sanders will host additional resource fairs with information about higher education and career opportunities.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-challenges-trump-to-reject-gop-plan-to-cut-social-security-medicare-medicaid", "Sanders Challenges Trump to Reject GOP Plan to Cut Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid", "2017-12-04", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Challenges Trump to Reject GOP Plan to Cut Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tMonday, December 4, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tREADING, Penn., Dec. 3 \u2013 At a rally here Sunday against the Republican tax bill, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) challenged President Donald Trump to keep his word to protect Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.\r\n\u201cMr. President, you told the American people time and time again you were not going to cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Today, get on the phone. Tell Paul Ryan, tell Mitch McConnell that you will veto any bill that cuts Social Security, that cuts Medicare, that cuts Medicaid,\u201d Sanders said.\r\nTrump said\u00a0repeatedly\u00a0during the campaign that he would not cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.\u00a0\r\nIn March 2016, then-candidate Trump said that unlike House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) he would protect the programs.\r\n\u201cYou know, Paul [Ryan] wants to knock out Social Security, knock it down, way down. He wants to knock Medicare way down,\u201d Trump\u00a0told\u00a0WROK radio in Wisconsin. \u201cI\u2019m not going to cut it, and I\u2019m not going to raise ages, and I\u2019m not going to do all of the things that they want to do. But they want to really cut it, and they want to cut it very substantially, the Republicans, and I\u2019m not going to do that.\u201d\r\nIt is now becoming very clear that is exactly what Republicans intend to do. This week, a number of Republicans publicly said that they plan to cut \u201centitlement programs\u201d after passing their tax bill.\r\nAt a FOX News town hall this week,\u00a0Ryan said, \u201cThere\u2019s two things you got to do to get this debt under control. Cut spending \u2013 most importantly reform entitlement programs \u2013 and grow the economy.\u201d\r\n\u201cMany argue that you can\u2019t cut taxes because it will drive up the deficit,\u201d U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) told business leaders. \u201cBut we have to do two things. We have to generate economic growth, which generates revenue, while reducing spending. That will mean instituting structural changes to Social Security and Medicare for the future.\u201d\r\nAnd\u00a0in an exchange\u00a0with Sanders on the Senate floor before the tax bill passed, U.S. Sen Pat Toomey (R-Penn.) refused to say that he would not support cutting Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid \u2013\u00a0saying only that he would protect people currently on the programs.\r\nTo watch the rally,\u00a0click here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-challenges-trump-to-reject-gop-plan-to-cut-social-security-medicare-medicaid", "Sanders Challenges Trump to Reject GOP Plan to Cut Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid", "2017-12-03", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Challenges Trump to Reject GOP Plan to Cut Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tSunday, December 3, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tREADING, Penn., Dec. 3 \u2013 At a rally here Sunday against the Republican tax bill, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) challenged President Donald Trump to keep his word to protect Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.\r\n\u201cMr. President, you told the American people time and time again you were not going to cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Today, get on the phone. Tell Paul Ryan, tell Mitch McConnell that you will veto any bill that cuts Social Security, that cuts Medicare, that cuts Medicaid,\u201d Sanders said.\r\nTrump said repeatedly during the campaign that he would not cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.\u00a0\r\nIn March 2016, then-candidate Trump said that unlike House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) he would protect the programs.\r\n\u201cYou know, Paul [Ryan] wants to knock out Social Security, knock it down, way down. He wants to knock Medicare way down,\u201d Trump told WROK radio in Wisconsin. \u201cI\u2019m not going to cut it, and I\u2019m not going to raise ages, and I\u2019m not going to do all of the things that they want to do. But they want to really cut it, and they want to cut it very substantially, the Republicans, and I\u2019m not going to do that.\u201d\r\nIt is now becoming very clear that is exactly what Republicans intend to do. This week, a number of Republicans publicly said that they plan to cut \u201centitlement programs\u201d after passing their tax bill.\r\nAt a FOX News town hall this week, Ryan said, \u201cThere\u2019s two things you got to do to get this debt under control. Cut spending \u2013 most importantly reform entitlement programs \u2013 and grow the economy.\u201d\r\n\u201cMany argue that you can\u2019t cut taxes because it will drive up the deficit,\u201d U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) told business leaders. \u201cBut we have to do two things. We have to generate economic growth, which generates revenue, while reducing spending. That will mean instituting structural changes to Social Security and Medicare for the future.\u201d\r\nAnd in an exchange with Sanders on the Senate floor before the tax bill passed, U.S. Sen Pat Toomey (R-Penn.) refused to say that he would not support cutting Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid \u2013\u00a0saying only that he would protect people currently on the programs.\r\nTo watch the rally, click here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/video-audio/testing-solar-in-vermont", "Testing Solar in Vermont", "2017-12-01", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", null, 0, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/video-audio/vermont-viewpoint-howard-sinnott", "Vermont Viewpoint: Howard Sinnott", "2017-12-01", "2017", "2017-12", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", null, 0, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-motion-to-proceed-with-republican-tax-plan", "Sanders Statement on Motion to Proceed with Republican Tax Plan", "2017-11-29", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Motion to Proceed with Republican Tax Plan\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, November 29, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Nov. 29 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, issued the following statement Wednesday after Senate Republicans voted to move forward with their tax bill:\r\n\"I am disappointed but not surprised that the Republicans voted unanimously to proceed with a disastrous tax bill. This bill will provide 62 percent of the benefits to the top 1 percent and at the end of 10 years increase taxes on 87 million middle class households \u2013 half of the families making $200,000 a year or less. Together the American people must rally to defeat the Republican tax bill.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-trumps-promotion-of-anti-muslim-videos", "Sanders Statement on Trump's Promotion of Anti-Muslim Videos", "2017-11-29", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Trump's Promotion of Anti-Muslim Videos\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, November 29, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Nov. 29 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Wednesday:\r\n\"I do not make it a habit to respond to every ugly or absurd tweet from President Trump. If I did that, I\u2019d have little time for anything else. But even for Trump, today's retweet of a series of offensive videos from a British right-wing, anti-Muslim fringe group reaches a new low. The goal of these videos is clear: to promote fear and hatred of Muslims, and to incite hostility toward a minority group. I know that Trump is not much into history or the U.S. Constitution, but he ought to know that millions of men and women have struggled, fought and died to defend our democracy and the religious freedom that our Constitution guarantees. \"This Friday I will be visiting Louisville, Kentucky, the city where Muhammad Ali, one of the most popular athletes of the 20th Century, who also happened to be an American Muslim, was born and raised. While there I plan on visiting the Muhammad Ali Center, a museum that focuses not only on Ali\u2019s career as a boxer and athlete, but also on his legacy as an activist and spokesman for the Muslim faith.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-statement-on-motion-to-proceed-with-republican-tax-plan", "Sanders Statement on Motion to Proceed with Republican Tax Plan", "2017-11-29", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Motion to Proceed with Republican Tax Plan\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, November 29, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Nov. 29 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, issued the following statement Wednesday after Senate Republicans voted to move forward with their tax bill:\r\n\"I am disappointed but not surprised that the Republicans voted unanimously to proceed with a disastrous tax bill. This bill will provide 62 percent of the benefits to the top 1 percent and at the end of 10 years increase taxes on 87 million middle class households \u2013 half of the families making $200,000 a year or less. Together the American people must rally to defeat the Republican tax bill.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/video-audio/sanders-challenges-republicans-to-prove-him-wrong-about-tax-bill", "Sanders Challenges Republicans to Prove Him Wrong About Tax Bill", "2017-11-29", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Challenges Republicans to Prove Him Wrong About Tax Bill \n            On the Senate floor Wednesday, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) challenged Republicans to tell him he is \u201cwrong\u201d \u2013 that they will not cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid if the tax bill passes and creates a $1.4 trillion deficit.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-colleagues-unveil-legislation-to-rebuild-puerto-rico-and-virgin-islands", "Sanders, Colleagues Unveil Legislation to Rebuild Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands", "2017-11-28", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, Nov. 28 \u2013\u00a0Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), along with five cosponsors in the Senate, introduced a comprehensive plan Tuesday to address the immediate humanitarian needs in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands and ensure that the islands not only recover, but are able to rebuild in a way that empowers them to thrive.\r\nThe Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands Equitable Rebuild Act is cosponsored in the Senate by Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). Reps. Stacy Plaskett (D-V.I.), Nydia M.\u00a0Vel\u00e1zquez\u00a0(D-N.Y.) and Darren Soto (D-Fla.) will introduce a companion bill in the House. The bill is endorsed by\u00a075 organizations.\r\nMore than two months after Hurricane Maria, much of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands remain devastated. More than half of Puerto Rico is still without power. In both territories, clean drinking water is difficult if not impossible to find in many areas and thousands of people are still living in temporary shelters.\r\nThe legislation introduced today would instruct the federal government to immediately address these humanitarian crises by mobilizing all necessary resources and assets to restore power, provide clean drinking water and food, safe shelter and access to health care. And, it would do so without forcing the territories to take on more debt.\r\nThe Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands Equitable Rebuild Act emphasizes local control and sustainable rebuilding of the territories and instructs Congress to address Puerto Rico\u2019s debt \u2013 a major impediment to a just and full recovery. And, it ensures that any federal disaster funding provided to the islands is protected from Wall Street vulture funds and acted upon with local input and local workers.\r\nSan Juan Mayor\u00a0Carmen Yul\u00edn Cruz\u00a0offered her support for the bill:\u00a0\u201cThe bill that Senator Sanders has introduced in the United States Congress is a comprehensive plan that provides the blueprint for the transformation of Puerto Rico. While dealing with all major areas of immediate concern: energy, health and education it also sets the foundation to make Puerto Rico a more equitable, just and fair society for all. Senator Sanders also shows a great deal of respect and faith in us when claiming that the recovery or Puerto Rico must be in Puerto Rican hands. The bill comes from Sanders\u2019 commitment of listening first hand to the hopes and aspirations of our people and must be given serious consideration by Congress.\u201d\r\n\u201cIt is unconscionable that in the wealthiest nation in the world we have allowed our\u00a0fellow citizens\u00a0to suffer for so long. The full resources of the United States must be brought to bear on this crisis,\u00a0for as long as is necessary,\u201d said\u00a0Sanders, who visited Puerto Rico in October. \u201cBut we cannot simply rebuild Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands the way they were. We must go forward to create a strong, sustainable economy and energy system in both territories and address inequities in federal law that have allowed the territories to fall behind in almost every measurable social and economic criteria.\u201d\r\n\r\nThe bill addresses seven components necessary to rebuild and move the islands forward:\r\n1)\u00a0Debt and Privatization:\u00a0Puerto Rico\u2019s debt must be addressed to ensure the territory can recover with dignity. Congress must also prevent the privatization of public institutions to benefit creditors in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Puerto Rico is struggling with an unsustainable $74.8 billion of debt, much of which is held by Wall Street creditors, with an additional $49 billion in unpaid pension obligations. The territories\u2019 recovery should not add to existing debt. 2) Resilient and Renewable Energy:\u00a0Instead of simply rebuilding an antiquated, centralized and inefficient system dependent on imported fossil fuels, the bill ensures the electric grids will be rebuilt to be more renewable and resilient, to provide less expensive electricity and create local jobs. 3) Medicaid and Medicare Parity:\u00a0The health care systems in the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico were inadequate before the hurricanes made landfall, in large part because they receive far fewer federal dollars compared to states. The bill makes Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands eligible for the same Medicare and Medicaid benefits as the rest of America. 4) Rebuild and Improve the VA Hospital and Clinics:\u00a0Appropriates necessary funds to the VA for veterans in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. 5) Improve Public Schools, Colleges, and Childcare Facilities:\u00a0In addition to rebuilding damaged schools and childcare facilities, we must face the fact that many of these facilities were inadequate before the storms hit. Hundreds of public schools in Puerto Rico have been closed because of austerity policies, and schools in the Virgin Islands are struggling to prepare students for college and future careers. The bill appropriates necessary funds for services and facilities for public Head Start, elementary, secondary and higher education. \u00a0 6) Invest in Infrastructure and Spur Economic Development:\u00a0Underfunded infrastructure in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands contributed to the severity of the damage from Hurricanes Irma and Maria. In addition to rebuilding damaged facilities, the legislation would make significant investments in the islands\u2019 physical infrastructure to spur the local economy and create jobs.  \u00a0  7)\u00a0Environmental Cleanup:\u00a0Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands have significant environmental contamination related to the hurricanes, prior pollution and a legacy of military bombing exercises on Vieques. The legislation would provide grants to the EPA, the Department of the Interior and the Department of Defense for environmental remediation.\r\n\r\n\"This bill from Senator Sanders is crucial because it will emphasize the importance of input in the recovery process by local impacted communities along with ensuring public participation in an open and transparent oversight process. This legislation will also promote long-term economic development, environmental safeguards, and rights of the local communities affected and to chart the path to recovery for the Virgin Islands. Ensuring the input of local communities as well as local and municipal powers in the recovery effort of the Virgin Islands is critical to a balanced response that fully meets the needs of impacted communities of the territories. It is imperative that we learn from the shortcomings from these disasters that have created a humanitarian crises the echoes of which are still being felt in the Virgin Islands,\"\u00a0Plaskett\u00a0said.\r\n\"The principles and the legislation being announced today provide a framework not just for finally getting control of the ongoing crisis \u2013 but ensuring we invest to build Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands back better. This will lay the groundwork for making Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands whole,\" said\u00a0Vel\u00e1zquez.\u00a0\r\n\"The people of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands suffered one of the worst disasters our country has ever experienced, and Congress has done the minimum expected of us. Congress must rise to the occasion and implement this new Marshall Plan to help our fellow American citizens rebuild and recover,\" said\u00a0Gillibrand. \"We must all pledge to stand with these families until the islands are rebuilt and fully back on their feet.\"\r\n\"This bill provides the help that the people of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands desperately need. It tells millions of U.S. citizens: we have not forgotten you. Congress should pass it right away -- the people of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are counting on us. I was glad to work closely with Senator Sanders on this far-reaching bill so that we can aid our fellow U.S. citizens and help them along a path to full recovery,\"\u00a0said\u00a0Warren.\r\n\r\n\"The people of Puerto Rico have been living in a nightmare for far too long,\" stated\u00a0Soto. \"We talk about power to the people. The people of Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands need power! I am proud to co-introduce the Just Rebuild Puerto Rico & the U.S. Virgin Islands Act of 2017, legislation that will help them get the lights back on and their economies going again. \u00a0As we look to rebuild the islands, we have an opportunity to become an energy model for the 21st century if we invest right.\"\r\n\u00a0\r\n\"The people of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands have waited far too long for a comprehensive effort from the federal government to recover from these devastating storms and to rebuild in a way that makes them stronger for the future. The Administration and Congress must stop delaying, and pass real, meaningful relief so that these Americans can begin the process of long-term recovery,\"\u00a0Markey\u00a0said.\r\nFor a summary of the bill,\u00a0click here.\r\nFor the section by section,\u00a0click here.\r\nFor a copy of the legislation,\u00a0click here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-colleagues-unveil-legislation-to-rebuild-puerto-rico-and-virgin-islands", "Sanders, Colleagues Unveil Legislation to Rebuild Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands", "2017-11-28", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, Nov. 28 \u2013\u00a0Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), along with five cosponsors in the Senate, introduced a comprehensive plan Tuesday to address the immediate humanitarian needs in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands and ensure that the islands not only recover, but are able to rebuild in a way that empowers them to thrive.\r\nThe Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands Equitable Rebuild Act is cosponsored in the Senate by Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). Reps. Stacy Plaskett (D-V.I.), Nydia M. Vel\u00e1zquez (D-N.Y.) and Darren Soto (D-Fla.) will introduce a companion bill in the House. The bill is endorsed by\u00a075 organizations.\r\nMore than two months after Hurricane Maria, much of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands remain devastated. More than half of Puerto Rico is still without power. In both territories, clean drinking water is difficult if not impossible to find in many areas and thousands of people are still living in temporary shelters.\r\nThe legislation introduced today would instruct the federal government to immediately address these humanitarian crises by mobilizing all necessary resources and assets to restore power, provide clean drinking water and food, safe shelter and access to health care. And, it would do so without forcing the territories to take on more debt.\r\nThe Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands Equitable Rebuild Act emphasizes local control and sustainable rebuilding of the territories and instructs Congress to address Puerto Rico\u2019s debt \u2013 a major impediment to a just and full recovery. And, it ensures that any federal disaster funding provided to the islands is protected from Wall Street vulture funds and acted upon with local input and local workers.\r\nSan Juan Mayor\u00a0Carmen Yul\u00edn Cruz\u00a0offered her support for the bill:\u00a0\u201cThe bill that Senator Sanders has introduced in the United States Congress is a comprehensive plan that provides the blueprint for the transformation of Puerto Rico. While dealing with all major areas of immediate concern: energy, health and education it also sets the foundation to make Puerto Rico a more equitable, just and fair society for all. Senator Sanders also shows a great deal of respect and faith in us when claiming that the recovery or Puerto Rico must be in Puerto Rican hands. The bill comes from Sanders\u2019 commitment of listening first hand to the hopes and aspirations of our people and must be given serious consideration by Congress.\u201d\r\n\u201cIt is unconscionable that in the wealthiest nation in the world we have allowed our\u00a0fellow citizens\u00a0to suffer for so long. The full resources of the United States must be brought to bear on this crisis,\u00a0for as long as is necessary,\u201d said\u00a0Sanders, who visited Puerto Rico in October. \u201cBut we cannot simply rebuild Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands the way they were. We must go forward to create a strong, sustainable economy and energy system in both territories and address inequities in federal law that have allowed the territories to fall behind in almost every measurable social and economic criteria.\u201d\r\n\r\nThe bill addresses seven components necessary to rebuild and move the islands forward:\r\n1)\u00a0Debt and Privatization:\u00a0Puerto Rico\u2019s debt must be addressed to ensure the territory can recover with dignity. Congress must also prevent the privatization of public institutions to benefit creditors in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Puerto Rico is struggling with an unsustainable $74.8 billion of debt, much of which is held by Wall Street creditors, with an additional $49 billion in unpaid pension obligations. The territories\u2019 recovery should not add to existing debt. 2) Resilient and Renewable Energy:\u00a0Instead of simply rebuilding an antiquated, centralized and inefficient system dependent on imported fossil fuels, the bill ensures the electric grids will be rebuilt to be more renewable and resilient, to provide less expensive electricity and create local jobs. 3) Medicaid and Medicare Parity:\u00a0The health care systems in the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico were inadequate before the hurricanes made landfall, in large part because they receive far fewer federal dollars compared to states. The bill makes Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands eligible for the same Medicare and Medicaid benefits as the rest of America. 4) Rebuild and Improve the VA Hospital and Clinics:\u00a0Appropriates necessary funds to the VA for veterans in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. 5) Improve Public Schools, Colleges, and Childcare Facilities:\u00a0In addition to rebuilding damaged schools and childcare facilities, we must face the fact that many of these facilities were inadequate before the storms hit. Hundreds of public schools in Puerto Rico have been closed because of austerity policies and schools in the Virgin Islands are struggling to prepare students for college and future careers. The bill appropriates necessary funds for services and facilities for public Head Start, elementary, secondary and higher education. \u00a0 6) Invest in Infrastructure and Spur Economic Development:\u00a0Underfunded infrastructure in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands contributed to the severity of the damage from Hurricanes Irma and Maria. In addition to rebuilding damaged facilities, the legislation would make significant investments in the islands\u2019 physical infrastructure to spur the local economy and create jobs.  \u00a0  7)\u00a0Environmental Cleanup:\u00a0Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands have significant environmental contamination related to the hurricanes, prior pollution and a legacy of military bombing exercises on Vieques. The legislation would provide grants to the EPA, the Department of the Interior and the Department of Defense for environmental remediation.\r\n\r\n\"This bill from Senator Sanders is crucial because it will emphasize the importance of input in the recovery process by local impacted communities along with ensuring public participation in an open and transparent oversight process. This legislation will also promote long-term economic development, environmental safeguards, and rights of the local communities affected and to chart the path to recovery for the Virgin Islands. Ensuring the input of local communities as well as local and municipal powers in the recovery effort of the Virgin Islands is critical to a balanced response that fully meets the needs of impacted communities of the territories. It is imperative that we learn from the shortcomings from these disasters that have created a humanitarian crises the echoes of which are still being felt in the Virgin Islands,\"\u00a0Plaskett\u00a0said.\r\n\"The principles and the legislation being announced today provide a framework not just for finally getting control of the ongoing crisis \u2013 but ensuring we invest to build Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands back better. This will lay the groundwork for making Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands whole,\" said\u00a0Vel\u00e1zquez.\u00a0\r\n\r\n\"The people of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands suffered one of the worst disasters our country has ever experienced, and Congress has done the minimum expected of us. Congress must rise to the occasion and implement this new Marshall Plan to help our fellow American citizens rebuild and recover,\" said\u00a0Gillibrand. \"We must all pledge to stand with these families until the islands are rebuilt and fully back on their feet.\"\r\n\r\n\"This bill provides the help that the people of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands desperately need. It tells millions of U.S. citizens: we have not forgotten you. Congress should pass it right away -- the people of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are counting on us. I was glad to work closely with Senator Sanders on this far-reaching bill so that we can aid our fellow U.S. citizens and help them along a path to full recovery,\"\u00a0said\u00a0Warren.\r\n\r\n\r\n\"The people of Puerto Rico have been living in a nightmare for far too long,\" stated\u00a0Soto. \"We talk about power to the people. The people of Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands need power! I am proud to co-introduce the Just Rebuild Puerto Rico & the U.S. Virgin Islands Act of 2017, legislation that will help them get the lights back on and their economies going again. \u00a0As we look to rebuild the islands, we have an opportunity to become an energy model for the 21st century if we invest right.\"\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\"The people of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands have waited far too long for a comprehensive effort from the federal government to recover from these devastating storms and to rebuild in a way that makes them stronger for the future. The Administration and Congress must stop delaying, and pass real, meaningful relief so that these Americans can begin the process of long-term recovery,\"\u00a0Markey\u00a0said.\r\n\r\n\u201cThe devastating effects of this historic natural disaster calls for a historic response. Our bill has the makings of a Marshall Plan \u2013 providing vital funds to rebuild islands\u2019 housing, electricity, health care, and basic government operations. Relief is not enough. Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands must rebuild with resilience to better withstand future disasters, and we must meet our moral obligation to help fellow American citizens in need,\u201d\u00a0Blumenthal\u00a0said.\r\nFor a summary of the bill,\u00a0click here.\r\nFor the section by section,\u00a0click here.\r\nFor a copy of the legislation,\u00a0click here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/vermont/what-i-learned-in-high-school-last-week", "What I learned in High School Last Week", "2017-11-28", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "What I learned in High School\u2026 Last Week\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t By:\u00a0 U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders  \n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tTuesday, November 28, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\tLast year, more than 60,000 people died from opioid overdoses in the United States. That\u2019s more Americans dying in one year than during the entire 19 years of the Vietnam War.\u00a0 In our small state, 112 Vermonters died from a drug overdose, which is three times as many as died in 2010.\u00a0 And what\u2019s even more shocking than the sheer numbers of people dying is how hard this epidemic is hitting younger people. Drug overdose is now the leading cause of death for people younger than 50. In Vermont, the average age of death from overdose is just 40 years old.\u00a0 And in 2016, nearly 20 percent of the drug overdose deaths were in people under age 30.\r\nSolving the opioid epidemic will not be easy. We\u2019re going to have to challenge the pharmaceutical industry, which made huge profits by putting drugs on the market that were far more addictive than they admitted. We\u2019re going to have to deal with drug wholesalers, who are selling far more pills than anyone thinks is necessary for medical reasons. We\u2019re going to have to make sure doctors and dentists \u2013 as Vermont providers have begun doing \u2013 take up safe prescribing practices so excess painkillers aren\u2019t abused or misused and that states use tools to curb so-called \u201cdoctor shopping\u201d and \u201cpill-mills.\u201d\r\nBut, at the end of the day, if we\u2019re going to solve this terrible crisis, we\u2019re going to have to do a lot better job at prevention \u2013 keeping people from turning to drugs in the first place. And to do that, we must look to our young people. For that reason, on the Friday before the Thanksgiving break, I went to Burlington High School to talk to the entire student body. I was joined by T.J. Donovan, Vermont\u2019s Attorney General; Dr. Heather Stein, an expert on opioid addiction; and Kelly Breeyear, a courageous woman who is living in recovery from addiction.\u00a0I wanted to discuss the dangers of taking opioids, but I also wanted to hear from our students. I needed their help.\u00a0\r\nIn Washington, I sit on the Senate\u2019s Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee, which hears from some of the most knowledgeable people in this country on all kinds of matters relating to health care and education. But on this issue of opioid and heroin addiction, and on the question of why so many young people are turning to drugs and how we can prevent that, I believe our nation\u2019s young people might know more than the experts.\r\nThese young people know first-hand what it\u2019s like to live in a family where a parent struggles with addiction. They know from personal experience what kind of pressure exists when your best friends are experimenting with pills and ask you to join in. They might also know, if they injured themselves or had their wisdom teeth removed, how tempting it could be to keep taking painkillers prescribed by a doctor, even when the physical pain subsides. They certainly know better than older generations what it\u2019s like to be growing up in today\u2019s crazy and rapidly changing world.\u00a0 And, perhaps most tragically, they know how common it can be to struggle with anxiety or even depression \u2013 a growing problem for young people.\r\nIn their questions and comments, what I heard from these high school students was truly insightful. Many of them talked about looking for ways to fight stigma, to make it clear that it is okay to confide in each other about personal and family problems and that one not need to be embarrassed to ask for professional help. They talked about how important it is for people struggling with addiction to not only have access to treatment, but have their recovery supported when they came back home. They wanted to understand why health insurance companies are willing to pay for expensive prescription opioids, but refuse to cover other options like acupuncture and yoga, or mental health care.\r\nIf I learned one thing from talking with and listening to these students, it\u2019s that they do know the dangers of heroin and other opioids. They know that these drugs can destroy their lives, and the lives of the people they love. But I also learned that they want and need constructive alternatives.\u00a0 And that, as adults, is our job.\u00a0\r\nWe must create schools that challenge them intellectually and support them emotionally, and make sure that none of them \u201cfall through the cracks.\u201d We must help make sure they have a safe place to live and an opportunity for higher education or a job that gives them purpose. We must appreciate their ideas and make them a part of the solution.\u00a0 Every single one of our young people deserves a chance at a bright future. And when we accomplish that, I have little doubt that we will have gone a long way toward ending the opioid crisis.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-to-republicans-how-much-will-you-cut-social-security-medicare-and-medicaid-to-pay-for-tax-cuts", "Sanders to Republicans: How Much Will You Cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid to Pay for Tax Cuts?", "2017-11-27", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders to Republicans: How Much Will You Cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid to Pay for Tax Cuts?\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tMonday, November 27, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Nov. 27 \u2013 In a letter sent Monday to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.), Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) demanded honesty from the Republican leaders as to how they would pay for the $1.4 trillion deficit in their \"tax reform\" bills.\r\n\"I am very concerned that if you succeed in passing tax legislation that significantly adds to our national debt, you will then move aggressively to balance the budget on the backs of working families, the elderly, the children, the sick and the poor. In other words, in order to pay for tax breaks for the rich and large corporations, you will make massive cuts to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, nutrition, environmental protection and every other program designed to protect the needs of the middle class and working families of our country,\" Sanders wrote in the letter.\r\n\"The bottom line is that the American people have a right to know exactly how you plan to pay for a $1.4 trillion increase in the deficit before, not after, tax legislation is signed into law. In your response, please be as specific as you can.\"\r\nTo read the letter, click here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-to-republicans-how-much-will-you-cut-social-security-medicare-and-medicaid-to-pay-for-tax-cuts", "Sanders to Republicans: How Much Will You Cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid to Pay for Tax Cuts?", "2017-11-27", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders to Republicans: How Much Will You Cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid to Pay for Tax Cuts?\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tMonday, November 27, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Nov. 27 \u2013 In a letter sent Monday to Senate Majority Leader McConnell (R-Ky.) and House Speaker Ryan (R-Wisc.), Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) demanded honesty from the Republican leaders as to how they would pay for the $1.4 trillion deficit in their \"tax reform\" bills.\r\n\"I am very concerned that if you succeed in passing tax legislation that significantly adds to our national debt, you will then move aggressively to balance the budget on the backs of working families, the elderly, the children, the sick and the poor. In other words, in order to pay for tax breaks for the rich and large corporations, you will make massive cuts to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, nutrition, environmental protection and every other program designed to protect the needs of the middle class and working families of our country,\" Sanders wrote in the letter.\r\n\"The bottom line is that the American people have a right to know exactly how you plan to pay for a $1.4 trillion increase in the deficit before, not after, tax legislation is signed into law. In your response, please be as specific as you can.\"\r\nTo read the letter, click here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/video-audio/happy-thanksgiving", "Happy Thanksgiving", "2017-11-23", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Happy Thanksgiving \n            On behalf of Jane, my four kids and seven grandchildren, I wish everyone a very happy Thanksgiving. This has been a tough year, but we can move forward as a country in a direction based on generosity and love.\n            \n                \n                    \n                       \t\n        \t\t\t\t\n                        \n                            \n                                \n                                \n                                    \n                                    \n                                    \n                                \n                                \n        \t\t\t\t\t\t\n                            \n                        \n                        \n    \t\t\t\t\t\t\n                            \t\n    \t\t\t\t\t\t\n    \t\t\t\t\t\n                    \n                \n            \n        \t\n            \n            \n            \n                \n                \n                \n                \n                    \n                   \tSee Video on YouTube\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTweet\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n                    \nCopy Link", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-holds-student-meeting-on-opioids", "Sanders Holds Student Meeting on Opioids", "2017-11-17", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Holds Student Meeting on Opioids\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tFriday, November 17, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Nov. 17 \u2013 U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) held a student town meeting Friday with the entire student body of Burlington High School and the Burlington Technical Center to discuss the opioid crisis in Vermont and throughout the United States.\u00a0\u00a0\r\n\u201cI need your help. Not only for Vermont, but for the entire country,\u201d Sanders told the students. \u201cIt is critically important that we have an honest and open discussion about this crisis that claimed the lives of 112 Vermonters last year, and affected thousands more. If we do not have the courage to talk about this issue. We are never, ever going to solve it.\u201d\u00a0\r\n\u201cNone of us are immune to the effects of addiction. It doesn\u2019t matter if you live in New York City or rural Vermont,\u201d said Sanders, who serves on the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.\u00a0\r\nSanders was joined by a panel including: Kelly Breeyear, a Vermonter who shared her personal experience with addiction, Vermont Attorney General T.J. Donovan and\u00a0Dr. Heather Stein, associate medical director at the Community Health Centers of Burlington.\u00a0\r\n\u201cYou have a choice now. After you have it in your system, you may not have a choice ever again,\u201d Breeyear said. \u201cWe need to start telling the truth. We need your help to find a solution. We need to stop this now.\u201d\r\nDonovan said, \u201cWe have to speak out, lift people up and help members of the community with this disease. The opiate crisis doesn't discriminate -- it affects everyone. We all have to work together, from people in government to teachers, students and family members.\u201d\r\nStein runs Community Health Centers of Burlington\u2019s program that helps patients who are struggling with substance abuse. \u201cYour brain is going to be hooked on something faster than someone twice your age,\u201d Stein told the students. \u201cYou\u2019ll do things you can\u2019t imagine now to get narcotics.\u201d\r\nFollowing the panel discussion, students participated in a question-and-answer session, sharing personal experiences and asking a broad range of questions.\r\nLast year, more than 60,000 people died from opioid overdoses in the United States, including 112 in Vermont. Narcan was used on more than 2,200 Vermonters last year to reverse the effects of an overdose, according to the Vermont Department of Health.\r\nIf you or someone you know needs help with an opioid addiction, call toll free 1-866-652-4636 or dial 2-1-1.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-white-house-request-for-disaster-relief-funds", "Sanders Statement on White House Request for Disaster Relief Funds", "2017-11-17", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on White House Request for Disaster Relief Funds\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tFriday, November 17, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Nov. 17 \u2013\u00a0U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Friday after the White House asked Congress for $44 billion in additional\u00a0disaster relief for areas ravaged by hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria:\r\n\"The president\u2019s request for supplemental appropriations for disaster relief is totally inadequate. While the president wants to provide the very richest people in this country hundreds of billions in tax relief, he is largely ignoring the needs of the communities that were devastated by the recent hurricanes. Two months after Hurricane Maria, the people of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are still suffering without electricity, clean water and other basic necessities. That is not acceptable. I will be releasing comprehensive legislation this month to address the short- and long-term needs of the people of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. As a nation, we must stand with those communities that have been devastated by natural disasters.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/letter-to-sec-tillerson-on-iran-earthquake-aid", "Letter to Sec. Tillerson on Iran Earthquake Aid", "2017-11-17", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Letter to Sec. Tillerson on Iran Earthquake Aid\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tFriday, November 17, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tNovember 16, 2017\r\nThe Honorable Rex Tillerson   Secretary   U.S. Department of State   2201 C St. NW   Washington, DC 20520\r\nDear Secretary Tillerson:\r\nWe write today concerning the recent earthquake that struck Iran on November 12. The latest reports indicate over 500 dead and thousands wounded, making this earthquake the world\u2019s deadliest of the year. We urge you temporarily waive any existing restrictions that would impede relief donations in order to speed the delivery of aid.\r\nWhile the earthquake affected both Iran and Iraq, most of the casualties are on the Iranian side of the border. After earthquakes in 2003 and 2012, the United States demonstrated its compassion and goodwill by offering assistance to the Iranian people and allowing private relief donations. The administrations of George W. Bush and Barack Obama both temporarily waived sanctions, and the Department of the Treasury\u2019s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued general licenses to simplify aid delivery.\r\nUnder the Bush administration, an OFAC license authorized U.S. persons to provide cash donations to nongovernmental organizations, U.S. and non-U.S., assisting with relief efforts in Iran. At the time, OFAC also worked with aid organizations to clarify rules on donations of food and medicine and which Iranian entities could receive aid and eased banking constraints to ensure the timely receipt of donations in Iran. While we understand that a general license issued by OFAC in 2013 allows for U.S. nongovernment organization to deliver aid to Iran, we urge you make it easier for U.S. citizens to contribute to nongovernment organizations not based in the United States that are currently providing relief aid to earthquake victims in Iran.\r\nDespite decades of animosity and no formal diplomatic relations, the United States has routinely offered to help the Iranian people in times of need. This time should be no different. We ask that you direct the Department of State to assist in aid efforts and to coordinate such efforts with OFAC and other relevant agencies in order to ensure aid arrives quickly.\r\nThank you for your attention to this matter. We look forward to your timely response.\r\n  Sincerely,\r\nBERNARD SANDERS  United States Senator\r\nELIZABETH WARREN  United States Senator\r\nAL FRANKEN  United States Senator\r\nTHOMAS CARPER  United States Senator\r\nDIANNE FEINSTEIN  United States Senator", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-statement-on-white-house-request-for-disaster-relief-funds", "Sanders Statement on White House Request for Disaster Relief Funds", "2017-11-17", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on White House Request for Disaster Relief Funds\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tFriday, November 17, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Nov. 17 \u2013\u00a0U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Friday after the White House asked Congress for $44 billion in additional\u00a0disaster relief for areas ravaged by hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria:\r\n\"The president\u2019s request for supplemental appropriations for disaster relief is totally inadequate. While the president wants to provide the very richest people in this country hundreds of billions in tax relief, he is largely ignoring the needs of the communities that were devastated by the recent hurricanes. Two months after Hurricane Maria, the people of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are still suffering without electricity, clean water and other basic necessities. That is not acceptable. I will be releasing comprehensive legislation this month to address the short- and long-term needs of the people of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. As a nation, we must stand with those communities that have been devastated by natural disasters.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-house-passage-of-republican-tax-plan", "Sanders Statement on House Passage of Republican Tax Plan", "2017-11-16", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on House Passage of Republican Tax Plan\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, November 16, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Nov. 16 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Thursday after the House passed its version of the Republican tax overhaul: \"It is disappointing, but not surprising that the House Republicans just voted to give the Koch brothers and other billionaire campaign contributors a massive tax break. Under the House bill, the top 1 percent would get half of the tax benefits, while nearly half of middle class families would see their taxes go up. As bad as the House bill is, the Senate tax plan is even worse. It would raise taxes on all middle-class families making $75,000 or less by the end of the decade in order to provide permanent tax relief to profitable corporations that shift American jobs to China and American profits to the Cayman Islands. Meanwhile, it would throw 13 million Americans off of health insurance, cut Medicaid by $179 billion and substantially raise premiums on Americans throughout the country. This legislation must be defeated. We need tax relief for the middle class, not the billionaire class.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-sen-franken", "Sanders Statement on Sen. Franken", "2017-11-16", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Sen. Franken\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, November 16, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Nov. 16 \u2013 U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) released the following statement Thursday on Sen. Franken:\r\n\u201cSexual harassment is completely unacceptable. I agree with the calls for an Ethics Committee investigation into this deeply troubling incident.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-statement-on-house-passage-of-republican-tax-plan", "Sanders Statement on House Passage of Republican Tax Plan", "2017-11-16", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on House Passage of Republican Tax Plan\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, November 16, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Nov. 16 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Thursday after the House passed its version of the Republican tax overhaul: \"It is disappointing, but not surprising that the House Republicans just voted to give the Koch brothers and other billionaire campaign contributors a massive tax break. Under the House bill, the top 1 percent would get half of the tax benefits, while nearly half of middle class families would see their taxes go up. As bad as the House bill is, the Senate tax plan is even worse. It would raise taxes on all middle-class families making $75,000 or less by the end of the decade in order to provide permanent tax relief to profitable corporations that shift American jobs to China and American profits to the Cayman Islands. Meanwhile, it would throw 13 million Americans off of health insurance, cut Medicaid by $179 billion and substantially raise premiums on Americans throughout the country. This legislation must be defeated. We need tax relief for the middle class, not the billionaire class.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/bernies-podcast/bernie-bonus-what-the-paradise-papers-reveal-111417", "Bernie Bonus: What the Paradise Papers Reveal", "2017-11-14", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "In this Bernie Bonus episode, Sen. Sanders breaks down how the Paradise Papers reveal a world rapidly moving toward international oligarchy, controlled by a tiny number of billionaires.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-hhs-secretary-nominee", "Sanders Statement on HHS Secretary Nominee", "2017-11-13", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on HHS Secretary Nominee\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tMonday, November 13, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Nov. 13 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement after President Donald Trump nominated Alex Azar to be secretary of health and human services:\r\n\u201cAt a time when the United States pays, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs, the last thing we need is to put a pharmaceutical executive in charge of the Department of Health and Human Services. The nomination of Alex Azar, the former head of Eli Lilly\u2019s U.S. operations, shows that Trump was never serious about his promise to stop the pharmaceutical industry from \u2018getting away with murder.\u2019\r\n\u201cDuring Mr. Azar\u2019s tenure at Eli Lilly, this multi-billion-dollar corporation dodged taxes while charging Americans outrageously high prices for life-saving prescription drugs. We need an HHS secretary who is willing to take on the greed of the pharmaceutical industry and lower prescription drug prices, not one who has financially benefitted from this greed. I will vigorously oppose this nomination.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-statement-on-hhs-secretary-nominee", "Sanders Statement on HHS Secretary Nominee", "2017-11-13", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on HHS Secretary Nominee\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tMonday, November 13, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Nov. 13 \u2013\u00a0Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement after President Donald Trump nominated Alex Azar to be secretary of health and human services:\r\n\u201cAt a time when the United States pays, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs, the last thing we need is to put a pharmaceutical executive in charge of the Department of Health and Human Services. The nomination of Alex Azar, the former head of Eli Lilly\u2019s U.S. operations, shows that Trump was never serious about his promise to stop the pharmaceutical industry from \u2018getting away with murder.\u2019\r\n\u201cDuring Mr. Azar\u2019s tenure at Eli Lilly, this multi-billion-dollar corporation dodged taxes while charging Americans outrageously high prices for life-saving prescription drugs. We need an HHS secretary who is willing to take on the greed of the pharmaceutical industry and lower prescription drug prices, not one who has financially benefitted from this greed. I will vigorously oppose this nomination.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-calls-on-trump-to-end-exploitation-of-truck-drivers", "Sanders Calls on Trump to End Exploitation of Truck Drivers", "2017-11-10", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Calls on Trump to End Exploitation of Truck Drivers\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tFriday, November 10, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Nov. 10 \u2013 U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) called on President Donald Trump Friday to sign an executive order ending the exploitation and abuse of port truck drivers. Sanders\u2019 request comes after he met with Los Angeles port truckers to discuss the exploitative labor practices exposed by\u00a0USA Today.\r\n\u201cThe federal government should not be rewarding trucking companies that exploit and abuse their own workers,\u201d Sanders wrote in a letter to Trump. \u201cIf you are serious about your support for our nation\u2019s truck drivers, I would urge you to sign an executive order to deny government contracts and subcontracts for trucking companies that misclassify workers as independent contractors, force workers to lease the trucks they drive, and engage in other abusive labor practices.\u201d\r\n\u201cTruck drivers are the backbone of the American economy.\u00a0They deserve to be treated with respect and dignity, not like modern-day indentured servants,\u201d Sanders added.\r\nTrucking companies are misclassifying drivers as independent contractors, requiring them to lease their own trucks and trapping them in a viscous cycle of debt.\u00a0Companies are using this debt as leverage to force drivers into working long hours for starvation wages. At the end of the month, some workers end up owing more on the lease than their paycheck is worth forcing them to essentially work for free.\r\nSanders also called on Trump \u201cto direct the Labor Department to conduct an audit of all federal contracts and subcontracts awarded to port trucking companies to ensure sure that they are in compliance with the prevailing wage and labor requirements of the McNamara - O\u2019Hara Service Contract Act.\u00a0Those companies that are not in compliance with our nation\u2019s labor laws should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law and required to pay back wages to their workers so that they receive all of the benefits they are legally entitled to receive.\u00a0\r\nRead Sanders\u2019 letter here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-veterans-day-2017", "Sanders Statement on Veterans Day", "2017-11-10", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Veterans Day\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tFriday, November 10, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Nov. 10 \u2013\u00a0U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement regarding Veterans Day: \"To all the veterans of this country, we owe you a huge debt of gratitude. You put your lives on hold and on the line to protect our country. To their family members, you have served and sacrificed right alongside them, something I don\u2019t think you get enough recognition for. And to those who lost a service member or veteran, either in conflict or as a result of their service, we may never fully understand your experience, but will do our best to make sure your loved one is never forgotten. \"While we set aside this particular day to recognize our veterans, I believe we must commit ourselves every day to keep America\u2019s promise to them, just as they kept their promise to us. That means our veterans must have access to high quality health care, and we must fight to preserve, protect and improve the VA.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-calls-on-trump-to-end-exploitation-of-truck-drivers", "Sanders Calls on Trump to End Exploitation of Truck Drivers", "2017-11-10", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Calls on Trump to End Exploitation of Truck Drivers\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tFriday, November 10, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Nov. 10 \u2013 U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) called on President Donald Trump Friday to sign an executive order ending the exploitation and abuse of port truck drivers. Sanders\u2019 request comes after he met with Los Angeles port truckers to discuss the exploitative labor practices exposed by\u00a0USA Today.\r\n\u201cThe federal government should not be rewarding trucking companies that exploit and abuse their own workers,\u201d Sanders wrote in a letter to Trump. \u201cIf you are serious about your support for our nation\u2019s truck drivers, I would urge you to sign an executive order to deny government contracts and subcontracts for trucking companies that misclassify workers as independent contractors, force workers to lease the trucks they drive, and engage in other abusive labor practices.\u201d\r\n\u201cTruck drivers are the backbone of the American economy.\u00a0They deserve to be treated with respect and dignity, not like modern-day indentured servants,\u201d Sanders added.\r\nTrucking companies are misclassifying drivers as independent contractors, requiring them to lease their own trucks and trapping them in a viscous cycle of debt.\u00a0Companies are using this debt as leverage to force drivers into working long hours for starvation wages. At the end of the month, some workers end up owing more on the lease than their paycheck is worth forcing them to essentially work for free.\r\nSanders also called on Trump \u201cto direct the Labor Department to conduct an audit of all federal contracts and subcontracts awarded to port trucking companies to ensure sure that they are in compliance with the prevailing wage and labor requirements of the McNamara - O\u2019Hara Service Contract Act.\u00a0Those companies that are not in compliance with our nation\u2019s labor laws should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law and required to pay back wages to their workers so that they receive all of the benefits they are legally entitled to receive.\u00a0\r\nRead Sanders\u2019 letter here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-statement-on-veterans-day", "Sanders Statement on Veterans Day", "2017-11-10", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Veterans Day\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tFriday, November 10, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Nov. 10 \u2013\u00a0U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement regarding Veterans Day: \"To all the veterans of this country, we owe you a huge debt of gratitude. You put your lives on hold and on the line to protect our country. To their family members, you have served and sacrificed right alongside them, something I don\u2019t think you get enough recognition for. And to those who lost a service member or veteran, either in conflict or as a result of their service, we may never fully understand your experience, but will do our best to make sure your loved one is never forgotten. \"While we set aside this particular day to recognize our veterans, I believe we must commit ourselves every day to keep America\u2019s promise to them, just as they kept their promise to us. That means our veterans must have access to high quality health care, and we must fight to preserve, protect and improve the VA.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-announces-annual_state-of-the-union-essay-contest", "Sanders Announces Annual  State of the Union Essay Contest", "2017-11-09", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Announces Annual  State of the Union Essay Contest\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, November 9, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Nov. 9 \u2013 U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) launched his eighth annual State of the Union essay contest Thursday, calling on Vermont\u2019s high school students to address what they view as the major issues facing the United States.\r\nAs the president prepares to give his State of the Union speech to a joint session of Congress early next year, Sanders is inviting Vermont high school students to describe what they think are the most pressing issues facing the United States and what they would do to solve them. The 250-500 word essays can be on any issue of national importance.\r\nSanders\u2019 annual essay contest is an opportunity for Vermont high school students to articulate what issues they would prioritize if they were president. A panel of Vermont teachers will judge the essays and select a winner. The students\u2019 political views have no impact on how the essays are judged. Essays are judged on the students\u2019 ideas and arguments.\r\nThe finalists will have their essays entered into the Congressional Record -- the official archive of the United States Senate and House of Representatives. Sanders will also hold a roundtable discussion with the finalists.\r\n\u201cOur students are the future of our country and they must be involved in the discussion about where our nation needs to go,\u201d said Sanders, who serves on the Senate education committee. \u201cWe need our students to be engaged, to help find solutions for the problems that face our country. That\u2019s what democracy is all about.\u201d\r\nSince Sanders first held his State of the Union essay contest, more than 3,000 students from schools throughout Vermont have written essays on a wide range of important issues such as the declining middle class, climate change, health care, the national debt, the rising cost of a college education, and many other issues.\r\nThe deadline for student essay submissions is Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2018. More information can be found on Sanders\u2019 Senate webpage at http://www.sanders.senate.gov/stateoftheunion/, by calling (800) 339-9834 or emailing katarina_lisaius@sanders.senate.gov.\r\nContact: Dan McLean (802) 862-6695", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-office-organizes-vermont-day_at-bostons-kennedy-institute", "Sanders Office Organizes Vermont Day  at Bostons Kennedy Institute", "2017-11-08", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders\u2019 Office Organizes \u2018Vermont Day\u2019  at Boston\u2019s Kennedy Institute\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, November 8, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Nov. 8 \u2013 More than 100 students from four Vermont high schools traveled to the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate on Wednesday as part of the first \u201cVermont Day\u201d to learn about democracy, civic discourse and the legislative process.\r\nThe trip, organized by U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), enabled Vermont students to travel to the Kennedy Institute, which is located on the campus of the University of Massachusetts in Boston. Students from Poultney High School, Twinfield Union School, West Rutland School and Woodstock High School participated.\r\nThe Vermont students took on the role of a senator for a day in a full-scale replica of the U.S. Senate chamber. The immersive experience includes researching public policy, introducing and debating legislation and working together to reach consensus.\r\n\u201cAt a time when many people feel alienated from the political process, and when voter participation is dangerously low, it is vitally important that we engage our youth to prepare them to be critical thinkers and future leaders,\u201d Sanders said. \u201cThis trip is a small, but important step for Vermont students to do just that.\u201d\r\nTerri Vest, who teaches at Twinfield Union School said, \u201cStudents in small, rural schools sometimes don't have an opportunity to have this type of experience. By creating a \u2018Vermont Day\u2019 for us, Senator Sanders has given my students the opportunity to engage with students from other schools. Learning about government and how it works is a critical part of our curriculum and has become more important as politics in America have become so divisive. This adventure in learning provides the opportunity for them to understand how complex lawmaking really is and how compromise is at the core of effective government.\u201d\r\nMatt Olewnik, a social studies teacher at West Rutland School, said, \u201cOur Vermont schools are moving curriculum toward a student-centered model, where learning is blended, authentic, and student and inquiry driven. Immersive experiences like this fit nicely into that model.\u201d\r\nSanders, who serves on the Senate education committee, gave the keynote speech at the Kennedy Institute\u2019s first anniversary last year. \u201cI was very impressed with the hands-on civics taught to visiting students and I discussed with the president of the Institute the possibility of organizing Vermont high school students to come down to participate in the innovative programming they have to offer,\u201d Sanders said, explaining the origins of \u201cVermont Day.\u201d\r\nThe bipartisan Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate \u201cis dedicated to educating the public about the important role of the Senate in our government, encouraging participatory democracy, invigorating civil discourse, and inspiring the next generation of citizens and leaders to engage in the civic life of their communities,\u201d according to its website.\r\nSanders is organizing another trip to the Kennedy Institute for Vermont students in March 2018. Schools and students that are interested in participating can contact his Burlington office at 1-800-339-9834.\r\nTo view pictures from \"Vermont Day,\"\u00a0click here.\r\n  Contact: Dan McLean, 802-862-6695", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/video-audio/a-tale-of-two-cancers", "A Tale of Two Cancers", "2017-11-08", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "A Tale of Two Cancers \n            Two sisters, both diagnosed with breast cancer. Catherine, a Canadian, focused on getting well, while her American sister received mounting medical bills. \nCatherine and Karen both recovered, but their experiences were worlds apart. Read their story here: http://www.ucobserver.org/faith/2017/10/two_cancers/", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-calls-for-investigation-into-paradise-papers-findings", "Sanders Calls for Investigation into Paradise Papers Findings", "2017-11-07", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Calls for Investigation into Paradise Papers Findings\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tTuesday, November 7, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Nov. 7 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, on Tuesday called on Congress to conduct an investigation into the offshore tax dodging uncovered by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists in the \u201cParadise Papers.\"\r\nIn a letter to Sen. Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, Sanders urged the Budget Committee to investigate how much offshore tax evasion has contributed to the $20 trillion national debt.\r\n\"The offshore tax dodging uncovered by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) in the 'Paradise Papers' raise serious questions about the integrity of our tax system and the ability of the top 1 percent to rig it in order to benefit themselves at the expense of everyone else,\" Sanders wrote in the letter. \"Before the Senate considers tax reform we must fully investigate offshore tax haven abuse and come up with legislative solutions to prevent the wealthiest people and most profitable corporations in America from dodging U.S. taxes.\"\r\nThe Paradise Papers \u2013 a leak of over 13 million files \u2013 reveal how corporations, billionaires and senior officials in the Trump Administration use complicated financial maneuvers to hide their income from the Internal Revenue Service. According to ICIJ, more than 30,000 people in the United States hide money offshore to avoid paying U.S. taxes.\r\nIt has been estimated that wealthy individuals and profitable corporations in the U.S. are avoiding more than $166 billion in taxes every year by stashing their cash in the Cayman Islands and other offshore tax havens.\r\nTo read Sanders' letter, click here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-calls-for-investigation-into-paradise-papers-findings", "Sanders Calls for Investigation into Paradise Papers Findings", "2017-11-07", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Calls for Investigation into Paradise Papers Findings\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tTuesday, November 7, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Nov. 7 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, on Tuesday called on Congress to conduct an investigation into the offshore tax dodging uncovered by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists in the \u201cParadise Papers.\"\r\nIn a letter to Sen. Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, Sanders urged the Budget Committee to investigate how much offshore tax evasion has contributed to the $20 trillion national debt.\r\n\"The offshore tax dodging uncovered by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) in the 'Paradise Papers' raise serious questions about the integrity of our tax system and the ability of the top 1 percent to rig it in order to benefit themselves at the expense of everyone else,\" Sanders wrote in the letter. \"Before the Senate considers tax reform we must fully investigate offshore tax haven abuse and come up with legislative solutions to prevent the wealthiest people and most profitable corporations in America from dodging U.S. taxes.\"\r\nThe Paradise Papers \u2013 a leak of over 13 million files \u2013 reveal how corporations, billionaires and senior officials in the Trump Administration use complicated financial maneuvers to hide their income from the Internal Revenue Service. According to ICIJ, more than 30,000 people in the United States hide money offshore to avoid paying U.S. taxes.\r\nIt has been estimated that wealthy individuals and profitable corporations in the U.S. are avoiding more than $166 billion in taxes every year by stashing their cash in the Cayman Islands and other offshore tax havens.\r\nTo read Sanders' letter, click here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-gop-tax-plan", "Sanders Statement on GOP Tax Plan", "2017-11-02", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on GOP Tax Plan\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, November 2, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Nov. 2 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Thursday after House Republicans released tax reform legislation:\r\n\"Donald Trump is labeling the disastrous Republican tax bill as the 'Cut, Cut, Cut Act' and he is right. At a time of massive wealth and income inequality, this bill would cut taxes for billionaires by repealing the estate tax. When corporations are making record-breaking profits, this bill would slash taxes for companies that are shifting American jobs to China and profits to the Cayman Islands. And if this bill passes it would blow a giant hole in the deficit, forcing massive cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.\r\n\"Just as we defeated the Republican health care bill, our job now is to bring people together to defeat this disastrous tax bill and to create an economy and government that works for all of us, not just the 1 percent.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-statement-on-gop-tax-plan", "Sanders Statement on GOP Tax Plan", "2017-11-02", "2017", "2017-11", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on GOP Tax Plan\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, November 2, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Nov. 2 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Thursday after House Republicans released tax reform legislation:\r\n\"Donald Trump is labeling the disastrous Republican tax bill as the 'Cut, Cut, Cut Act' and he is right. At a time of massive wealth and income inequality, this bill would cut taxes for billionaires by repealing the estate tax. When corporations are making record-breaking profits, this bill would slash taxes for companies that are shifting American jobs to China and profits to the Cayman Islands. And if this bill passes it would blow a giant hole in the deficit, forcing massive cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.\r\n\"Just as we defeated the Republican health care bill, our job now is to bring people together to defeat this disastrous tax bill and to create an economy and government that works for all of us, not just the 1 percent.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/new-bill-no-war-in-north-korea-without-congressional-authorization", "New Bill: No War in North Korea Without Congressional Authorization", "2017-10-31", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "New Bill: No War in North Korea Without Congressional Authorization\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tTuesday, October 31, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON \u2013\u00a0U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)\u00a0on Tuesday led\u00a0U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and\u00a0Tom Udall (D-N.M.)\u00a0in introducing a bill prohibiting President Trump from starting a preemptive war against North Korea, absent an imminent threat or without express authorization from Congress. The bill, introduced amidst the escalation of irresponsible rhetoric and contradictory behavior from President Trump and officials in his administration, prohibits funds from being used for kinetic military operations without Congressional approval unless the United States faces an imminent threat or such action is necessary to defend citizens or our allies.\u00a0\r\n\r\nThe full text of the bill is available\u00a0here.\u00a0\u00a0\r\n\u201cWe need to take the president seriously when he threatens war, because the dam could break at any moment. Republican and Democratic Senators are alarmed over the path we\u2019re on, and it\u2019s important we join forces to reclaim Congress\u2019 constitutional role in matters of war and peace before there\u2019s no turning back,\u201d\u00a0said Senator Murphy.\u00a0\u201cThis bill shouldn\u2019t be controversial since it essentially restates current law, but Congress needs to make it crystal clear that the President does not have the authority to take preemptive military action in North Korea without congressional consent.\"\r\n\u201cA preemptive strike against North Korea could be catastrophic for the nearly 80,000 American servicemembers who are stationed in the region and for the tens of millions of innocent human beings who live on the Korean Peninsula,\u201d\u00a0said combat Veteran and Senator Duckworth.\u00a0\u201cWe need our nation\u2019s Commander-in-Chief to show a steady hand and sound judgement, not to engage in irresponsible and dangerous verbal attacks that only serve to escalate an already dangerous situation and put American lives at risk.\u00a0As the drums of war beat louder each day in both the White House and the Pentagon, I am proud to stand alongside Senators Murphy, Booker, Schatz and Sanders to ensure those in power understand the true costs of war \u2013 not just in dollars and cents but in human lives \u2013 before they consider starting a conflict that could lead to widespread devastation.\u201d\r\n\r\n\u201cOur bill makes it clear that the president does not have the authority to engage in preventive war without approval from Congress, and it goes so far as to tie the purse strings so that the president will have to ask for Congressional approval before taking any preventive action, \u201d\u00a0said Senator Schatz.\u00a0\u201cI want to emphasize what this bill does not do. It does not limit the ability of the United States to protect our allies. Japan, South Korea, and every other ally of the United States should rest assured that we stand with them, and we will have their backs.\u201d\r\n\r\n\u201cAt a time when President Trump\u2019s rhetoric is growing increasingly belligerent and his foreign policy decisions are becoming even more erratic, this bill reaffirms\u00a0Congress\u2019 authority and provides a critical safeguard to help keep the President from launching the United States and our servicemen and servicewomen into a pre-emptive war of untold magnitude and destruction,\u201d\u00a0said Senator Booker. \u201cThis important legislation clarifies that the President\u2019s authority to defend the United States from an imminent threat or attack cannot be\u00a0stretched to include starting an unprovoked war with North Korea.\u201d\r\n\r\nSenator Sanders said,\u00a0\u201cClearly we have got to do everything that we can to prevent a nuclear war which will likely cost the lives of millions and millions of people. Congress has an enormously important oversight responsibility in matters of war, and this legislation blocking a preemptive strike against North Korea is an appropriate step in fulfilling that responsibility.\u201d\u00a0\r\n\u201cThe President\u2019s erratic, blustering approach to North Korea has created a huge risk of stumbling into a disastrous war,\u201d\u00a0said Senator Merkley.\u00a0\u201cA preemptive strike on North Korea would immediately be met by retaliation that could kill tens of thousands of South Koreans as well as many Americans within hours. This outcome is unacceptable. We need to make sure that Congress exercises its constitutional responsibilities to prevent profound and destructive misjudgments.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-calls-for-reversing-social-security-cuts-to-improve-deteriorating-customer-service", "Sanders Calls for Reversing Social Security Cuts to Improve Deteriorating Customer Service", "2017-10-31", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Calls for Reversing Social Security Cuts to Improve Deteriorating Customer Service\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tTuesday, October 31, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Oct. 31 \u2013 U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on Tuesday called on Congress to reverse deep budget cuts that have left Social Security Administration offices understaffed and unable to keep up with growing caseloads.\r\nIn\u00a0a letter\u00a0to U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), who chairs the Senate Committee on Appropriations, Sanders said, \u201cSocial Security is one of the most successful government programs in our nation\u2019s history, and we must not undermine it by underfunding routine operations.\u201d\r\nSanders said his office has heard from many Vermonters who have expressed frustration that claims, appeals and even routine inquiries are taking longer to process, sometimes causing significant financial hardship. \u201cThe constituent caseworkers in my Vermont district office are receiving an increasing number of Social Security related cases, and many involve concerns about client service. One Vermonter was on hold for 80 minutes with a local field office, and disconnected several times, before getting through to a live person. Others have had to wait many months for the agency to correct relatively simple payment issues,\u201d Sanders wrote.\r\nSince 2010, Congress has cut Social Security\u2019s operating budget by 16 percent in inflated-adjusted dollars. Senate Republicans want to cut it by another 4 percent next year.\u00a0 Nationally, these budget cuts have resulted in the loss of more than 10,000 employees, the closing of 64 field offices and reduced hours in many others.\u00a0 In Vermont, one field office has seen staffing fall by almost 30 percent.\u00a0\r\nOver the same period, Sanders wrote, \u201cthe number of people receiving old age and survivors benefits increased by 17 percent, and disability insurance beneficiaries increased by 5 percent.\u201d\u00a0\r\n\u201cThe simple fact is that fewer staff are being asked to do more work, and this is having a serious impact on worker morale and customer service,\u201d Sanders wrote.\u00a0\u00a0\r\nNationally, it is taking much longer for people to get routine appointments at Social Security field offices. It is also harder to get through to SSA\u2019s toll-free hotline, and nearly half of all callers last year hung-up before connecting because they were on hold for so long. It is also taking longer to make decisions on applications for disability benefits.\u00a0\r\nSanders said the amount requested for Social Security operational funding would \u201cbring staffing back up to a level needed to provide adequate customer service for the tens of millions of Americans who routinely communicate with and depend on the agency.\u201d\r\nThese funds support core administrative activities including processing retirement and disability claims, conducting\u00a0 hearings to review disability determination appeals, issuing Social\u00a0 Security numbers and cards and processing individuals\u2019 annual earnings information.\r\nTo read Sanders\u2019 letter,\u00a0click here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-special-counsel-indictments", "Sanders Statement on Special Counsel Indictments", "2017-10-30", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Special Counsel Indictments\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tMonday, October 30, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tNEW YORK, Oct. 30 \u2013 U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Monday after President Donald Trump\u2019s former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, and a former Manafort business associate, Rick Gates, were indicted:\r\n\u201cRussia\u2019s interference in our recent election and their attack on American democracy is an issue of enormous consequence. Special Counsel Mueller, appointed with bipartisan support, is proceeding with his investigation into the relationship between the Trump campaign and Russian interests. President Trump must not, in any way, try to derail or obstruct this effort.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-statement-on-special-counsel-indictments", "Sanders Statement on Special Counsel Indictments", "2017-10-30", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Special Counsel Indictments\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tMonday, October 30, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tNEW YORK, Oct. 30 \u2013 U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Monday after President Donald Trump\u2019s former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, and a former Manafort business associate, Rick Gates, were indicted:\r\n\u201cRussia\u2019s interference in our recent election and their attack on American democracy is an issue of enormous consequence. Special Counsel Mueller, appointed with bipartisan support, is proceeding with his investigation into the relationship between the Trump campaign and Russian interests. President Trump must not, in any way, try to derail or obstruct this effort.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/top-dems-introduce-bill-to-allow-hhs-to-negotiate-lower-drug-prices-for-medicare", "Top Dems Introduce Bill to Allow HHS to Negotiate Lower Drug Prices for Medicare", "2017-10-25", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Top Dems Introduce Bill to Allow HHS to Negotiate Lower Drug Prices for Medicare\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tPresident Claims He Supports Idea, But Has Failed to Make Good on Campaign Promise\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, October 25, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, \u00a0Oct. 25 \u2014Today, Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.), the Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Tx.), and Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.)\u00a0introduced\u00a0The Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Act of 2017\u00a0to direct the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to negotiate lower prices for prescription drugs under Medicare Part D\u2014a proposal that President Donald Trump said he backs and that\u00a092% of the American people support.\r\nRanking Member Cummings:\u00a0\u00a0\u201cBefore and after the election, President Trump said over and over again that drug companies were \u2018getting away with murder\u2019 and that he wanted to give the government authority to negotiate lower drug prices. That\u2019s what our bill does. I know there have been a lot of distractions with the President\u2014a LOT of distractions. But this is what the American people want us to be working on.\u00a0 They are sick of the tweeting, the insults, the infighting, and all the rest of it. They want us to work together to lower drug prices, and they want action now. We are doing our part. We hope President Trump will do his.\u201d\r\nSenator Sanders:\u00a0\u201cWhile drug corporations make extraordinary profits, our people are dying and becoming sicker than they should because of outrageously high prices for the medicine that they need. This is unacceptable. It\u2019s time for President Trump to follow through on his promises to the American people. We must join the rest of the industrialized world by implementing prescription drug policies that work for everybody, not just the CEOs of the pharmaceutical industry.\u201d\r\nRep. Doggett: \u201cDrug pricing in America is a tangled mess, a knot that will take more than one cut to pull apart. Harnessing the purchasing power of Medicare and negotiating better deals for drugs through a process similar to that already available for our veterans is a significant first cut at the knot. Sick patients are sick and tired of seeing Congress do nothing about a problem that affects so many.\u201d\r\nRep. Welch: \u201cPutting the federal government's purchasing power to work to save seniors and the taxpayer money is simply common sense. The fact that we continue to pay retail rates for wholesale purchases is a ridiculous. It's long past time we put an end this sweetheart deal for big Pharma. If President Trump is serious about his support for this proposal, I\u2019m ready to work with him to provide urgently needed relief to consumers and taxpayers.\u201d\r\nPresident Trump has\u00a0warned\u00a0that the pharmaceutical industry is \u201cgetting away with murder,\u201d has\u00a0criticized\u201coutrageous\u201d drug prices,\u00a0and\u00a0has\u00a0pledged\u00a0to create a \u201cfair and competitive bidding process\u201d that would result in prices \u201ccoming way, way, way down.\u201d\u00a0 As recently as last week, he\u00a0acknowledged\u00a0again that \u201cmassive\u201d spending and lobbying by the pharmaceutical industry have driven drug prices \u201cthrough the roof.\u201d\r\nThe Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Act of 2017\u00a0would finally turn this rhetoric into law by allowing the government to negotiate directly with drug companies to lower prices for Medicare beneficiaries, much like the VA and Medicaid do today.\r\nCurrent law prohibits the Secretary of HHS from negotiating directly for lower prices in Medicare, even though Medicare paid for 29% of retail drug costs in 2015.\u00a0 Since Medicaid and VA are allowed to negotiate, Medicare Part D\u00a0pays, on average, 73% more than Medicaid and 80% more than VA for brand-name drugs.\u00a0 The federal government could\u00a0save\u00a0between $15.2 billion and $16 billion a year if Medicare Part D paid the same prices as Medicaid or VA.\r\nThe legislation would leverage the purchasing power of the government by using formularies to enhance competition and establish a fallback price\u2014based on what other federal agencies and foreign countries pay\u2014to kick in automatically if negotiations are unsuccessful. It also would preserve critical protections for patient access and strengthen patient appeals processes for Part D plans.\r\nFinally, the legislation would restore rebates on drugs covered under Part D for low-income beneficiaries, which were eliminated when Part D was created. \u00a0According to the Congressional Budget Office, restoring these rebates for brand-name drugs alone would save taxpayers\u00a0$145 billion\u00a0over ten years. \u00a0\r\nThis bill is cosponsored by Sens. Reed, Gillibrand, Harris, and Al Franken, and Reps. Pocan, Higgins, Ellison, Schakowsky, Kaptur, Norton, Jayapal, Cohen, Gabbard, Grijalva, Nadler, Raskin, and DeLauro.\u00a0\r\nThis bill is endorsed by the Alliance for Retired Americans, American Federation of Teachers, the Center for Medicare Advocacy, CREDO, Doctors for America, the Economic Policy Institute Policy Center, Families USA, Knowledge Ecology International, Medicare Rights Center, MoveOn, the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, Patients for Affordable Drugs, Prescription Justice, Public Citizen, Social Security Works, and The Senior Citizens League.\r\nAlso today, Ranking Member Cummings and Rep. Welch sent a\u00a0letter\u00a0to President Trump expressing their \u201cprofound disappointment\u201d that the President failed to work with them in any way after they went to the White House at the President\u2019s invitation in March, personally presented him with a draft of the bill, and asked for his endorsement and any feedback he had on the proposal. \u00a0Their letter today followed two previous letters they sent to the President onApril 20, 2017\u00a0and\u00a0June 21, 2017\u00a0seeking to work together in a bipartisan manner. \u00a0The President failed to respond to either of those previous letter as well.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/minimum-wage-too-low-to-keep-working-families-out-of-poverty-new-report-finds", "Minimum Wage Too Low to Keep Working Families Out of Poverty, New Report Finds", "2017-10-23", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Minimum Wage Too Low to Keep Working Families Out of Poverty, New Report Finds\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tMonday, October 23, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Oct. 23 \u2013 The federal minimum wage is leaving millions of families in poverty, according to a\u00a0new study\u00a0prepared by the Government Accountability Office for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).\r\n\r\nWhile 20 percent of working families earning the $7.25 minimum wage or below live in poverty, 13 percent of families with a worker earning up to $12 per hour live in poverty and 5 percent of families of with a worker earning up to $16 per hour live in poverty. Sanders has called for legislation to increase the federal minimum wage to a living wage of $15 per hour.\r\n\r\n\r\n\"As this new report shows, $7.25 minimum wage is a starvation wage that is not enough to keep working families out of poverty.\" Sanders said. \"The United States Congress must raise the minimum wage to a living wage: $15 an hour.\"\r\n\r\n\r\nThirty Senate Democrats have signed onto the bill introduced by Sens. Sanders and Patty Murray (D-Wash.), which would raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2024 and would be indexed to inflation thereafter. The federal minimum wage has not been raised since 2009.\u00a0\r\n\r\n\r\nThe GAO found that higher wages were associated with lower poverty rates. Low-wage workers \u2013 those earning $16 per hour or less \u2013 comprise about 40 percent of the U.S. workforce aged 25 to 64. Millions of these working families and their children are living in poverty as a result of low wages. In 2016, nearly half (48 percent) of single-parent families with a minimum wage worker were living in poverty. In families where the single parent was earning between $12 to $16 per hour, the poverty rates dropped from 48 percent to 17 percent.\r\n\r\n\r\nFive industries consistently employ the majority (70 percent) of low-wage workers \u2013 leisure and hospitality, education and health, professional and business services, wholesale and retail trade and manufacturing. The highest concentration of low-wage workers is in the health and education industry with an estimated 22 to 25 percent of workers.\r\n\r\n\r\nThe report found that an average worker earning the minimum wage or below had annual earnings of $12,441 and may qualify for programs such as Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Additional Child Tax Credit. However, given the very low income eligibility thresholds for some safety net programs, low-wage workers \u2013 even those earning the minimum wage and living in poverty \u2013 may earn too much to qualify.\u00a0\r\n\r\n\r\n\u201cThe gap between the richest Americans and everyone else is wider than at any time since the 1920s,\u201d Sanders said. \u201cInstead of giving huge tax breaks to millionaires and billionaires, we must invest in critical programs that help working families make ends meet and lift millions of Americans out of poverty.\"\u00a0\r\n\r\n\r\nThe GAO\u2019s study noted that the growing divide between the top 1 percent and everyone else is not only due to wage stagnation among low-wage workers, but in fact attributable to skyrocketing wealth among high earners. \u201cRecent studies have found that while average wages experienced little or no change from 1973 through 2011 (when held in constant 2011 dollars), income inequality increased as a direct result of income growth among high-wage workers,\u201d the GAO wrote.\r\n\r\n\r\nOther key findings in the report include:\r\n\r\n \r\nOnly 5 percent or less of families with a low-wage worker received\u00a0TANF cash assistance at least once in the last year between 1995 and 2016.\r\nIn 2016, most single-parent families (82 percent) with a minimum wage earner lived below 200 percent of the federal poverty line.\r\nIn 2016, 37 percent of all families with a minimum wage earner lived below 200 percent of the federal poverty line. Twenty-four percent of all families earning between $12 to $16 per hour lived below 200 percent of the federal poverty line.\u00a0\r\nA hypothetical low-wage worker ages 25 to 64:\r\n \r\n \r\n\r\nearning $7.25 per hour or less would have annual earnings of $12,441 \u2013 making them eligible for Medicaid, SNAP, EITC and ACTC\r\nearning $7.25 to $12 per hour would have annual earnings of $20,592 \u2013 making them eligible for Medicaid, SNAP, EITC and ACTC\r\nearning $12 to $16 per hour would have annual earnings of $30,784 \u2013 making them eligible for EITC and ACTC\r\n\r\n \r\n \r\nThe percent of workers earning $12 to $16 per hour with college degrees increased from 16 percent in 1995 to 22 percent in 2016.\r\n \r\nRead the report\u00a0here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-new-373000-cancer-therapy", "Sanders Statement on New $373,000 Cancer Therapy", "2017-10-19", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on New $373,000 Cancer Therapy\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, October 19, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Oct. 19 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Thursday after the pharmaceutical company Gilead said the list price for the cancer drug Yescarta would be $373,000:\r\n\u201cGilead, one of the greediest pharmaceutical corporations in the world, is once again gouging Americans dealing with a life-threatening illness. This time, Gilead plans to charge an outrageous $373,000 per patient for a life-saving cancer drug developed with taxpayer money. What good does a breakthrough medication do if no one can afford it? No one in America should die because they cannot afford the cost of the medication they need, yet that is exactly what will happen if we continue to allow Gilead and other pharmaceutical corporations to charge whatever price they want.\r\n\u201cThe pharmaceutical industry\u2019s greed must end. It\u2019s time for Congress and President Trump \u2013 who has spoken often about drug makers \u2018getting away with murder\u2019 \u2013 to take action to lower the cost of prescription drugs in America.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-to-visit-puerto-rico-thanks-womens-convention", "Sanders to Visit Puerto Rico, Thanks Women's Convention", "2017-10-19", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders to Visit Puerto Rico, Thanks Women's Convention\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, October 19, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Oct. 19 \u2013\u00a0Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement\u00a0Thursday:\r\n\u201cI want to apologize to the organizers of the Women\u2019s Convention for not being able to attend your conference\u00a0next Friday\u00a0in Detroit. Given the emergency situation in Puerto Rico, I will be traveling there to visit with San Juan Mayor Carmen Yul\u00edn Cruz and other officials to determine the best way forward to deal with the devastation the island is experiencing. The U.S. Congress cannot turn its back on the millions of people in Puerto Rico who, four weeks after the hurricane, are still without electricity, food and running water.  \u00a0  \u201cCongratulations to the board of the Women's March \u2013 Tamika Mallory, Bob Bland, Linda Sarsour, Carmen Perez, Janaye Ingram, Breanne Butler \u2013 along with thousands of other women leaders for their historic work in putting together the march in January and all that you have done since. My best wishes for a very successful conference.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-statement-on-new-373000-cancer-therapy", "Sanders Statement on New $373,000 Cancer Therapy", "2017-10-19", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on New $373,000 Cancer Therapy\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, October 19, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Oct. 19 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Thursday after the pharmaceutical company Gilead said the list price for the cancer drug Yescarta would be $373,000:\r\n\u201cGilead, one of the greediest pharmaceutical corporations in the world, is once again gouging Americans dealing with a life-threatening illness. This time, Gilead plans to charge an outrageous $373,000 per patient for a life-saving cancer drug developed with taxpayer money. What good does a breakthrough medication do if no one can afford it? No one in America should die because they cannot afford the cost of the medication they need, yet that is exactly what will happen if we continue to allow Gilead and other pharmaceutical corporations to charge whatever price they want.\r\n\u201cThe pharmaceutical industry\u2019s greed must end. It\u2019s time for Congress and President Trump \u2013 who has spoken often about drug makers \u2018getting away with murder\u2019 \u2013 to take action to lower the cost of prescription drugs in America.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-stabenow-and-casey-introduce-amendment-to-prevent-republicans-from-cutting-medicaid", "Sanders, Stabenow and Casey Introduce Amendment to Prevent Republicans from Cutting Medicaid", "2017-10-18", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders, Stabenow and Casey Introduce Amendment to Prevent Republicans from Cutting Medicaid\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, October 18, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Oct. 18 \u2013 Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Bob Casey (D-Pa.) will introduce Wednesday the first Democratic amendment to Senate Republicans' fiscal year 2018 budget resolution. The amendment would prevent Republicans from enacting their plan to cut Medicaid by $1 trillion in order to give a $1.9 trillion tax break to the top 1 percent. The amendment would be fully paid for by stopping Republicans from giving the wealthiest people in America another tax break. Sanders, Stabenow and Casey\u2019s amendment, which will come up for a vote at 3 p.m. today, would protect the more than 30 million children, 11 million individuals with disabilities, 7 million seniors and 1.7 million veterans who rely on Medicaid. \u201cWhat does it mean if you have constituents who are suffering today with cancer, heart disease, asthma or diabetes, and they have Medicaid taken away from them? What happens to them when they cannot afford to go to the doctor when they are sick or buy the medicine that they need?\u201d asked Sanders. \u201cIf 15 million Americans lose Medicaid and are thrown off of health insurance, many thousands of our fellow Americans will die and many more will suffer and become much sicker than they should.\u201d \u201cMillions of children, families, seniors and people with disabilities in Michigan rely on Medicaid for their health care needs. In fact, three out of five seniors in nursing homes in Michigan receive health coverage through Medicaid. It is outrageous that Republicans are proposing a $1 trillion cut to these vital services in order to fund a tax break for the top 1 percent,\u201d said Stabenow. \u201cCutting Medicaid to fund tax giveaways to the super-rich is wrong,\u201d said Casey. \u201cBetraying working families, people with disabilities and families paying for nursing care for loved ones to fund tax giveaways to the wealthiest must be stopped, which is what this amendment will do. This amendment is a simple choice between the promise of Medicaid and obscene tax cuts for the super-rich.\u201d Poll after poll shows the American people do not want to see cuts to Medicaid or tax breaks for billionaires.\u00a0 Nearly 70 percent of Americans oppose slashing Medicaid, according to a recent\u00a0poll\u00a0from PRRI. A recent\u00a0Wall Street Journal/NBC poll\u00a0found that only 12 percent of the American people believe the wealthy should receive a tax cut; while 62 percent believe the wealthy should pay more in taxes. Read the text of the amendment\u00a0here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-stabenow-and-casey-introduce-amendment-to-prevent-republicans-from-cutting-medicaid", "Sanders, Stabenow and Casey Introduce Amendment to Prevent Republicans from Cutting Medicaid", "2017-10-18", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders, Stabenow and Casey Introduce Amendment to Prevent Republicans from Cutting Medicaid\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, October 18, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Oct. 18 \u2013 Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Bob Casey (D-Pa.) will introduce Wednesday the first Democratic amendment to Senate Republicans' fiscal year 2018 budget resolution. The amendment would prevent Republicans from enacting their plan to cut Medicaid by $1 trillion in order to give a $1.9 trillion tax break to the top 1 percent. The amendment would be fully paid for by stopping Republicans from giving the wealthiest people in America another tax break. Sanders, Stabenow and Casey\u2019s amendment, which will come up for a vote at 3 p.m. today, would protect the more than 30 million children, 11 million individuals with disabilities, 7 million seniors and 1.7 million veterans who rely on Medicaid. \u201cWhat does it mean if you have constituents who are suffering today with cancer, heart disease, asthma or diabetes, and they have Medicaid taken away from them? What happens to them when they cannot afford to go to the doctor when they are sick or buy the medicine that they need?\u201d asked Sanders. \u201cIf 15 million Americans lose Medicaid and are thrown off of health insurance, many thousands of our fellow Americans will die and many more will suffer and become much sicker than they should.\u201d \u201cMillions of children, families, seniors and people with disabilities in Michigan rely on Medicaid for their health care needs. In fact, three out of five seniors in nursing homes in Michigan receive health coverage through Medicaid. It is outrageous that Republicans are proposing a $1 trillion cut to these vital services in order to fund a tax break for the top 1 percent,\u201d said Stabenow. \u201cCutting Medicaid to fund tax giveaways to the super-rich is wrong,\u201d said Casey. \u201cBetraying working families, people with disabilities and families paying for nursing care for loved ones to fund tax giveaways to the wealthiest must be stopped, which is what this amendment will do. This amendment is a simple choice between the promise of Medicaid and obscene tax cuts for the super-rich.\u201d Poll after poll shows the American people do not want to see cuts to Medicaid or tax breaks for billionaires.\u00a0 Nearly 70 percent of Americans oppose slashing Medicaid, according to a recent\u00a0poll\u00a0from PRRI. A recent\u00a0Wall Street Journal/NBC poll\u00a0found that only 12 percent of the American people believe the wealthy should receive a tax cut; while 62 percent believe the wealthy should pay more in taxes. Read the text of the amendment\u00a0here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/video-audio/vermont-viewpoint-bill-pearson", "Vermont Viewpoint: Bill Pearson", "2017-10-18", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Vermont Viewpoint: Bill Pearson \n            Vermont Viewpoint: Bill Pearson of Brattleboro, Vermont, states: \u201cIn this country, we don\u2019t have adequate health care.\n            \n                \n                    \n                       \t\n        \t\t\t\t\n                        \n                            \n                                \n                                \n                                    \n                                    \n                                    \n                                \n                                \n        \t\t\t\t\t\t\n                            \n                        \n                        \n    \t\t\t\t\t\t\n                            \t\n    \t\t\t\t\t\t\n    \t\t\t\t\t\n                    \n                \n            \n        \t\n            \n            \n            \n                \n                \n                \n                \n                    \n                   \tSee Video on YouTube\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTweet\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n                    \nCopy Link", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/video-audio/vermont-voices-michael-castelli-of-middlebury-vermont", "Vermont Voices: Michael Castelli of Middlebury, Vermont", "2017-10-18", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Vermont Voices: Michael Castelli of Middlebury, Vermont \n            Vermont Viewpoint: \u201cWe should not have to spend large portions of our income in order to have access to health care \u2013 only to pay on top that in the form of co-pays, deductibles, coinsurances and other out-of-pocket expenses,\u201d said Michael Castelli of Middlebury, Vermont, who expressed his support of Bernie\u2019s Medicare-for-all legislation.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-responds-to-trumps-iran-deal-announcement", "Sanders Responds to Trump's Iran Deal Announcement", "2017-10-13", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Responds to Trump's Iran Deal Announcement\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tFriday, October 13, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Oct. 13 \u2013\u00a0U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Friday after President Donald Trump\u00a0disavowed the international nuclear deal with Iran and\u00a0declared his intention not to certify Iran\u2019s compliance with the agreement:\r\n\"President Trump\u2019s speech today was the latest in a series of rash and reckless moves that make Americans less safe. By refusing to re-certify the Iran nuclear agreement, President Trump ignored the public statements of his own national security officials. Last week, Joint Chiefs Chairman Dunford \u00a0and Secretary of Defense Mattis affirmed to the Senate Armed Services Committee that Iran is meeting its commitments under the agreement and that staying in the agreement is in the national security interests of the United States.\r\n\"Trump\u2019s decision also isolates the United States from some of its most important allies. France, the U.K. and Germany all continue to support the agreement and have consistently said that it is in their own national security interests.\r\n\"Breaking the Iran agreement would not only free Iran from the limits placed on its nuclear program, it would irreparably harm America\u2019s ability to negotiate future nonproliferation agreements. Why would any country in the world sign such an agreement with the United States if they knew that a reckless president might simply discard that agreement a few years later?\r\n\"If we are genuinely concerned with Iran\u2019s behavior in the region, as I am, the worst possible thing we could do is undermine this nuclear deal. It would make addressing all of these other problems harder. Unfortunately, I heard no strategy from Trump today, just a lot of bluster.\u00a0\r\n\"Ultimately we must seek a better relationship with the Iranian people and a more constructive role for Iran in the region. Trump\u2019s bellicose rhetoric today made achieving those things harder. It will alienate Iran\u2019s people and strengthen the regime\u2019s hardliners, who are much more comfortable dealing with a hostile America than with a reasonable, peace-seeking one.\r\n\u00a0\r\n\"Now that this decision has been put in Congress\u2019 hands, it\u2019s up to us to stop this drift toward war. We should listen to what virtually the entire national security community is saying \u2013 that this deal is working \u2013 and protect it.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-trumps-health-care-executive-orders", "Sanders Statement on Trump's Health Care Executive Orders", "2017-10-13", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Trump's Health Care Executive Orders\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tFriday, October 13, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Oct. 13 \u2013\u00a0U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Friday after President Donald Trump\u00a0halted cost-sharing reductions that help\u00a0pay out-of-pocket health care costs of low-income people and\u00a0ordered potentially sweeping changes in the nation\u2019s insurance system, including sales of cheaper policies with fewer benefits and fewer protections for consumers:\r\n\"Amazingly, we have a president who is trying to destroy the American health care system. At a time when millions of Americans remain uninsured or underinsured, President Trump\u2019s decision to sabotage the Affordable Care Act will substantially raise health care costs for the American people and lead to lower quality coverage. Trump\u2019s action is clear proof that he was never interested in improving health care. His only goal has been to destroy the Affordable Care Act.\u00a0 \"Trump\u2019s decision means that in Vermont, 12,000 people will be impacted and the state will lose $12 million of federal support. \"The American people deserve better. Now is the time to go forward \u2013 not backward. Short term, Congress must work to improve the Affordable Care Act to lower costs, insure more people and reduce the price of prescription drugs. Long term, we must go forward and join nearly every other major country by guaranteeing health care as a right through a Medicare-for-all program.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-visits-solar-regional-testing-center", "Sanders Visits Solar Regional Testing Center", "2017-10-12", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WILLISTON, Vt., Oct. 12 \u2013 U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) applauded the \u201ccutting-edge role Vermont is playing in researching, testing and deploying solar energy,\u201d during a visit to the U.S. Department of Energy\u2019s solar testing site in Williston on Thursday morning.\r\nThe Vermont Regional Test Center (RTC) is one of five such facilities in the United States that give manufacturers of solar technologies the opportunity to test the performance and reliability of their products in real-world conditions. The RTCs are funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and are managed by Sandia National Laboratories.\r\nSanders helped secure $3 million in 2013 from the Energy Department\u2019s SunShot Initiative to create the Vermont solar testing site specifically to study the effectiveness of different solar technologies in a cold and wet climate. The Vermont site is located on land owned by Global Foundries, who Sanders thanked for its continued commitment to the project.\r\n\u201cThis facility, in a very short time, has become the most successful RTC in the country,\u201d Sanders said. \u201cWe now have 15 installations, 24 module types, and 11 industry partners \u2013 including three Vermont companies.\u201d The three Vermont companies are AllEarth Renewables, Norwich Technologies, and NRG Systems.\r\nLaurie Burnham of Sandia National Laboratories explained that the Regional Test Center employs state-of-the-art data collection and analysis to assess the performance of different solar technologies, in different weather conditions.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\r\nJosh Castonguay, Green Mountain Power\u2019s chief innovation executive, said the electric utility is committed to helping transform our energy system, and efforts like the RTC were critically important in that effort. \u201cThere has been a lot of momentum. This is an exciting time,\u201d he said.\u00a0\r\nSanders also said that the recent surge in solar investment is \u201ccreating good-paying jobs that our economy needs,\u201d and noted that Vermont ranks second in the nation for solar jobs per capita.\u00a0 And, he said, solar energy is saving Vermonters money. \u201cLast summer, on a particularly hot day, a new advanced solar and battery system in Rutland saved Green Mountain Power customers $200,000 in just one hour by reducing peak power demand.\u201d\r\nSanders also criticized the Trump administration, which took steps to repeal the Clean Power Plan this week, for its refusal to even acknowledge the reality of climate change.\r\n\u201cDespite what President Trump and this Administration may think, climate change is real, climate change is caused by human activity and climate change is already causing devastating problems in our country and around the world.\u00a0 Just ask the people of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Texas or Florida who have experienced enormous damage due to recent ferocious storms that were exacerbated by warmer air holding more water vapor,\u201d Sanders said.\r\n\u201cThe very good news,\u201d Sanders said, \u201cis that communities all across this country are moving toward energy efficiency and renewable energy. Total investment in renewables last year was double the investment in fossil fuels. President Trump talks about bringing back coal. It\u2019s not going to happen. This is the future.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-trumps-harrisburg-speech", "Sanders Statement on Trump's Harrisburg Speech", "2017-10-11", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Trump's Harrisburg Speech\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, October 11, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Oct. 11 \u2013\u00a0U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) released the following statement ahead of President Donald Trump's speech on tax reform in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania:\r\n\"Donald Trump is going to Pennsylvania to tell truck drivers how his tax plan will benefit them. Unfortunately, once again, the president is lying.\r\n\"His tax plan, based on the widely discredited theory of 'trickle down economics,' will provide virtually no benefit to truck drivers and will result in a tax increase for tens of millions of middle class Americans. It is designed to benefit the wealthiest people and the largest and most profitable corporations in this country.\r\n\"Nearly 80 percent of the tax benefits in Trump\u2019s plan will go to the top 1 percent and 40 percent of the benefits will go to the top 0.1 percent by the end of the decade, according to the non-partisan Tax Policy Center. Further, as part of Trump\u2019s overall budget, this huge tax gift to millionaires and billionaires will result in a $1 trillion dollar cut to Medicaid and a $473 billion cut to Medicare, in addition to massive cuts to education, nutrition and the needs of children, the elderly and the environment.\r\n\"Trump\u2019s tax plan and his budget is the Robin Hood principle in reverse. He takes from the poor and working families of this country in order to give to the very rich. This disastrous proposal must be defeated.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/bernies-podcast/episode-11-chuck-collins-100417", "Episode 11: Chuck Collins", "2017-10-04", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Chuck Collins, Director of the Institute for Policy Studies' Program on Inequality and the Common Good, joined Sen. Sanders to discuss the worrying growth of income and wealth inequality and how we can create a more equal society.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/newswatch/100417", "October 4", "2017-10-04", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "October 4\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, October 4, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\tSenate Budget Slashes Medicare, Medicaid\u00a0Senate Republicans are proposing to slash Medicare spending by $473 billion over a decade, once again diverging from one of President Donald Trump\u2019s key campaign promises, according to Democrats on the Senate Budget Committee. The panel\u2019s minority party staff, led by Sen. Bernie Sanders, published the figure in a five-page report,\u00a0Politico\u00a0reported.\r\nRandall Woodfin Elected Birmingham Mayor\u00a0Progressive challenger Randall Woodfin on Tuesday unseated William Bell, the mayor of Birmingham, Alabama, in a nonpartisan runoff election. Woodfin\u2019s win is a coup for national progressive groups that backed him, including the Working Families Party and Our Revolution, the legacy organization of Sanders\u2019 2016 presidential campaign. Sanders personally endorsed Woodfin and recorded a robocall for him on Monday,\u00a0The Huffington Post,\u00a0WBHM\u00a0and\u00a0The Intercept\u00a0reported.\u00a0\r\nSanders Emotional Learning About WWII Relative\u00a0Sanders recently choked up after he learned that one of his relatives died while fighting the Nazis during World War II. The Jewish former Democratic presidential candidate discovered details about his ancestor during the taping of the new season of the PBS series \u201cFinding Your Roots,\u201d\u00a0The Algemeiner\u00a0reported.\r\nVermont College Fairs\u00a0Sanders is set to host a series of college fairs in Vermont, for high school students and their parents to learn more about educational opportunities in Vermont and the resources available to help pay for them,\u00a0WCAX-TV\u00a0reported.\u00a0\r\n2020 Democrats Target Guns\u00a0 Not long ago, Democratic presidential hopefuls shied away from talking about gun control \u2014 or at least made sure to pepper their rhetoric with nods to the Second Amendment. Sanders, who was hammered for sometimes voting with the gun lobby by Hillary Clinton in the 2016 Democratic presidential primary, said Americans should do \"everything we can\" to stop gun violence,\u00a0NBC News\u00a0reported.\r\nNative Vermonter Killed in Vegas\u00a0Sandy Casey, a native of nearby Dorset, Vermont, was among the dozens of people killed in Las Vegas. Sanders and Patrick Leahy both offered public condolences to Casey\u2019s family.\u00a0 Sanders tweeted: \u201cJane and I are deeply saddened to hear that Vermonter Sandy Casey was among the victims in Vegas. Our hearts are with her family & friends,\u201d\u00a0The Washington Post\u00a0reported.\r\nSanders: College for All\u00a0\u201cWe live in a highly competitive, global economy, and if our economy is to be strong, we need the best-educated workforce in the world. The only way to achieve that goal is to make sure that every young person in this country can get the education that he or she desires, regardless of his or her family\u2019s income, and without going into major debt,\u201d Sanders wrote in an op-ed run in\u00a0The Hofstra Chronicle.\u00a0\r\nSanders, Larry David Discover They\u2019re Related\u00a0When Larry David debuted his Bernie Sanders impersonation on Saturday Night Live, the similarities were uncanny. When two appeared on the season 4 premiere of the PBS\u2019 show Finding Your Roots they were given a shocking discovery: they were related,\u00a0The Associated Press,\u00a0Newsweek,\u00a0TV Line,\u00a0Vulture\u00a0and\u00a0Deadline Hollywood\u00a0reported.\r\nBiden: No More Extreme Senators\u00a0In the process of delivering the rather socialistic message that wealthy people didn\u2019t need a tax break, Joe Biden, former Vice President managed to take a sideways jab at Bernie Sanders. \u201cDoug understands about tax fairness,\u201d Biden told the crowd. \u201cGuys, the wealthy are as patriotic as the poor. I know Bernie doesn\u2019t like me saying that, but they are,\u201dPaste Magazine\u00a0and\u00a0The Hill\u00a0reported.\u00a0\r\nChomsky on Diagnosing the Trump Era\u00a0\u201cThe most remarkable feature of the 2016 election was the Bernie Sanders campaign, which broke the pattern set by over a century of US political history. A substantial body of political science research convincingly establishes that elections are pretty much bought; campaign funding alone is a remarkably good predictor of electability, for Congress as well as for the presidency,\u201d Noam Chomsky said in an interview with\u00a0The Nation.\r\nGOP Strategist: This Is a New Gilded Age\u00a0Republican strategist and lobbyist Bruce Mehlman sees \u201ceerie\u201d parallels between the Gilded Age and today. \u201cOn issues like race and on immigration, we're now finding the culture war is competing with a class war,\u201d Mehlman said. \u201cYou used to hear it from the Pat Buchanans of the world and some of the Democrats like Bernie Sanders, but it's now becoming mainstream in, for sure, the Democratic Party and, increasingly, the Republican Party,\u201d\u00a0The Washington Post\u00a0reported.\r\nColumn: Congress\u2019s War Powers Must Become Reality\u00a0\u201cAlthough a reactionary monarchy, Saudi Arabia has long enjoyed a special relationship with the United States\u2026 Now that impunity is starting to wear thin. In his foreign policy speech at Westminster College, \u2026 Sanders courageously called out our support for Saudi Arabia\u2019s \u2018destructive intervention in Yemen,\u2019 arguing that \u2018such policies dramatically undermine America\u2019s ability to advance a human rights agenda across the world,\u201d Katrina vanden Heuvel wrote for\u00a0The Washington Post.\r\nColumn: Get a New Base\u00a0\u201dTraditional Republicans should consider reverse-engineering their party. Their beliefs \u2026 may find a following among suburbanites, college-educated voters, immigrants, nontraditional families... millennials, small-business people, workers in the New Economy and Democrats and independents resistant to that party\u2019s tilt toward Sanders and Western European-style democratic socialism,\u201d Jennifer Rubin wrote for\u00a0The Washington Post.\r\nColumn: Money from NRA\u00a0\u201cNRA spending reached $7.7 million for McCain and against his Senate electoral opponents by 2016, placing him second among all members of Congress, behind only Sanders, who despite his progressive credentials has been a consistent supporter of the gun manufacturing industry ($8.3 million),\u201d Michael Hiltzik wrote for\u00a0Los Angeles Times.\r\nColumn: Quiet Battle Between Sanders and Harris\u00a0\u201cThe Atlanta mayoral election is a microcosm of the war within the Democratic Party between progressives and the establishment. The opposing factions are likely to continue pushing against one another in local and congressional campaigns across the country leading up to an anticipated showdown in the 2020 Democratic primaries,\u201d Michael Sainato wrote for\u00a0Observer.\r\nColumn: Obama Too Conservative?\u00a0\u201cAs Democratic Party leaders continue to lurch toward Bernie Sanders\u2019 brand of Marxism, they are clearly making Mr. Obama appear more moderate ...\u00a0 But it is striking, given that Mr. Sanders won 22 states and nearly 1900 delegates in the 2016 Democratic primary campaign, that even among Democratic voters almost nobody will cop to being \u201cfar left\u201d and just 16% call themselves \u2018very liberal,\u2019\u201d James Freeman wrote for\u00a0The Wall Street Journal.\r\nColumn: Who Will Be the Bernie of Gun Control?\u00a0\u201cIf Bernie Sanders won\u2019t be the Bernie Sanders of gun control, who will? The person trying the hardest so far is potential presidential candidate Sen. Chris Murphy. Murphy, who was profoundly moved by Sandy Hook and has little to fear from pro-gun voters in deep-blue Connecticut, has been a vociferous critic of the NRA,\u201d Bill Scher wrote for\u00a0Politico.\r\nColumn: Even Kennedy Used Tax Cuts\u00a0\u201cThere is a pattern here, but the Bernie Sanders-Elizabeth Warren-Kamala Harris class warriors in Washington won\u2019t acknowledge it because they are so ideologically committed to a zero-sum view of our economy that has some earners benefiting only at the expense of other earners. If only these progressives cared about wealth creation as much as they care about wealth redistribution,\u201d Jason Riley wrote for\u00a0The Wall Street Journal.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/gop-budget-would-gut-medicare-medicaid-other-key-programs", "GOP Budget Would Gut Medicare, Medicaid, Other Key Programs", "2017-10-04", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "GOP Budget Would Gut Medicare, Medicaid, Other Key Programs\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, October 4, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tSenate Republicans recently released their budget for 2018. Following the lead of previous Republican budgets written by President Donald Trump \u2013 and by Paul Ryan and Tom Price before him \u2013 the Senate Republicans\u2019 budget would make devastating cuts to programs working families rely on, while giving massive tax cuts to the wealthy, according to\u00a0a new report\u00a0by Senate Budget Committee staff.\r\nIn total, the Republican budget would cut more than $5 trillion over the next decade from education, health care, affordable housing, child care, nutrition assistance, transportation and other programs that working people desperately need.\r\nThe budget would make it harder for children to get a decent education, harder for families to get the health care they desperately need, harder for families to put food on the table, harder to protect our environment and harder for the elderly to live their retirement years in dignity.\r\nThe Republican budget is a massive transfer of wealth from working families, the elderly, children, the sick and the poor to the top 1 percent.\r\nNot only would it cut Medicaid by $1 trillion, it would also cut Medicare by more than $470 billion in order to pay for hundreds of billions in tax breaks to the wealthiest people and most profitable corporations in America. Further, the Republican tax plan this budget calls for would increase the federal deficit by $1.5 trillion over the next decade, which will likely pave the way for savage cuts to Social Security.\r\nThe top 1 percent would receive about 80 percent of the benefits of the Republican tax plan, while 30 percent of Americans making between $50,000 and $150,000 a year would see their taxes go up by an average of more than $1,000 a year at the end of the decade, according to the Tax Policy Center. The wealthiest 0.1 percent would receive an annual average tax cut of more than $1 million within 10 years under the Republican plan.\r\nRead the full report\u00a0here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-joins-feinstein-blumenthal-to-introduce-bill-to-close-automatic-weapon-loophole", "Sanders Joins Feinstein, Blumenthal to Introduce Bill to Close Automatic Weapon Loophole", "2017-10-04", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Joins Feinstein, Blumenthal to Introduce Bill to Close Automatic Weapon Loophole\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, October 4, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Oct. 4 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) joined Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) at a press conference Wednesday to introduce the\u00a0Automatic Gun Fire Prevention Act, a bill to close a loophole that allows semi-automatic weapons to be easily modified to fire at the rate of automatic weapons, which have been illegal for more than 30 years.\u00a0\r\n\u201cWhile it is too late for the victims in Las Vegas, and the victims in Newtown, and the victims in Charleston and the other terrible shootings that we have seen, it is not too late to prevent the next set of innocent Americans from becoming victims,\u201d Sanders said. \u201cNow is the time to save lives in this country. Now is the time to pass this legislation.\u201d\r\nIn addition to Sens. Feinstein, Sanders and Blumenthal, cosponsors include Sens. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Tom Carper (D-Del.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), Al Franken (D-Minn.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.).\r\nUnder the\u00a0National Firearms Act, the sale, manufacture and transfer of automatic weapons are illegal. However, bump stocks, slide fire devices and other similar accessories are able to be attached to semi-automatic weapons, allowing them to reach fully-automatic rates of fire.\r\nSemi-automatic rifles typically have a rate of fire between 45 and 60 rounds per minute. A bump stock, or other similar device, increases the semi-automatic rifle's rate of fire between 400 and 800 rounds per minute.\u00a0\r\nThis bill would ban the sale, transfer, importation, manufacture or possession of bump stocks, trigger cranks and similar accessories that accelerate a semi-automatic rifle\u2019s rate of fire.\u00a0\r\nThe bill also makes clear that its intent is to target only those accessories that increase a semi-automatic rifle\u2019s rate of fire. Legitimate accessories used by hunters would be exempt. The bill also contains exceptions for lawful possession of these devices by law enforcement and the government.\u00a0\u00a0\r\nTo read Sanders' statement,\u00a0click here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/newswatch/100317", "October 3", "2017-10-03", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "October 3\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tTuesday, October 3, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\tSanders Urges Action on Gun Control\u00a0Sen. Bernie Sanders on Monday urged Congress to take action in the aftermath of the deadly mass shooting in Las Vegas. The Vermont senator in a statement said his thoughts are with the family and friends of the victims. Sanders also thanked the first responders, who he said \"did an outstanding job responding to this tragedy, saving many lives,\u201d\u00a0Burlington Free Press,\u00a0VTDigger,\u00a0The Hill,\u00a0WCAX-TV,\u00a0WPTZ-TV,\u00a0VPR\u00a0and\u00a0Opposing Views\u00a0reported.\r\nVermonter Among Las Vegas Victims\u00a0Vermont native Sandy Casey, a special education teacher, was among the victims in Sunday's mass shooting at a country music festival in Las Vegas. Casey, 35, grew up in Dorset and lived in Redondo Beach, California. Sanders and Sen. Patrick Leahy expressed grief over Casey's death. \"Jane and I are deeply saddened to hear that Vermonter Sandy Casey was among the victims in Vegas,\" Sanders said. \"Our hearts are with her friends and family,\u201d\u00a0Burlington Free Press\u00a0reported.\u00a0\r\nTrump\u2019s Treatment of Puerto Rico\u00a0Sanders said Sunday on CNN that: \"we have a right to be suspect\" that race is part of Trump's treatment of Puerto Rico. \u201cgiven the president's history on race, given the fact that he, a few months ago, told us that there were good people on both sides when neo-Nazis were marching in Charlottesville, yes, I think we have a right to be suspect that he is treating the people of Puerto Rico in a different way than he has treated the people of Texas or Florida,\u201d Sanders said,\u00a0WPTZ\u00a0and\u00a0Real Clear Politics\u00a0reported.\r\nDelegation Opposes GOP Tax Plan\u00a0All three members of Vermont's Congressional delegation say they'll oppose President Trump's tax plan because it favors the richest Americans. The three members of the Vermont\u2019s Congressional delegation, Leahy, Sanders and Rep. Peter Welch, all pointed to a study conducted by the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center that shows that 80 percent of the benefits of the plan will go the wealthiest people in this country,\u00a0VPR\u00a0reported.\r\nGenealogy Uncover Sanders\u2019 Family History\u00a0 The prominent Harvard professor once again lures the famous and celebrated to PBS\u2019 \u201dFinding Your Roots,\u201d which shares their ancestry and family stories as uncovered by impressive research and science. Larry David, whom Gates said he\u2019d \u201cbugged\u201d for three years to go under the \u201cRoots\u201d microscope, finally agreed and discovered that he\u2019s related to Sanders, whom David memorably impersonated on \u201cSaturday Night Live,\u201d\u00a0The Associated Press\u00a0and\u00a0The Salt Lake Tribune\u00a0reported.\u00a0\r\nVermont College Fairs\u00a0Sanders is set to host a series of college fairs in Vermont, for high school students and their parents to learn more about educational opportunities in Vermont and the resources available to help pay for them,\u00a0WCAX-TV\u00a0reported.\r\nColumn: What \u2018Don\u2019t Politicize Tragedy\u2019 Means\u00a0 \u201cIf the shooter belongs to the other side, then suddenly it is finally time to talk about the systemic issues that caused the shooting. It\u2019s a \u2018them\u2019 problem. It\u2019s an other-side problem. Suddenly it\u2019s time to politicize. This summer, when the shooter who wounded a Republican congressman at a Virginia baseball practice turned out to be a \u2026 Sanders supporter, Donald Trump Jr. promptly retweeted a snide comment about \u2018NY elites\u2019 being to blame for the tragedy,\u201d Monica Hesse wrote for\u00a0The Washington Post.\u00a0\r\nColumn: Medicare for All Is Cruel\u00a0\u201cLast week [Sanders] revealed his 96-page plan to walk away from the finally-acknowledged failures of ObamaCare and try yet another ill-considered plan to remake our health care system in the name of \u2018compassion.\u2019 Compassion is a wonderful thing, but what he calls \u2018Medicare for all\u2019 depends on repealing the laws of economics and denying everything we know about basic human nature,\u201d Dr. Ramin Oskoui wrote for\u00a0The Hill.\r\nLetter: Medicare for All Not So Great\u00a0\u201cPeople who want \u2026 Sanders' Medicare for all better think twice. I got my new book, \u2018Medicare Advantage Plan for Seniors for 2018. I don't think they'd like Medicare. I will pay $32 a month more. My prescriptions for generic Tier 2 drugs cost $47, I have a co-pay of $150 per day for the first five days in the hospital, $150 for CT and MRI scans and also have co-pays for lab tests,\u201d Erma Gohn wrote to\u00a0The Morning Call.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/newswatch/100217", "October 2", "2017-10-02", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "October 2\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tMonday, October 2, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\tSanders Slams Trump\u2019s Puerto Rico Response\u00a0Sen. Bernie Sanders condemned Donald Trump over his tweets criticising the mayor of hurricane-struck San Juan, saying: \u201cIt\u2019s unspeakable. I don\u2019t know what world Trump is living in.\u201d He went on to say that the President had spent the weekend tweeting from his \u201cfancy golf club,\u201d while the mayor of San Juan was trying to secure food, water, fuel and electricity for her residents,\u00a0CNN,\u00a0MSNBC,\u00a0The Hill,\u00a0The Independent,\u00a0The Wall Street Journal,\u00a0U.S. News & World Report,\u00a0Chicago Tribune,\u00a0Raw Story,\u00a0Alternet,\u00a0AOL,Independent Journal Review,\u00a0\u00a0The Financial Times,\u00a0The Washington Times,\u00a0Newsweek,\u00a0The Week,\u00a0Slate,\u00a0The Associated Press\u00a0and\u00a0Bloomberg\u00a0reported.\u00a0\r\nMulvaney/Sanders Clash on Trump Tax Plan\u00a0White House budget director Mick Mulvaney dismissed critics of the Trump administration's proposed tax overhaul, saying a detailed analysis wouldn't be possible until the full plan is crafted. In response, Sanders said one analysis showed most of the benefits of the tax plan over time would go to the top 1 percent of earners, and blasted Trump for saying the plan would not benefit the wealthiest Americans,\u00a0CNN,\u00a0The Wall Street Journal,\u00a0Vox,\u00a0Politico\u00a0and\u00a0Daily Mail\u00a0reported.\r\nRepublican Tax Proposal\u00a0Sanders appeared on This Week to speak in opposition of the Republican tax plan. Sanders called it the \u201cRobin Hood principle in reverse.\u201d \"He's taking from working families and low-income people and giving to it the super-rich and creating a $1.5 trillion deficit,\u00a0ABC\u00a0reported. Watch\u00a0here.\r\nJane O\u2019Meara Sanders: Bernie Would Have Won\u00a0\"I have very little doubt he would have won, because American people wanted change, and they weren\u2019t willing to vote for the status quo,\" Jane Sanders said in a new interview with The Irish Times. She expressed further disappointment in Hillary Clinton's post-election criticism of her husband,\u00a0The Hill,\u00a0Politico\u00a0and\u00a0Newsmaxreported.\r\nSanders in Atlanta\u00a0Sanders this past Saturday stumped for Vincent Fort, an Atlanta state senator who is modeling his mayoral bid after Sanders\u2019 insurgent presidential campaign. Sanders claims that Fort is\u00a0the only candidate poised to bring his populist insurgency to the heart of the South.\u00a0AJC\u00a0reported.\u00a0\r\nMenendez Trial\u00a0Sanders\u00a0on Sunday said his colleague, Sen. Bob Menendez, deserves \"due process\" when asked whether the New Jersey Democrat should resign if convicted of corruption charges. The New Jersey lawmaker is accused of helping acquire visas for friends in exchange for lavish gifts and campaign contributions in return,\u00a0The Hill\u00a0reported.\u00a0\r\nColumn: The Democratic Party Needs Fresh Faces\u00a0\u201cThe Democratic party appears to be stuck with familiar faces thanks to never building a Democratic bench and putting all their hopes into a 2016 basket that fell spectacularly apart.Since losing the primary last year, Sanders has never faded from the national spotlight,\u201d Lucia Graves wrote for\u00a0The Guardian.\u00a0\r\nColumn: A GOP Health-care Escape Hatch\u00a0\u201cThe promise to repeal and replace ObamaCare was a big one, made by President Trump and Republicans who ran for Congress. Failure to deliver on it is akin to an exercise in political self-immolation. The [new proposal from Sen. Alexander] would significantly undercut the case \u2014 made most prominently by Sanders (I-Vt.) that the only way to fix the system is to have government take it over,\u201d Judd Gregg wrote for\u00a0The Hill.\r\nFact Check: World\u2019s Six Wealthiest People\u00a0During a speech on foreign policy ay Westminster College, Sanders highlighted global wealth inequality and claimed that the six wealthiest people in the world had as much as wealth as the bottom half.\u00a0The Washington Post\u00a0gave him \u201cthree pinocchios\u201d for the statistic calling it \u201cprovocative\u201d but \u201cbasically meaningless.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-las-vegas-shooting", "Sanders Statement on Las Vegas Shooting", "2017-10-02", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Las Vegas Shooting\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tMonday, October 2, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Oct. 2 \u2013 U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Monday in response to the deadly shooting in Las Vegas:\r\n\"My thoughts are with the families and friends of the victims and all those wounded in the horrific Las Vegas shooting. I also want to thank the first responders who did an outstanding job responding to this tragedy, saving many lives.  \"Last night\u2019s attack is the deadliest mass shooting in our country's modern history, and this year there have been more mass shootings than days in the year. In light of the terrible tragedy in Las Vegas and mass shootings across the country, it should be clear to all that we have got to do everything we can to stop guns from falling into the hands of people who should not have them. It is long past time for Congress to take action on gun safety to save innocent lives.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-statement-on-las-vegas-shooting", "Sanders Statement on Las Vegas Shooting", "2017-10-02", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Las Vegas Shooting\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tMonday, October 2, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tBURLINGTON, Vt., Oct. 2 \u2013 U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Monday in response to the deadly shooting in Las Vegas:\r\n\"My thoughts are with the families and friends of the victims and all those wounded in the horrific Las Vegas shooting. I also want to thank the first responders who did an outstanding job responding to this tragedy, saving many lives.\r\n\"Last night\u2019s attack is the deadliest mass shooting in our country's modern history, and this year there have been more mass shootings than days in the year. In light of the terrible tragedy in Las Vegas and mass shootings across the country, it should be clear to all that we have got to do everything we can to stop guns from falling into the hands of people who should not have them. It is long past time for Congress to take action on gun safety to save innocent lives.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/newswatch/100117", "October 1", "2017-10-01", "2017", "2017-10", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Oct 1\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tSunday, October 1, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\tSanders Campaigns in Atlanta\u00a0Sen. Bernie Sanders campaigned in Atlanta on behalf of mayoral candidate Vincent Fort yesterday.\u00a0Fort is a longtime state senator who shares many of Sanders\u2019 populist positions. Fort also endorsed Sanders\u2019 2016 presidential bid. Enthusiastic Sanders fans \u2014 making up a throng of more than 2,400 \u2014 crowded into the sanctuary of Saint Philip AME Church Saturday,\u00a0The Atlanta Journal Constitution,\u00a0The Associated Press,\u00a0WXIA-TV,\u00a0Politically Georgia,\u00a0Fox 5 Atlanta,\u00a0WGCL-TV,\u00a0WXIA-TV\u00a0reported.\r\nReaction to Republican Budget\u00a0Sanders, as ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, issued a statement stating that the Republican budget proposal \u201cwas written for the billionaire class, for Wall Street, for corporate CEOs and for the Koch brothers. It is the exact opposite of what America stands for and must be soundly defeated,\u201d\u00a0Vermont Biz\u00a0reported.\u00a0\r\nSunday Shows\u00a0Sanders will appear Sunday on ABC\u2019s \u201cThis Week,\u201d along with Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and Sen. Tim Scott,\u00a0The Associated Press\u00a0and\u00a0Politico\u00a0reported.\r\nRepublican Takeover in New England\u00a0Quietly, 4 out of 6 of New England\u2019s \u201cblue\u201d states elected Republican governors this past cycle. Despite the popularity of Sanders in Vermont, Republican Phil Scott won the gubernatorial election by 9 points. It was not uncommon to see yard signs for both Scott and Sanders on the same yards,\u00a0New York Post\u00a0reported.\r\nSanders Learns Ancestor Fought Nazis\u00a0Sanders was visibly moved to learn that one of his ancestors died fighting Nazis during World War II in a yet-to-be-released episode of \"Finding Your Roots\" on PBS,\u00a0The Hill,\u00a0Haaretz\u00a0reported.\r\nDemocratic Socialists on the Rise\u00a0Inspired by Sanders\u2019 success at forcing leftwing ideas into the nomination battle, the nation\u2019s largest socialist organization, the Democratic Socialists of America, has watched its dues-paying membership, which historically has hovered around 5,000, swell to 25,000,\u00a0Politico\u00a0reported\r\nMuslim-American Launches Congressional Run\u00a0Nadeem Mazen, a two-term Cambridge, MA city councilor announced his congressional bid. Mazen said his campaign draws on themes raised by Sanders and Hillary Clinton,\u00a0Reuters\u00a0reported.\r\nSeth Moulton in Iowa\u00a0The sophomore Congressman from Massachusetts found himself at Iowa\u2019s annual steak fry this past weekend. It\u2019s a unique institution in U.S. politics and sponsored by the Polk County Democrats that have been traditional first stops for future Democratic presidential candidates, including Sanders,\u00a0The Boston Globe\u00a0reported.\r\nFlorida Candidates on Medicare-for-All\u00a0This month Sanders introduced legislation that would make Medicare available to every American. But perhaps more noteworthy than the single payer proposal itself was the number of Democratic co-sponsors Sanders was able to attract to the bill.\u00a0Tampa Bay Times\u00a0asked each of the Democratic candidates for governor where they stand on the issue.\r\nColumn: Medicare-for-All After Price Resignation\u00a0\u201cFederal subsidies must be increased and a public option should be introduced to compete with private insurers. The long-term goal, championed by Bernie Sanders, should be Medicare-for-all, universal healthcare, though we\u2019re not there yet,\u201d Ross Barkan wrote for\u00a0The Guardian.\u00a0\r\nColumn: DSCC Fundraises Off of Sanders Bill\u00a0\u201cOn Thursday, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee sent a fundraising email from Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., that promoted his single-payer legislation. This email gives Republicans ammunition to depict Democrats in states like West Virginia and Missouri as progressive radicals more in touch with coastal ideologues than their own working class constituents,\u201d Emily Jashinsky wrote for the\u00a0Washington Examiner.\r\nColumn: Medicare-for-All is a Bad Idea\u00a0\u201cMedicare-for-All as conceived by Senator Sanders is a bad idea because of the inevitable rationing it will produce. In other well-known single-payer systems, this rationing takes several forms, including restrictions on the availability of treatments or, more commonly, rationing by waiting,\u201d Chris Conover wrote for\u00a0Forbes.\r\nColumn: Socialized Medicare Won the Debate\u00a0\u201cIntroduced after the Bernie Sanders Medicare for all bill made its debut with 16 co-sponsors in the Senate, the Graham-Cassidy bill looked all the worse by comparison. Both bills arrived at the end of a summer of activism, a summer that has treated us repeatedly to the sight of people in wheelchairs carted out of the Senate chanting,\u201d Sarah Jaffe wrote for\u00a0New Republic.\u00a0\r\nColumn: Possible 2020 Candidates\u00a0\u201dWith Sanders\u2019s approval rating at 75 percent, that makes him the most popular politician in America. He\u2019s the standard-bearer for the populist left whose \u2018Medicare for All\u2019 bill, while still a liberal pipe dream, now seems as much of a litmus test for ambitious national Democrats as abortion rights. He will also be 79 years old on Election Day 2020,\u201d Jazon Zengerle wrote for\u00a0The New York Times.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/newswatch/093017", "September 30", "2017-09-30", "2017", "2017-09", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "September 30\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tSaturday, September 30, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\tSanders Denounces Republican Budget\u00a0Sen. Bernie Sanders \u00a0\u2014 the ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee \u2014 criticized Republicans for releasing a plan that he said contradicted the president\u2019s promises. \u201cThis budget is the Robin Hood principle in reverse,\u201d Sanders said in a statement. \u201cAt a time of massive income and wealth inequality, the Republican budget takes from the middle class and those in need, and gives huge tax breaks to the wealthiest people in this country,\u201d\u00a0VOX\u00a0reported.\u00a0Sanders denounced the blueprint as \u201cone of the most destructive budgets in modern American history,\u201d\u00a0The New York Times,\u00a0WPTZ-TV,\u00a0The Hill\u00a0reported.\r\nSanders Gets Emotional Talking About Jewish Relative\u00a0While speaking on the PBS series,\u00a0Finding Your Roots,\u00a0Sanders showed his more vulnerable side as he talked about a relative who died defying the Nazis in World War II. In the clip, the Jewish senator is visibly moved as he discusses the relative with Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates,\u00a0Newsweek,\u00a0\u00a0Jewish News,Los Angeles Daily News\u00a0reported.\r\nSanders To Hold College Fairs\u00a0Sanders is inviting Vermont high school students and their families to join him at two college fairs on\u00a0Saturday, Oct. 7 at Lyndon State College(link is external)\u00a0and\u00a0Saturday, Oct. 14 at Castleton University(link is external). Vermont colleges, universities, and certificate and apprenticeship programs will be on hand to describe the excellent post-secondary educational opportunities that are available right here in our state,\u00a0Vermont Biz,\u00a0and\u00a0Rutland Herald\u00a0reported.\r\nSanders in Atlanta\u00a0Sanders will be in town Saturday for a major fundraiser on behalf of Vincent Fort, one of 13 candidates hoping to become the next mayor of Atlanta,\u00a011-ALIVE-TV\u00a0reported.\r\nMajority Of Dem Voters Support Single-Payer\u00a0Asked in a new Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday whether they support a single-payer system, in which the federal government would expand Medicare to cover the medical expenses of every American citizen, nearly two in three Democratic voters (65%) said it was a \"good idea.\"\u00a0The left's fight to protect Obamacare, which united a Democratic Party still reeling over its failures in 2016, further elevated the single-payer debate. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and his allies have long portrayed it as a moral imperative,\u00a0CNNreported.\u00a0\r\nSenate Dems Call Out FCC Chair\u00a0A group of Senate Democrats called out Ajit Pai, the Republican chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, over his effort to deregulate the broadcast industry, accusing him of easing the path for a media takeover from the conservative Sinclair Broadcast Group. Twenty-three Democrats \u2014 as well as Independent Sanders \u2014 led by Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) wrote a letter to Pai urging him to hold off on any further changes to media ownership rules until the FCC conducts an analysis of the broadcast market,\u00a0The Hill\u00a0reported.\u00a0\r\nCalifornia is Sanders\u2019 Battleground for Health Care\u00a0The country and California must move toward guaranteed health care for all, regardless of what happens next week when Senate Republicans vote on their final bill of 2017 to dismantle Obamacare and Medicaid, both Sanders and California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom said in separate San Francisco rallies on Friday. \u201cEvery poll that I have seen indicates that more and more Americans support a Medicare-for-all single-payer program,\u201d Sanders said to a rally organized by the California Nurses Association/National Nurses United Organizing Committee during its annual convention,\u00a0Salon\u00a0reported.\r\nTeen Running For Governor in VT \u00a0Ethan Sonneborn is a 13-year-old political savant in the making\u2014and a Democratic candidate for Vermont\u2019s governor seat in 2018. Sonneborn almost perfectly channels the ideals and speaking manner of famed Vermonter Sanders, someone he admits is a role model,\u00a0Newsweek\u00a0reported.\r\nFour Reasons Dems Aren\u2019t Facing Rebellions in Primaries\u00a0In 2017, the far edge of Democratic Party politics is represented by \u00a0Sanders, who has no interest in helping primary challenges to incumbent Democrats. As he prepared his single-payer health-care bill, he told The Post that his signature legislation would not be \u201ca litmus test\u201d for Democrats \u2014 that he would not refuse to help colleagues who opposed it. Sanders, who has no plan to actually join the Democratic Party, is creating a wedge inside of it, on the theory that when the party next takes power, it will be confident to put down a marker on the left,\u00a0The Washington Post\u00a0reported.\r\nIowa Dems Struggle For Power\u00a0\u00a0In less than a decade, Iowa Democrats have withered, from in-charge to almost irrelevant. Animosity also lingers between some Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders backers, after their clash during the 2016 presidential caucus. It reflects unhealed wounds from 2008, when Obama upset Clinton in Iowa en route to the nomination,\u00a0The Washington Postreported.\r\nDSCC Fundraises Off Single-Payer\u00a0It just got a little harder for Democratic incumbents to distance themselves from efforts to implement a single-payer healthcare system. On Thursday, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee sent a fundraising email from Sanders, that promoted his single-payer legislation,\u00a0Washington Examiner\u00a0reported.\r\nSunday Shows\u00a0Sanders will appear on ABC\u2019s \u2018This Week\u2019 on Sunday,\u00a0The Associated Press\u00a0reported.\u00a0\r\nRock Star Calls For Universal Health Care\u00a0Arcade Fire frontman Win Butler makes no secret of his political views. After winning the MVP prize in the 2016 NBA Celebrity All-Star game, he said, \u201cthe U.S. has a lot they can learn from Canada: health care, taking care of people,\u201d only to be cut off mid-speech by TV anchor Sage Steele. \u201cWe\u2019re talking about celebrity stuff, not politics,\u201d she said. Butler was talking about politics in a different setting this week when he did an interview with Sanders\u2019s media producer, Armand Aviram,\u00a0Montreal Gazette\u00a0reported.\r\nLarry David Returns\u00a0Larry David says he forgot Paris \u2014 and the rest of\u00a0Curb\u00a0\u2014 while occupying himself in the intervening years by starring in the HBO movie\u00a0Clear History\u00a0(which he co-wrote) and Broadway\u2019s\u00a0Fish in the Dark\u00a0(which he wrote), returning to stand-up, and turning in an amusing impression of Bernie Sanders on\u00a0Saturday Night Live,\u00a0Entertainment Weekly,\u00a0Vulture, and\u00a0NPR\r\nColumn: SandersCare Thrives, TrumpCare Dies\u00a0\u201cAfter seven years of Republican promises to repeal and replace ObamaCare, the single-payer healthcare system proposed for decades by Sanders is gaining steam, while all GOP plans are buried in the graveyard of bad ideas,\u201d Brent Budowsky wrote for\u00a0The Hill.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/newswatch/092917", "September 29", "2017-09-29", "2017", "2017-09", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "September 29\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tFriday, September 29, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\tSanders\u2019 Relative Died Defying Nazis\u00a0In the upcoming season premiere of the PBS series \u201cFinding Your Roots,\u201d Bernie Sanders does more than look at a printout of his family tree: He gets emotional when he discovers a relative died while standing up to the Nazis during World War II,\u00a0Jewish Telegraphic Agency\u00a0and\u00a0Forward\u00a0reported.\u00a0\r\nSanders Meets With Palestinian Activist\u00a0Sanders met on Wednesday with Issa Amro, a leading Palestinian activist from the West Bank, who is facing trial in Israel and was also recently arrested by the Palestinian Authority for criticizing its leadership,\u00a0Haaretzand\u00a0Middle East Monitor\u00a0reported.\r\nSanders Opened Foreign Policy Debate\u00a0Sanders speech indeed opened a new debate and offered the first steps towards a fundamentally different policy, but it also leaves many questions unanswered. It elevated some new challenges to Democratic Party thinking, though not always with policies to match,\u00a0The Nation\u00a0reported.\r\nMost Americans Desperate for Third Party\u00a0More Americans than ever\u201461 percent\u2014say the Democratic and Republican parties are inadequate and the U.S. should have a third major political party, a\u00a0new poll from Gallup\u00a0shows. It\u2019s not shocking Sanders, an independent, is\u00a0the most popular politician in the U.S. But Sanders has\u00a0rejected calls to form a third party\u00a0in recent months, saying his best avenue to have a real impact is via the current structure and the Democratic Party,\u00a0Newsweek\u00a0reported.\u00a0\u00a0\r\nJulia Louis-Dreyfus Argues for Universal Health Care\u00a0Actress and comedian Julia Louis-Dreyfus made an unexpected entrance into America's health-care debate Thursday, announcing that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer and urging her supporters to \"make universal health care a reality.\" Democrats in the Senate are increasingly rallying behind universal health care. A third of the Senate Democratic caucus has signed onto a bill proposed by Sanders, that would institute a nationwide \"Medicare-for-all\" system, Sanders said this month,\u00a0CNBC\u00a0reported.\u00a0\r\nBerniecrats Have Obama Problem\u00a0The ideological vanguard of the Sanders movement emerged from the 2016 election overflowing with dialectical certainty. Hillary Clinton\u2019s narrow win in the primary was the last gasp of a dying neoliberal order, the overthrow of which is now preordained. This confidence comes through in a short column by Alex Pareene, which asserts that my brand of liberalism is irreversibly dying,\u00a0New York Magazine\u00a0reported.\r\nSanders Traveling to Atlanta\u00a0Sanders is headed to Atlanta this week to back former State Sen. Vincent Fort in the race to become the city\u2019s next mayor,\u00a0Atlanta Black Star\u00a0reported.\r\nBernie Backers Give Dems a 2018 Pass\u00a0\u201cThere\u2019s some reluctance to put a lot of time into [unseating Democrats], versus [building] a more progressive Congress overall,\u201d said former Communications Workers of America union president Larry Cohen, a top Bernie Sanders advisor who now chairs the board of the Our Revolution political group that was spawned from the senator\u2019s 2016 presidential campaign. \u201cThere\u2019s going to be a lot more activity where it\u2019s possible to change the makeup of the Congress,\u201d\u00a0Politico\u00a0reported.\r\nCNN to Host Pelosi Town Hall\u00a0CNN announced a second town hall event featuring House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). The event will provide a public forum for voters to question Pelosi.\u00a0Previous 2017 CNN town halls have included Pelosi,\u00a0Sanders, House Speaker\u00a0Paul Ryan,, a Democratic leadership debate and a debate between Sanders and Sen.\u00a0Ted Cruz, former Vice President\u00a0Al Gore, and others,\u00a0The Hill\u00a0reported.\u00a0\r\nClinton\u2019s Interview with Joan Walsh\u00a0Joan Walsh pressed Clinton on her book\u2019s admission that she learned from Sanders\u2019s primary challenge that Democrats had to offer \u201clofty goals that people can organize around and dream about [and] redouble our efforts to develop bold, creative ideas that offer broad based benefits for the whole country,\u201d\u00a0The Nation\u00a0reported.\u00a0\u00a0\r\nCalifornians Divided on Single-Payer\u00a0Californians are divided on whether to substantially increase government involvement through a single-payer system, such as the \"Medicare for All\" proposal recently introduced by Sanders. A national single-payer insurance program such as \"Medicare for All\" gets support from 35% of Californians, according to the poll. Support is higher among Democrats \u2014 44% \u2014 and independents \u2014 34% \u2014 than among Republicans. Only 6% of Republicans back such a system,\u00a0Los Angeles Timesreported.\r\nCalifornia Makes Trump Re-Election Difficult\u00a0The state's Democratic-controlled legislature wrapped up its 2017 session this month by sending three bills to the desk of Gov. Jerry Brown (D) that could significantly influence Trump's reelection chances, how closely he guards his tax returns and his ability to deliver on one of his central campaign promises \u2014 to deport more immigrants who are in the country illegally. California has tried to move up its primary for two decades, but other states have just jumped ahead. In 2011, the state basically gave up and Brown signed a bill moving it back to June. But in 2016, the state's Democratic voters didn't even get a say in who won their party's nomination. Hillary Clinton found out she had clinched the nomination over Sanders hours before California voters were about to cast ballots,\u00a0The Washington Post\u00a0reported.\u00a0\r\nColumn: GOP Has Lost Its Mind\u00a0Distressed Republicans and ex-Republicans have three options \u2014 recruit new non-Trumpkins to the GOP (but which Americans would want to join?!) to out-vote Trump\u2019s base; start a new center-right party (with an invitation out to moderate Democrats); or set up shop across the aisle as the new Blue Dog Democrats. Much depends on the direction the Democrats take (will it be the party of Sanders or the party of Truman/JFK/Bill Clinton \u2014 policy-wise, that is),\u00a0The Washington Post\u00a0reported.\r\nColumn: American Democracy Descends Into Hysteria\u00a0\u201cDuring last year\u2019s campaign, I described Bernie Sanders as the \u201chigh road\u201d to fundamental change, while Donald Trump owned the \u201clow road.\u201d It may take several election cycles to determine which road the country embraces\u2014if it doesn\u2019t choose a path very different from either,\u201d William Greider wrote for\u00a0The Nation.\u00a0\r\nColumn: Dems Can Get a Clue On Foreign Policy\u00a0\u201cThere are signs that some in the party at least are beginning to get a clue. In a major speech at Westminster College, Bernie Sanders outlined a vision of foreign policy that would address the failures of recent history while providing a path for America to use its power honorably,\u201d Ryan Cooper wrote for\u00a0The Week.\u00a0\r\nColumn: Medicare For All Is a Bad Idea\u00a0\u201cSanders, the independent senator from Vermont, can't stop talking about\u00a0Medicare For All\u00a0which he says will finally solve all of America's health insurance problems. In fact, creating a national single-payer plan is a truly terrible idea that will likely bankrupt the country, drive down the rate of health-care innovation, AND not really improve health outcomes,\u201d Nick Gillespie wrote for\u00a0Reason.\u00a0\r\nColumn: Sanders Takes Foreign Policy Seriously\u00a0\u201cSanders stresses the virtues of multilateral action at the United Nations and people-to-people diplomacy. He makes it clear that a progressive foreign policy requires promoting progressive values at home as well as broad. When he says, \u201cWe must rethink the old Washington mind-set that judges \u2018seriousness\u2019 according to the willingness to use force,\u201d I can imagine Sen. Rand Paul devotees nodding along in sympathy,\u201d\u00a0The Washington Post\u00a0reported.\r\nColumn: Sanders\u2019 Medicare Bad Idea\u00a0\u201cOf course, precisely because of deadweight losses, it is lunacy for us to be bankrolling Medicare expenses for people such as Warren Buffett and his wife,\u201d Chris Conover wrote for\u00a0Fortune.\r\nColumn: Morality Can Still Win\u00a0\u201cJeremy Corbyn, Bernie Sanders and Podemos in Spain have shown that a bold and decent strategy can be a successful one. That truth should embolden the left,\u201d Naomi Klein wrote for\u00a0The Guardian.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-republican-budget-proposal", "Sanders Statement on Republican Budget Proposal", "2017-09-29", "2017", "2017-09", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Republican Budget Proposal\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tFriday, September 29, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Sept. 29 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, issued the following statement Friday in response to Senate Republicans' proposed fiscal 2018 budget resolution: \"After failing to throw 32 million Americans off health insurance, the Republicans are continuing their attack against the working families of our country with one of the most destructive budgets in modern American history. This budget is the Robin Hood principle in reverse. At a time of massive income and wealth inequality, the Republican budget takes from the middle class and those in need, and gives huge tax breaks to the wealthiest people in this country. While this budget would cut Medicare by at least $450 billion, it would give billionaires, including the Trump family, huge tax breaks. Further, it would increase the federal deficit by $1.5 trillion over the next decade. \"As the ranking member of the Budget Committee, I will do everything I can to oppose the absurd set of priorities in this budget. At a time when the middle class is shrinking and over 40 million Americans are living in poverty, we need a budget that reflects the needs of the working families of our country, not just the wealthy, the powerful and large campaign contributors. \"This Republican budget was written for the billionaire class, for Wall Street, for corporate CEOs and for the Koch brothers. It is the exact opposite of what America stands for and must be soundly defeated.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/recent-business/sanders-statement-on-republican-budget-proposal", "Sanders Statement on Republican Budget Proposal", "2017-09-29", "2017", "2017-09", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Republican Budget Proposal\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tFriday, September 29, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Sept. 29 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, issued the following statement Friday in response to Senate Republicans' proposed fiscal 2018 budget resolution: \"After failing to throw 32 million Americans off health insurance, the Republicans are continuing their attack against the working families of our country with one of the most destructive budgets in modern American history. This budget is the Robin Hood principle in reverse. At a time of massive income and wealth inequality, the Republican budget takes from the middle class and those in need, and gives huge tax breaks to the wealthiest people in this country. While this budget would cut Medicare by at least $450 billion, it would give billionaires, including the Trump family, huge tax breaks. Further, it would increase the federal deficit by $1.5 trillion over the next decade. \"As the ranking member of the Budget Committee, I will do everything I can to oppose the absurd set of priorities in this budget. At a time when the middle class is shrinking and over 40 million Americans are living in poverty, we need a budget that reflects the needs of the working families of our country, not just the wealthy, the powerful and large campaign contributors. \"This Republican budget was written for the billionaire class, for Wall Street, for corporate CEOs and for the Koch brothers. It is the exact opposite of what America stands for and must be soundly defeated.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/bernies-podcast/bernie-bonus-arcade-fires-win-butler-on-health-care-092817", "Bernie Bonus: Arcade Fire's Win Butler on Health Care", "2017-09-28", "2017", "2017-09", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "On this episode of the Bernie Sanders Show, Team Sanders sits down with Arcade Fire lead singer Win Butler to discuss the American health care system and Canada's.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/must-read/september-19", "September 19", "2017-09-28", "2017", "2017-09", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "September 19\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, September 28, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\tDemocrats Seek CBO Score on Graham-Cassidy Bill Democrats warned that the Graham-Cassidy health care bill would be very costly for some states and urged the Congressional Budget Office\u00a0 to study more than the measure\u2019s effect on the federal budget. \u201cA comprehensive CBO analysis is essential before Republicans force a hasty, dangerous vote on what is an extreme and destructive repeal bill,\u201d senior congressional Democrats Chuck Schumer, Nancy Pelosi, Sanders and others, said in a statement, Reuters, Politico, CNBC and The San Diego Union-Tribune reported.\r\nMedicare for All Sanders has launched a single payer healthcare bill to deliver health services to the entire country. Although it stands no chance of passing through Congress, whose two houses are controlled by Republicans, the idea of single payer healthcare has seized the middle ground of the Democratic party, to judge from the names co-sponsoring Sanders\u2019 Medicare for All Act, The BMJ reported.\r\nFighting Back on Republican Bill Liberal groups are planning to join Schumer for a rally outside the Capitol on Tuesday designed to refocus the party\u2019s base on the possibility that repeal could become law after a week when activists had begun transitioning to promoting Sanders single-payer health care proposal, Politico reported.\r\nSanders and Warren Test Democrats\u2019 Left Turn Sanders and Sen. Elizabeth Warren are often linked, spoken of in the same breath as if there is scarcely any difference between them. But as Warren and Sanders work to expand their constituencies ahead of possible runs in the Democratic presidential primary in 2020, the differences between them are becoming more marked. How their overlapping audiences sort themselves out could prove revealing about the party they seek to lead, The New York Times reported.\r\nVincent Fort Sanders has endorsed Vincent Fort\u2019s run for mayor of Atlanta. In an email sent to his campaign list, Sanders praised Fort as \u201cunapologetically standing up for middle-class and working-class families, for blacks, whites, and Latinos, for women and the gay community.\u201d In one sense, Sanders is returning a favor. Fort was the highest-ranking African-American lawmaker in the South who endorsed his run for president, The Intercept reported.\r\nCuomo Voices Support for Single Payer In a radio endorsement of New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo addressed several national issues, including voicing support for the idea of single-payer health care, an idea pushed by Sanders as \u201cMedicare for all.\u201d \u201cI think that would be a good idea,\u201d he said, The New York Times reported.\r\nJeff Merkley\u2019s Plans Sen. Jeff Merkley hopes to inherit Sanders\u2019 progressive mantle in 2020. But for now, he\u2019s spending his time plotting the resistance against the Trump presidency, Politico reported.\r\nMedicare for All Would Empower Executive Branch\u00a0As Cory Booker, Kamala Harris, Kirsten Gillibrand, Warren and Sanders himself ponder their potential presidential campaigns \u2014 and as, hopefully, Democratic-aligned think tanks begin to engage with grassroots single-payer enthusiasm \u2014 it\u2019s worth trying to think in at least a few broad strokes about how this discretion should be used. Or at least broadly speaking about what the goal should be, Vox reported.\r\nSanders Supporters Committed to New Party Approximately 400 people showed up in Washington to attend the People's Convergence Conference from Sept. 8 to 10. The event included a town hall at American University where panelists discussed the future of the progressive movement. Specifically, whether or not Sanders supporters and other progressives should continue to try to change the Democratic Party from within or form a new party, IVN reported.\r\nDems Concerned about Clinton-Sanders Fights Democrats are worried that the fight between former presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and Sanders is doing lasting damage to their party. As the bickering between the former rivals grows more intense, Democrats say it needs to end, The Hill reported.\r\nEditorial: Sanders\u2019 Bill Comes Up Short \u201cSanders talks big, but the record shows that in his 25 years in Congress he has failed to deliver on any of his ideological proposals. Expect the same from the independent Massachusetts senator\u2019s ambitious Medicare for all plan. It\u2019s impossible to take his single-payer plan seriously because it fails to address the single biggest issue: how to pay for it,\u201d wrote the Mercury News Editorial Board.\r\nColumn: Medicare-for-All Should Leave Canadians Drooling \u201cEven if the political zeitgeist is changing in the U.S., it is unlikely that Americans would embrace fairer taxes and more government control of health care, despite the obvious benefits. Still, Medicare-for-all should leave us drooling with envy \u2013 because the proposals for reform are long overdue in Canada. Sanders' home is only 80 kilometres from the Canadian border. And Prime Minister Bernie has kind of a nice ring to it,\u201d Andr\u00e9 Picard wrote for The Globe and Mail.\r\nColumn: How to Pay for Medicare for All \u201cIt would still be prudent for Sanders to match some of the new spending with new taxes because as the economy improves, there will be less wiggle room to spend. But he hardly needs to match all of it,\u201d Jeff Spross wrote for The Week.\r\nColumn: Does Sanders\u2019 Bill Have a Shot? \u201cSanders' \u2018Medicare for All\u2019 plan unveiled last week is an ambitious and (to many) enticing idea: a single, government-run health plan with generous benefits for everyone \u2014 just like most industrialized countries have enjoyed for decades. If only it were feasible in today's United States,\u201d Doyle McManus wrote for the Dallas Morning News.\r\nColumn: Sanders Single-Payer Plan Is No Miracle Cure \u201cJust as trade-offs must be made to improve health care, so are other countries struggling with balancing the cost and quality of care and universal access. All Americans should bear one important precept in mind: If the Sanders plan sounds too good to be true, it probably is,\u201d Drs. Lanhee J. Chen and Micah Weinberg wrote for The New York Times.\r\n\u00a0Column: What Sanders Didn\u2019t Say \u201cWhat Sanders did not say was that to truly achieve a vision of single payer coverage, we have to talk about the cost of health care. In fact, the little detail many advocates conveniently ignore within the single payer mantra is that the countries who provide single payer insurance have a budget and spending controls similar to the caps Republicans have been discussing,\u201d David Rubin wrote for The Philadelphia Inquirer.\r\nColumn: A Growing Movement for Single-Payer\u00a0\u201dSen. Bernie Sanders\u2019 Senate Bill 1804, co-sponsored by a third of Senate Democrats, and Rep. John Conyers\u2019 House Resolution 676 by half of House Democrats. What happened? A huge shift toward participatory democracy, with millions of people participating in rewriting what is possible and necessary for their lives,\u201d RoseAnn DeMoro wrote for The San Francisco Chronicle.\u00a0\r\nColumn: Single Payer Risks Jobs \u201cThe problem is that a good portion of what many of these workers do is handle relationships and billing, and keep track of payments from insurance companies\u2014the middle men Bernie Sanders wants to be rid of,\u201d Monica Potts wrote for VICE News.\r\nColumn: Are Health Care Proposals Equally Extreme? \u201cThe choice for Republicans isn\u2019t between this and a better reform. It\u2019s between this or letting Obamacare continue intact, violating all of those repeal-and-replace promises entirely. That\u2019s what\u2019s so silly about the claim that Graham-Cassidy is as \u2018extreme\u2019 as Sanders\u2019 radical and shoddily written proposal (the bill is totally silent on how to pay for any of it),\u201d Jonah Goldberg wrote for Los Angeles Times.\r\nColumn: 2016 Was Not a Fluke \u201cIn retrospect, the alarming possibility of an election-night surprise should have been apparent. Trump never should have won the Republican nomination over a field that included so many talented politicians. And Clinton never should have had to work so hard to win the Democratic nomination over Bernie Sanders, an aging socialist from Vermont who wasn\u2019t even a Democrat until he entered the race,\u201d Eugene Robinson wrote for The Washington Post.\r\nColumn: Treat Voters Like Adults \u201cHarvard University-educated Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) spouts nonsense suggesting that we should cut legal immigration in half, an idea no respectable economist would say is anything but self-destructive. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) sounds like President Trump when it comes to trade protectionism, which would impose trade restrictions that are ultimately paid by consumers, in effect a highly regressive tax. Other Democrats who surely know better echo Sanders,\u201d Jennifer Rubin wrote for The Washington Post.\r\nColumn: Understanding Good Economic News \u201cOperationally, the populism is a demand for policies directly targeting those hurt by these long-term trends, in contrast to indirect, often-failed solutions that moderate, establishment politicians sold to working-class families, like trade deals, balanced budgets and financial deregulation. Better than anyone, except maybe Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Trump sniffed this out and effectively exploited it during his campaign,\u201d Jared Bernstein wrote for The Washington Post.\r\nColumn: Does Free Community College Work? \u201cDuring the 2016 election campaign, both Sanders and Hillary Clinton proposed plans that would free Americans from the enormous cost of college, which have put so many students into debt \u2014 and kept upward mobility out of reach. But no legislation has passed on the national stage, and none is expected. In the laboratories of the cities and the states, though, local governments have created or are considering plans to cover tuition or greatly reduce the cost,\u201d Juan Sagaldo wrote for The New York Times.\r\nFact Check: Medical Overhead Costs Experts, particularly on the right, say Sanders\u2019 and Sen. Jeff Merkley\u2019s estimates of Medicare overhead are measuring the wrong thing. Medicare patients are elderly and thus have high costs relative to administrative expenses, especially compared to the under-65 patients in private plans. So just looking at percentage of each dollar spent skews the result. There are serious issues with this talking point, even at Sanders\u2019s more responsible-sounding range of 12 to 18 percent, The Washington Post reported.\r\nLetters: Should the U.S. Go for Single Payer? \u201cEugene Robinson was correct that Sen. Bernie Sanders\u2019s (I-Vt.) proposal for a \u201cMedicare for All\u201d health insurance system is the \u201cright thing to do.\u201d It would cover everyone with first-dollar coverage for all medically necessary care. But \u201cMedicare for All\u201d is not socialized medicine, in which the government would own medical facilities and health-care providers would be government employees,\u201d Jay Brockwrote to The Washington Post.\u00a0\r\nLetter: Sanders Ran on His Beliefs \u201cIn Hillary Clinton\u2019s new book, she attempts to disparage Bernie Sanders by stating that he \u2018didn\u2019t get into the race to make sure a Democrat won the White House.\u201d She\u2019s correct. Nor, however, did Bernie run \u2018to disrupt the Democratic Party,\u2019 as Hillary accuses him of doing. He ran for what he believes would help the American people. Period,\u201d Nancy Bennett O\u2019Hagan wrote to the Press Herald.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/newswatch/092817", "September 28", "2017-09-28", "2017", "2017-09", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "September 28\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tThursday, September 28, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\tSanders: Trump Tax Plan \u2018Morally Repugnant\u2019 Promising big tax cuts and a booming economy, President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans unveiled the their plan to revamp the tax code Wednesday. Sen. Bernie Sanders argued that the plan would exacerbate income inequality, singling out its proposal to repeal the estate tax, noting that the top 10 percent of earners pay 90 percent of estate taxes. \"At a time of massive wealth and income inequality, Trump's tax plan is morally repugnant and bad economic policy,\" Sanders said in a statement, The Associated Press, The Hill, WCAX-TV and Business Insider reported.\r\nEllison Defends Sanders \u00a0Rep. Keith Ellison extolled Sanders as an \u201cawesome\u201d health care advocate in an interview on Wednesday, dismissing those who questioned the timing of Sanders\u2019 rollout of single-payer legislation. \u201cWe create the time, by pushing the issue. The issue becomes ripe because we push it,\u201d Ellison said, The Huffington Post reported.\r\nRepublicans Concede Defeat on Health Care\u00a0Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says the partisan debate over the country\u2019s health care system will \u201ccertainly continue.\u201d McConnell called that proposal a \u201cstark contrast\u201d to a plan by Sanders. McConnell says Sanders\u2019 plan would \u201crip\u201d health insurance from people. He called the issue an important debate and said, \u201cIt\u2019s one that we\u2019ll certainly continue.\u201d The Associated Press reported.\r\nWhat\u2019s Next for Single Payer While Democrats are celebrating the defeat of the GOP legislation, they have also provided Republicans fodder for a new line of attack. A bill that Sanders introduced this month would create a single-payer health system and was hailed by some Democrats. Republicans say they expect to use it to divert attention from their own legislative struggles, The Wall Street Journal and Politico reported.\r\nForeign Policy Speech Sanders\u2019s recent foreign policy speech, notably in its strong defense of the Iran nuclear deal, was a careful attempt to claim Obama\u2019s legacy by arguing for a liberal internationalist approach of alliance-building to solving the world\u2019s problems. The central theme of the speech was the need to re-conceptualize foreign policy not just as a matter of military policy, New Republic and Jewish Telegraphic Agency reported\r\nAlabama Senate Election\u00a0The progressive energy around Doug Jones, Democratic nominee for Senate in Alabama, is left over from the spring, when activists attacked Democratic campaign groups for helping special election candidates in Kansas and Montana only after Republican PACs had poured in money to attack them. \u201cI believe the Democrats should compete in every state in this country,\u201d said Sanders, the only national figure who\u2019d stumped for the party\u2019s nominee in those states, The Washington Post reported.\r\nArcade Fire Singer Supports Universal Health Care In light of Sanders\u2019 recently introduced \u201cMedicare for All\u201d bill, Arcade Fire\u2019s Win Butler sat down with Sen. Sanders\u2019 Media Producer Armand Aviram to discuss the differences between the Canadian and American health care system. As an American citizen who relocated to Montr\u00e9al about 15 years ago, Butler discussed his own personal medical experiences with both systems, Pitchfork and SPIN reported.\r\nSpider Named for Sanders\u00a0 Scientists bestowed an honor to Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, former first lady Michelle Obama and former President Barack Obama. Researchers and students at the University of Vermont named 15 new species of smiley-faced spiders and drew inspiration from the Obamas, Sanders, actor Leonardo DiCaprio, British naturalist David Attenborough and late singer David Bowie, Fox News, International Business Times, WCAX-TV and CNET reported.\r\nUK Labour Party Conference\u00a0Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of Britain\u2019s opposition Labour Party, told supporters on Wednesday that their brand of left-wing politics had brought them to \u201cthe threshold of power.\u201d In some respects a British version of Sanders, Corbyn has championed an agenda that includes nationalizing utilities, abolishing university tuition fees and increasing taxes for the wealthy and for corporations, The New York Times reported.\r\nRussian Facebook Ads\u00a0 At least one of the Facebook ads that were purchased by a Kremlin-linked troll factory during the 2016 campaign promoted the Green Party candidate Jill Stein, Politico reported Tuesday, while others boosted Sanders\u2019 campaign even after he dropped out of the race, Talking Points Memo, MSNBC, Politico and The Washington Post reported.\r\nColumn: Medicare for All Could Spur Change in Canada \u201cSanders made a splash last week when he introduced the Medicare for All bill in the United States Senate, flanked by 16 other Democratic senators who all pledged their support for the implementation of single-payer healthcare in the United States\u2026. Despite Sanders\u2019s financing proposals, without those details, they say, Medicare for All remains a pipe dream. But the proposal itself would deliver a national health insurance program for the 21st century,\u201d Danielle Martin and Andrew Boozary wrote for Maclean\u2019s.\r\nColumn: Our Families Deserve Medicare for All \u201cFortunately, there is light emerging from darkness\u2026. Sanders has introduced legislation that would enact a Medicare For All or \u2018single payer\u2019 system in the U.S. All current health care financing -- taxes, premiums, copayments and deductibles -- would be placed into a single fund and pay for all medically necessary services. The vast majority of Americans would receive comprehensive medical coverage and pay less than they currently do,\u201d Peter Mahr wrote for OregonLive.\r\nColumn: Democrats Need Plan for Trump\u00a0\u201dFor Democrats in particular, it\u2019s critical that they set forth mainstream policies that do not leave them open to the counterattack that they are still tax and spend liberals, proponents of \u201copen borders\u201d or advocates of socialized medicine\u2026\u00a0 Sanders might be pushing single-payer health care but that\u2019s not a position the majority of Democrats will embrace in 2018),\u201d Jennifer Rubin wrote for The Washington Post.\r\nColumn: Sanders Thinks War is Overrated\u00a0\u201dThough not, alas, a pacifist, Sanders has at last revealed himself to be an American leader articulating a new and largely peaceable foreign policy. And, given our current president\u2019s bombastic bellicosity, Sanders\u2019 speaking his peace comes not a moment too soon,\u201d John Kaufman wrote for Common Dreams.\r\nColumn: Sanders\u2019 Foreign Policy Isn\u2019t Enough \u201cSanders, however, outlined a foreign policy lacking any mention of the resurgent geopolitical rivalries set to define the coming decades, raising serious questions as to whether his foreign policy vision can sustain the rules-based international order that the United States has built and defended, and which Sanders himself praises,\u201d Will Moreland wrote for Brookings.\r\nColumn: Sanders Not A Democrat\u00a0\u201dSupporters of Sanders have a decision to make. Do they want four more years of Republican majorities, or do they want to be part of implementing policies aimed at helping the poor and working poor? In this political climate, it\u2019s a binary choice. Either supporters of Sanders help to elect Democrats who can beat Donald Trump or they contribute to his re-election,\u201d Michael Hopkins wrote for The Hill.\u00a0\r\nColumn: The Trouble with Bernie \u201cWhile he may have some good ideas, he hasn\u2019t a clue on how to go about making them reality \u2014 either politically or economically. At what point will the media start looking at Bernie Sanders with a critical (and by that I mean analytical) eye?\u201d Jennifer Rand wrote for The Huffington Post.\r\nLetter: Bernie\u2019s Socialism? Expand Medicare Instead\u00a0\u201dBernie\u2019s \u2018socialism\u2019 is nothing new nor original. Why not just build off current Medicare? Modify it so that what are now copayments and costs to third parties, etc., become legs of a new Medicare, with all payments to the government with a multiyear phase-in as proposed,\u201d Jerry Nachison wrote to the The Wall Street Journal.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"], ["https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-trump-tax-plan-september-27", "Sanders Statement on Trump Tax Plan", "2017-09-27", "2017", "2017-09", "Independent", "House", "VT", "Bernard Sanders", "S000033", "www.sanders.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Sanders Statement on Trump Tax Plan\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tWednesday, September 27, 2017\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tWASHINGTON, Sept. 27 \u2013 Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement after President Donald Trump and Republican congressional leaders released their plan for tax reform Wednesday morning: \"At a time of massive wealth and income inequality, President Trump's tax plan is morally repugnant and bad economic policy. The last thing we should be doing right now is providing hundreds of billions in tax breaks to the wealthiest people and most profitable corporations in this country. It is particularly obscene to repeal the estate tax that would provide a $269 billion tax break to the top 0.2 percent. Instead of giving more tax breaks to billionaires who don't need it, we should be doing everything we can to rebuild the disappearing middle class.\"", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "truncated": false, "filtered_table_rows_count": 346, "expanded_columns": [], "expandable_columns": [], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "units": {}, "query": {"sql": "select url, title, date, year, month, party, chamber, state, member_name, bioguide_id, domain, scraper, source, date_source, text, has_text, collected_at, updated_at from releases where \"party\" = :p0 and \"state\" = :p1 and \"year\" = :p2 order by date desc limit 101", "params": {"p0": "Independent", "p1": "VT", "p2": "2017"}}, "facet_results": {"party": {"name": "party", "type": "column", "hideable": false, "toggle_url": "/press/releases.json?party=Independent&state=VT&year=2017", "results": [{"value": "Independent", "label": "Independent", "count": 346, "toggle_url": "http://dpwillis-congress-press-search.hf.space/press/releases.json?state=VT&year=2017", "selected": true}], "truncated": false}, "chamber": {"name": "chamber", "type": "column", "hideable": false, "toggle_url": "/press/releases.json?party=Independent&state=VT&year=2017", "results": [{"value": "House", "label": "House", "count": 346, "toggle_url": "http://dpwillis-congress-press-search.hf.space/press/releases.json?party=Independent&state=VT&year=2017&chamber=House", "selected": false}], "truncated": false}, "state": {"name": "state", "type": "column", "hideable": false, "toggle_url": "/press/releases.json?party=Independent&state=VT&year=2017", "results": [{"value": "VT", "label": "VT", "count": 346, "toggle_url": "http://dpwillis-congress-press-search.hf.space/press/releases.json?party=Independent&year=2017", "selected": true}], "truncated": false}, "year": {"name": "year", "type": "column", "hideable": false, "toggle_url": "/press/releases.json?party=Independent&state=VT&year=2017", "results": [{"value": "2017", "label": "2017", "count": 346, "toggle_url": "http://dpwillis-congress-press-search.hf.space/press/releases.json?party=Independent&state=VT", "selected": true}], "truncated": false}}, "suggested_facets": [], "next": "2017-09-27,https~3A~2F~2Fwww~2Esanders~2Esenate~2Egov~2Fnewsroom~2Fpress-releases~2Fsanders-statement-on-trump-tax-plan-september-27", "next_url": "http://dpwillis-congress-press-search.hf.space/press/releases.json?party=Independent&state=VT&year=2017&_next=2017-09-27%2Chttps~3A~2F~2Fwww~2Esanders~2Esenate~2Egov~2Fnewsroom~2Fpress-releases~2Fsanders-statement-on-trump-tax-plan-september-27&_sort_desc=date", "private": false, "allow_execute_sql": true, "query_ms": 133.1731090322137, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}