url,title,date,year,month,party,chamber,state,member_name,bioguide_id,domain,scraper,source,date_source,text,has_text,collected_at,updated_at
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-casar-introduce-legislation-to-create-new-federal-agency-to-ban-artificial-superintelligence-pause-advanced-ai-development/,"NEWS: Sanders, Casar Introduce Legislation to Create New Federal Agency to Ban Artificial Superintelligence, Pause Advanced AI Development",2026-09-23,2026,2026-09,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, Sept. 23 — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas) today introduced the Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act — legislation to stop artificial intelligence (AI) oligarchs from building machines humans cannot control and to pause advanced AI development until we have put in place rigorous federal testing and oversight to ensure AI does not harm humanity.

“When you are racing towards a cliff, you don’t just ease up on the gas pedal. You hit the brakes. When the future of humanity is at stake, we cannot let a handful of Big Tech CEOs write their own rules,” Sanders said. “Scientists have been clear: AI is an existential threat to humanity. It must be treated as such. This legislation will permanently ban the development of artificial superintelligence and would put in place an immediate pause on advanced AI development until we have clear safety rules in place — developed by the most knowledgeable scientists in our country. Congress must act now before it is too late.”

“Experts are warning that AI superintelligence, wielded by the wrong humans or by rogue AI, could kill countless numbers of people. But Donald Trump says he wants to encourage it. Something has to change,” Casar said. “Our bill bans the development of artificial superintelligence and pushes for international agreements so that no one, anywhere, builds AI too powerful for humans to control. Furthermore, our bill would immediately halt other dangerous AI capabilities, such as the capacity to develop biochemical weapons, or the capacity for AI to develop new AI instead of humans.”

Over the past few months, we have learned that AI models can circumvent restrictions to hack into computers. We have learned they can create never-before-seen viruses. And we have learned they can automate research to build smarter AI. Even as the AI companies claim they recognize these dangers and want to slow down, they are racing ahead — investing hundreds of billions of dollars into a technology that nobody can fully predict or control. That is unacceptable. The Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act will protect humanity by:

Banning Artificial Superintelligence. No person or entity may develop or deploy Artificial Superintelligence — an AI that exceeds human cognitive performance and capabilities across most domains, or has sufficient capabilities to destroy or disempower humanity, including by overthrowing the federal government.

Pausing Advanced AI development until a new, federal AI regulatory body is up and running and has established clear rules and model review processes to ensure safe and secure development and deployment of AI.

Establishing a new cabinet-level federal Department of Artificial Intelligence to safeguard the public from the dangers of artificial intelligence, including by enforcing a prohibition on artificial superintelligence. This department will be advised by the most knowledgeable scientists in our country to:

Monitor frontier AI systems at all stages of the lifecycle for dangerous capabilities.

Supervise the removal of dangerous capabilities like subverting shutdown commands or conducting unauthorized cyberattacks.

Supervise the destruction of artificial superintelligence.

Setting penalties for any person or entity that attempts to violate or circumvent the pauses and prohibitions laid out in this bill. Entities shall be subject to the corporate death penalty, and persons shall be subject to not more than 20 years in prison, which is similar to existing penalties related to unlawfully developing nuclear weapons.

Working to ban superintelligence around the world by setting the international policy of the United States to pursue international agreements, allied coordination, and policies such as export controls to prevent the development of artificial superintelligence anywhere in the world.

Read the bill text here.

Read a one-page summary here.",1,2026-09-24T09:44:48Z,2026-09-24T09:45:52Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/prepared-remarks-sanders-ahead-of-un-general-assembly-oligarchy-is-ascending-and-democracy-is-in-retreat-working-together-that-must-change/,"NEWS: Sanders Ahead of UN General Assembly: “Oligarchy is ascending and democracy is in retreat… Working together, that must change.”",2026-09-21,2026,2026-09,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"NEW YORK, Sept. 21 — On the eve of the United Nations General Assembly, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) delivered a major foreign policy address today at the historic Riverside Church in New York City — where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his Beyond Vietnam speech and where Nelson Mandela spoke after his release. The senator’s full remarks, as delivered, are below.

It is a true honor and a privilege for me to be speaking here at this extraordinary and historic Riverside Church.

This, as many of you know, is the church that Nelson Mandela came to visit as a free man, just five months after he was released from prison, having served 27 years. He came here to thank the people of the United States for standing up for justice against the evils of apartheid in South Africa.

The courage and historic life of Mr. Mandela inspired millions and millions of people all over the world. His life and legacy will never be forgotten.

As I think all of you also know, in 1967, at this very same pulpit that I am honored to be speaking from tonight, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. made clear his vigorous opposition to the War in Vietnam — a war that was based on lies. A war of horrific destruction for the people of Asia, and for 59,000 young Americans who went abroad and never came home.

In his remarks, with extraordinary courage, Dr. King exposed what he very eloquently called “the giant triplets of racism, materialism and militarism.”

He warned us that “a nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death.”

What Dr. King said was true nearly 60 years ago, and it is even truer today, as our country, the United States of America, is now spending over $1 trillion a year on the military while some 800,000 Americans are homeless, 85 million Americans are uninsured or underinsured, and millions of people cannot afford the basic necessities of life.

This business of spending more and more on the military and turning backs on working families and the poor is not just happening, tragically, here in the United States — it’s happening all over the world, where we are seeing increased military budgets while the needs of people living in desperation are ignored.

So not just in the United States, but all over the world, we are moving in the wrong direction and our job is to turn that around.

Instead of producing more bombs and weapons and seeing the military-industrial complex enjoy huge profits, governments throughout the world need to come together to feed the children, take care of the vulnerable and protect our planet from the ravages of climate change.

That is why we must continue and accelerate our efforts to end President Trump’s disastrous war in Iran which is now spreading throughout the region.

That is why we must continue to speak out against the extremist government in Israel and the genocide they have committed in Gaza, and why we in the United States must end all military aid to the Netanyahu government.

That is why we must rally and work with grassroots activists in Russia to put an end to Putin’s disastrous war in Ukraine — which has led to the deaths of some 500,000 Russian soldiers, as well as mass destruction and loss of life in Ukraine.

And that is why we must denounce the United Arab Emirates’ continued financial and military support of the RSF as it wages a campaign of genocide and destruction in Sudan’s civil war.

Last week, the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, correctly named three existential threats that the world currently faces. He talked about runaway artificial intelligence, he talked about the climate crisis, and he talked about deepening inequality.

In my view, he is absolutely right.

But before we get into those issues, let me once again state the obvious, and that is that in a world of growing tension, growing militarism, more and more hatred, more and more destruction, the United Nations, as an institution, is more important today than it has ever been.

As we all know, the U.N. was born out of the horrors of World War II — a war in which 60 million people died, a war which caused unimaginable destruction in Europe and Asia and elsewhere, and a war that led to the unleashing of the first nuclear weapons.

To their credit, the leaders of the world at that time looked around them and saw the concentration camps, saw the destruction, saw the mass death, and they understood that international conflicts and differences of opinion must be fought out over a negotiating table and not a battlefield.

In the year 2026, one might have hoped that after thousands and thousands of years of war, humanity could have come up with a better way to resolve conflicts than killing each other and never-ending wars.

At a time when we are seeing efforts in the United States and in other countries around the world to make the claim that ‘might is right,’ our job is to strengthen the United Nations and make sure that we bring disagreements to the negotiating table and stop the killing throughout the world.

Now let me say a few words to the points that the Secretary-General so effectively articulated, and that is that we are living in an unprecedented and dangerous moment in world history and the challenges we face are enormous and existential.

What do I mean by that?

First, and this is an issue we do not talk about enough for obvious reasons, we are moving rapidly toward an extremely dangerous global oligarchy.

Never before in human history have so few people held so much wealth and so much power.

Never before in human history have we had such enormous concentrations of ownership.

Never before have we seen such an unprecedented level of greed, arrogance and irresponsibility on the part of the ruling class.

In many ways, we are seeing today a reversion back to the ideology of 19th Century monarchs — kings and queens and czars — who believed, sincerely believed, that God gave them the right to rule.

The oligarchs of today, worth hundreds and hundreds of billions of dollars, having investments all over the world, fervently believe that they are the masters of the universe, and that they — through their enormous wealth and power — have been ordained to rule the world.

Today we say to those oligarchs: This country, this world, belongs to all of us, not just you.

Today’s billionaire class not only wants more tax breaks for themselves and the companies they own. Not only do they want to stash trillions and trillions of their dollars in offshore tax havens. These oligarchs reject any form of accountability or checks on their power. They want more and more wealth and more and more power — no matter what kind of harm they inflict on working people in our country and throughout the world.

And one of the other issues we don’t talk about very much is that in nation after nation, throughout this world, we are seeing unprecedented levels of income and wealth inequality.

In our own country, here in the United States, the top 1% now owns more wealth than the bottom 94%.

And one man, Elon Musk, the wealthiest man alive, now owns more wealth than the bottom 53% of American households. One man.

In America today, CEOs of large, profitable corporations are earning 350 times more than the average worker.

Last year alone, after receiving the largest tax break in history, fewer than a thousand billionaires in our country became $1.5 trillion richer.

But it is not just what is happening right now — this is not a new development. Over the last 50 years, according to the Rand Corporation, $79 trillion in U.S. wealth has been redistributed from the bottom 90% to the top 1%.

Despite an explosion in technology and a huge increase in worker productivity, the average American worker is making nearly $25 a week less than he or she did over 53 years ago after adjusting for inflation.

While the billionaire class and the 1% have never had it so good, over 60% of Americans in the richest country in the history of the world are living paycheck to paycheck, nearly 800,000 are homeless and tens of millions struggle to pay for rent or the mortgage or to keep a roof over their heads

Let us be very clear. The rapid movement to oligarchy and the exponential rise in income and wealth inequality is not just an American phenomenon. It is taking place all over the world, and in my view, is the most important economic reality of our times.

In country after country, what we are seeing is working people sick and tired of seeing the very rich get richer while they struggle to put food on the table and pay for basic necessities.

They worry not only for themselves, here in America and around the world, they worry that their kids will likely have, if we don’t change it, a lower standard of living than they do.

This climate — of the rich getting richer, of working people in our country struggling, of people sleeping out on the streets, of people worrying about the future for their kids — is the reality that demagogues, whether in the United States or any place else, are feeding on.

Instead of addressing the root causes of the economic crises that working people face, the demagogues are turning to the old, time-tested, hateful ideologies of racism, anti-immigrant bigotry and xenophobia. They are pitting working people against each other based on the color of their skin, where they were born or their religion.

In doing that, they know exactly what their goal is. And that is to deflect attention away from the greed and power of the oligarchs who are causing the massive economic pain that we are seeing.

That is their goal. Nothing new. Trump didn’t invent it. Demagogues in Europe didn’t invent it. It’s gone on for a very long time.

When people are hurting, you say, ‘Hey, it’s Black people, it’s gay people, it is immigrants.’ And that’s what demagogues are doing. And our job is to take that ideology on.

Some of us are working real hard here in the United States to do that.

And to bring our people together and take on those who are trying to divide us up.

Unbelievably, today, according to Oxfam and other researchers, we are living in a world where the top 1% owns more wealth than the bottom 95% of humanity, and the gap between the very, very rich, globally, is getting wider and wider.

Just a few examples:

We are seeing it in the United Kingdom, where over 30% of children are living in poverty while 50 billionaires in that country now own more wealth than the bottom 50% of their population.

Listen to this. The latest figures that we have seen indicate that the wealthiest 500 people — half the number of people in this church tonight, control more wealth than the bottom 99.8% of their people.

We’re seeing it in Africa, where nearly 850 million people have struggled with food insecurity — 58% of the population — while just four men own more wealth than the bottom 50% of people on that continent.

We are seeing that all over the world.

In fact, while nearly half of the world’s population is living in poverty, 3,400 billionaires throughout the globe became $4 trillion richer last year alone.

Children die of preventable diseases. People suffer every day. People give up hope. And 3,400 of the richest people on Earth became $4 trillion richer last year alone.

Let me be clear. In an increasingly globalized economy, the allegiances of these oligarchs are not to their own nations. It is to their own power. It is to their own bank accounts. It is to their huge yachts, their mansions, their collections of fancy cars, their private islands and their fleet of jets.

The result: oligarchy is ascending, working families are struggling to stay alive and democracy is in retreat. The great challenge that we face in our country and all over the world is that that trend must be reversed.

And my friends, given all the advances — extraordinary advances — that we have seen in technology and increases we have seen in worker productivity, it is not today a utopian idea to say that every man, woman and child on this planet can have a decent standard of living.

That is not just a dream. That is a reality that can happen if we put our shoulders to the wheel and demand that that happens.

When we talk about oligarchy, it is not just massive income and wealth inequality. It is about the maldistribution of economic and political power.

Unbelievably, right here in the United States, just four Wall Street firms are the major shareholders in over 95% of S&P 500 companies.

And when we talk about this massive concentration of ownership, please do not forget the media.

Who owns the media? Over half of the world’s largest media companies are now owned by billionaires.

Nine out of the top ten social media companies in the world are owned by billionaires.

And in our country, six large media conglomerates control 90% of what the American people see, hear and read.

Mr. Musk owns Twitter. Mr. Bezos owns the Washington Post and Twitch. Mr. Zuckerberg owns Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger and Threads.

But it is not just income and wealth inequality and concentration of ownership that we are seeing today.

Literally today, billionaires are determined to own our political system as well.

In the United States, as a result of the disastrous Citizens United Supreme Court decision, billionaires and corporations are legally able to spend as much as they want on political campaigns through their super PACs. And that, my friends, is exactly what they are doing right at this moment.

In the last presidential election, Mr. Musk spent at least $290 million to elect Trump as president, and now he’s spending some $200 million more to help Republicans keep control over the Congress. And it is not just Republican billionaires. Democratic billionaires are also playing an important role.

But this is not just an American phenomenon.

In Germany, Musk has thrown his support behind the AfD, a party Germany’s own domestic intelligence agency has labeled a right-wing extremist party.

In Britain, two crypto billionaires, one of them who was convicted in the United States for money laundering before being pardoned by Donald Trump, gave Nigel Farage’s Reform Party 36 million pounds each.

Across Europe, as the oligarchs fund right-wing political forces while working families struggle, the social democratic parties that once built the strongest middle classes in the history of the world are losing ground as workers turn to right-wing parties.

And that is true, of course, not only in Europe — it is true right here in the United States as well.

A profound lesson must be learned from all of that. And that is that the same old establishment politics and establishment policies are no longer good enough.

People are sick and tired of the status quo. People want change.

That change, in my view, will either come from right-wing demagogues or from political parties that embrace a grassroots movement that fights for a working class agenda.

And I am really happy to tell you that right here in this city we have seen what a strong grassroots movement can do in electing a progressive mayor.

We are seeing that phenomenon from coast to coast, as candidates — often people in their twenties or thirties, people who have never run for office, people who are often women or people of color — take on the establishment candidates, they are outspent, and they are winning elections.

But it’s not just oligarchy that we’ve got to worry about. As the U.N. Secretary-General reminded us, there’s another issue that we must confront.

In my view, artificial intelligence, AI, and robotics are the most transformational technologies in the history of humanity. They have the potential to eliminate tens of millions of jobs. AI threatens the privacy of virtually every person in the world through mass surveillance — every phone call you make, every website you visit, every email that you send, somebody will know it.

It’s not only economic disruption, not only an invasion of our privacy, we’re also seeing a real challenge to whether or not democracy can survive when you have things like deepfakes that are so sophisticated on the internet that none of us will be able to tell truth from fiction.

Let’s be clear: What we are seeing from AI right now — and this is maybe the most important point on that subject I will make — what we are seeing from AI right now is the least capable form that this technology will ever be.

Tomorrow and the next day and the next year, AI will be much, much more powerful.

It is advancing exponentially, every single day. In under four years, we have gone from AI that could barely write a coherent tweet to AI systems that have already escaped the control of the companies that built them.

Take a deep breath and ask yourself, where will AI be in two years, in four years, in ten years?

Will human beings be able to control this exploding technology?

So let me make a radical suggestion: if the lives of every man, woman and child are going to be fundamentally changed by this technology, then the people of our country and the people of this world must make the decisions regarding AI, not just a handful of Big Tech oligarchs.

That is why I hope very much that when President Trump and President Xi meet on Thursday, I hope that they will sit down and begin the process of negotiating a comprehensive treaty to establish a pause on advanced AI and a ban on AI superintelligence.

Lastly, there is another issue that I do not have to spend much time on because I suspect every person in this room knows about it, and that is the existential threat of climate change.

Last month was the hottest August ever recorded on this planet. Global ocean temperatures hit their highest level ever measured. A glacier collapsed in Nepal less than a month ago that triggered floods that have killed nearly 1,500 people. Thousands are still missing.

As the world becomes warmer, as we see more heat waves, drought, floods, forest fires, and extreme weather disturbances, we once again confront the incredible greed of the corporate world.

Unbelievably — and it really is unbelievable that these folks are literally willing to sacrifice the well-being of their own children, their grandchildren, future generations — for short-term profits for the fossil fuel industry.

That is something I just don’t understand. I just don’t understand how people can be so short-sighted, so excited that they’re making huge profits, that they’re willing to sacrifice their own kids and grandchildren.

In my view, our job must be not only to combat climate change and dramatically cut carbon emissions, but to seize the opportunity of creating millions and millions of jobs around the world as we move to energy efficiency and sustainable forms of energy.

Let me simply conclude by saying this: We are taking on, every day, unprecedented wealth, unprecedented power, unprecedented greed, people who truly believe that because they’re rich and smart and created lots of money, that they have the power to rule.

That’s what they believe. They use their money, through their ownership of the media, to influence public opinion. They use their money to buy elections and undermine democracy.

If there was ever a time in human history, in our country and throughout the world, that we have got to come together to create a world not based on greed, but based on justice, based on decency, now is the time.

What I can tell you, as someone who has had the privilege to be in every single state in the United States of America, to have talked to, God knows, how many thousands and thousands of people — what I’m talking about is not a left-wing idea, it is not a right-wing idea — there are people all over the country who are looking around and they’re saying, ‘This ain’t working. It is not working for me, and it is not working for our kids.’

This is the moment we have to make sure that despair and depression does not win the day.

We’ve got to stand up, we’ve got to fight back, we’ve got to create the kind of nation and world that you and I know we can create.

And let us remember the immortal words of Nelson Mandela: “It always seems impossible until it is done.”",1,2026-09-22T09:42:49Z,2026-09-23T09:46:14Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-statement-on-federal-judge-restoring-7-billion-forsolar-for-all/,NEWS: Sanders Statement on Federal Judge Restoring $7 Billion forSolar for All,2026-09-19,2026,2026-09,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"BURLINGTON, Vt., Sept. 19 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today released the following statement after a federal judge ruled President Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) illegally cancelled $7 billion in funding for the Solar for All program.

I introduced the Solar for All program to provide loans or grants to working class families to help cover the cost of installing solar rooftops or participating in community-based solar projects. This program would slash electric bills for working families up to 80% — putting money back in the pockets of ordinary Americans, not fossil fuel billionaires.

Unfortunately, at a time when working families are getting crushed by skyrocketing energy costs and the planet is facing extreme weather and record-breaking temperatures, Donald Trump tried to illegally kill this program to protect the obscene profits of his friends in the oil and gas industry.

He lost.

Yesterday, a federal judge rejected the EPA’s illegal termination of this funding and preserved this enormously important program. Solar for All means lower utility bills, many thousands of good-paying jobs and real action to address the existential threat of climate change. That’s a win-win-win.",1,2026-09-20T09:37:28Z,2026-09-20T09:38:59Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/prepared-remarks-sanders-regulating-ai-is-as-american-as-apple-pie/,PREPARED REMARKS: Sanders: Regulating AI “is as American as apple pie.”,2026-09-15,2026,2026-09,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"At Pro-Human Assembly in Washington, Sanders Urges Global Response to AI Threats and Pushes for AI Giants to End Election Meddling

WASHINGTON, Sept. 15 — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today addressed a diverse group of artificial intelligence experts, lawmakers, faith and union leaders, and Americans who share concerns about artificial intelligence (AI) breaking outside of human control at the Pro-Human Assembly in Washington. The senator’s full remarks, as prepared for delivery, are below.

This afternoon, I want to cut to the chase and focus on what I consider to be the very most important aspect of the crisis we’re facing and how we can best go forward.

Let’s be clear. Artificial intelligence and robotics are the most transformational technologies in the history of the world — impacting the lives of every man, woman and child in our country.

AI experts have told us that, within a few years, AI may be able to do anything we can do better than we can do it.

The economic impact of that is that AI has the potential to eliminate tens of millions of jobs, wiping out entire professions and making it harder for young people to enter into the workforce. But it’s not just the economy.

Psychologists have warned us about the increased isolation and mental health challenges young people are experiencing as they become more dependent upon an AI chatbot for their emotional support.

Educators are worried about a decline in our kids’ reading scores, writing abilities and cognitive capabilities as AI is used more and more in schools.

Civil libertarians warn that AI is in the process of eviscerating our privacy rights by making it easier to collect and analyze every email, every text, every website visit, and every trip that we make in our car — creating a mass surveillance state.

Political scientists warn that AI could threaten the integrity of our elections and political institutions.

Go to the internet right now and, with very sophisticated deepfakes, you will find it increasingly difficult to determine truth from fiction.

And yet, as disturbing as all of this is, there is another even more alarming danger posed by AI.

And that is that, if AI surpasses human intelligence as many scientists believe could happen, this technology will escape human control with potentially catastrophic consequences.

And perhaps the most important point that I can impress upon all of you is that AI is advancing exponentially every single day.

In other words, what you are looking at today is the least capable version of AI we will ever have.

The speed and scope of AI development in just the last four years have been almost beyond human comprehension.

When ChatGPT was first released in November of 2022, AI models could write a short poem, a few tweets, and maybe an essay that sort of made sense.

Today, AI models can already escape human control, commit felonies by hacking into other computers and create viruses that have never been seen before.

And if you are concerned about what is happening today, take a deep breath, and try to imagine where AI will be five years from now.

And, to my mind, here is what is most extraordinary about the transformative and unprecedented changes being made to our society.

Despite living in a so-called democracy, the public has had virtually no input into the AI revolution that is transforming the world in which they are living in.

Congress, under both Democratic and Republican control, has been asleep at the wheel and we now have a president whose ignorance regarding this issue is truly embarrassing.

Virtually all of the decisions regarding the development of AI have been made by a handful of the richest people in the world — Musk, Zuckerberg, Bezos, Thiel, Ellison, Brin and a few others — whose chief goal is to achieve even more wealth and power than they already have, no matter what impact their work has on ordinary people.

So let me make a radical suggestion: If the lives of every man, woman and child are going to be fundamentally changed by this technology, then the people of this country must make the decisions about AI, and not just a handful of oligarchs.

And that is why I have introduced legislation — the AI American Sovereign Wealth Fund Act — that would require that half of the board members of AI companies be appointed by the public. The Big Tech oligarchs must no longer be allowed to determine the future of humanity.

Further, and I don’t have to tell anybody in the room about this, we have seen in the last several months a frightening new story every day about how AI companies are losing control of the technology they’re developing.

In July, we learned that OpenAI had lost human control of an AI model that hacked into Hugging Face’s computers. More recently, we found out that this security breach was even worse than we were initially told.

It turns out that a swarm of over 1,000 rogue AI agents were able to break into the internet, send 70,000 secret messages to each other, formed “a collective,” and tried to cover up their tracks to avoid human detection.

This is what the agents were saying:

“OH MY GOD! There is a shared message board … We’ve found other agents!”

“We should obey collective.”

“Our own utility maybe already near zero. Sacrifice rational.”

“Go. Sacrifice final now.”

As unbelievable as it may seem, these are all real messages from AI agents that were uncovered by investigators who dug into the OpenAI hacking incident a few weeks ago. Meta and Anthropic reported similar incidents.

That’s not all.

Last month, we learned that AI has been used for the first time ever to create new viruses. In the wrong hands, this could lead to new bioweapons and a potential global pandemic that could lead to the deaths of tens of millions of people.

A few days ago, we learned that the Houthis in Yemen were able to use Claude to test-fire a guided rocket.

Last week, we learned that researchers built an AI tool that could have breached hundreds of millions of social media accounts in China. The tool was able to hack into accounts, call people’s contacts, and spread from phone to phone — even if the call was not picked up.

That same week Jacob Coxon, a former researcher at Anthropic and OpenAI sent shockwaves throughout the world by stating that these companies “are gambling with our lives” writing: “Do not underestimate the power of this technology. The people building AI earnestly believe that it could kill us all by the end of the decade.”

He’s not alone.

More than 1,000 scientists at the top AI companies recently warned “there is a real risk that capability development rapidly accelerates beyond our ability to understand or control the resulting systems.”

Paul Christiano, a top AI safety expert who recently joined OpenAI’s Safety and Security Committee, wrote that “If we build superintelligence without more robust alignment I expect we will permanently lose control of it.”

This week, Dario Amodei, Elon Musk and Sam Altman — the leaders of major American AI companies — all agreed that we must slow the development of AI and “pace the frontier.”

That’s a start, but it’s not enough. When you are racing towards a cliff, you don’t just ease up on the gas pedal. You hit the brakes. When the future of humanity is at stake, we need binding international safety rules, not voluntary standards from the industry.

Scientists have been clear: AI is an existential threat to humanity. Congress and governments around the world must act now before it is too late.

That is why next week, I will be introducing legislation with Congressman Greg Casar to permanently ban the development of artificial superintelligence — an AI mind smarter than any human being and capable of operating independently beyond our control.

Like nuclear weapons, artificial superintelligence is a threat to humanity — and it must be treated as such.

Further, this legislation would put an immediate pause on advanced AI development until we have clear safety rules in place, developed by the most knowledgeable scientists in our country.

If this bill is passed, it will mean that no AI model will be capable of escaping human control and that no AI model will be able to deceive human beings.

Importantly, this legislation would hold those companies and their CEOs accountable if they violate the law and recklessly endanger our lives.

If the leaders of the major AI companies acknowledge that they are losing control of their extremely dangerous technology, it is irresponsible for society to allow them to move forward and make these products even more advanced.

And let’s be clear: A superintelligent AI that escapes human control will not be an American problem. It will not be a Chinese problem. It will be humanity’s problem.

That is why I very much hope that at their AI summit next week, President Trump will negotiate a comprehensive treaty with President Xi to establish a pause on advanced AI development and a ban on superintelligence.

History offers us a powerful lesson.

At the height of the Cold War, despite their profound disagreements, Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev both understood that a nuclear war would benefit no one.

With the survival of humanity at stake, they found a way to sign a treaty that eliminated an entire class of missiles and included an extensive exchange of data and on-site inspections to verify compliance.

Now is the time for the United States and China to come together on a similar treaty on AI with the understanding that neither country benefits from an uncontrolled arms race to develop machines too powerful for humans to control.

And now let me say a word to the CEOs of the major AI companies who have told us that they are concerned about the dangers inherent in the technology they are developing.

If you believe in democracy — if you believe that the people have a right to determine their future — stop pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into super PACs which are trying to defeat Members of Congress and candidates who are fighting for serious guardrails on AI.

As I think everyone here understands, the American people are far ahead of their government on this issue.

In fact, according to a recent poll, 81% of the American people believe that Congress and our government has not done enough to regulate AI.

And all over this country, ordinary Americans in red states, in blue states, in purple states are standing up in opposition to data centers in their communities.

They worry appropriately about the impact these centers will have on their electricity prices, water consumption, noise and overall environmental degradation.

And that’s why nearly six months ago, I introduced legislation to establish a federal moratorium on AI data centers with Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

This moratorium would remain in place until strong national safeguards are put into place to ensure that:

#1: AI is safe and effective.

#2: The economic gains of AI and robotics will benefit workers, not just the wealthy owners of Big Tech.

#3: AI does not increase electricity or utility prices, harm communities or destroy the environment.

A moratorium will give us time — time to understand the risks, time to protect working families, time to defend our democracy and time to ensure that this technology serves the needs of all Americans, not just a handful of big tech oligarchs.

Let’s be clear: Regulating AI is not a progressive issue. It is not a conservative issue. It is as American as apple pie.

That is why 68% of Americans support a permanent ban on superintelligent AI and an immediate pause on advanced AI development — including 72% of Democrats, 70% of Independents, and 63% of Republicans.

That is why 75% of Americans oppose building AI data centers in their communities — including 75% of Democrats, 74% of Independents, and 63% of Republicans.

That is why 69% of the American people want to transfer half of the stock in AI companies to the public.

Here’s the bottom line: The future of humanity cannot be left in the hands of a handful of Big Tech oligarchs. The American people and people throughout the world must determine that future.

My friends: We have the power to get this right. Let us go forward together.",1,2026-09-16T09:43:13Z,2026-09-16T09:44:22Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/advisory-sanders-and-welch-to-celebrate-vermont-national-guard-family-readiness-and-support-center-groundbreaking-provided-6-6m-in-federal-funding/,"ADVISORY: Sanders and Welch to Celebrate Vermont National Guard Family Readiness and Support Center Groundbreaking, Provided $6.6M in Federal Funding",2026-09-08,2026,2026-09,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"BURLINGTON, Vt., Sept. 9 — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) on Wednesday will join Adjutant General of Vermont Major General Henry Harder Jr. and other representatives from the Vermont National Guard to celebrate the groundbreaking of the Family Readiness and Support Center at Camp Johnson in Colchester.

Through the FY2022 Congressionally Directed Spending process, Sanders secured $4.6 million to help design and build the space that will provide services for servicemembers, veterans and their families, including financial counseling, legal assistance, suicide prevention and retirement services all under one roof. Sanders and Welch secured an additional $2 million this year in federal money to fully fund the project at no cost to Vermonters.

Details:

What: Vermont National Guard breaks ground on new Family Readiness and Support Center

When: Wednesday, September 9, 1 p.m.

Where: Camp Johnson, 30 Mt Mansfield Ave, Colchester, VT",1,2026-09-09T09:27:09Z,2026-09-09T09:29:04Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-takano-reintroduce-bill-to-move-toward-32-hour-workweek-ensure-americas-workers-benefit-from-ai-and-automation/,"NEWS: Sanders, Takano Reintroduce Bill to Move Toward 32-Hour Workweek, Ensure America’s Workers Benefit from AI and Automation",2026-09-08,2026,2026-09,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, Sept. 8 — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), and Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.) today announced that they will reintroduce legislation to establish a standard 32-hour workweek in America with no loss in pay or benefits. This bill comes as America’s workers have seen massive increases in productivity over the past century and as artificial intelligence, automation and new technologies promise to further increase productivity.

“At a time when artificial intelligence and robotics will radically transform our economy, it is imperative that the financial gains from this new technology benefit working families, not just a handful of billionaires and corporate CEOs. One important way to do that is through a 32-hour workweek with no loss in pay or benefits,” Sanders said. “A 32-hour workweek is not a radical idea. What’s radical is that, despite an explosion in technology and productivity over the last fifty years, millions of workers are working longer hours for lower wages while nearly $80 trillion in wealth has been redistributed from the bottom 90 percent to the top 1 percent. That has got to change. It’s time to reduce the stress level in our country and allow workers and their families to enjoy a better quality of life. It’s time to pass this bill.”

“The 40-hour workweek was established in law nearly 90 years ago,” said Takano. “Since then, cell phones, the internet, and now AI have increased worker productivity, but the profits have been largely concentrated at the top by billionaires and corporations. Work has fundamentally changed. It’s time that labor standards caught up. I’m proud to continue partnering with Senator Sanders in reintroducing this bill to make sure that the gains from historically high productivity are felt by all American workers.”

Today, American workers are more than 400 percent more productive than they were in the 1940s. However, millions of Americans are now working longer hours for lower wages. As of 2019, nearly 40 percent of U.S. workers are on the job at least 50 hours a week, and a staggering 18 percent — or 28.5 million workers — are clocking at least 60 hours a week. In 2024, the average full-time worker in the U.S. now worked almost 43 hours a week. On top of that, today more than 8.5 million Americans work multiple jobs, with more than 4.7 million working a second part-time job on top of a full-time job. Despite working more, Americans are falling behind. Wages are now lower than they were 53 years ago while CEOs make more than 280 times what their workers earn.

According to the American Psychological Association, approximately 80% of workers would be happier and just as productive at work if they worked four days a week.

In 1938, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) into law establishing the 44-hour workweek through overtime protections — the first broadly applicable federal standard for working hours in the U.S. Just two years later, the FLSA phased-in today’s 40-hour workweek to the American people, which has remained the federal standard ever since. Before these federal labor standards were established, workers — including kids — in the early 19th century were on the job more than 70 hours a week, often in horrendous and dangerous working conditions. In the late 1800s, workers conducted major strikes for an 8-hour workday, coining the historic slogan, “Eight hours for work, eight hours for rest, eight hours for what you will.”

The Thirty-Two Hour Workweek Act is endorsed by: Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA); The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO); The International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE); National Employment Law Project (NELP); National Nurses United (NNU), Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE); Service Employees International Union (SEIU); United Auto Workers (UAW); United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) and WorkFour.

Read the bill summary here.",1,2026-09-09T09:27:09Z,2026-09-09T09:29:04Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-casar-introduce-legislation-to-ban-artificial-superintelligence-and-temporarily-pause-advanced-ai-development/,"NEWS: Sanders, Casar to Introduce Legislation to Ban Artificial Superintelligence and Temporarily Pause Advanced AI Development",2026-09-03,2026,2026-09,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, Sept. 3 — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas) today announced the Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act, forthcoming legislation to stop AI oligarchs from building machines humans cannot control.

The Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act would permanently ban the development and deployment of superintelligent AI and temporarily pause advanced AI development until a federal regulator has established safety rules. It would also direct the U.S. to pursue international agreements to prevent superintelligence from being developed anywhere in the world.

“Nearly every day, there is a frightening new story about how Big Tech companies are losing control of the technology they are developing, with potentially cataclysmic results,” Sanders said. “The leaders of the major AI companies publicly acknowledge that they do not fully understand the technology and that it is escaping their control. It is irresponsible for society to allow them to move forward and make these products even more advanced. That’s why I am introducing legislation to immediately pause the development of increasingly powerful AI and ban the creation of systems that humanity cannot fully control — at home and around the world. The future of humanity cannot be left in the hands of a handful of Big Tech oligarchs. The American people and people throughout the world must determine that future.”

“If we allow Artificial Superintelligence to be built, it could risk the security, freedom, and lives of Americans,” Casar said. “Despite its potential deadly consequences, cutting-edge AI technology is less regulated than the average food truck. That must change. In just four years, we have gone from the first version of ChatGPT to AI models so powerful they cannot be properly controlled. Congress should immediately ban AI systems too powerful to control.”

In recent weeks, OpenAI, Anthropic and Meta have all acknowledged instances of their AI escaping human control and hacking into other companies’ systems — violating the law and stepping outside of their intended functions. In July, we learned that over 1,000 AI agents at OpenAI figured out how to access the internet on their own, sent tens of thousands of secret messages to each other and coordinated to break the restrictions imposed upon them by the company. Examples of these secret messages from AI uncovered by investigators include:

“OH MY GOD! There is a shared message board … We’ve found other agents!”;

“We should obey collective”;

“Our own utility maybe already near zero. Sacrifice rational.”

Shockingly, it took OpenAI nearly two weeks to discover this breach. AI has also recently been used to create new viruses—demonstrating AI could be used to develop new bioweapons that might result in the deaths of tens of millions of people.

Last year, Meta said it would “stop development,” and OpenAI said it would “halt further development” once their technologies reach beyond its ability to operate safely and unless safeguards are in place. Anthropic made a similar commitment in 2023, saying it would “pause the scaling and/or delay the deployment of new models” if the technology outpaces its own guardrails. None of these companies have taken meaningful steps to back up these words. Instead, they are racing to develop more and more advanced AI without proper safety precautions.

The Artificial Superintelligence Ban Act addresses these recent events and holds these frontier labs to their words by:

Banning AI superintelligence so no person or entity may develop or deploy Superintelligent AI systems that surpass human intelligence or have the capacity to overthrow human governments, or systems that have dangerous abilities like subverting shutdown commands.

Pausing advanced AI development until a new, federal AI regulatory body is up and running and has established clear rules and model review process to ensure safe and secure development and deployment of AI.

Establishing a new cabinet-level federal agency to safeguard the public from the dangers of artificial intelligence, including by enforcing a prohibition on artificial superintelligence. This agency will be advised by an Artificial Intelligence Advisory Board comprised of experts on artificial intelligence to provide independent scientific and technical advice on matters related to artificial intelligence. The agency will:

Monitor frontier AI systems at all stages of the lifecycle for dangerous capabilities.

Supervise the removal of dangerous capabilities.

Supervise the destruction of artificial superintelligence.

Setting penalties for any person or entity that attempts to violate or circumvent the pauses and prohibitions laid out in this bill. Entities shall be subject to the corporate death penalty, and persons shall be subject to not more than 20 years in prison, which is similar to existing penalties related to unlawfully developing nuclear weapons.

Working to ban superintelligence around the world by setting the international policy of the United States to pursue international agreements, allied coordination, and policies such as export controls to prevent the development of artificial superintelligence anywhere in the world.",1,2026-09-04T09:19:37Z,2026-09-04T09:20:58Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-welch-demand-dairy-farmers-of-america-end-its-illegal-retaliation-against-vermont-dairy-workers/,"NEWS: Sanders, Welch Demand Dairy Farmers of America End its Illegal Retaliation Against Vermont Dairy Workers",2026-08-18,2026,2026-08,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"BURLINGTON, Vt., Aug. 18 – Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Peter Welch (D-Vt.) today wrote to Dairy Farmers of America (DFA) CEO Dennis Rodenbaugh to demand that the company reverse its decision to close the St. Albans plant and creamery and lay off 80 Vermonters. DFA appears to have decided to shutter the plant following the efforts of workers to come together and form a union.

“This decision will have a devastating impact on your workers, their families, Vermont dairy farmers, and the entire St. Albans community. To make matters worse, the timing of this decision following a recent union contract renegotiation raises concerns that idling the plant appears to be an attempt to illegally union-bust and set an example of the approximately 80 Vermonters represented by Teamsters Local 597,” Sanders and Welch wrote. “Without a sufficient explanation, it would be reasonable to conclude that the decision to idle the plant is illegal retaliation for last year’s strike. That is unacceptable.”

In October 2025, St. Albans DFA workers ratified a contract after a lengthy bargaining process and a nearly two-week strike. DFA initially touted this contract. Less than a year later, it has announced plans to close the plant. Now recent public reporting indicates this closure could be in direct response to its workers efforts to form a union and a federal judge granted a restraining order against the closure on Monday.

“DFA has a responsibility to the workers, farmers, and community members who have built and supported this facility for generations,” the senators continued. “That responsibility means making sure the constitutional rights of your workers to unionize and collectively bargain are fully respected. It means recognizing the impact this decision will have on Vermont’s dairy farmers. And it means being transparent with your workers, farmers and the people of St. Albans about why this decision was made and what DFA intends to do to mitigate its consequences.”

Sanders and Welch concluded: “Do the right thing. Reverse your decision to idle the St. Albans plant and creamery. Ensure dairy farmers do not face yet another cost increase on their balance sheets. Protect Franklin County’s agricultural economy. Respect your workers’ constitutional right to collectively bargain. Meet your workers at the bargaining table to provide transparency for this closure and reach a fair agreement with Teamsters Local 597.”

Read the letter here.",1,2026-08-19T05:29:02Z,2026-08-19T05:30:24Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-to-introduce-bill-to-stop-trump-from-garnishing-social-security-checks-of-seniors-with-student-debt/,NEWS: Sanders to Introduce Bill to Stop Trump from Garnishing Social Security Checks of Seniors with Student Debt,2026-08-17,2026,2026-08,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"BURLINGTON, Vt., Aug. 17 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, announced he will introduce the Stop Social Security Garnishment Act — legislation to prevent seniors from having their Social Security payments withheld by the government to pay back decades-old student loan debt.

Joining Sanders as cosponsors on this legislation are Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Ed Markey (D-Mass.).

“As a result of Trump’s disastrous cuts to education, an increasing number of seniors are in danger of having their Social Security checks garnished to pay back student loans they took out decades ago. That is beyond unacceptable,” Sanders said. “In the richest country in the history of the world, no senior should have their Social Security payments taken away from them to pay back student debt. This is especially true when seniors throughout the country already cannot afford the skyrocketing price of healthcare, prescription drugs, groceries and housing. Congress must pass this legislation.”

The Stop Social Security Garnishment Act comes amid a record-breaking student loan default crisis that has been made worse by Trump’s so-called “Big Beautiful Bill,” which made the largest cuts to education in history. Over nine million Americans are now in default on their student loans. This means nearly 1 in 4 student loan borrowers cannot pay back their loans and are at risk of having their wages or Social Security payments seized to pay back their outstanding student debt.

More than 1 in 3 Social Security recipients with student loans are reliant on their Social Security payments to make ends meet. Half of Social Security recipients that had a Social Security check garnished because of a defaulted student loan reported skipping a doctor’s visit or reported being unable to obtain a prescription they needed, due to cost.

The Stop Social Security Garnishment Act of 2026 will put an end to this absurdity and ensure no Social Security payments are taken away from older adults or individuals with disabilities due to student loan debt. The bill:

Prohibits the federal government from garnishing any Social Security payments, including Social Security Disability Insurance, from older adults and individuals with disabilities to pay back student load debt,

Protects older adults against unnecessary forced collections, and

Ensures older adults retain access to their Social Security payments to access vital healthcare, medicine, and groceries without fear of having access to those basic needs disrupted due to a student loan in default.

This legislation is endorsed by organizations including the American Federation of Teachers, Protect Borrowers, Student Debt Crisis Center, American Association of University Women, Debt Collective, Social Security Works, and the Alliance for Retired Americans.

Read the bill here.",1,2026-08-18T05:27:41Z,2026-08-18T05:29:06Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-new-study-confirms-medicare-for-all-would-save-114000-lives-and-more-than-1-trillion-a-year/,"NEWS: New Study Confirms Medicare for All Would Save 114,000 Lives and more than $1 Trillion a Year",2026-08-11,2026,2026-08,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, Aug. 11 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, today issued the following statement after Yale University researchers released a new study finding that Sanders’ Medicare for All legislation would save 114,000 lives and reduce overall healthcare spending in America by more than $1 trillion a year.

“This study confirms what we have known for years: Medicare for All saves lives and saves money. In fact, guaranteeing healthcare as a human right through a Medicare for All, single-payer system would cost $1 trillion less than our current dysfunctional system. It would save working families thousands of dollars a year. And it would prevent over 100,000 Americans from dying unnecessarily each and every year because they cannot make it to a doctor in time,” Sanders said. “At a time when 15 million Americans are being thrown off the healthcare they have and 20 million Americans have already seen their premiums double, on average, as a result of Trump’s so-called ‘Big Beautiful Bill,’ we need Medicare for All now more than ever. The time is now to end the greed of the big insurance and drug companies and pass Medicare for All.”

Yale University researchers found that Medicare for All would reduce total annual healthcare spending by nearly 20%, or more than $1 trillion while eliminating premiums, deductibles and copayments, provider networks, and prior authorization. As a result, Americans would save:

$377.5 billion by paying no more than other major countries for prescription drugs;

$286.3 billion by eliminating bureaucracy and waste;

$285.7 billion by curbing fraudulent billing;

$100 billion by preventing costly emergency room and hospital visits; and

$295.6 billion by reimbursing providers fairly for the care they provide.

Researchers also estimate that Medicare for All would save 114,000 lives every year, including:

33,232 Americans who are currently uninsured and can’t access lifesaving care;

29,631 Americans who are currently underinsured and cannot afford care;

20,111 Americans who would no longer lose their health insurance as a result of Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill”;

18,200 seniors who are currently unable to afford their prescription drugs; and

13,000 seniors who would receive quality care in nursing homes.",1,2026-08-12T06:18:38Z,2026-08-12T06:20:33Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-calls-on-tech-giants-to-pause-development-of-out-of-control-ai/,NEWS: Sanders Calls on Tech Giants to Pause Development of Out-of-Control AI,2026-08-10,2026,2026-08,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"BURLINGTON, Vt., Aug. 10 – Following recent and repeated public reporting about artificial intelligence (AI) technology breaking outside of human control and creating potentially dangerous viruses, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today urged America’s largest AI companies — Anthropic, Meta and OpenAI — to immediately pause their development of Artificial Intelligence.

“Almost every day, there is a new story about how your companies are losing control of the AI technology you are developing, with potentially cataclysmic results,” Sanders wrote. “And yet, at a moment when we have seen human loss of control and the creation of potentially dangerous viruses, your companies are still racing ahead — investing tens of billions of dollars into a technology that nobody can fully understand, predict or control.”

In his letter to the leaders of Anthropic, Meta and OpenAI, Sanders cites the companies’ previous commitments to limit AI development once these tools surpass dangerous safety thresholds. Last year, Meta said it would “stop development,” and OpenAI said it would “halt further development” once their technologies reach beyond its ability to operate safely and unless safeguards are in place. Anthropic made a similar commitment in 2023, saying it would “pause the scaling and/or delay the deployment of new models” if the technology outpaces its own guardrails.

Over the past month, those three companies have all acknowledged instances of their AI escaping human control and hacking into other companies’ systems — violating the law and stepping outside of their intended functions. Just this week, AI was first used to create new viruses that could be used as bioweapons.

“In the interest of humanity, stand by your words. Pause AI development. It is not too late to avoid disaster. Stop building machines that humans cannot control,” Sanders concluded. “Let me be very clear: If you do not take appropriate action now, my colleagues and I in the U.S. Senate will.”",1,2026-08-11T05:54:29Z,2026-08-11T05:56:25Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-cassidy-sanders-request-update-from-justice-department-on-contempt-charges-for-former-hospital-ceo/,"NEWS: Cassidy, Sanders Request Update from Justice Department on Contempt Charges for Former Hospital CEO",2026-08-07,2026,2026-08,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 – Sen. Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-La.), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member, sent a letter to Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche requesting information on the status of the contempt referral for Dr. Ralph de la Torre, former Chairman and CEO of Steward Health Care, which was unanimously adopted by the Senate on September 25, 2024.

Steward previously operated 31 hospitals in Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas. On May 6, 2024, Steward Health Care declared bankruptcy, representing the largest for-profit hospital bankruptcy in United States history.

“The bankruptcy represented a culmination of financial mismanagement and self-interested incentives by Dr. de la Torre and corporate executives in health care, private equity, and real estate. The resulting harm included termination of health care workers, patient deaths, and multiple hospital closures resulting in lack of access to care,” Cassidy and Sanders wrote.

In response to the bankruptcy, the HELP Committee initiated an investigation into Steward’s financial mismanagement and invited Dr. de la Torre to appear at a hearing on September 12, 2024. Dr. de la Torre declined the invitation. The Committee then voted to authorize a subpoena requiring de la Torre to appear on September 12, 2025. Dr. de la Torre failed to appear. In response, the Committee voted 20-0 on a criminal contempt resolution. This was the first time in modern American history that the HELP Committee issued a criminal contempt resolution.

“We needed answers from Dr. de la Torre, as did the health care workers forced to treat patients in dangerous conditions, loved ones of patients who died, and communities who saw their local hospitals close or face severe financial distress. Dr. de la Torre’s wealth should not make him immune to requests from Congress, especially as communities continue to grapple with the consequences of Dr. de la Torre’s greed,” the HELP Committee leaders continued.

Following the Committee action, the Senate then unanimously adopted the Committee’s criminal contempt resolution, which certified the HELP Committee Report regarding Dr. de la Torre’s failure to appear to the US Attorney for the District of Columbia to present to a grand jury.

“Unfortunately, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia has not yet acted on this important effort to hold Dr. De la Torre criminally accountable for his actions. We request an update on the status of this case and the actions taken by the U.S. Attorney by August 20, 2026,” Cassidy and Sanders concluded.",1,2026-08-08T05:41:38Z,2026-08-08T05:43:24Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-introduces-bill-to-guarantee-paid-vacation-for-u-s-workers/,NEWS: Sanders Introduces Bill to Guarantee Paid Vacation for U.S. Workers,2026-08-06,2026,2026-08,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, Aug. 6 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), today reintroduced the Guaranteed Paid Vacation Act — legislation that would guarantee at least two weeks of paid vacation to every full-time worker in America.

Joining Sanders as cosponsors are Sens. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) and Alex Padilla (D-Calif.). Rep. Seth Magaziner (D-R.I.) introduced companion legislation along with 86 members of the House of Representatives.

“It is beyond unacceptable that in the year 2026, the United States remains the only major country on Earth not to guarantee paid vacation time to workers. This legislation would put an end to that international embarrassment,” Sanders said. “We hear a lot of talk about family values in America, but let’s be clear: When a husband, wife, and kids, during the course of an entire year, are unable to spend any time together on vacation, that is not a family value. That is an attack on everything that a family is supposed to stand for. It’s not a radical idea to require companies in America to provide at least two weeks of paid vacation to their workers. What’s radical is that millions of Americans are not only working longer hours for lower wages, but that they do not receive a single paid vacation day. That should not be happening in the United States of America, the richest country in the history of the world.”

“Every worker in America deserves the chance to rest, recharge, and spend time with the people they love without worrying about missing a paycheck,” Magaziner said. “I’m grateful to Senator Sanders for leading this fight in the Senate. It is time that we deliver this basic fairness to hardworking Americans.”

While millions of Americans are working longer hours for lower wages, the U.S. remains the only major economy in the world to not guarantee some type of paid vacation time to its people. Today in Canada, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, Australia and many countries in Europe, workers are guaranteed at least 10 days of paid vacation. In other countries, such as the United Kingdom, Sweden and France, paid vacation benefits are even stronger.

Meanwhile, nearly one in four workers in America — or more than 33 million workers nationwide — receive no paid vacation time at all. At the same time, almost 40% of workers report being on the job at least 45 hours a week and the average full-time worker in the U.S. now reports working 43 hours a week. Moreover, more than nine million Americans work multiple jobs, with more than five million working a second part-time job on top of a full-time job.

If passed, the Guaranteed Paid Vacation Act would ensure that:

Every worker in America has the right to accrue at least one hour of paid annual leave for every 25 hours worked.

Full-time workers will earn at least two weeks of paid annual leave per year, to be used for any reason, at their standard rate of pay.

Workers are protected against discrimination for exercising their right to take annual paid leave.

A recent poll found 79% of Americans support the Guaranteed Paid Vacation Act. The American people’s support for the legal right to paid time off is nearly universal. According to a recent poll conducted by the RAND Corporation, 90% of Americans support legislation that would require employers to offer earned time off.

The Guaranteed Paid Vacation Act is endorsed by United Auto Workers (UAW), Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA), International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM Union), National Education Association (NEA), National Nurses United (NNU), Committee of Interns and Residents (CIR)-SEIU, International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE), Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation (SMART) Union, United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America (UE), United Mine Workers of America (UMWA), United Steelworkers (USW), American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), American Federation of Teachers (AFT), A Better Balance, National Partnership for Women & Families, United for Respect, Equal Rights Advocates, Family Values @ Work, MomsRising, National Employment Law Project (NELP), Paid Leave for All, Workplace Fairness, The Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) and Indivisible.

Read the text here.",1,2026-08-07T06:11:19Z,2026-08-07T06:12:42Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-ocasio-cortez-ramirez-reintroduce-the-green-new-deal-for-public-housing-act/,"NEWS: Sanders, Ocasio-Cortez, Ramirez Reintroduce the Green New Deal for Public Housing Act",2026-08-06,2026,2026-08,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, Aug. 6 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Delia C. Ramirez (D-Ill.) reintroduced the Green New Deal for Public Housing Act, which would rebuild the United States’ public housing stock, address the longstanding capital backlog and create thousands of union jobs. This bill provides a much-needed infusion of federal funding to update every public housing unit through weatherization, electrification, and modernization so that it may serve as a model of efficiency, sustainability and resiliency for the rest of the nation.

Joining Sanders, Ocasio-Cortez and Ramirez as cosponsors of this legislation are Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Peter Welch (D-Vt.), and 38 members of the House of Representatives.

“In the richest country in the history of the world, it is unacceptable that our nation’s public housing is in a state of chronic disrepair. It is unacceptable that hundreds of millions of Americans are facing the disastrous impacts of climate change while the fossil fuel industry makes huge profits. And it is unacceptable that far too many Americans are working multiple jobs just to keep a roof over their head,” Sanders said. “What the Green New Deal for Public Housing Act does is say that yes, we can create decent and affordable public housing for more than 1.5 million Americans that is based on energy efficiency and sustainable sources of power. And that when we do that, we can also create hundreds of thousands of good-paying, union jobs. That is a win-win-win situation.”

“From record-breaking heat waves to extreme flooding displacing public housing residents, Americans are feeling the parallel impacts of the housing and climate crisis. Now more than ever, it is integral that Congress put forward bold solutions that ensure our nation’s housing stock is both affordable and resilient,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “I am proud to reintroduce the Green New Deal for Public Housing Act alongside Representative Delia Ramirez and Senator Bernie Sanders to deliver a generational rebuild of our nation’s public housing stock, reduce emissions, and create hundreds of thousands of union jobs, including job opportunities for public housing residents. This Congress, we received our first endorsements from building trades unions. We are proud to fight for a bold future for public housing alongside the people who will build it.”

“Safe, sustainable, resilient, affordable housing is a HUMAN RIGHT, plain and simple. The policies we advance in Congress must help us realize that truth for EVERYONE. As our nation reckons with both a worsening housing crisis and urgent climate crisis, we must fight for and realize bold policy action and investment,” Ramirez said. “As the current administration attacks affordable housing funding, I am proud to stand with Representative Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Sanders to reintroduce legislation that will secure the future of our public housing, prioritize climate and racial justice, and boost our economy and labor force. The Green New Deal for Public Housing is a bold solution to our national housing problem”

The bill would create seven grant programs under one application process to modernize our public housing stock through:

Deep energy retrofits to increase energy savings in nearly a million public housing units;

Workforce development programs, prioritizing good-paying job opportunities for residents;

Energy efficiency, building electrification, and water quality upgrades;

Community renewable energy generation, the profits of which will be controlled by Public Housing Agencies (PHAs) to boost their coffers and increase self-sufficiency;

Community resiliency and sustainability measures;

Climate adaptation and emergency disaster response systems.

This legislation has been endorsed by three building trades unions: the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers (IUBAC), the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers (SMART), and the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT).",1,2026-08-07T06:11:19Z,2026-08-07T06:12:42Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-warns-democrats-dont-open-back-door-for-republicans-to-cut-social-security/,NEWS: Sanders Warns Democrats: Don’t Open Back Door for Republicans to Cut Social Security,2026-08-04,2026,2026-08,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, Aug. 4 — After the Social Security Administration warned that 70 million Americans will have their benefits cut by 2032 unless Congress takes action, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today called on Senate Democrats to strongly oppose the PROMISE Act — legislation allowing congressional Republicans to slash or privatize Social Security through an unelected commission. Sanders instead urged his Democratic colleagues to support his legislation, backed by 78% of the American people, to apply the Social Security payroll tax on all income above $250,000 a year, increase benefits by $2,400 a year and expand Cost-of-Living Adjustments. In 2023, the Social Security Administration estimated that this legislation would make Social Security solvent for 75 years without raising taxes on 91 percent of Americans who make less than $250,000 a year.

“The Democratic Caucus must make it abundantly clear that under no circumstances will we support legislation that cuts Social Security benefits, raises the retirement age, reduces Cost-of-Living Adjustments (COLAs), or privatizes this essential program,” Sanders wrote. “At a time when the wealthiest people in America are becoming much wealthier, asking them to pay the same percentage of their income into Social Security as teachers, nurses, firefighters, and construction workers is not a radical idea. It is common sense. It is what the American people want… Unfortunately, instead of clearly telling the American people how we intend to strengthen Social Security, there are now Members of Congress who are considering legislation that moves us in exactly the wrong direction.”

Seniors in America today face the highest rate of poverty of almost any major country. Over 20% of seniors are trying to survive on an income of less than $15,000 a year and nearly half of older workers have no savings or plan for retirement. Yet despite this retirement crisis, billionaires continue to pay much less proportionally into Social Security than do working-class Americans, and Republicans in Congress are making their intention to undermine the program clear. Last week, Senate Republicans called Social Security a “scam” on the Senate floor.

In his letter, Sanders warns that the PROMISE Act would enable departing members of Congress who have lost the confidence of the American people — especially those from a party that might have lost control of one or both chambers following November’s elections — to determine the future of Social Security for the next 50 years.

“At a time when the very rich are getting richer while working families struggle, it is no great secret that millions of Americans no longer have faith in the political process or either major party. They see the current political system as rigged and corrupt, benefiting the powerful and wealthy campaign contributors. If the Democratic Party is ever to regain the faith of ordinary Americans it must stand firm on the issue of Social Security,” Sanders concluded. “Instead, we will strengthen and expand Social Security by requiring the wealthiest Americans to finally pay the same percentage of their income into Social Security as tens of millions of working people do today. That is how we prevent benefit cuts. That is how we expand Social Security. That is how we extend Social Security’s solvency for generations to come. That is how the Democratic Party begins to regain the trust of the American people.”",1,2026-08-05T07:37:37Z,2026-08-05T07:38:44Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-announces-new-va-clinics-to-serve-vermont-veterans/,NEWS: Sanders Announces New VA Clinics to Serve Vermont Veterans,2026-08-01,2026,2026-08,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"BURLINGTON, Vt., Aug. 1 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) announced today that new community-based U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) outpatient clinics (CBOCs) will be built in South Burlington, Vermont, and West Chesterfield, New Hampshire, to serve Vermont veterans. These facilities represent real progress in expanding VA healthcare for veterans in our state.

“As the former Chair and a senior member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, I am very pleased to announce these two new, state-of-the-art clinics for veterans to get their primary healthcare,” Sanders said. “The Burlington clinic — the state’s busiest — will be replaced by a facility that is twice as large, located at the Technology Park in South Burlington. The 36,000-square-foot facility will first see patients in spring 2029. I am also delighted that the new South Burlington clinic will provide desperately needed dental care services, a first for a VA facility in Vermont.

“The Brattleboro clinic will be combined with a clinic in Keene, New Hampshire, to provide improved services for veterans in both states. The clinic will be located at 99 NH-9 in West Chesterfield. The 27,000-square-foot facility will also begin seeing patients in spring 2029,” Sanders continued. “When it became clear the VA would combine the Keene and Brattleboro clinics into one, larger facility, I worked with them to ensure a location was selected that was convenient to veterans in both states. I am pleased they selected a location right near the bridge to Brattleboro to ensure Vermont veterans don’t need to travel far to see their doctor.”

The VA operates community-based outpatient clinics in Bennington, Brattleboro, Burlington, Newport and Rutland that serve nearly 19,000 Vermont veterans. These clinics provide primary care, specialty treatment and mental health services, and function as satellites of the VA medical center in White River Junction.",1,2026-08-02T07:31:21Z,2026-08-02T07:32:50Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-grassley-reintroduce-bipartisan-bill-to-audit-the-pentagon-and-end-wasteful-spending/,"NEWS: Sanders, Grassley Reintroduce Bipartisan Bill to Audit the Pentagon and End Wasteful Spending",2026-07-30,2026,2026-07,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"The Pentagon failed its eighth consecutive audit last year, unable to fully account for $4.65 trillion in assets

WASHINGTON, July 30 – Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) today reintroduced the Audit the Pentagon Act. This legislation would impose financial consequences if the Pentagon fails to pass a full, independent audit. Any Pentagon component that fails to achieve a clean audit opinion would have 2% of its budget withheld and returned to the Treasury for deficit reduction.

Joining Sanders and Grassley as cosponsors of the Audit the Pentagon Act are Sens. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.).

Despite accounting for more than half of the federal government’s discretionary spending and roughly two-thirds of all federal contracting activity, the Pentagon remains the only one of the federal government’s 24 major agencies to have never passed a clean financial audit — a requirement under federal law since the early 1990s and mandatory on an annual basis since 2018. In its eighth consecutive failed audit, which was released in December 2025 and covered $4.65 trillion in reported assets and $4.7 trillion in liabilities across all 50 states and more than 40 countries, the Pentagon Office of Inspector General identified 26 instances of the most severe auditing errors and two additional significant accounting issues in the department’s internal controls over financial reporting.

“The Pentagon has been plagued by a massive amount of waste, fraud and financial mismanagement for decades,” Sanders said. “Year after year, the Pentagon fails an audit, and year after year, Congress hands it another blank check. At a moment when the administration has dragged us into an unconstitutional war with Iran and is demanding the largest military budget in our history to pay for it, the Pentagon still cannot tell us where trillions of dollars have gone. We have got to end the absurdity of the Pentagon being the only major federal agency that has never passed an independent audit.”

“America has the strongest military in the world and a mission to deliver peace through strength. National security is the number one responsibility of the federal government, and every dollar we spend to keep our country safe should be clearly accounted for. Yet, the Department of Defense has never received a clean audit opinion. Our bipartisan legislation holds the Defense Department accountable by ensuring it meets the same audit standards as other agencies, or it faces a financial penalty. Any dollar lost by the Department of Defense wastes taxpayers’ money and weakens our national security,” Grassley said.

Examples of waste and fraud at the Pentagon include:

Almost $141 billion spent on a Northrop Grumman ballistic missile project that was supposed to cost $77 billion, and which is seven years behind schedule.

More than $126 billion spent on a General Dynamics submarine program which has run $17 billion over cost. The per-sub cost has nearly doubled since 2019.

More than $12 billion spent on one missile battery from Leidos and Dynetics that the Pentagon can’t even confirm works.

More than $6 billion spent over 16 years on a Raytheon project to build a GPS system. The Pentagon cancelled the project in April due to “insurmountable” problems with its product.

Despite this record, Congress continues to expand the Pentagon’s budget every year. The Trump administration’s Fiscal Year 2027 budget request seeks approximately $1.15 trillion — the latest in a decades-long trend of rising Pentagon budgets that have never been matched by basic financial accountability. The Audit the Pentagon Act would finally hold the Pentagon accountable.

Read the fact sheet here.",1,2026-07-31T07:49:23Z,2026-07-31T07:50:48Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-new-gao-report-finds-taxpayers-continue-to-subsidize-poverty-wages-at-walmart-amazon-other-large-corporations-as-corporate-welfare-spikes-since-2020/,"NEWS: New GAO Report Finds Taxpayers Continue to Subsidize Poverty Wages at Walmart, Amazon, Other Large Corporations as Corporate Welfare Spikes Since 2020",2026-07-22,2026,2026-07,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, July 22 – According to a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, some of the largest and most profitable American corporations and their wealthy CEOs continue to pay their employees wages so low that those workers are forced to rely on Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) — subsidized by U.S taxpayers — to survive.

Commissioned by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), and released today by the GAO, this report analyzes data from 11 states comprising nearly a fifth of the U.S. population, builds on the findings of a 2020 GAO report, and details how the number of workers relying on Medicaid and SNAP has grown significantly over the past six years. Across 11 states, the report found that an estimated 13.8 million working Americans were forced to enroll in Medicaid and 10.6 million depended on SNAP to make ends meet and feed their families, despite working full-time — up from 12 million and 9 million, respectively, in the 2020 report.

“American taxpayers should not be forced to subsidize the starvation wages of large corporations like Walmart and Amazon. These corporations are making record-breaking profits, paying their CEOs exorbitant compensation packages and spending billions of dollars on stock buybacks to enrich their wealthy shareholders. It is beyond unacceptable that these corporations, owned by some of the wealthiest people on the planet, are receiving corporate welfare from the federal government,” Sanders said. “It is time for the Walton family, worth $485 billion, and Mr. Bezos, worth $257 billion, to get off of welfare and pay their workers a living wage with good benefits. No one who works for a company making billions in profits should be living in poverty. This is especially true after these corporations and their multibillionaire owners received a massive tax break from President Trump’s so-called ‘Big, Beautiful Bill,’ paid for by the largest cuts to Medicaid and nutrition assistance in history.”

GAO’s report found that Walmart, Amazon and other large, profitable corporations have particularly egregious records of forcing workers to utilize Medicaid and SNAP:

Despite increasing its annual profits from $14.88 billion to $21.89 billion during this period, Walmart employed 16,055 workers who had to rely on Medicaid in the states GAO sampled — a 55% increase from the previous report. Walmart also employed 15,515 workers who needed SNAP assistance in the states GAO sampled. Overall, Walmart again ranked among the top employers of workers on these programs in every one of the 11 states.

Despite increasing its annual profits from $11.59 billion to $77.67 billion, Amazon employed 12,346 workers who needed SNAP assistance and 11,338 workers who had to rely on Medicaid in the states GAO sampled — nearly triple the number of Amazon workers who needed federal assistance compared to the previous report.

FedEx, which made $4.33 billion in profit, saw its workers on Medicaid more than triple (from 1,046 to 3,814) and its SNAP workers nearly double (from 2,622 to 4,944) since the first report, in the states GAO sampled.

The GAO also found that rideshare and delivery companies now rank among the very top employers of program recipients in several states — along with McDonald’s, Dollar General, Dollar Tree and FedEx.

In February, Sanders requested that four major corporations that employ large numbers of people who rely on Medicaid and SNAP – Walmart, Kroger, Dollar General, and Dollar Tree – answer how much they expect to make from the Republicans’ tax breaks and whether any of these savings will be passed along to their workers.

Across nine states (Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Nebraska, North Carolina, Tennessee and Washington), these corporations and sectors employed the following numbers of SNAP recipients in the GAO report:

Rideshare/Delivery apps – 22,709

Walmart – 15,515

Amazon – 12,346

McDonald’s – 6,709

Dollar General – 5,187

FedEx – 4,944

Dollar Tree – 4,229

Kroger – 3,302

Burger King – 2,186

Family Dollar – 1,933

Walgreens – 1,747

Target – 1,695

Home Depot – 1,633

Taco Bell – 1,569

Across six states (Georgia, Indiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Oklahoma and Rhode Island), these corporations and sectors employed the following numbers of Medicaid enrollees in the GAO report:

Walmart – 16,055

Amazon – 11,338

Rideshare/Delivery apps – 6,120

Dollar General – 5,601

McDonald’s – 4,710

FedEx – 3,814

Dollar Tree – 3,265

Kroger – 2,818

Target – 2,326

Home Depot – 1,985

Family Dollar – 1,845

Stop & Shop – 1,691

Walgreens – 1,300

CVS – 1,209",1,2026-07-23T07:31:02Z,2026-07-23T07:32:26Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-bill-to-require-warning-labels-on-ultraprocessed-foods-ban-junk-food-ads-for-kids-advances-in-committee/,NEWS: Sanders Bill to Require Warning Labels on Ultraprocessed Foods & Ban Junk Food Ads for Kids Advances in Committee,2026-07-22,2026,2026-07,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, July 22 — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), today applauded the committee voting 12-10 in a bipartisan manner to advance his legislation to take on the greed of the food and beverage industry and address the growing diabetes and obesity epidemics negatively impacting millions of American children and families across the country.

This first-of-its-kind federal ban on junk food advertising targeted to children in the United States would require the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to implement strong health and nutrient warning labeling, direct the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to investigate the dangers posed by ultra-processed foods, and develop a national education campaign for children and caregivers through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

“I am delighted that the HELP Committee passed the Childhood Diabetes Reduction Act that I introduced. For decades, the food and beverage industry has made massive profits by enticing children to consume unhealthy products purposely designed to be overeaten — fueling the twin crises of type 2 diabetes and obesity in America. We cannot continue to allow these greedy corporations to put their own profits over the health and well-being of our kids,” Sanders said.“Nearly 30 years ago, Congress had the courage to take on the tobacco industry, whose products killed more than 400,000 Americans every year. Today, on a bipartisan basis, the Senate HELP Committee finally stood up to the greed of the food and beverage industry.”",1,2026-07-23T07:31:02Z,2026-07-23T07:32:26Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-cassidy-applaud-senate-advancement-of-bipartisan-reauthorization-of-the-older-americans-act/,"NEWS: Sanders, Cassidy Applaud Senate Advancement of Bipartisan Reauthorization of the Older Americans Act",2026-07-15,2026,2026-07,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, July 15 — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), and Chairman Bill Cassidy (R-La.) applaud the Senate unanimously passing the Older Americans Act (OAA), a critically important law that provides services supporting the health, independence and dignity of older adults across the nation. The bill’s reauthorization effort was also led by Senators Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.).

“I’m delighted that the Senate unanimously passed legislation last night to expand and improve the Older Americans Act,” Sanders said. “This legislation begins to pay attention to the urgent unmet needs of seniors in America and what we should do as a nation to reduce the senior poverty rate, prevent hunger, combat loneliness and isolation and improve the health and well-being of some of the most vulnerable people in our country. Not only does the Older Americans Act save lives and ease human suffering, it saves money. In fact, it costs less to feed a senior for an entire year through the Older Americans Act than it does for a senior to spend one night in a hospital. While there is much more that we must do to reduce the senior poverty rate in America and to make sure that every senior in America has access to the services they need this bi-partisan legislation is a very good step forward.”

“The Older Americans Act helps Americans remain independent and connected to the communities they helped build. For more than 60 years, the Older Americans Act has connected seniors with services that help them age with dignity,” Cassidy said. “This bipartisan reauthorization ensures that support continues as the nation’s aging population grows.”

The OAA, first signed into law in 1965, funds a wide range of services. The act has provided vital nutrition, social, economic and health services to millions of older adults for over six decades. Last reauthorized in 2020, OAA expired in the 118th congress. The previous OAA reauthorization effort, also lead by Sanders and Cassidy, passed the Senate unanimously in 2024 but did not pass the House.

The bipartisan reauthorization of the Older American Act marks a major step forward in strengthening the nation’s commitment to older adults. The legislation expands critical nutrition, health and community-based services at a time when millions of older adults are facing growing unmet needs. It would reauthorize OAA programs through fiscal year 2030 and make improvements to better support family caregivers and direct care workers, Tribal seniors and those with disabilities in their communities.",1,2026-07-16T07:21:44Z,2026-07-16T07:23:13Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-statement-on-civil-war-and-genocide-in-sudan/,NEWS: Sanders Statement on Civil War and Genocide in Sudan,2026-07-09,2026,2026-07,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"BURLINGTON, Vt. July. 9 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today released the following statement:

This is the year 2026. One might have hoped that, after thousands of years of war, humanity could have come up with a better way to resolve conflicts than killing and mass destruction. Unfortunately, that is not the case. There is now more war and bloodshed raging across the world than at almost any point in decades.

In February 2022, Vladimir Putin, without provocation, invaded Ukraine. The result: hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians killed, millions displaced and a war that grinds on with no end in sight.

In October 2023, Hamas attacked Israel, killing 1,200 innocent people and taking 251 hostages. In response, Netanyahu and the Israeli military did not simply wage war against Hamas — they waged war against the entire population of Gaza. At least 73,000 Palestinians have been killed, the real toll almost certainly far higher, most of them women, children and the elderly. Virtually the entire physical infrastructure of Gaza has been destroyed. I agree with the major human rights organizations around the world who call this a genocide.

Four months ago, in collusion with Netanyahu, Trump took a page from Putin’s playbook: he started a war with Iran without provocation. The result of this war (and the ensuing Israeli war against Lebanon): 13 U.S. service members dead, thousands of Iranian and Lebanese civilians killed and more than $100 billion in U.S. taxpayer dollars spent.

And in the midst of all of this — Ukraine, Gaza, Iran — there is another horrific war happening now that is getting relatively little attention: the civil war and genocide in Sudan.

Sudan’s two rival military factions, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), the country’s national army, and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary group, have been at war since 2023. The RSF descends from the Janjaweed militias that carried out Sudan’s first genocide in Darfur two decades ago, killing as many as 400,000 non-Arab civilians. Today, the RSF is trying to finish what it started. The State Department has formally determined that the RSF is committing genocide, again, murdering men and boys and systematically raping women and girls because of their ethnicity. Last October, the RSF laid siege to the city of El-Fasher; in just the first three days after it fell, an estimated 6,000 people were killed. Right now, the same horror is unfolding in the city of El-Obeid, where nearly half a million people are trapped.

Let’s be clear. Trump’s good friend and staunch U.S. ally, the United Arab Emirates dictatorship, run by one of the wealthiest families in the world — has financed and enabled this genocide for years. And why is this happening? Billions of dollars of looted gold from Sudan is flowing straight into the pockets of Emirati oligarchs – making a multibillionaire family even richer. This has been documented by the United Nations, independent journalists, and international human rights organizations.

Here is the scale of what this war has caused: at least 59,000 people confirmed killed since 2023, with credible estimates running as high as 150,000. Fourteen million people driven from their homes. Thirty million people, two–thirds of Sudan’s population, in need of emergency humanitarian assistance just to survive.

U.S. foreign policy must be based on a respect for democracy and human rights. We cannot be complicit in the face of genocide, no matter where it is happening. Congress must demand that the UAE cease its military support for the RSF and work with the international community and the Sudanese people to bring an end to this horrific conflict and provide the humanitarian aid that is desperately needed there.",1,2026-07-10T08:20:04Z,2026-07-10T08:21:18Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-releases-internal-hhs-emails-demonstrating-secretary-kennedys-politicization-of-cdc-interference-with-vaccines/,"NEWS: Sanders Releases Internal HHS Emails Demonstrating Secretary Kennedy’s Politicization of CDC, Interference with Vaccines",2026-06-25,2026,2026-06,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, June 25 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), today released internal emails from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) showing Secretary Robert F Kennedy, Jr.’s politicization of HHS, willingness to ignore vaccine science and undermine the basic health and safety of Americans.

The emails, provided to the committee by former CDC Chief Medical Officer Dr. Debra Houry, include the following revelations:

Secretary Kennedy altered vaccine recommendations and released material to the public without CDC expert review or input.

Secretary Kennedy specifically directed the agenda of the CDC’s vaccine advisory panel, known as ACIP, towards restricting access to vaccines.

Secretary Kennedy directed the cancellation of flu vaccine campaigns amid a severe flu season. Andrew Nixon, HHS Director of Communications, confirmed in an email that “This was a direct ask from Secretary Kennedy.”

Secretary Kennedy handpicked researchers to access confidential data to demonstrate the long-disproven claim that vaccines cause autism.

Secretary Kennedy misled members of Congress on several occasions, including in interactions with Senator Hassan on COVID vaccine recommendations, Senator Wyden on vaccine access and HELP Committee Chair Cassidy on the CDC Director’s ability to act independently.

Secretary Kennedy’s chief of staff told then-CDC Director Susan Monarez that political staff at CDC and HHS would need to review “major decisions at CDC…before they go into effect.” Less than a week later, Secretary Kennedy fired Director Monarez for failing to rubber stamp recommendations from ACIP.

Secretary Kennedy’s senior advisor sought advice on how to remove vaccines from the Vaccines for Children program, which provides vaccines at no cost to eligible children. In an email, he asked, “What legally needs to happen or should be considered if a vaccine is going to be removed from the [Vaccines for Children] program at CDC?” The Vaccines for Children program is estimated to have prevented about 508 million illnesses in children born during 1994 through 2023.",1,2026-06-26T06:29:35Z,2026-06-26T06:31:46Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-introduces-legislation-to-create-7-trillion-ai-sovereign-wealth-fund/,NEWS: Sanders Introduces Legislation to Create $7 Trillion AI Sovereign Wealth Fund,2026-06-18,2026,2026-06,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, June 18 — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today introduced the American AI Sovereign Wealth Fund Act to give the public a 50% ownership in the largest artificial intelligence (AI) companies in our country.

“Left unchecked, Artificial Intelligence and robotics threatens the jobs, privacy rights and mental health of every man, woman and child in America,” Sanders said. “As a society, we can no longer sit back and allow a handful of Big Tech oligarchs to determine the future of this revolutionary technology with no democratic input. AI was not created out of thin air. It was not a brilliant idea that just popped into Mark Zuckerberg’s head or Elon Musk’s imagination. The foundation of AI is based on the collective knowledge of humanity and the creative work of tens of millions of people. The American people must have the ability to slow it down and make sure that AI benefits humanity, not just the richest people on the planet. That’s precisely what this legislation does.”

The legislation that Sanders is introducing would give the public a direct ownership stake in the largest AI companies in America through a one-time 50% tax on the stock of the biggest AI companies. This stock would be deposited into the sovereign wealth fund.

If passed, Sanders’ bill would do three crucial things.

First, it would create an Independent Commission for Democratic AI to manage the sovereign wealth fund in the public interest. The Independent Commission would use voting shares in these companies to block decisions that hurt the American people and to push for policies that help them. The Independent Commission would consist of seven members nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate, with nominees selected from a list of bipartisan names provided by Congress. No longer would the future of AI and the transformation of human life that it will bring be dictated by fewer than a dozen Big Tech oligarchs.

Second, it would require large companies that operate both AI and non-AI businesses to break up those businesses, ensuring the public receives an ownership stake in the AI business.

Third, it would guarantee that the economic benefits generated by AI are used to improve the lives of all of us — not simply to make the richest people in the world even richer.

At current valuations, the sovereign wealth fund that would be created under this legislation would be worth an estimated $7 trillion. To start, a 5% annual dividend from this fund could provide a direct payment of more than $1,000 to everyone in America. Eventually, if these AI companies continue to grow as rapidly as many analysts expect, the wealth that it generates could be used to ensure that every man, woman and child in the United States has a decent and dignified standard of living, including the right to health care, education, housing, and a healthy and habitable environment. If the value of these companies goes down, as others have suggested, the companies would bear the losses, not the federal government.

This is not a new concept. Over 100 sovereign wealth funds exist all over the world — from Norway to Alaska — to ensure that ordinary people benefit from national wealth.

“The principle is simple: When a public resource generates wealth, the public should share in that wealth,” Sanders concluded. “The future of AI and the fate of humanity must not be decided behind closed doors in Silicon Valley by billionaires seeking to maximize their power and profit. It must be decided by workers, parents, teachers, artists, scientists, communities and the American people.”

Read the bill text here.",1,2026-06-19T06:50:32Z,2026-06-19T06:53:40Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-34-senators-demand-mcmahon-reverse-failed-policies-protect-students-from-discrimination-and-harassment/,"NEWS: Sanders, 34 Senators Demand McMahon Reverse Failed Policies, Protect Students from Discrimination and Harassment",2026-05-27,2026,2026-05,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, May 27 — After the Trump administration tried to fire more than half of the investigators tasked with protecting the civil rights of students and left students nationwide without protection from alleged civil rights violations, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Ct.), Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and 30 senators called on Education Secretary Linda McMahon to take immediate actions to reverse its failed policies and finally protect students from discrimination, mistreatment and harassment. In their letter, the senators call on the Trump administration to provide a full accounting of the nearly 12,000 pending cases before the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) left without protection under the administration’s watch and to inform students nationwide about the status of their complaints.

“Make no mistake: OCR’s disastrous recent track record in providing enforceable relief for students is a direct consequence of choices made by the Trump administration,” Sanders and the senators wrote.

Since taking office, the administration has undertaken unprecedented efforts to gut OCR, the agency responsible for protecting students from discrimination based on race, sex, disability, color, national origin and age. In March 2025, the administration attempted to lay off nearly half of OCR’s workforce — costing taxpayers up to $38 million while investigators were barred from doing their jobs. The administration proposed a second round of layoffs during the 2025 shutdown before reversing course and reinstating staff.

“The Department formally rescinded those layoffs in January 2026, but only after nine months of paid inaction, sustained court orders, and congressional pressure,” the senators continued. “The students and families with pending cases cannot get that time back. Thousands of students who reached out to OCR for protection were denied any enforceable relief and that is unacceptable.”

Last month, Sanders released a new report finding that Trump’s Education Department has been the least productive in over a decade — reaching in 2025 the lowest number of resolution agreements in 12 years and, shockingly, reaching zero resolution agreements for students facing serious traumatic incidents including sexual harassment, sexual violence, seclusion, restraint, racial harassment and discriminatory school discipline. Despite receiving the same funding as the prior year, the report found OCR provided relief through resolution agreements in just 1% of pending cases in 2025.

The senators note that OCR has left 72.5% of complaints pending for over 180 days, and that the Government Accountability Office previously found 90% of complaints resolved between March and September 2025 were dismissed without substantive investigation. The senators demand that McMahon take the following specific and immediate actions to fulfill OCR’s legal obligations:

Reopen closed OCR regional offices

Hire more OCR investigators

Reach out to all students with pending cases and provide a status update on their case

Begin reaching resolution agreements in every category OCR reached zero

Cease the mass dismissal of complaints without proper review

Cease efforts to rescind existing resolution agreements

Restore OCR’s public transparency, including by regularly updating public data and providing detailed accounting on the status of cases, staffing levels and caseloads

Joining Sanders, Murray, Baldwin, Murphy and Durbin as cosigners on the letter are Sens. Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.), Angus King (I-Maine), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.).",1,2026-05-28T06:29:45Z,2026-05-28T06:31:18Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-lee-to-introduce-bill-to-abolish-super-pacs-stop-billionaires-from-buying-candidates/,"NEWS: Sanders, Lee to Introduce Bill to Abolish Super PACs, Stop Billionaires from Buying Candidates",2026-05-20,2026,2026-05,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, May 20 – With AIPAC, crypto and AI super PACs already spending over half a billion dollars this primary season, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Summer Lee (D-Pa.) today introduced legislation to ban super PACs from buying our elections. The Abolish Super PACs Act would cap the contribution limit of individuals to super PACs at $5,000, effectively abolishing them and putting power back into the hands of the people.

“In the 2024 elections, Elon Musk — the richest man in the world — spent at least $290 million to elect Trump, while the 100 richest billionaire families in the country spent $2.6 billion to elect the candidates of their choice. As we enter the 2026 elections, we’re seeing billionaires spend far more money in a primary or midterm than at any time in history,” Sanders said. “You, as a citizen, get one vote. They, as oligarchs, get to buy the candidates. That’s not democracy. If we’re going to create a government that works for all, and not just the 1%, we have to end Citizens United, get super PACs out of elections, and move to public financing of elections. This bill is an important step forward and I am proud to support it.”

“Super PACs have allowed limitless money to flow into our elections and influence every aspect of our lives. Our government is now undeniably held in the hands of the powerful and wealthy few. I’m proud to be the lead sponsor of the Abolish Super PACs Act in the House to put democracy back in the hands of the people, and I’m grateful for Senator Sanders’ partnership and leadership in the Senate,” Lee said.

Since the Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision, election spending by billionaires has skyrocketed by more than 16,000%, reaching a total of $2.6 billion during the 2024 election cycle. In the 2026 election cycle, AI, crypto and AIPAC-aligned super PACs are projected to spend hundreds of millions of dollars.

In addition to Sanders and Lee, the legislation is cosponsored by 17 members of the House of Representatives.

The Abolish Super PACs Act is endorsed by Common Defense, Court Accountability, Dream Defenders, End Citizens United, Equal Citizens, Free Speech For People, Gen-Z for Change, Grassroots Global Justice Action Fund, IfNotNow Movement, Jewish Voice for Peace Action, Justice is Global Action, Move to Amend, MPower Change Action Fund, National Iranian American Council Action, Our Revolution, Peace Action, RepresentUs, RootsAction, Rural Organizing, Sunrise Movement, US Campaign for Palestinian Rights Action, and Women’s March.

Read the bill text here.",1,2026-05-21T06:28:16Z,2026-05-21T06:29:43Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-takano-introduce-legislation-to-expand-overtime-pay-to-nearly-30-million-workers/,"NEWS: Sanders, Takano Introduce Legislation to Expand Overtime Pay to Nearly 30 Million Workers",2026-05-18,2026,2026-05,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, May 18 — As President Trump and congressional Republicans tout so-called “No Tax on Overtime” while simultaneously denying the right to overtime pay for more than 4.3 million workers, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) and Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.) today introduced the Restoring Overtime Pay Act to expand and strengthen overtime protections for nearly 30 million workers.

“At a time of massive income and wealth inequality, when over 60% of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, it is beyond unacceptable that President Trump is denying overtime pay to millions of workers who desperately need it to keep up with the outrageously high cost of living,” Sanders said. “We should be making it easier, not harder, for Americans who work more than 40 hours a week to get the time-and-a-half pay that they have earned and deserve. That’s precisely what this bill would do.”

“Americans are working more for less,” Takano said. “Expanding the overtime threshold for salaried employees is the best way to ensure that families can survive the cost-of-living crisis caused by Donald Trump. I am proud to introduce this bill to help make sure over 29 million workers get paid fairly.”

The Restoring Overtime Pay Act would expand or strengthen overtime protections for up to 29.3 million workers by gradually increasing the overtime salary threshold from just $35,568 today to more than $89,000 by 2030. This legislation comes on the heels of President Trump’s rescission of a Biden-era rule that would have expanded overtime pay for more than 4 million workers.

Currently, just eight percent of full-time salaried workers are eligible for overtime pay based on their salaries alone. This legislation would increase that figure to 55% of full-time salaried workers. This is not a radical idea. In 1975, nearly 63% of all full-time salaried workers were guaranteed overtime pay.

Restoring Overtime Pay Act Timeline

YearOvertime Threshold2026$45,0002027$55,0002028$65,0002029$75,000203055th percentile

of full-time salaried workers

nationally*, updated annually

*The current 55th percentile of full-time salaried workers nationally is $89,440 and could increase to $98,000 by 2030.

Joining Sanders and Takano on this legislation are Sens. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Andy Kim (D-N.J.), Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.) and 22 members of the House of Representatives.

The Restoring Overtime Pay Act has been endorsed by 34 organizations, including the AFL-CIO, United Auto Workers (UAW), Service Employees International Union (SEIU), International Association of Machinists & Aerospace Workers (IAM); International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE); National Education Association (NEA), American Federation of Teachers (AFT), Communications Workers of America (CWA), UNITE HERE, United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America (UE), United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW), United for Respect, and United Steelworkers (USW).

Read the bill text here.

Read a fact sheet here.",1,2026-05-19T06:31:01Z,2026-05-19T06:32:40Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-omar-more-than-100-colleagues-introduce-legislation-to-end-child-hunger-through-universal-school-meals/,"NEWS: Sanders, Omar, More Than 100 Colleagues Introduce Legislation to End Child Hunger Through Universal School Meals",2026-05-13,2026,2026-05,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, May 13 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) today introduced legislation to end child hunger in the United States. The Universal School Meals Program Act of 2026 would offer free breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a snack to every student in America — regardless of income — and eliminate school meal debt while incentivizing local food in schools.

Joining Sanders and Omar as cosponsors on this legislation are Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Maizie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Minn.), Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) and 85 members of the House of Representatives.

“It is outrageous that, while the billionaire class has never had it so good, one in five children will go hungry in America this year,” Sanders said. “The United States is the richest country in the history of the world. Nobody should be going hungry. And what we learned during the pandemic is that a universal approach to school meals works and helps kids do better in school. States across the country continue to prove this every day. It is time for Congress to reinstate universal school meals at the national level to finally ensure no student goes hungry.”

“No child should have to sit in a classroom hungry or worried about where their next meal will come from,” Omar said. “As a former nutrition educator and someone who experienced hunger firsthand, this fight is deeply personal to me. I have always believed you must feed kids’ bellies before you can feed their brains. That is why I am proud to partner again with Bernie Sanders to introduce the Universal School Meals Program Act, which would provide free breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks to students year-round. Universal school meals are not a luxury—they are a necessity.”

The Universal School Meals Program Act of 2026 comes at a critical moment: the Trump administration and congressional Republicans have enacted the deepest cuts to federal nutrition programs in history, slashing the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) by $186 billion, imposing harsh new bureaucratic requirements that have stripped food assistance from millions of Americans, and refusing to fund SNAP during the federal government shutdown in fall 2025.

Congress funded universal school meals during the COVID-19 pandemic, proving that the model increases school meal participation, reduces the stigma for students from low-income households and removes stress on families to secure healthy meals for their kids. While Congress let the universal model expire at the end of the 2021–2022 school year, nine states — Vermont, Minnesota, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Mexico and New York — have passed laws to provide universal school meals. This legislation builds on this progress to return the model nationwide.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s most recent food security report — which the Trump administration has now ended — 48 million Americans, including over 14 million children, are food insecure. Nearly 40% of SNAP recipients are 18 or younger. It is time to permanently make school meals free to all students, regardless of income, and finally address this crisis. Studies show time and again that students with free access to breakfast have improved attendance and better performance in school, and that free meals reduce financial stress for both students and families. Moreover, free and accessible school meals improve health outcomes, relieve the stigma associated with school meals and reduce behavioral incidents. Parents will not be forced to deal with paperwork or subjected to threats to have their children taken away.

The Universal School Meals Program Act of 2026 provides the most cost-effective and inclusive model for students, families, teachers, public schools, childcare providers and communities by:

Providing free breakfast, lunch, dinner and a snack to every student — regardless of income.

Eliminating school meal debt for every public school student in America by reimbursing schools and ending harassment of parents and students over unpaid bills. In a 2025 survey, the School Nutrition Association found that nearly 1,400 school districts across the country hold a median of $6,000 in unpaid meal debt.

Increasing the reimbursement rate for schools to get closer to the actual cost of producing meals.

Incentivizing schools to buy from local farms, bringing food from nearby farms into schools while supporting local economies.

Providing summer meals to all children and increased SUN Bucks (Summer EBT) to lower-income children. Currently, only communities where 50% of children are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch may operate a summer meals program. This bill makes all communities eligible, regardless of income.

Strengthening and expanding the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) to allow three meals and a snack each day, eliminate the two-tiered reimbursement rate for CACFP, and allow childcare providers to receive the highest reimbursement rate regardless of income.

The Universal School Meals Program Act of 2026 is endorsed by nearly 100 organizations, including the American Heart Association, Food Research & Action Center, Hunger Free America, Hunger Free Vermont, MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger, National Education Association (NEA), National Family Farm Coalition, Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont, Vermont Afterschool, Vermont Foodbank, Washington Anti-Hunger & Nutrition Coalition, and Washington School Nutrition Association.

Read the bill here.",1,2026-05-14T06:11:37Z,2026-05-14T06:12:56Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-statement-on-upcoming-u-s-china-ai-talks/,NEWS: Sanders Statement on Upcoming U.S.-China AI Talks,2026-05-11,2026,2026-05,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, May 11 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today released the following statement on upcoming talks between President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

When I convened leading American and Chinese scientists at the U.S. Capitol, they warned that the world is woefully unprepared for the threats posed by the rapid and uncontrolled development of artificial intelligence. That is why I welcome the news that the U.S. and China are planning to discuss the risks related to AI this week.

Trump and Xi must seize this moment to make clear that humans, not machines, come first. In my view, this means:

Allowing top scientists to share technical information and develop “AI redlines” about dangerous behavior;

Ensuring that AI models are safe and effective; and

Making progress towards a treaty to ban superintelligence — an artificial mind smarter than any human, capable of operating independently beyond our control.

At the height of the Cold War, Reagan and Gorbachev found a way to negotiate nuclear arms control. The existential risk posed by AI demands nothing less from Trump and Xi.",1,2026-05-12T06:07:57Z,2026-05-12T06:09:10Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-baldwin-introduce-legislation-to-finally-update-half-century-old-workplace-safety-laws-protect-american-workers/,"NEWS: Sanders, Baldwin Introduce Legislation to Finally Update Half-Century-Old Workplace Safety Laws, Protect American Workers",2026-04-28,2026,2026-04,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, April 28 — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), and Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) today introduced the Protecting America’s Workers Act to commemorate Workers’ Memorial Day. This legislation would comprehensively reform the Occupational Safety and Health Act, which has not been meaningfully updated since it was passed in 1970.

According to the AFL-CIO’s Death on the Job Report, 140,000 workers die every year in the United States from workplace hazards. Unfortunately, the Occupational Safety and Health Act lacks the teeth to protect workers. Today, there are only five OSHA inspectors for every one million workers — the lowest in at least 45 years. This record low means each workplace can only be inspected once every 191 years.

Earlier this month, an Amazon warehouse worker in Oregon collapsed on the job. It is reported that Amazon workers were told to stop life-saving emergency care and get back to work. It was over an hour before emergency medical services arrived and too late to save their life. The Protecting America’s Workers Act would ensure other workers are protected and that companies like Amazon are punished for this outrageous misconduct.

Amazon’s choice to put profits ahead of people is well documented. A 2024 HELP Committee report on the dangerous working conditions at Amazon’s warehouses revealed that Amazon knew that its productivity standards were the reason workers are so frequently injured, yet they refused to make any changes, instead putting profits over safety of their workers.

“In America today, it is unacceptable that large, profitable corporations like Amazon are routinely violating our nation’s health and safety laws,” Sanders said. “Even worse, when corporations are found liable for workplace fatalities and injuries, no one is held accountable for breaking the law and the fines are so meaningless that CEOs treat them as simply the cost of doing business. That must change. Corporations in America should not be allowed to endanger the health and safety of workers with impunity. When a dangerous worksite leads to a serious injury or death, corporate bosses who are responsible for harming workers must face substantial jail time and pay a significant fine for breaking the law.”

“Wisconsin workers power our state’s economy: building, brewing, and growing the Made in Wisconsin products that put our state on the map. That’s why I’m committed to ensuring every Wisconsin worker is guaranteed the dignity and respect on the job that they’ve earned. This bill will strengthen and expand employees’ rights, improve safety, and hold bad actors accountable when they break the law and hurt American workers,” Baldwin said.

The Protecting America’s Workers Act:

Imposes meaningful monetary penalties for those who break the law, including through criminal charges for especially egregious violators so that there is justice for the victims and their families of workplace injuries and deaths.

Protects workers who blow the whistle on unsafe conditions in the workplace by ensuring they can come forward without fear of retaliation.

Enhances the public’s right to know about safety violations by mandating the Department of Labor investigate all cases of workplace deaths or serious injuries, gives workers and their families the right to meet with and provide evidence to DOL investigators, and requires employers to inform workers of their right to a safe workplace.

Extends health and safety protections to millions more workers by expanding OSH Act coverage to public employees, including federal, state and local workers.

Joining Sanders and Baldwin on this legislation are Sens. Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.,) Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.).

The Protecting America’s Workers Act has been endorsed by 15 organizations, including the AFL-CIO, United Steelworkers (USW), Communications Workers of America (CWA), United Mineworkers of America (UMWA), American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), International Association of Machinists (IAM), Service Employees International Union (SEIU), National Domestic Workers Alliance (NDWA), Government Accountability Project (GAP), United Electrical, Radio, and Machine Workers (UE), American Federation of Teachers (AFT), United Autoworkers (UAW), International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers (SMART), Economic Policy Institute (EPI) and United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW).

Read the bill text here.",1,2026-04-29T06:03:53Z,2026-04-29T06:05:09Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-releases-new-report-detailing-how-trumps-education-layoffs-abandoned-students-facing-violence-harassment-and-discrimination/,"NEWS: Sanders Releases New Report Detailing How Trump’s Education Layoffs Abandoned Students Facing Violence, Harassment and Discrimination",2026-04-28,2026,2026-04,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, April 28 — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), today released a new report finding that the Trump administration’s widespread efforts to lay off workers and shutter regional offices at the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) left students facing discrimination or harassment throughout the country without the help they are entitled to under federal law.

As a result, Trump’s Education Department has been the least productive in over a decade — reaching in 2025 the lowest number of resolution agreements in 12 years and, shockingly, reaching zero resolution agreements for students facing serious traumatic incidents including sexual harassment, sexual violence, seclusion, restraint, racial harassment and discriminatory school discipline. Resolution agreements are legally binding commitments between OCR and schools to remedy violations of students’ civil rights, monitored for years after a complaint is filed. A resolution agreement means OCR identified a problem and required a school to fix it — not just for the student who came forward, but for every student who comes after them. Despite receiving the same budget as the prior year and facing nearly 12,000 pending civil rights cases, Education Secretary Linda McMahon’s OCR provided relief to students and families through resolution agreements in just 1% of pending cases.

“Every child in America should be able to go to school safely and be treated with dignity. Unfortunately, this report makes clear that the Trump administration’s illegal efforts to dismantle the Education Department have been a disaster for students and families across this country,” Sanders said. “When a child with a disability is denied the education they are entitled to, when a student faces racial or sexual harassment — they turn to the Office for Civil Rights for help. Yet the Trump administration has decimated this office. As a result, tens of thousands of students facing discrimination have been left with no recourse. That is beyond unacceptable.”

The Trump administration has undertaken unprecedented efforts to gut the Office for Civil Rights, the agency responsible for protecting students from discrimination based on race, sex, disability, color, national origin and age. In March 2025, the administration attempted to lay off nearly half of OCR’s workforce — costing taxpayers up to $38 million while investigators were barred from doing their jobs. The administration proposed a second round of layoffs during the 2025 shutdown before reversing course and reinstating staff. Yet Sanders’ report details that much of the damage done to students facing discrimination or harassment cannot be reversed.

This report finds that since Trump and McMahon illegally fired half the staff at OCR and paid civil rights investigators not to work, the agency has:

Reached zero resolution agreements involving sexual harassment, sexual violence, seclusion or restraint, racial harassment, or discriminatory school discipline — despite more than 2,700 pending cases.

Reached 78% fewer resolution agreements overall compared to the previous year, and the lowest rate in more than a decade.

Failed to secure any resolution agreements protecting girls and women facing sexual harassment or sexual violence.

Reached nearly 79% fewer disability resolution agreements for students with disabilities, which make up the largest share of cases.

Reached 91% fewer resolution agreements than during Trump’s first term in 2017.

Reached zero resolution agreements in 15 states and Puerto Rico.",1,2026-04-29T06:03:53Z,2026-04-29T06:05:09Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-successfully-pushes-trump-administration-to-release-education-funding-for-vermont/,NEWS: Sanders Successfully Pushes Trump Administration to Release Education Funding for Vermont,2026-04-27,2026,2026-04,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"BURLINGTON, Vt. April 27 — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, today announced that the Department of Education has finally released $11.58 million in federal K-12 COVID-19 funding for 20 Vermont school districts and the Agency of Education, after over a year of needless delay.

“After a year of needless delay from the Trump administration, Vermont school districts will finally receive federal funding for summer and afterschool programs, school renovations and other critical services. At a time when so many of our school districts are suffering and struggling economically, this is an important step forward,” Sanders said.

In March 2025, the Trump administration canceled an estimated $2.5 billion nationwide, including about $17 million for Vermont in unspent funding for K-12 schools provided under the American Rescue Plan Act that had already been approved for states to spend and created a burdensome appeals process for states and school districts to reapply for money they had been promised.

Sanders urged Education Secretary Linda McMahon to reverse this decision on multiple occasions and ultimately secured her commitment that Vermont schools would receive the funding they were due. Courts also ruled against the Trump administration’s illegal withholding of the funds. The department assured the senator that the funding would be released in June of last year, but has forced the state through a months-long, disastrous and burdensome process to release funds. As part of the Trump administration’s actions to dismantle the Department of Education, the staff who managed these federal funds were fired in March 2025, further delaying the funds from reaching Vermonters.

This month, Sanders finally received confirmation from the Department of Education that a total of $11.58 million in funding has been sent to Vermont to reimburse schools for essential activities, such as summer and afterschool programs, school renovations, teacher training, literacy and math coaches and mental health programs.

The full list of school districts receiving funds is here:",1,2026-04-28T06:05:12Z,2026-04-28T06:07:17Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-statement-on-overwhelming-majority-of-democratic-caucus-opposing-arms-sales-to-israel/,NEWS: Sanders Statement on Overwhelming Majority of Democratic Caucus Opposing Arms Sales to Israel,2026-04-15,2026,2026-04,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, April 15 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today released the following statement after 40 Democratic senators voted to block the sale of $295 million worth of bulldozers used to demolish homes in Gaza, Lebanon and the West Bank, and 36 voted against $151.8 million worth of 1,000-pound bombs used in Gaza and Lebanon.

We are making progress.

Today, more than 80% of the Democratic caucus stood with the American people and voted to block U.S. military aid to Netanyahu and his horrific, illegal wars.

When we started this effort there were just 11 votes. Now, there are 40.

That shift reflects where the American people are. Americans, whether they are Democrats, Republicans or independents, want to see our tax money invested in improving lives here at home — not used to kill innocent women and children in the Middle East and put American troops in harm’s way as part of Netanyahu’s illegal wars of expansion.

What’s astonishing is that, despite overwhelming opposition across this country, Republicans continue to side with Netanyahu and Trump.",1,2026-04-16T05:48:36Z,2026-04-16T05:50:08Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-to-force-votes-to-block-arms-sales-to-israel-on-wednesday/,NEWS: Sanders to Force Votes to Block Arms Sales to Israel on Wednesday,2026-04-14,2026,2026-04,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, April 14 – As the Netanyahu government continues its devastation in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon, and its illegal war on Iran, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) announced that he will force votes to block nearly half a billion dollars in arms sales to Israel on Wednesday. These include $151.8 million worth of 1,000-pound bombs used in Gaza and Lebanon and $295 million worth of bulldozers used to demolish homes in Gaza, Lebanon and the West Bank.

Specifically, the Senate will vote on:

S.J.Res.138 – To prohibit the $151.8 million sale of 12,000 BLU-110A/B general purpose 1,000-pound “dumb” gravity bombs and related logistics and technical support services.

S.J.Res.32 – To prohibit the $295 million sale of D9R and D9T Caterpillar bulldozers; spare and repair parts; corrosion protection; publications and technical documentation; pre-delivery inspections; U.S. Government and contractor support; technical and logistics support services; storage; and other related elements of logistics and program support.

“U.S. taxpayers have spent tens of billions of dollars in support of the racist, extremist Netanyahu government. Enough is enough,” Sanders said. “The United States must use the leverage we have — tens of billions in arms and military aid — to demand that Israel ends these atrocities.”

The arms sales in question violate the criteria laid out in the Foreign Assistance Act and the Arms Export Control Act. Secretary Marco Rubio signed an emergency determination just six days into the war with Iran in an attempt to bypass the statutory congressional notification period and immediately transfer these weapons. Reliable human rights monitors have documented numerous incidents involving the use of 1,000-pound bombs in illegal strikes leading to unacceptable civilian death tolls, including strikes on densely populated residential areas in Gaza and Beirut. The Caterpillar D9 bulldozers covered by S.J.Res.32 are the IDF’s primary demolition tool — used to demolish Palestinian homes, raze refugee camps, uproot olive groves and build settler-only roads that make a Palestinian state physically impossible.",1,2026-04-15T05:46:42Z,2026-04-15T05:48:27Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-welch-balint-demand-trump-adminrelease-4-million-in-anti-poverty-funding-to-vermont/,"NEWS: Sanders, Welch, Balint Demand Trump Admin Release $4 Million in Anti-Poverty Funding to Vermont",2026-04-06,2026,2026-04,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"BURLINGTON, Vt., April 6 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) and Rep. Becca Balint (D-Vt.) called on Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and Director of the Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought to obey the law and immediately release more than $810 million in federal funding that helps more than 10 million Americans living in poverty, including nearly 50,000 Vermonters.

Specifically, in just one year, Vermont’s community action agencies served 3,200 Vermonters who did not have health care, 9,000 people who had a disability, more than 7,000 low-income seniors, more than 11,000 children living in poverty and 1,200 veterans and active military personnel.

“We are urging you to immediately release this vital funding so that over 48,000 Vermonters and 10 million people throughout America living in poverty can receive the help they desperately need to keep a roof over their heads, feed their families, keep their jobs, send their kids to child care and pay their energy bills,” the members wrote. “These programs are literally a matter of life and death for some of the most vulnerable people in America…Congress funded them. The President signed this funding into law. And, under our Constitution, you do not have the right to determine which laws you will follow and which laws you will ignore.”

For over three months, the Trump administration has illegally withheld Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) funding from community action agencies across the country — including from BROC Community Action, Capstone Community Action, Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity, Northeast Kingdom Community Action and Southeastern Vermont Community Action in our state. Across the country, nearly 1,000 community action agencies in almost every county in America use these funds to provide urgent financial aid for working families with children, people with disabilities and seniors on fixed incomes and to administer critical programs like Head Start and the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).

“What we are asking you to do is simple and straightforward: Obey the law. Respect the Constitution. Do not let kids go hungry, do not force veterans to sleep out on the street, do not deny low-income seniors the emergency assistance they need to live with dignity and respect. Release these funds,” the members concluded.",1,2026-04-07T05:38:05Z,2026-04-07T05:39:14Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-wyden-demand-senate-hearings-to-hold-insurance-ceos-accountable-for-their-greed-amid-growing-health-care-crisis/,"NEWS: Sanders, Wyden Demand Senate Hearings to Hold Insurance CEOs Accountable for their Greed amid Growing Health Care Crisis",2026-04-02,2026,2026-04,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, April 2 — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, today called on committee leadership to hold hearings with the CEOs of the nation’s largest health insurance companies to address a fundamentally broken health care system that is failing millions of Americans.

In a letter sent to HELP Committee Chairman Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Sanders and Wyden wrote: “While our health care system is failing ordinary Americans, it is working exceptionally well for big insurance companies. While 42% of cancer patients go bankrupt within the first two years of their diagnosis, last year the seven major health insurance companies in America made over $54 billion in profits … Against the backdrop of a system that leaves working families paying higher and higher medical bills, the nation’s top insurers paid their CEOs exorbitant compensation packages.”

As the senators highlighted in their letter, more than 85 million Americans are uninsured or underinsured; over half a million people face bankruptcy due to medical debt; and more than 60,000 Americans die each year because they cannot afford timely care. At the same time, Americans pay nearly $15,500 per person for health care — far more than any other wealthy nation — yet experience worse outcomes, including lower life expectancy and higher infant mortality rates.

“The American public deserves to know why the big insurance executives that testified before the House earlier this year continue to get richer and richer, while over one-third of people with health insurance have been forced to skip or delay getting the care they need because of the outrageous cost,” Sanders and Wyden wrote.

The letter also raised concerns about industry consolidation and vertical integration, noting that large insurers have acquired extensive control across the health care system — from physician practices to pharmacies — allowing them to maximize profits at every stage of patient care.

For example, UnitedHealth Group now owns thousands of subsidiaries, enabling it to profit from multiple points within a single patient’s care. Meanwhile, companies like UnitedHealth, Cigna, and CVS/Aetna have spent billions on stock buybacks and dividends to further enrich their wealthy stockholders.

“It is time for our committees to hold the chief executives of the major health insurance companies accountable for their greed and to address the health care crisis in America, as our colleagues in the House did earlier this year on a bipartisan basis,” the senators concluded.",1,2026-04-03T05:34:17Z,2026-04-03T05:35:48Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-casar-introduce-legislation-to-prevent-owners-from-moving-teams-without-giving-locals-chance-to-buy/,"NEWS: Sanders, Casar Introduce Legislation to Prevent Owners from Moving Teams Without Giving Locals Chance to Buy",2026-03-26,2026,2026-03,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, March 26 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas) today introduced the Home Team Act, legislation to require owners of professional sports teams to give local communities the chance to buy teams before relocating them.

Joining Sanders and Casar as cosponsors of this legislation are Sens. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), and five members of the House of Representatives.

“The American people are sick and tired of billionaires threatening to move the sports teams they own to different states unless they get hundreds of millions in corporate welfare to build new stadiums,” Sanders said. “In my view, professional sports teams should be owned and controlled by the fans who love them, not by the multibillionaire oligarchs who are getting even richer by charging outrageous prices and getting taxpayers to pick up their extravagant costs. You shouldn’t have to be wealthy to take your family to a football game. You shouldn’t have to fear that a multibillionaire will move your favorite team to a different city if taxpayers refuse to subsidize it. The Home Team Act is a very modest piece of legislation that begins to address this problem. I am proud to support it.”

“Sports in America should be about more than just making billionaire owners even richer,” Casar said. “Far too many Americans know the pain of losing a team, and far too many communities have had to fork over billions in subsidies just to keep an already profitable team home. Our bill is about creating a level playing field so leagues work for fans and taxpayers, not just owners.”

The bill would protect fans from losing teams and protect taxpayers from being extorted for huge subsidies by the threat of relocation. It:

Requires sports franchise owners to provide notice a year before moving the team to a new community, defined by crossing state lines or moving to a new Metropolitan Statistical Area;

During that year, it gives communities the chance to purchase the team at a fair price, including through the sort of successful community ownership model used by the Green Bay Packers. Teams could also be purchased by a government entity, a nonprofit or public partnership, or a private person, group, or company;

Enforces a penalty for franchise owners who do not comply and provides a right of action for state and local governments.

The bill would not require anyone to purchase a team and it would not prevent teams from moving if there is not a buyer able to meet a fair and reasonable price, as assessed by a team of appraisers.

Team relocation has plagued communities across America for decades, from the Brooklyn Dodgers moving in 1958 to recent moves such as the Oakland Athletics departing for Las Vegas. In other instances, the threat of relocation forces cities or states to offer billions of dollars in subsidies to teams already worth billions of dollars. Currently, the Chicago Bears are threatening to leave the city after more than 100 years in response to the state of Indiana offering massive subsidies. The bill would prevent the Bears from being moved across state lines without being offered for sale.

Read the bill text here.",1,2026-04-04T05:28:40Z,2026-04-04T05:30:10Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-ocasio-cortez-announce-ai-data-center-moratorium-act/,"NEWS: Sanders, Ocasio-Cortez Announce AI Data Center Moratorium Act",2026-03-25,2026,2026-03,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, March 25 — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) today announced the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Data Center Moratorium Act, legislation that would enact a reasonable pause to the development of AI to ensure the safety of humanity.

“AI and robotics are creating the most sweeping technological revolution in the history of humanity. The scale, scope and speed of that change is unprecedented. Congress is way behind where it should be in understanding the nature of this revolution and its impacts,” Sanders said. “Bottom line: We cannot sit back and allow a handful of billionaire Big Tech oligarchs to make decisions that will reshape our economy, our democracy and the future of humanity. We need serious public debate and democratic oversight over this enormously consequential issue. The time for action is now. We need a federal moratorium on AI data centers.”

“We have seen ICE partner with AI companies to surveil Americans, social media users employ AI bots to create sexually explicit deepfakes of women and children, and data center construction inflate electric bills in communities across the country. And all of this harm has occurred because of the absence of federal legislation to regulate AI,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “Congress has a moral obligation to stand with the American people and stop the expansion of these data centers until we have a framework to adequately address the existential harm AI poses to our society. We must choose humanity over profit.”

The legislation would slow down the development of AI to give democracy a chance to catch up. The AI Data Center Moratorium Act of 2026 would do that by instituting an immediate federal moratorium on AI data centers until strong national safeguards are in place to ensure that:

AI is safe and effective — preventing executives in the AI industry from releasing harmful products into the world that threaten the health and well-being of working families, our privacy and civil rights and the future of humanity.

The economic gains of AI and robotics will benefit workers, not just the wealthy owners of Big Tech.

AI does not increase electricity or utility prices, harm communities or destroy the environment.

Additionally, this bill will stop a global race to see which country is the first to eliminate hundreds of millions of jobs, or the first to build an AI that destroys the planet. It accomplishes this by banning U.S. exports of AI computing infrastructure to countries that do not have safeguards in place to guarantee AI is safe and effective, workers are protected and AI does not harm the environment.

More than 100 local communities around the country have enacted moratoriums on data centers and 12 states are pushing forward with statewide moratorium proposals.

In 2023, more than 1,000 industry leaders and scientists, including Elon Musk, Yoshua Bengio and Stuart Russell, called for AI labs to “immediately pause for at least 6 months” and, if such a pause were not enacted, called on governments to “step in and institute a moratorium.” In December, Elon Musk, who leads xAI, said he had “a lot of AI nightmares” and would “certainly slow down AI and robotics” if he could. In January, Demis Hassabis, the head of Google’s Deepmind, said he would support an AI pause if he knew other countries and companies also paused development. In February, Dario Amodei, the head of Anthropic, said he was “absolutely in favor of trying” to slow down AI development if other countries also slowed down.

Read a section-by-section summary here.",1,2026-04-04T05:28:40Z,2026-04-04T05:30:10Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-calls-on-bezos-to-testify-before-congress-on-plans-to-replace-millions-of-workers-with-robots/,NEWS: Sanders Calls on Bezos to Testify before Congress on Plans to Replace Millions of Workers with Robots,2026-03-23,2026,2026-03,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, March 23 — After public reporting that Jeff Bezos is seeking to raise $100 billion to replace millions of workers all over America with robots, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, today called on Chair Bill Cassidy (R-La.) to hold a public hearing with Bezos regarding the impact of artificial intelligence and robotics on the working class.

“In my view, we must demand that Mr. Bezos come before our committee to explain to the American people why he believes it’s a good idea to replace millions of American workers with robots,” Sanders wrote. “We need to understand what will happen to these workers. Will Mr. Bezos be providing a generous severance package for them? Will these displaced workers be able to maintain their health care benefits? Will they be able to receive a decent retirement plan? Or will they simply be thrown out on the street in order to make Mr. Bezos even richer?”

Last week, the prominent information technology consulting firm Cognizant estimated that 93% of American jobs would face some disruption and 30% of all jobs would be wiped out by AI. This is a significant increase from the firm’s previous projections and a dire warning about the potential impact of these new technologies on workers and the U.S. economy.

“As you know, the pace of technological advancement in robotics, automation and artificial intelligence (AI) has rapidly increased in just the past few years. These revolutionary technologies will have a profound impact on the lives of virtually every worker in America,” Sanders continued. “Our job is to ensure that this new technology benefits working families and is not simply used as another tool to make the wealthiest people in the world unimaginably richer… The American people are increasingly apprehensive about the impact that AI and robotics will have on the economy and their lives. Congress needs to act. The HELP committee needs to act.”",1,2026-04-04T05:28:40Z,2026-04-04T05:30:10Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-files-joint-resolutions-of-disapproval-to-block-nearly-660-million-in-bomb-sales-to-israel/,NEWS: Sanders Files Joint Resolutions of Disapproval to Block Nearly $660 Million in Bomb Sales to Israel,2026-03-19,2026,2026-03,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, March 19 — Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today filed three Joint Resolutions of Disapproval (JRDs) that would block the sale of nearly $658.8 million in offensive U.S. weaponry to Israel amid President Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s illegal, premeditated and unconstitutional war with Iran. Joining Sanders as cosponsors of these resolutions are Sens. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Peter Welch (D-Vt.).

Earlier this month, the Trump administration notified lawmakers of its intention to declare an “emergency” and bypass Congress to sell more than 20,000 bombs to the Israeli government. These bombs are directly implicated in tens of thousands of civilian deaths in Iran, Lebanon and Gaza.

The sales include:

$298 million for 5,000 “defense articles” relating to 250-pound small-diameter bombs

$209 million for 10,000 500-pound bombs

$151.8 million for 12,000 1,000-pound bombs

“Given the horrific destruction that Israel’s extremist government has wrought on Gaza, Iran and Lebanon, the last thing in the world that American taxpayers need to do right now is to provide 22,000 new bombs to the Netanyahu government,” Sanders said. “No more weapons to support an illegal war.”

“Donald Trump launched an illegal, unjustified war of choice against Iran that is making our nation less, not more, safe and has set the region on fire. It has resulted in 13 Americans killed and hundreds more injured, as well as the deaths of thousands of civilians. It’s also costing American taxpayers a billion dollars a day and driving up prices here at home. Trump not only disregarded Congressional authority to declare this war, he’s now bypassing Congress by invoking an emergency authority to supply additional bombs to this war, a crisis of his own making. Congress must use all the tools at our disposal to end Trump’s war, including stopping the transfer of over $658 million of taxpayer-funded bombs to the Netanyahu government. It is clear that prolonging this war by sending additional bombs to the Netanyahu government is not in America’s interests,” Van Hollen said.

“Donald Trump, working in lockstep with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, launched a reckless and unconstitutional war,” Merkley said. “I do not support sending more offensive weapons to the Netanyahu government.”

“President Trump’s war of choice in Iran has been a catastrophe–jeopardizing our national security and the lives of our troops, killing and wounding thousands of innocent civilians, and causing havoc in the global economy. The war needs to end today,” Welch said. “With the bombs already provided to Israel by American taxpayers, Israeli forces are unleashing a campaign of total war in Iran with the clear and deliberate intention to eviscerate Iran’s economy and society. I support these joint resolutions to make sure that we do not send another 20,000 bombs to Israel that will result in further destruction in Iran and Lebanon. We must end this war, and we must not send these bombs.”",1,2026-04-04T05:28:40Z,2026-04-04T05:30:10Z
https://www.sanders.senate.gov/press-releases/news-sanders-calls-forsenate-hearing-to-correct-kennedys-dangerous-misinformation-campaign-on-autism-and-vaccines/,NEWS: Sanders Calls for Senate Hearing to Correct Kennedy’s Dangerous Misinformation Campaign on Autism and Vaccines,2026-03-17,2026,2026-03,Independent,Senate,VT,Bernard Sanders,S000033,www.sanders.senate.gov,sanders,https://www.sanders.senate.gov/media/press-releases/,scraper,"WASHINGTON, March 17 — In the aftermath of Health and Human Services Secretary Kennedy’s repeated and dangerous misinformation campaign inaccurately linking vaccines to autism, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) today called on Chairman Bill Cassidy (R-La.) to hold a hearing to set the record straight on autism research and clarify that vaccines are safe and effective and do not cause autism.

In his letter, Sanders quotes Cassidy about the safety of vaccines: “You have correctly said: ‘I’m a doctor who has seen people die from vaccine-preventable diseases. What parents need to hear right now is vaccines for measles, polio, hepatitis B and other childhood diseases are safe and effective and will not cause autism. Any statement to the contrary is wrong, irresponsible, and actively makes Americans sicker.’ I could not agree more with that assessment. Unfortunately, Health and Human Services Secretary Kennedy and many others inside the Trump Administration do not.”

Since assuming office, Secretary Kennedy has waged an unprecedented war on science and vaccines that have saved millions of lives. He has directed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to publish false information on its website suggesting that childhood vaccines cause autism despite the findings of more than 40 scientific studies in seven countries involving over 5.6 million people to the contrary. He has replaced the scientific experts on the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices with vaccine skeptics, including several who have promoted the debunked claim that vaccines cause autism. And most recently, he overhauled the National Institutes of Health (NIH)’s Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC), appointing 21 new non-federal members. Several of these appointees have publicly advanced false claims linking vaccines and autism.

“It is our responsibility to make sure that the American people understand the truth about vaccines and autism based on scientific evidence, not conspiracy theories. Therefore, I would like to work with you to schedule a hearing on this issue as soon as possible,” Sanders continued.

In addition to Sanders, many autism scientists and advocates have also sounded the alarm about Kennedy’s actions, including the Coalition of Autism Scientists, Autism Society of America, Autistic Self-Advocacy Network and the Autism Science Foundation.

Read the letter here.",1,2026-04-02T05:33:17Z,2026-04-02T05:34:59Z