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Senator Bernie Sanders
United States Senate
332 Dirksen Building
Washington, DC 20510 SHARE
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Bernie Sanders is the independent U.S. Senator from Vermont. He is the longest serving independent member of Congress in American history. He is a member of the Senate's Budget, Veterans, Environment, Energy, and H.E.L.P. (Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions) committees.
(7 comments) SHARE Friday, March 4, 2016 Sanders Response to Clinton's Speech on Jobs
The American people are sick and tired of establishment politicians who promise to create manufacturing jobs during campaign season, but support trade policies that make it easier to outsource these jobs the day after they get elected.
If Secty Clinton really supported manufacturing jobs she would have joined me on the picket lines against the North American Free Trade Agreement. Instead, she said that "NAFTA is proving i
(31 comments) SHARE Monday, December 12, 2011 Saving Our Democracy
Op-ed from Sen. Bernie Sanders announcing his proposed constitutional amendment to overthrow the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision.
(12 comments) SHARE Thursday, September 22, 2011 Why Do Republicans Hate Social Security?
Republicans have spent years demonizing Social Security and spreading lies about its sustainability. They want to scare Americans and build support for making drastic cuts to the program or privatizing it entirely. Their long-term goal is to end Social Security as we know it, and convert it into a private account system which will enable Wall Street to make hundreds of billions in profits.
(4 comments) SHARE Friday, April 13, 2012 Vermont Senate Votes to Overturn Citizens United
Vermont Senate passed a resolution calling on Congress to propose a constitutional amendment to undo Citizens United, a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that threw out a ban on corporate campaign spending. In Washington, a summit meeting is scheduled for April 18 in the Capitol on local, state, and federal efforts to amend the Constitution in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling.
(201 comments) SHARE Saturday, August 6, 2016 I Support Hillary Clinton. So Should Everyone Who Voted for Me.
I understand that many of my supporters are disappointed by the final results of the nominating process, but being despondent and inactive is not going to improve anything. Going forward and continuing the struggle is what matters. And, in that struggle, the most immediate task we face is to defeat Donald Trump.
(5 comments) SHARE Saturday, December 17, 2011 Saving American Democracy
When the Supreme Court says that for purposes of the First Amendment, corporations are people; that writing checks from the company's bank account is constitutionally-protected speech and that attempts by the federal government and states to impose reasonable restrictions on campaign ads are unconstitutional -- when that occurs, our democracy is in grave danger. And we have got to fight back!
(15 comments) SHARE Thursday, December 12, 2013 Bernie Sanders Introduces Single Payer Bill: American Health Security Act of 2013
The American Health Security Act of 2013 (S. 1782) provides every American with affordable and comprehensive health care services through the establishment of a national American Health Security Program (the Program) that requires each participating state to set up and administer a state single payer health program.
(22 comments) SHARE Monday, June 8, 2009 Health Care is a Right, Not a Privilege
Let's be clear. Our health care system is disintegrating. Today, 46 million people have no health insurance and even more are underinsured with high deductibles and co-payments. At a time when 60 million people, including many with insurance, do not have access to a medical home, more than 18,000 Americans die every year from preventable illnesses because they do not get to the doctor when they should.
(13 comments) SHARE Friday, September 16, 2011 Wall Street's Secret Oil Games
Congress recognized last year that excessive oil speculation must end. The Dodd-Frank financial reform legislation required the CFTC to eliminate, prevent or diminish excessive oil speculation by Jan. 17, 2011. Months after that deadline, the commission still has failed to enforce the law, and speculators still are making out like bandits.
(11 comments) SHARE Saturday, January 3, 2015 The Trans-Pacific Trade (TPP) Agreement Must Be Defeated
The TPP follows in the footsteps of other unfettered free trade agreements like NAFTA, CAFTA and the Permanent Normalized Trade Agreement with China (PNTR). These treaties have forced American workers to compete against desperate and low-wage labor around the world. The result has been massive job losses in the United States and the shutting down of tens of thousands of factories.
(255 comments) SHARE Wednesday, April 22, 2009 Socialist Successes
I doubt that there are any other socialists, let alone 17 more, in all of the Congress. I also respectfully doubt that Spencer Bachus understands much about democratic socialism. I hope this is an opportunity to shed some light on a viewpoint that deserves more attention throughout America and in our capital.
(13 comments) SHARE Friday, January 3, 2014 Bernie Sanders Asks: "Is the NSA Spying on Congress?"
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today asked the National Security Agency director whether the agency has monitored the phone calls, emails and Internet traffic of members of Congress and other elected officials.
(23 comments) SHARE Monday, May 27, 2013 What Can We Learn From Denmark?
At a time when college education in the United States is increasingly unaffordable and the average college graduate leaves school more than $25,000 in debt, virtually all higher education in Denmark is free. That includes not just college but graduate schools as well, including medical school. The Danish people rank among the happiest in the world among some 40 countries that were studied. America did not crack the top 10.
(117 comments) SHARE Tuesday, June 28, 2016 Bernie Sanders: Democrats Need to Wake Up
We need a president who will vigorously support international cooperation that brings the people of the world closer together, reduces hyper-nationalism and decreases the possibility of war. We also need a president who respects the democratic rights of the people, and who will fight for an economy that protects the interests of working people, not just Wall Street, the drug companies and other powerful special interests.
(18 comments) SHARE Sunday, September 21, 2008 The Middle Class Must Not Be Forced to Bail Out Wall Street Greed
This proposal as presented is an unacceptable attempt to force middle income families (and our children) to pick up the cost of fixing the horrendous economic mess that is the product of the Bush Administration's deregulatory fever and Wall Street's insatiable greed. If the potential danger to our economy was not so dire, this blatant effort to essentially transfer $700 billion up the income ladder to those at the top would b
(73 comments) SHARE Monday, February 9, 2015 American's Real Struggle-- Against Billionaire Oligarchy
The real struggle is whether we can prevent this country from moving to an oligarchic form of society in which virtually all economic and political power rests with a handful of billionaires. And that's a struggle we must win.
(16 comments) SHARE Saturday, November 19, 2011 Democrats, Stop Caving In!!
If Obama and Dems on the super committee go along with cuts in Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, the three pillars of the New Deal and the Great Society, and permanently extend the Bush tax breaks for the wealthiest 2 percent, the American people will shake their heads in disbelief. They will arrive at the valid conclusion that there are no significant differences between the two corporate interest controlled parties
(16 comments) SHARE Friday, June 3, 2011 Republican Budget Extremist and Cruel
The Republican House budget is the most radical right-wing extremist budget ever passed in the modern history of our country, and the more the American people learn about it the more they are rejecting it. The question is, however: Where are the Democrats? Where is President Obama?
(86 comments) SHARE Thursday, November 5, 2015 Bad Trade Deal 'Worse Than I Thought
Sen. Bernie Sanders issued the following statement today after the text of a proposed 12-nation trade deal, the Trans-Pacific Partnership, was made public:
"Now that the text of the Trans-Pacific Partnership has finally been released, it is even worse than I thought. It is clear to me that the proposed agreement is not, nor has it ever been, the gold standard of trade agreements.
(6 comments) SHARE Wednesday, June 29, 2011 Mr. President: Enough is Enough
This is a lot of pain the Republicans are tossing out while at the same time they are vigorously protecting their wealthy and powerful friends. In my view, the President of the United States has to stand tall. He has to take the case to the American people and he has to hold the Republicans responsible if, in fact, the debt ceiling is not raised, and all of the repercussions that will occur if that happens.
(5 comments) SHARE Saturday, February 9, 2013 A Choice for Corporate America: Are You with America or the Cayman Islands
Wall Street banks and large companies love America when they need corporate welfare. But when it comes to paying American taxes or American wages, they want nothing to do with this country. That has got to change.
(14 comments) SHARE Friday, September 19, 2008 Billions for Bailouts! Who Pays?
The current financial crisis facing our country has been caused by the extreme right-wing economic policies pursued by the Bush administration. These policies, which include huge tax breaks for the rich, unfettered free trade and the wholesale deregulation of commerce, have resulted in a massive redistribution of wealth from the middle class to the very wealthy.
(10 comments) SHARE Monday, November 6, 2017 Revitalizing the Democratic Party
People are hurting in this country, and our job is not to be distracted by political gossip and Donald Trump's tweets. Our job is to revitalize American democracy and bring millions of people into the political process who today do not vote and who do not believe that government is relevant to their lives. Our job is to create an economy and government that works for all of us.
(30 comments) SHARE Wednesday, June 27, 2012 The American People Are Angry
Sen. Sanders weighs in on the state of the U.S. economy and the direction of our nation.
(22 comments) SHARE Thursday, March 28, 2013 Too Big to Jail?
We are supposed to be a country of laws. The laws should apply to Wall Street as well as everybody else. So I was stunned when our country's top law enforcement official recently suggested it might be difficult to prosecute financial institutions that commit crimes because it may destabilize the financial system of our country and the world.
We have companies not only to big to fail, but also too big to jail.
(10 comments) SHARE Sunday, January 22, 2012 We Must Stop This Corporate Takeover of American Democracy
The US Constitution has served us very well, but when the supreme court says, for purposes of the first amendment, that corporations are people, that writing checks from the company's bank account is constitutionally-protected speech and that attempts by the federal government and states to impose reasonable restrictions on campaign ads are unconstitutional, our democracy is in grave danger.
(31 comments) SHARE Thursday, April 17, 2014 Who are the Koch brothers and what do they want?
As a result of the disastrous Citizens United Supreme Court decision, billionaires and large corporations can now spend an unlimited amount of money to influence the political process. The results of that decision are clear.
(109 comments) SHARE Wednesday, March 8, 2017 What Should We Do If the President Is a Liar?
How do we deal with a president who makes statements that reverberate around our country and the world that are not based on fact or evidence? What is the appropriate way to respond to that? And if the media and political leaders fail to call lies what they are, are they then guilty of misleading the public?
(16 comments) SHARE Tuesday, April 1, 2014 Democracy vs. Oligarchy
The great political struggle we now face is whether the United States retains its democratic heritage or whether we move toward an oligarchic form of society where the real political power rests with a handful of billionaires, not ordinary Americans.
(10 comments) SHARE Sunday, October 28, 2012 Transforming Our Energy System
We now have more than 100,000 solar energy jobs at 5,600 companies in the United States, double the number of jobs from four years ago. And, very significantly, the cost of solar has been cut by more than half, down to $3.45 per watt installed. There is nothing "imaginary" about the growth of solar energy.
(29 comments) SHARE Friday, August 15, 2014 Let's Stand Together
What happens politically and in elections impacts the future of our country in a very big way. Elections have consequences and will determine whether the jobs in our country pay a living wage, whether women have pay equity, whether all Americans have health care, and whether we transform our energy system away from fossil fuels. If we stand together and fight for the interests of ALL Americans, we win.
(9 comments) SHARE Tuesday, April 3, 2012 Statement By Senator Bernard Sanders On Oil Speculation
There has been a major debate over the last several years as to whether spikes in oil prices are caused entirely by the fundamentals of supply and demand or whether excessive speculation in the oil futures market is playing a major role.
That debate should be put to rest. Let's look at the facts.
The supply of oil and gasoline is higher today than it was three years ago...
(10 comments) SHARE Sunday, July 8, 2018 Medicare for All Is Now a Mainstream Position
If we are serious about providing high-quality and affordable health care, the only real solution is a Medicare-for-all, single-payer system that provides health care to ALL Americans, including the 50 million uninsured and under-insured in this country.
(3 comments) SHARE Monday, December 12, 2011 "Despair Is Not an Option"
Poverty is not just discomfort; poverty is not just a lack of material goods. Poverty is a death sentence. If you are in the bottom 20 percent of income earners, you will die six-and-a-half years earlier than if you are in the top 20 percent. We have got to eliminate this form of capital punishment.
(16 comments) SHARE Monday, September 30, 2013 A single-payer system, like Medicare, is the cure for America's ailing healthcare
The only long-term solution to America's healthcare crisis is a single-payer national healthcare program. A large-scale single-payer system already exists in the US and its enrollees love it. It is Medicare. Open to all Americans over 65 years of age, the program has been a resounding success since its introduction 48 years ago. Medicare should be expanded to cover all Americans.
SHARE Wednesday, April 16, 2008 The Harvest of Shame
In my view, the American consumer does not want the tomatoes they eat to be picked by workers who are grossly mistreated, underpaid, and in some case even kept in chains. This must not happen in the United States of America in 2008.
(8 comments) SHARE Thursday, December 24, 2015 Single-Payer Health Care For All
It is a national disgrace that the United States is the only major country that does not guarantee health care to all people as a right. Today, 29 million of our sisters and brothers are without care. Not only are deductibles rising, but the cost of prescription drugs is skyrocketing as well. There is a major crisis in primary health care in the United States.
(1 comments) SHARE Tuesday, April 5, 2016 Bernie Sanders Statement on Panama Papers
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders on Tuesday issued the following statement after 11.5 million documents were made public from a Panama law firm that helped some of the world's wealthiest people establish offshore bank accounts:
(19 comments) SHARE Thursday, September 12, 2013 The American People Have Spoken: No More War Abroad, More Jobs at Home
The American People Have Spoken: No More War Abroad, More Jobs at Home. At a time of great political division in our country President Obama has found a remarkable way to unite Americans of all political persuasions -- conservatives, progressives and moderates. With a loud and clear voice the overwhelming majority of the American people, across the political spectrum, are saying NO to another war in the Middle East.
(6 comments) SHARE Wednesday, October 12, 2011 Six Demands to Make of Wall Street
Now that Occupy Wall Street is shining a spotlight against Wall Street greed and the enormous inequalities that exist in America, the question then becomes, how do we change the political, economic and financial system to work for all Americans, not just the top 1 percent?
SHARE Thursday, May 31, 2018 Disney represents much of what is wrong with contemporary capitalism
Walt Disney is a company, and a CEO, that in addition to paying their workers here at home extremely low wages, employs many thousands of people in China to manufacture their products sold at Disney stores and online. This type of greed and ruthless capitalism is not an economic model that we should be embracing. It is not to be celebrated. We can do better, and we must do better.
(14 comments) SHARE Wednesday, November 9, 2011 Veil of Secrecy at the Fed Lifted, Time for Change
Given the growth of the Occupy Wall Street movement and given the concerns of millions of Americans about Wall Street, we now have a unique opportunity to make significant changes to one of the most powerful and secretive agencies of the federal government. One thing is abundantly clear: Americans deserve a Federal Reserve that works for them, not just the CEOs on Wall Street.
(27 comments) SHARE Thursday, September 21, 2017 Sanders Foreign Policy Speech at Westminster College
One of the reasons I accepted the invitation to speak here is that I strongly believe that not only do we need to begin a more vigorous debate about foreign policy, we also need to broaden our understanding of what foreign policy is.
(8 comments) SHARE Tuesday, October 11, 2011 Wall Street Protests
Sen. Bernie Sanders answers the question: How do we change the political, economic and financial system to work for all Americans, not just the top 1 percent?
(28 comments) SHARE Tuesday, January 23, 2018 How we win
As I traveled the country in 2015 and 2016 some of the most moving meetings I held were with young Dreamers terrified that they would be rounded up and thrown out of the only country they have ever known. Trump promised to help the Dreamers while he was running for president but, in one of his series of lies, he has reneged on that pledge.
(1 comments) SHARE Sunday, April 14, 2013 Climate Change Is No Hoax
Do we agree with Senator Inhofe that global warming is a "hoax" and that we do not want the EPA, the Department of Energy or any other agency of the federal government to address that issue? Or do we agree with the overwhelming majority of scientists who tell us that that we must act boldly and aggressively to protect the future of this planet?
(33 comments) SHARE Saturday, November 24, 2018 America's wealthiest family owns Walmart. They can afford to pay workers $15 an hour.
The major economic crisis facing this country is that at a time of massive income and wealth inequality, tens of millions of Americans are working for wages that are so low that they are barely surviving. All over this country, people are forced to work two or three jobs to support their families as the cost of healthcare, housing, childcare, and prescription drugs continues to rise.
(5 comments) SHARE Friday, October 23, 2009 Unfiltered: Health Care Reform
One of the reasons that I am a strong proponent of a single-payer, Medicare-for-all proposal is that it is much less complicated than what we are going to end up with in Congress.
(12 comments) SHARE Wednesday, November 6, 2013 We Need A Political Revolution in Our Country Today
It is simply not acceptable that in many so-called "red states" throughout our country, there are few if any candidates fighting for working families and standing up to Big Money interests that dominate their communities. We need to have a progressive presence in 50 states. Please work with me to make that happen.
(2 comments) SHARE Tuesday, July 31, 2012 Oligarchy or Democracy?
Economically, the United States today has, by far, the most unequal distribution of wealth and income of any major country on earth, and that inequality is worse today in America than at any time since the late 1920s.
(8 comments) SHARE Wednesday, September 28, 2011 Stand Up And Fight Back!
Today, real unemployment is over 16 percent: 25 million Americans are either unemployed or underemployed. In my view, the time is now to pass a major jobs bill which will put millions of our fellow Americans back to work.
(15 comments) SHARE Friday, July 23, 2010 No to Oligarchy
The American people are hurting. As a result of the greed, recklessness and illegal behavior on Wall Street, millions of Americans have lost their jobs, homes, life savings and their ability to get a higher education. Today, some 22 percent of our children live in poverty, and millions more have become dependent on food stamps for their food.
(7 comments) SHARE Wednesday, August 15, 2012 As Social Security Turns 77, the Most Successful Program in American History is Under Fierce Attack
In the 77 years since President Franklin Roosevelt signed Social Security into law on August 14, 1935, the retirement program has been one of the nation's most successful anti-poverty programs. Before Social Security existed, about half of America's senior citizens lived in poverty. Today, less than 10 percent live in poverty.
(1 comments) SHARE Tuesday, August 11, 2015 There's only one right answer on Keystone XL: NO
Stopping the Keystone XL pipeline is not the only thing we must do to address climate change. Ultimately, we need to leave all fossil fuels in the ground and move to a 100 percent renewable energy economy. That's why I also oppose oil drilling in the Arctic, support the fossil fuel divestment movement, and have sponsored legislation in Congress to bring solar energy to ten million rooftops in America.
(6 comments) SHARE Saturday, October 24, 2015 Text and Video of Bernie Sanders Speech at Iowa Democratic Party Jefferson-Jackson Dinner
Well my friends, let us make sure that everyone knows that on the issues of equality, and justice, and ending a rigged economy that is held in place by a corrupt political system, on battling climate change, on halting the draining of American jobs to faraway places, on these issues and so many more:
(8 comments) SHARE Friday, November 10, 2017 How to Fix the Democratic Party
Donald Trump's presidency represents an unprecedented crisis for our country. His campaign, and now his White House, seek to divide us using racism, sexism, homophobia, Islamophobia and xenophobia. His economic agenda is the agenda of the billionaire class. He wants more tax breaks for the rich, while cutting education, nutrition, affordable housing and other programs desperately needed by working families.
(6 comments) SHARE Sunday, September 30, 2012 Let's Fight for a Progressive Agenda
There are 2 major economic and budgetary issues which Congress must address in the lame-duck session or soon afterward. First, how do we reverse the decline of the middle class and create the jobs that unemployed and underemployed workers desperately need? Second, how do we address the $1 trillion deficit and $16 trillion national debt in a way that is fair and not on the backs of the elderly, children, the sick or the poor
(24 comments) SHARE Saturday, December 29, 2018 If I Run
Our ideas will lift people out of poverty, they will guarantee health care as a right for every man, woman and child, and they will make certain that every person in this country with the ability and the desire can get the education they need, regardless of the income of their family. Ours is not a radical agenda. It's the agenda the American people want.
(12 comments) SHARE Saturday, September 6, 2014 At AFL-CIO Convention, Sanders Proposes Wealth Tax
With the wealth gap in the United States growing and greater already than in any other major country, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders today called for a progressive estate tax on multi-millionaires and billionaires.
"A nation will not survive morally or economically when so few have so much while so many have so little. We need a tax system which asks the billionaire class to pay its fair share of taxes..."
(7 comments) SHARE Thursday, August 3, 2017 Nissan dispute could go down as most vicious anti-union crusade in decades
Large corporations like Nissan like to set up shop in states like Mississippi because they know that when safety nets are frayed, and people hit hard times, they're more likely to accept low wages and poor working conditions. They know how to exploit human misery and insecurity, and turn them into high profits.
(9 comments) SHARE Sunday, November 5, 2017 As president, Trump is doing the exact opposite of what he promised on the campaign trail
As a candidate, Trump promised he would not cut Medicare or Medicaid. Now he supports a budget that calls for $473 billion in cuts to Medicare and more than $1 trillion in cuts to Medicaid. Now that he is president, Trump has brought more billionaires into his administration than any president.
(7 comments) SHARE Friday, August 26, 2011 Strengthen Social Security
The President's specific campaign proposal was to apply Social Security payroll taxes to all income above $250,000. In other words, the proposal I will be introducing is exactly what the President campaigned on. We have got to keep our word. And, that's exactly what this legislation would do.
(3 comments) SHARE Saturday, January 24, 2015 The Koch Brothers Primary
Potential Republican presidential candidates are hobnobbing this weekend with politically potent billionaires at an invitation-only gathering in Palm Springs, California, that U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and others have called "the Koch brothers primary."
(3 comments) SHARE Sunday, June 20, 2021 Washington's Dangerous New Consensus on China
It is distressing and dangerous that a fast-growing consensus is emerging in Washington that views the U.S.-Chinese relationship as a zero-sum economic and military struggle. This will create a political environment in which the cooperation that the world desperately needs will be increasingly difficult to achieve.
(2 comments) SHARE Wednesday, December 25, 2019 Trump's holiday menu: handouts for billionaires, hunger for the poor
The Republican tax scam is working exactly as planned. Today, the richest 400 billionaires pay lower taxes than any group in America including the poor. Nearly 100 of the top Fortune 500 companies now pay nothing in taxes.
(2 comments) SHARE Monday, April 6, 2015 This Country Belongs to All of Us, Not Just the Billionaire Class
As the rich become much richer, the level of income and wealth inequality has reached obscene and unimaginable levels. In the United States, we have the most unequal level of wealth and income distribution of any major country on earth, and worse now than at any other time since the 1920s.
(18 comments) SHARE Friday, March 16, 2018 The corporate media ignores the rise of oligarchy. The rest of us shouldn't
The corporate media has failed to let the American people fully understand the economic forces shaping their lives and causing many of them to work two or three jobs, while CEOs make hundreds of times more than they do. Instead, day after day, 24/7, we're inundated with the relentless dramas of the Trump White House, Stormy Daniels, and the latest piece of political gossip.
(13 comments) SHARE Thursday, July 28, 2011 The American People Are Angry
The Democrats have yielded far, far too much. In December, with the Democrats controlling the White House, the House of Representatives and the Senate they extended Bush's tax breaks for the rich and lowered the tax rates on estates for the very rich. In April, they allowed tens of billions of dollars in cuts to vitally important programs for low- and moderate-income Americans.
SHARE Tuesday, March 3, 2015 Senator Sanders Statement on Prime Minister Netanyahu's Speech to Congress
In a statement after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's speech to Congress, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today renewed his support for diplomatic efforts by the United States and other world powers to negotiate an agreement to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon.
(21 comments) SHARE Tuesday, March 22, 2016 Bernie Sanders Middle East Policy Speech: text & video-- the one he would have given to AIPAC
Let me begin by saying that I think I am probably the only candidate for president who has personal ties with Israel. I spent a number of months there when I was a young man on a kibbutz, so I know a little bit about Israel.
Clearly, the United States and Israel are united by historical ties. We are united by culture. We are united by our values...
(14 comments) SHARE Tuesday, August 1, 2017 Our Goal Is to Move This Country to a Medicare-for-All, Single-Payer System
Our goal is not complicated, and it is not radical. It is to have the United States join every other industrialized country on earth in guaranteeing health care for all. Health care must not be considered as a privilege or a commodity. It is a human right to which every man, woman and child is entitled. Our goal is to move this country to a Medicare-for-all, single-payer system.
(15 comments) SHARE Thursday, July 23, 2020 We are in a very dangerous moment in American history.
As we speak, in Portland Oregon federal agents in combat gear and unmarked vehicles are pulling protesters off the streets and jailing them without charges, despite opposition from local and state officials.
Trump & his allies are "normalizing" the use of federal troops to patrol and make arrests of American citizens in communities throughout the country. Today it is Portland, Oregon. Tomorrow, other citie
(4 comments) SHARE Saturday, March 12, 2016 Bernie Sanders' Statement on Disturbances at Trump Rallies
"As is the case virtually every day, Donald Trump is showing the American people that he is a pathological liar. Obviously, while I appreciate that we had supporters at Trump's rally in Chicago, our campaign did not organize the protests.
(9 comments) SHARE Saturday, December 27, 2008 Senator Bernie Sanders: Where Do We Go from Here?
The next few months will be a pivotal period in the history of the United States and for much of the world. The Bush administration, perhaps the most reactionary and incompetent that our country has ever seen, is leaving office after eight disastrous years. President Barack Obama and an increased Democratic majority take power amidst the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.
(24 comments) SHARE Monday, August 14, 2017 Most Americans want universal healthcare. What are we waiting for?
Establishing a Medicare for All single-payer program will improve the health of the American people and provide substantial financial savings for middle class families. It is the right thing to do. It is the moral thing to do.
(3 comments) SHARE Friday, August 25, 2017 Why Medicare-for-All Is Good for Business
The ongoing failure of our health care system is directly attributable to the fact that it is largely designed not to provide quality care in a cost-effective way, but to make maximum profits for health insurance companies, the pharmaceutical industry, and medical equipment suppliers. That has got to change. We need to guarantee health care for all. We need a Medicare-for-all health care system in the U.S.
(7 comments) SHARE Tuesday, May 17, 2016 Statement on Nevada
Bernie Sanders responds to the situation during and following the Nevada convention
(5 comments) SHARE Tuesday, August 23, 2011 Sanders Demands Regulators Obey Law on Oil Speculation
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today said federal regulators should stop thumbing their noses at a year-old law and enforce limits on excessive speculation in oil markets.
(13 comments) SHARE Tuesday, May 10, 2011 Single payer health: it's only fair
Twenty-three million Americans still without health insurance after health reform is implemented? This is unacceptable. It is time for us to end private, for-profit participation in delivering basic coverage.
(19 comments) SHARE Sunday, July 10, 2016 Democrats Must Fight to Defeat the Trans-Pacific Partnership
Today, the supporters of the disastrous Trans-Pacific Partnership are telling us to ignore the past and trust them when they tell us this time is different. This deal will really, really create jobs and be good for America, cross our hearts and hope to die. But the reality is that this job-killing free trade agreement is based on the same flawed NAFTA trade model. It should be called what it is: NAFTA on steroids.
(8 comments) SHARE Monday, January 1, 2018 A New Year's Resolution
No real change in American history, not the labor movement, the civil rights movement, the women's movement, the gay rights movement, the environmental movement or any other movement has ever had success without grassroots activism, without millions of people engaged in the struggle for justice.
(13 comments) SHARE Thursday, June 1, 2017 A Big Message I have For Corporate America
It is outrageous that Carrier is planning on laying off hundreds of workers right before Christmas, after receiving a $7 million tax break courtesy of Donald Trump and Mike Pence.
During the campaign, Donald Trump made a 100 percent commitment to prevent United Technologies from shipping 2,100 jobs from Indiana to Mexico. All of us need to hold Mr. Trump accountable to make sure that he keeps this promise.
(7 comments) SHARE Monday, November 8, 2010 Sanders Cites Olbermann Suspension in Bid to Block NBC-Comcast Merger
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement today opposing a merger of Comcast Corp. and NBC Universal that would give the cable giant control of NBC's television and movie business:
(9 comments) SHARE Saturday, May 9, 2015 Bernie Sanders: It's Time To End Orwellian Surveillance of Every American
I welcome a federal appeals court ruling that the National Security Agency does not have the legal authority to collect and store data on all U.S. telephone calls. Now Congress should rewrite the expiring eavesdropping provision in the so-called USA Patriot Act and include strong new limits to protect the privacy and civil liberties of the American people.
(1 comments) SHARE Monday, May 21, 2018 I am running
We have a president who is not only a pathological liar but someone who is trying to win votes by dividing our nation up based on the color of our skin, our country of origin, our religion, our gender or our sexual orientation. Further, and dangerously, he is undermining our democratic institutions as he attempts to move us toward an authoritarian type society.
(3 comments) SHARE Monday, April 30, 2012 United Against the War on Women
We are not going back. Not only are we not going to retreat on women's rights, we are going to expand them. We are going forward, not backward. We are not returning to the days of back-room abortions, when countless women died or were maimed. The decision about abortion must remain a decision for the woman, her family and physician to make, not the government.
SHARE Sunday, October 13, 2013 No Cuts to Social Security
The Republican Party and Paul Ryan cannot be allowed to get their way by threatening the American people with a continued government shutdown and a default unless Congress cuts Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. That is not what the American people want.
(2 comments) SHARE Saturday, August 20, 2011 Jobs -- Saving the Middle Class
These are very tough times for our country. There's no question about that. But despair is not an option. This fight is not just about what happens to our lives. More important, it's what happens to our kids and grandchildren. For their sakes, we cannot give up the struggle.
(13 comments) SHARE Monday, January 15, 2018 Let's wrench power back from the billionaires
Those of us who believe in democracy and progressive government must bring low-income and working people all over the world together behind an agenda that reflects their needs. Instead of hate and divisiveness, we must offer a message of hope and solidarity.
(2 comments) SHARE Tuesday, January 31, 2012 Can't Stop Now
These are tough times for our country. We must continue to push forward. This struggle is not just about you or me or our generation. It is about the future of the country and our children and grandchildren.
(5 comments) SHARE Thursday, November 16, 2017 We must end global oligarchy
The essence of oligarchy is that the billionaire class is never satisfied with what they have. They want more, more and more -- no matter what impact their efforts have on working people, the elderly, children, the sick and the poor. Greed is their religion.
(5 comments) SHARE Tuesday, August 11, 2020 The pandemic is helping the rich get even richer. It's time to tax their obscene wealth
We are in the middle of an extraordinary moment in American history: a public health crisis, the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression, the existential threat of climate change and a president who is moving our country in an authoritarian direction.
(10 comments) SHARE Wednesday, February 18, 2015 The pro-worker, pro-growth experiment in Greece is under threat
Greek voters finally rejected the old political order and looked for a new party to restore dignity and economic viability to their tiny nation-state -- and empowered a progressive coalition government led by Syriza that is pro-Europe, pro-America and determined to save their country. Syriza and the EU coalition must work toward a compromise that promotes economic growth for all Europeans.
(8 comments) SHARE Wednesday, March 18, 2015 Sanders Statement on Republican Budget Plan
The best thing we can do in a budget is to move to a full employment economy with jobs that are paying workers a living wage. When we do that, by investing in infrastructure, by investing in education, by investing in research and development, we not only improve the lives of our people, but we also lower our deficits and lower our national debt.
(6 comments) SHARE Saturday, July 9, 2011 Sanders Warns of Devastating Cuts in Social Security
Cites New Office of Retirement Policy Report
Social Security cuts under consideration by the White House in deficit-reduction talks would drive 245,000 people into poverty and lower widows' benefits $1,200 a year by 2050, according to Social Security Administration calculations provided to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.)
(10 comments) SHARE Friday, December 30, 2011 2012: Where do we go from here?
As part of any deficit-reduction package, the wealthiest people in this country, many of whom are doing phenomenally well, must be asked to pay their fair share of taxes. We must also do away with the hundreds of billions in corporate loopholes that currently exist, which enable many large and profitable corporations to pay little or nothing in federal taxes.
SHARE Saturday, May 7, 2016 Poverty In America
When I talk about thinking big and outside the box, about rejecting incremental change, I am talking about the millions of Americans who live in poverty who have been tossed out, left behind, and abandoned by the rich and powerful. We need to create an economy that works for all of us, not just the 1 percent.
(3 comments) SHARE Monday, March 5, 2018 Bernie Sanders' Petition to End US Support for Saudi-Led War in Yemen
If the president or members of Congress believe our participation in the Saudi-led war in Yemen is in the interest of the United States, then let them come to the floor of the Senate and the House and make their case, and then let's have a vote. Otherwise, our involvement is unauthorized and unconstitutional, and it must end.
(2 comments) SHARE Tuesday, July 28, 2015 Remarks by Senator Sanders at the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
People are sick and tired with establishment politics, with establishment economics and with establishment media. They're sick of being told they don't matter. They fully understand that corporate greed is destroying our economy, that American politics is now dominated by a handful of billionaires and that much of the corporate media is prepared to discuss everything except the most important issues facing our country.
(21 comments) SHARE Saturday, October 29, 2016 Here's What I'll Do the Day After Election Day
The day after the election, working with millions of grass-roots activists, I intend to do everything possible to make certain that the new president and Congress implement the Democratic platform, the most progressive agenda of any major political party in the history of the United States. Our next president must rally against Wall Street and corporate greed and stand up for the declining middle class.
(6 comments) SHARE Tuesday, December 5, 2017 Mark my words...
Republicans are looting the Treasury. They are stealing trillions of dollars in order to give huge tax breaks to billionaires and large corporations. As their tax breaks increase the deficit by $1.4 trillion, they will, in the name of "deficit reduction," propose major cuts to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, education, nutrition, affordable housing and other programs desperately needed by the shrinking middle class.
(1 comments) SHARE Thursday, June 6, 2019 I Know Where I Came From. Does President Trump?
We are the wealthiest nation in the history of the world and, according to President Trump, the economy is "booming." Yet most Americans have little or no savings and live paycheck to paycheck. I am running for president because we must defeat Donald Trump, the most dangerous president in the modern history of our country.
(1 comments) SHARE Tuesday, July 19, 2011 Sanders: Say No to Gang of Six; Opposes Cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid
While all of the details from the so-called Gang of Six proposals are not yet clear, what is apparent is that the plan would result in devastating cuts to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and many other programs that are of vital importance to working families in this country. Meanwhile, tax rates would be lowered for the wealthiest people and the largest, most profitable corporations.
(10 comments) SHARE Thursday, May 25, 2017 Trump's Budget Is Immoral
The budget introduced this week by the Trump admini constitutes nothing less than a massive transfer of wealth from working families, the elderly, children, the sick & the poor to the top 1%.
It follows in the footsteps of the Trump-Ryan health care bill, which gives massive tax breaks to the people on top, while throwing 24 million Americans off of their health insurance and dramatically raising premiums for olderworkers
(1 comments) SHARE Wednesday, March 14, 2018 The Political Revolution Is Moving Beyond Progressive States
This year, there are more candidates than ever on the ballot -- in progressive and conservative areas -- who support Medicare for all, free tuition at public colleges and universities, a $15 minimum wage, gun safety legislation and our entire progressive agenda.
(3 comments) SHARE Thursday, March 29, 2018 Congress, Not Trump, Has the Authority Over War
The Saudi-led war in Yemen has led to one of the worst humanitarian crises in modern history. The time is long overdue for Congress to reassert its constitutional authority in matters of war. Article I of the U.S. Constitution states clearly that the people's representatives in Congress, not a single person residing in the White House, shall have the power to declare war.
(6 comments) SHARE Sunday, April 5, 2020 The Boldest Piece of Legislation Ever Written in Modern History
In this unprecedented moment in modern American history, it is imperative that we respond in an unprecedented way. And that means that Congress must pass, in the very near future, the boldest piece of legislation ever written in modern history.
(7 comments) SHARE Wednesday, April 8, 2020 The campaign ends, the struggle continues
While we are winning the ideological battle, and while we are winning the support of young people and working people throughout the country, I have concluded that this battle for the Democratic nomination will not be successful. And so today I am announcing the suspension of active campaigning, and congratulate Joe Biden, a very decent man, on his victory.
(2 comments) SHARE Wednesday, July 21, 2010 Why Do Republicans Want to Raise the Deficit?
Each and every day, it gets harder and harder to listen to my Republican friends who race to the Senate floor telling the American people how "concerned" they are about the $13 trillion national debt and how "we have to get our financial house in order."
(5 comments) SHARE Thursday, December 28, 2017 We Need Tax Reform That Benefits Middle-Class Families, Not the 1%
The Trump-Republican tax plan is one of the worst pieces of legislation in the modern history of our country. At a time of massive income and wealth inequality, 83 percent of the tax benefits in that bill go to the top 1 percent at the end of 10 years and 60 percent of the benefits go to the top one-tenth of 1 percent.
(5 comments) SHARE Wednesday, March 11, 2020 What I just told the press about our campaign
What has become more and more apparent, with each passing primary, is that while we are currently trailing in the delegate count, we are strongly winning the debate about the future of our country. In poll after poll, including exit polls, a strong majority of the American people support our progressive agenda.
(13 comments) SHARE Tuesday, January 9, 2018 It's on Republicans to Stop a Shutdown
A shutdown would harm tens of millions of working-class families who would be unable to access vital services. It would disrupt the lives of hundreds of thousands of federal employees who would not receive the paychecks they expected. It would endanger members of the U.S. military who are putting their lives on the line defending our nation.
(22 comments) SHARE Monday, October 16, 2017 The Republican budget is a gift to billionaires: it's Robin Hood in reverse
Donald Trump and the Republican leadership in Congress are back. Now, they are pushing one of the most destructive and unfair budget and tax proposals in the modern history of our country -- a plan that would do incalculable harm to tens of millions of working families, our kids, the sick, the elderly and the poor.
(20 comments) SHARE Saturday, June 22, 2019 We must stop the US from going to war with Iran
We need to take a more even-handed approach to the Middle East, and not simply support one side against another in a regional conflict. The US is strong enough to deal with these issues diplomatically, working with allies around the world, and that is what we should be doing. We must not fight another unnecessary war.
(10 comments) SHARE Monday, July 25, 2016 Democratic Convention Speech
Bernie's speech at the Democratic Convention, encouraging support for Clinton
(3 comments) SHARE Saturday, March 30, 2019 I'll fight for farmers against powerful agribusiness
The desperation felt by families in rural communities is about basic economic rights and freedom. Farmers have been systematically stripped of their ability to control their own futures and no longer know whether their hard work will earn them future success and stability. Storefronts are empty and farmers have been forced to sell their land that has been kept in families for generations to massive corporations.
(1 comments) SHARE Friday, May 22, 2015 The TPP Must Be Defeated
Congress is now debating fast track legislation that will pave the way for the disastrous Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) unfettered free trade agreement. At a time when our middle class is disappearing and the gap between the very rich and everyone else is growing wider, this anti-worker legislation must be defeated. Here are four reasons why.
(21 comments) SHARE Thursday, October 6, 2016 Four Reasons to Say "NO" to Donald Trump
We do not need a president who continuously insults women, has called them "pigs," "dogs" and "slobs" and seems obsessed about women's weight. The job of the next president is to bring us together, combat sexism and racism and not divide us up. Donald Trump must not become the next president of the United States. On November 8, the choice is clear. Hillary Clinton for president.
(3 comments) SHARE Monday, June 17, 2019 Disparity between the rich and poor
Why, in the last 30 years, has there been a massive transfer of wealth from the working families of this country to the very rich, with the top 1% seeing its wealth increase by $21 trillion while the bottom half saw a $900 billion decline in its wealth?
(2 comments) SHARE Sunday, March 6, 2016 America's Radical Transformation From a GM Economy to a Wal-Mart Economy
Throughout my political career I have stood with workers and demanded that corporate America invest in this country. Secretary Clinton's position has been very different. Not only did she support the North American Free Trade Agreement and special trade status with China, she also supported disastrous trade deals with Vietnam, Colombia and Panama. Enough is enough!
(19 comments) SHARE Monday, March 16, 2009 Stop Wall Street Loan-Sharking
Let's be clear. What Wall Street and credit card companies are doing is really not much different from what gangsters and loan sharks do who make predatory loans. While the bankers wear three-piece suits and don't break the knee caps of those who can't pay back, they still are destroying people's lives.
(34 comments) SHARE Tuesday, September 9, 2008 This Election is Not a Soap Opera or a Football Game: It is About the Future of Our Country
An election is not a soap opera which deals with the trials and tribulations of the candidates and their family members. Election coverage must not descend into becoming a pre-game football show, one which deals only with "who's going to win" polling data and never-ending tactical discussions of "what the candidate must do" to win this or that state.
(2 comments) SHARE Friday, May 17, 2019 Banks have been ripping off Americans for too long. I have a plan to end it
Today's modern-day loan sharks are no longer lurking on street corners breaking kneecaps to collect their payments. They wear Armani suits and work on Wall Street, where they make obscene compensation packages and head financial institutions like JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Bank of America and American Express.
(13 comments) SHARE Thursday, September 11, 2014 A Progressive Estate Tax
Unless we reduce skyrocketing wealth and income inequality, unless we end the ability of the super-rich to buy elections, the United States will be well on its way toward becoming an oligarchic form of society where almost all power rests with the billionaire class. The net worth of the top 400 billionaires in this country has doubled over the past decade.
(3 comments) SHARE Thursday, February 21, 2013 Congress Must Act to Combat Climate Change
The legislation ends fossil fuel subsidies. It also protects communities by requiring that drillers engaged in a new technology called fracking must comply with the Safe Drinking Water Act and disclose chemicals they use. Those who care deeply about their children and grandchildren's future, and want to protect them from this planetary crisis must support this.
(2 comments) SHARE Sunday, July 9, 2017 Kentucky Health Care Speech
I am here for 2 reasons. First, I want to talk about the so-called Republican "health care" bill which, to my mind, is the worst and most dangerous piece of legislation ever seriously considered by the U.S. Senate in the modern history of our country.
Secondly, I want to talk about something that troubles me very much, and that is the state of our democracy and representative government
(2 comments) SHARE Tuesday, November 26, 2013 Bernie Sanders Applauds Pope Francis' Call to Rein in the "Tyranny" of Capitalism
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today applauded Pope Francis' recent papal pronouncement, which condemns the "new tyranny" of unrestrained capitalism, causing income inequality and poverty, and calling on leaders to curb "the absolute autonomy of the marketplace and financial speculation," and act "for the common good."
(1 comments) SHARE Tuesday, July 16, 2013 A New Progressive PAC
As the longest serving Independent in the history of the U.S. Congress I want to take this opportunity to tell you about some of the issues I've been focusing on since my re-election. I also want to discuss with you my plans for the future and how we can best work together to address the huge policy and political crises our nation faces.
(4 comments) SHARE Sunday, September 6, 2015 How We Can Honor the Men and Women Who Fought for Workers' Rights This Labor Day
There is a war underway against middle-class families. Corporate greed is destroying the United States of America. It's time to fight for the middle class once again, so that every working person in the United States of America has a chance at a decent life.
(1 comments) SHARE Saturday, November 21, 2015 Sanders Calls Criminal Justice Reform the 'Civil Rights Issue of the Century'
Bernie Sanders on Saturday called criminal justice reform the "civil rights issue of the 21st century" and detailed a series of reforms needed in a nation where more inmates are behind bars than any other country and a disproportionate number of prisoners are minorities.
(4 comments) SHARE Saturday, July 15, 2017 Now is the time for bold action
At a time of massive wealth and income inequality, we need a progressive tax system based on the ability to pay. It is unacceptable that one out of five large, profitable corporations pays nothing in federal income taxes, and that corporate CEOs enjoy effective tax rates that are lower than that of their secretaries.
(5 comments) SHARE Friday, July 12, 2019 The Straightest Path to Racial Equality Is Through the One Percent
Many black Americans are disillusioned about politicians who champion the organizing power of black women when it's time to turn out the vote but neglect their needs between election cycles. They are tired of politicians offering meaningful yet inadequate reforms, kicking the can of progress down the road instead of using their political capital to fight for reforms that current generations desperately need.
(5 comments) SHARE Friday, September 7, 2012 Romney's Wrong Economic Answers
At a time when we have lost more than 56,000 factories and 5.3 million decent-paying manufacturing jobs since 2000, Romney is wrong in pushing for more unfettered free trade, which will make it easier for large corporations to throw American workers out on the street and ship American jobs to China and other low-wage countries.
(2 comments) SHARE Friday, March 6, 2020 We need scientists, not politicians, in charge of the coronavirus response
Health experts agree that the spread of the coronavirus will likely get worse before it gets better. Donald Trump must stop spreading lies and fear, and leave the science to scientists and health professionals, not politicians.
(1 comments) SHARE Friday, October 14, 2011 Senators Raise "Serious Concerns" About State Department Study on Tar Sands Oil Pipeline
This is a critically important issue for our environment and the energy future of our country. At a time when all credible scientific evidence and opinion indicate that we are losing the battle against global warming, it is imperative that we have objective environmental assessments of major carbon-dependent energy projects.
(4 comments) SHARE Wednesday, July 1, 2015 Why Not?
We must send a simple message to the billionaire class: You can't have it all. They will argue, of course. So will the politicians who serve them. They will insist that we can't do better, that we can't have the same basic rights as citizens of other countries. It's time to ask them, and ourselves, a simple but very important question: Why not?
(9 comments) SHARE Tuesday, July 12, 2016 Forever Forward
Bernie Sanders wraps up his campaign and explains his reasons for supporting Hillary Clinton to his supporters.
(4 comments) SHARE Tuesday, November 12, 2019 Fighting antisemitism is at the heart of the left's struggle against oppression
Ending the occupation and enabling the Palestinians to have self-determination in an independent, democratic, economically viable state of their own is in the best interests of the United States, Israel, the Palestinians and the region. My pride and admiration for Israel lives alongside my support for Palestinian freedom and independence.
(12 comments) SHARE Thursday, June 23, 2016 Bernie Sanders: Here's what we want
What do we want? We want to end the rapid movement that we are currently experiencing toward oligarchic control of our economic and political life. As Lincoln put it at Gettysburg, we want a government of the people, by the people and for the people. That is what we want, and that is what we will continue fighting for.
(7 comments) SHARE Friday, April 15, 2016 The Urgency of a Moral Economy: Reflections on the 25th Anniversary of Centesimus Annus - Bernie Sanders
As Pope Francis has stated: "Man is not in charge today, money is in charge, money rules." And the Pope has also stated: "We have created new idols. The worship of the golden calf of old has found a new and heartless image in the cult of money and the dictatorship of an economy which is faceless and lacking any truly humane goal."
SHARE Wednesday, October 1, 2008 Sanders Amendment: Make Wall Street Pay for Bailout
The Senate today will debate an amendment by Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) to impose a surtax on the wealthiest Americans to pay for a $700 billion emergency bailout of Wall Street.
(3 comments) SHARE Sunday, August 2, 2020 Bye Bye Trump: Ten Reasons
The next 93 days may very well be the most important in our country's history. Donald Trump must be defeated.
I am confident that you understand, as well as I do, how un-American and disastrous Trump and his administration have been. But I want to give you ten reasons (and there are many more) as to why, together, we have got to do everything we can to create the largest voter turnout in history and send Trump packing.
(5 comments) SHARE Tuesday, September 6, 2016 I Join With the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in Opposing the Dakota Access Pipeline
The Dakota Access fracked oil pipeline, will transport some of the dirtiest fuel on the planet. Regardless of the court's decision, the Dakota Access pipeline must be stopped. As a nation, our job is to break our addiction to fossil fuels, not increase our dependence on oil. I join with the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and the many tribal nations fighting this dangerous pipeline.
(4 comments) SHARE Monday, June 22, 2020 Yes
We are living through a pandemic that has claimed the lives of 120,000 Americans. And, now, after cities and states have "reopened," the number of new cases is skyrocketing.
SHARE Friday, January 23, 2015 Five Years After Citizens United, Billionaires Are Buying Democracy
Our country cannot tolerate domination by the Koch brothers, the Sheldon Adelsons, the U.S. Chambers of Commerce and their friends, and we will not. Five years after Citizens United, our democracy is weaker, but our democracy movement is stronger than anyone could have predicted.
(4 comments) SHARE Monday, January 29, 2018 During Trump's campaign
Tuesday night is Trump's State of the Union speech. Trump will not talk about how he is the first president in modern history who is intentionally trying to divide this nation up based on race, religion, gender, sexual orientation or nation of origin. He will not be mentioning his overt and covert efforts to win the support of white supremacists.
(3 comments) SHARE Sunday, January 12, 2020 Iran
A test of a great nation is not how many wars we can fight or how many governments we can overthrow, but how we can use our strength to resolve international conflicts in a peaceful way.
(13 comments) SHARE Wednesday, July 15, 2015 End Austerity for Greece
Tragically, Germany and other European creditors are trying to squeeze blood out of a stone. Instead of providing an agreement with Greece that allows its economy to grow and create jobs, generate more tax revenue and eventually pay back their debt, Greek creditors have insisted upon even greater austerity: cutting jobs, making deeper pension cuts, increasing regressive taxation and privatizing important parts...
(17 comments) SHARE Tuesday, December 30, 2014 Bernie Sanders: Fight for Our Progressive Vision
As I look ahead to this coming year, a number of thoughts come to mind. First and foremost, against an enormous amount of corporate media noise and distraction, it is imperative that we not lose sight of what is most important and the vision that we stand for. We have got to stay focused on those issues that impact the lives of tens of millions of Americans who struggle every day to keep their heads above water economically,
(1 comments) SHARE Sunday, July 29, 2018 Bail has criminalized poverty and undermined the tenet of "innocent before proven guilty"
Pretrial detention should be not based on how much money a person has, what kind of mood the judge is in on a given day, or even what judge the case happens to come before. In a country in which we pride ourselves on the principle of "innocent until proven guilty" we should not be keeping hundreds of thousands of people locked up before they have actually been convicted of a crime.
(4 comments) SHARE Tuesday, December 2, 2014 An Economic Agenda for America: 12 Steps Forward
The long-term deterioration of the middle class, accelerated by the Wall Street crash of 2008, has not been pretty. Today, we have more wealth and income inequality than any major country on earth....
(7 comments) SHARE Saturday, April 17, 2021 Withdrawing From Afghanistan Is a Courageous Step. Here's What Must Come Next.
President Biden's announcement of a full withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan by 9/11, 2021, is a courageous step. It is also an opportunity to consider the enormous costs of nearly 20 years of war and commit to a better way of promoting Americans' security and prosperity.
(4 comments) SHARE Tuesday, October 27, 2015 Bernie Sanders, Tells Rachel Maddow Why Getting It Right First Matters
Video shows Bernie Sanders explaining to Rachel Maddow why it is important to get an issue right FIRST, and better than eventually getting to the right decision-- why? Leadership when times are tough.
(5 comments) SHARE Thursday, June 15, 2017 How Democrats Can Stop Losing Elections
For the sake of our country and the world, the Democratic Party, in a very fundamental way, must change direction. It has got to open its doors wide to working people and young people. It must become less dependent on wealthy contributors, and it must make clear to the working families of this country that, in these difficult times, it is prepared to stand up and fight for their rights.
(3 comments) SHARE Wednesday, October 11, 2017 College For All Speech
I don't believe we are going to solve ... problems, and a lot more that I didn't discuss, unless we address the topic I want to speak to you about tonight: the need for the United States to have the best educated population in the world, the need to make public colleges and universities tuition free and the need to significantly lower the outrageous level of student debt that currently exists.
(2 comments) SHARE Tuesday, November 27, 2018 Democrats Need a Bold Agenda
It is not good enough for Democrats to just be the anti-Trump party. If they want to keep and expand their majority in the House, take back the Senate and win the White House, Democrats must show the American people that they will aggressively stand up and fight for the working families of this country -- black, white, Latino, Asian American or Native American, men and women, gay or straight.
(6 comments) SHARE Thursday, April 22, 2021 How to Raise Trillions Without Hiking Taxes on Working Americans
If Congress has the guts to take on large corporations and the billionaire class whose greed is destroying the social fabric of America we can both reduce income and wealth inequality and create a more egalitarian society.
(4 comments) SHARE Saturday, October 22, 2016 Bernie Sanders: Stand up to Big Pharma greed. Vote yes on Proposition 61
It's unacceptable that the exact drugs that we buy in our country are sold in Canada, Britain and other countries for a fraction of the price. My urgent message is to vote yes on Proposition 61 to make medicine more affordable in California and send a signal to Washington that the whole nation's prescription drug policies need an overhaul.
(18 comments) SHARE Sunday, November 13, 2016 Where the Democrats Go From Here
I pledged to my supporters that the political revolution would continue. And now, more than ever, that must happen. We are the wealthiest nation in the history of the world. When we stand together and don't let demagogues divide us up by race, gender or national origin, there is nothing we cannot accomplish. We must go forward, not backward.
(5 comments) SHARE Sunday, July 2, 2017 American healthcare is in crisis. We must fight for the real needs of the people
It is vitally important that we fight back against the disastrous Republican "healthcare" plan that would throw 22 million Americans off health insurance while giving $500bn in tax breaks to the very rich and large corporations. it is equally important that we fight for a healthcare system that addresses the real needs of the American people, including millions of Americans who lack access to good quality primary care.
(6 comments) SHARE Wednesday, June 12, 2019 A Call for a 21st Century Bill of Rights
Bernie Sanders delivered a major address about the historic role of democratic socialism in America's battles to defeat oligarchy and right-wing nationalism. Just as Franklin Roosevelt's democratic socialist program helped defeat rising authoritarianism in the aftermath of the Great Depression, Sanders called on America to reject Donald Trump's xenophobic and authoritarian policies
(1 comments) SHARE Wednesday, February 6, 2019 Bernie Sanders Responds to Trump's State of The Union
Bernie Sanders responds to Trumps State of the Union Address. He shows how it should be done-- powerfully, effectively, no excuses for how hard it is to respond
SHARE Sunday, May 26, 2019 Bernie 2020 Releases New Video
ernie 2020 released a new online video detailing Bernie's tenure as mayor of Burlington, Vermont. In his four terms as mayor, he transformed and revitalized the city and launched his career as a movement builder who uses the reaches of government to improve the lives of all people.
(2 comments) SHARE Saturday, October 13, 2018 President Trump Has Made Health Care Worse
In a poll last summer, 70 percent said they support expanding and improving Medicare to cover everyone in our country. They understand that there is something profoundly wrong when our current dysfunctional health care system is designed not to provide quality care to all, but to enable the private health insurance industry and drug companies to make billions in profits.
(16 comments) SHARE Monday, February 25, 2019 It's time to complete the revolution we started
The only way we will defeat Donald Trump and the special interests that support him is with a grassroots movement, the likes of which has never been seen in American history. We must stand together women and men, black, white, Latino, Native American, Asian American, gay and straight, young and old, native born and immigrant to address the challenges we face as a nation. It is time to defeat Trump, complete that revolution.
(1 comments) SHARE Sunday, February 18, 2018 The Great Moral Issue of Our Time
We have a moral responsibility to stand up for the Dreamers and their families, and to prevent what will be an indelible moral stain on our country if we fail to act. I do not want to see what the history books will be saying about this Congress if we allow 800,000 young people to be subjected to deportation, to live in incredible fear and anxiety.
(3 comments) SHARE Sunday, May 12, 2019 This problem is a GLOBAL problem
One of the great crises facing the global community today is that democracy, the right of ordinary people to control their own lives, is on the defensive while authoritarianism is growing stronger. And at its root is the fact that a handful of incredibly wealthy people are exerting enormous economic and political power over the planet.
(3 comments) SHARE Monday, July 4, 2016 Sanders: Party platform still needs work
One of the most important amendments that we will offer is to make it clear that the Democratic Party is strongly opposed to the Trans-Pacific Partnership. In my view, the Democratic Party must go on record in opposition to holding a vote on this disastrous, unfettered free-trade agreement during the lame-duck session of Congress and beyond.
(1 comments) SHARE Friday, August 26, 2016 Sanders Welcomes McConnell Decision to Block TPP
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said Friday that opponents of a bad trade deal scored a major victory with an announcement by U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) that the Senate will not vote this year on the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership.
"I welcome Majority Leader McConnell's announcement that he will block a vote in the Senate this year on the disastrous, job-killing Trans-Pacific Partnership.
(7 comments) SHARE Friday, January 15, 2010 Where Do We Go From Here?
One year ago the nation gave a collective sigh of relief as the worst and least popular administration in modern American history came to an end. Not only was the Bush administration heading out the door, but the Republican Party was reeling from two consecutive elections in which it suffered massive losses at all levels.
(5 comments) SHARE Thursday, July 26, 2012 The Road to Oligarchy
The Senate Committee on the Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Human Rights held a hearing Tuesday on "Taking Back Our Democracy: Responding to Citizens United and the Rise of Super PACs" Here is Sen. Bernie Sanders' testimony:
(5 comments) SHARE Friday, May 11, 2018 We cannot defeat the Republican Party with the same establishment candidates
The 2018 midterm elections will be long remembered as a pivotal moment in American history because, if we are successful, we can put an end to the disastrous Trump agenda. If we are not, we will have at least two more years of a rapid shift toward authoritarianism, the further normalization of corruption and the continued rise of oligarchy.
(2 comments) SHARE Tuesday, January 1, 2019 Bernie Sanders New Years Message
It goes without saying that 2019 will be a pivotal and momentous time for our country and the entire planet. As you know, there is a monumental clash now taking place between two very different political visions. Not to get you too nervous, but the future of our country and the world is dependent upon which side wins that struggle.
(1 comments) SHARE Friday, September 5, 2014 The Blue State/ Red State Analysis of American Politics Has Never Made Sense
Last week, I visited NC, SC and MS I spoke to large crowds and had the opportunity to meet with some terrific organizers who are helping to lead the struggle for economic and social justice in their communities.
To me, the blue state/red state analysis of American politics has never made sense. In every state in our country, the vast majority are working people struggling to keep their heads above water economically
SHARE Monday, March 10, 2014 Save the Postal Service
The U.S. Postal Service is one of our most popular and important government agencies. It provides universal service six days a week to every corner of America, no matter how small or remote. It supports millions of jobs in virtually every other sector of our economy. It provides decent-paying union jobs to some 500,000 Americans, and it is the largest employer of veterans.
(2 comments) SHARE Monday, July 25, 2011 Deficit Reduction Down to the Wire
At a time of growing hunger in America there will be massive cuts to nutrition programs. We have a crisis in homelessness, and there will be cuts to affordable housing. While we need more funds for research and development in disease prevention and other areas, fewer funds will be available. And on and on it goes.
(1 comments) SHARE Thursday, March 1, 2018 Why Congress Must Vote on the US Role in Yemen
The Obama administration, without consulting Congress, quickly authorized U.S. military forces to provide "logistical and intelligence support" to the Saudi coalition. U.S. military support for this intervention continues to this day. U.S. forces are coordinating, refueling and targeting with the Saudi-led coalition, as confirmed last December by Defense Secretary Jim Mattis.
SHARE Monday, May 21, 2012 Let's End Polluter Welfare
It is time we end this corporate welfare in the form of massive subsidies and tax breaks to hugely profitable fossil fuel corporations. It is time for Congress to support the interests of the taxpayer instead of powerful special interests like the oil and coal industries.
(1 comments) SHARE Monday, August 17, 2015 Racial Justice
If current trends continue, one in four black males born today can expect to spend time in prison during their lifetime. Blacks are imprisoned at six times the rate of whites and a report by the Department of Justice found that blacks were three times more likely to be searched during a traffic stop, compared to white motorists.
SHARE Thursday, April 24, 2014 Bernie Sanders Statement on Net Neutrality
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement today in response to a Federal Communications Commission proposal to let companies pay for faster delivery over the Internet:
(2 comments) SHARE Monday, December 30, 2013 2014: Seize the Moment
If we are going to save the middle class and protect our planet, we need to change the political dynamics of the nation. We can no longer allow the billionaires and their think tanks or the corporate media to set the agenda. We need to educate, organize and mobilize the working families of our country to stand up for their rights. We need to make government work for all the people, not just the 1 percent.
(14 comments) SHARE Wednesday, January 6, 2021 What last night proved
What last night's victories in Georgia proved is that when people have something to vote for rather than just vote against, when we prioritize organizing and mobilizing, our progressive agenda can win anywhere.
(1 comments) SHARE Saturday, January 11, 2014 War on Poverty
Progress has been made, but the U.S. continues to lag behind many other countries in terms of reducing poverty and income and wealth inequality. Countries like Finland, Denmark, Norway, Germany and Sweden have much lower poverty rates than we do because they invest more in their citizens, especially their kids.
(3 comments) SHARE Tuesday, December 30, 2014 Voice your opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership
The Trans-Pacific Partnership is a disastrous trade agreement designed to protect the interests of the largest multi-national corporations at the expense of workers, consumers, the environment and the foundations of American democracy. It will also negatively impact some of the poorest people in the world.
Petition: Another Trade Deal 'Disaster'
(5 comments) SHARE Monday, November 21, 2011 A Pivotal Moment In American History
If Democrats stand with ordinary Americans and make it clear that they are prepared to take on the wealthy and the powerful, they could win both houses of Congress. They could give Obama a fresh infusion of boldness as he enters a second term in the White House.
SHARE Thursday, August 6, 2015 The Fight for Voting Rights Is Our Fight Today
The billionaire class does not want Americans to vote. Billions of dollars are being funneled into our elections in a form of legalized bribery, even as American voters -- especially minority voters -- are being discouraged from voting. It is no wonder that government no longer works for ordinary Americans.
(3 comments) SHARE Saturday, June 26, 2021 Ain't gonna happen
There is no question but that we need a major investment in our crumbling roads, bridges, water systems, waste water plants, public transit and broadband.
(14 comments) SHARE Friday, December 20, 2013 The American People Need a Raise
Raising the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour would increase the pay of nearly 30 million Americans, enough to lift a family of three out of poverty. Despite what opponents of raising the minimum wage suggest, almost 90 percent of Americans who would benefit from raising the minimum wage are adults over the age of 20.
(1 comments) SHARE Wednesday, June 17, 2009 Health Care for All Americans -- Sign the Petition
The time is now for our nation to address the most profound moral and economic issue we face. The time is now for our country to join the rest of the industrialized world and provide cost-effective, comprehensive quality health care to every man, woman and child in our country. The time is now to take on the powerful special interests in the insurance and pharmaceutical industries and pass a single-payer health care program.
(1 comments) SHARE Monday, November 26, 2018 Yemen Horror
The war in Yemen has created the most severe famine in more than 100 years. In one of the poorest countries on earth, as a result of this war, some 85,000 children have starved to death over the last several years and millions more face death if the war continues. Further, the country is currently experiencing the worst cholera outbreak in the world with as many as 10,000 new cases each week.
(7 comments) SHARE Tuesday, April 19, 2016 Inequality: The Great Political And Moral Issue Of Our Time
Our very soul as a nation has suffered as the public lost faith in political and social institutions. As Pope Francis has stated: "Man is not in charge today, money is in charge, money rules." And the Pope has also stated: "We have created new idols. The worship of the golden calf of old has found a new and heartless image in the cult of money and the dictatorship of an economy which is faceless and lacking any humane goal."
(18 comments) SHARE Wednesday, July 13, 2016 "This Movement of Ours - the Political Revolution - Must Continue."
In the coming weeks, I will be announcing the creation of successor organizations to carry on the struggle that we have been a part of these past 15 months. I hope you will continue to be involved in fighting to transform America. Our goal will be to advance the progressive agenda that we believe in and to elect like-minded candidates at the federal, state and local levels who are committed to accomplishing our goals.
(4 comments) SHARE Friday, October 7, 2011 Rein in Wall Street and rescue the middle class
The idea that six giant financial institutions can exert such enormous control over the economy should frighten anyone who believes in a competitive free-market system. Good Republican presidents like William Howard Taft and Teddy Roosevelt broke up Standard Oil, the railroad trusts and other huge monopolies a century ago.
(2 comments) SHARE Saturday, September 15, 2012 Grass Roots Democracy
Some leading Republicans are so opposed to government serving the needs of working families that they actually believe that Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and the minimum wage are "unconstitutional." They want to move this country into an oligarchic form of society in which a handful of very wealthy people control the economic and political life of the nation.
(7 comments) SHARE Friday, September 25, 2015 Why we must listen to Pope Francis
From the moment he was elected, Pope Francis immediately let it be known that he would be a different kind of pope, a different kind of religious leader. He forces us to address some of the major issues facing humanity: war, income and wealth inequality, poverty, unemployment, greed, the death penalty and other issues that too many prefer to ignore.
(4 comments) SHARE Sunday, May 16, 2021 The US Must Stop Being an Apologist for the Netanyahu Government
The United States should be urging an immediate cease-fire. We should also understand that, while Hamas firing rockets into Israeli communities is absolutely unacceptable, today's conflict did not begin with those rockets.
(6 comments) SHARE Tuesday, August 10, 2010 No to Oligarchy
Wall Street's criminal greed has caused great harm to Americans, with the Responsible Estate Tax Act(S.3533), we can reduce the damage.
(1 comments) SHARE Tuesday, July 23, 2013 Bernie Sanders Challenges White House-- "Disingenuous" On Student Loan Claims
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today said deceptive claims by the White House mask a big boost in college loan interest rates that would be in store for students and parents under a White House-backed bill now before the Senate.
(15 comments) SHARE Wednesday, October 22, 2008 Now is the Time
When Congress reconvenes, it is clear to me that it must pass a massive "Rebuild America" program in order to address the looming economic crisis. If we can put up $700 billion to rescue bankers from their irresponsible decisions, we must make a major investment putting millions of Americans to work rebuilding our country.
SHARE Sunday, May 17, 2020 Bernie Sanders | $2,000 Per Person Per Month
During this crisis, Congress must make sure that every working-class household receives a $2,000 monthly payment for each family member. One of the best ways to support working people who are feeling the economic impact of this crisis is to ensure they continue to have reliable income to afford the basic necessities they need.
(9 comments) SHARE Thursday, June 21, 2018 A World for All of Us, Not Just the Billionaires
Since the Supreme Court's disastrous Citizens United decision in 2010, billionaires have poured huge amounts of money into the political process. In return, they are getting policies that serve their interests at the expense of working families, the environment, and our national security.
(2 comments) SHARE Wednesday, January 6, 2016 Reforming Wall Street-- Breaking Up Big Banks, Making Ratings Agencies Non-Profit
The American people are catching on. They understand that there is something profoundly wrong when, in our country today, the top one-tenth of 1 percent owns almost as much wealth as the bottom 90 percent. They understand that something is profoundly wrong when the 20 richest people in our country own more wealth than the bottom half of the American population -- 150 million people. They know that the system is rigged
(3 comments) SHARE Tuesday, December 7, 2010 Sen. Bernie Sanders Statement on Tax Cut Deal
As America descends into totalitarian darkness, there are a handful of members of Congress with the courage to fight back in defiance. Bernie Sanders is a leading light in that tiny group.
(1 comments) SHARE Monday, September 4, 2017 This Labor Day the Struggle Continues
In order to revitalize American democracy we must overturn Citizens United, move to public funding of elections and end voter suppression. We must demand that the wealthy and large corporations begin paying their fair share of taxes. We must raise the minimum wage to a living wage, $15 an hour, and end the unconscionable and inequitable pay gap that currently exists between male and female workers.
(4 comments) SHARE Friday, September 18, 2020 Will Trump leave Office If He Loses The Election?
This is a presidential election between Joe Biden and Donald Trump. This is an election about whether or not we retain American democracy. This is an election we must not lose.
(2 comments) SHARE Wednesday, August 26, 2020 The high priest of unfettered capitalism
The one percent in this country may have enormous wealth and power, and they will use it to try and stop our agenda. But they are just the one percent. And if the 99 percent in this country stand together, defeat Trump, and go on to fight for the values we share, we can transform this country.
(4 comments) SHARE Saturday, December 27, 2014 Senator Bernie Sanders' Year-End Message of Fight and Hope
Senator Bernie Sanders message to all Americans, looking back at what's been accomplished and forward to what must be done.
Sanders is a possible candidate for President in 2016.
(5 comments) SHARE Wednesday, April 2, 2014 High Court Gives Big Money More Say in Campaigns
To equate the ability of billionaires to buy elections with ‘freedom of speech’ is totally absurd. The Supreme Court is paving the way toward an oligarchic form of society in which a handful of billionaires like the Koch brothers and Sheldon Adelson will control our political process.
(23 comments) SHARE Thursday, July 23, 2009 We Need an Energy Revolution
What we are talking about is an energy revolution that leads us toward energy independence, the cessation of support for foreign dictatorships and the ability to avoid Mideast wars fought over oil.
(5 comments) SHARE Friday, May 7, 2010 We Must End Fed Secrecy
I hope that the Senate will vote on my amendment to end secrecy at the Federal Reserve. I hope that as early as Tuesday, through the efforts of incredibly strong progressive and conservative grass-roots organizations, we will win a historic victory for the American people.
(16 comments) SHARE Monday, October 29, 2018 This country is in the midst of a political revolution
Trump is going to try to divide us in this final week before the election. He is going to try to pit us against each other by race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, immigration status and however he can do it. If he can divide us up, right-wing Republicans and the big-money interests will win.
(4 comments) SHARE Thursday, February 5, 2015 We Need A Pro-Worker, Anti-Austerity Agenda
Real unemployment is not 5.6 percent -- including those people who have given up looking for work or people who are working part time when they want to work full time -- it is over 11 percent. Youth unemployment -- something we almost never talk about in this country -- is a horrendous 17 percent, and African-American youth unemployment is over 30 percent. It is totally unacceptable.
(4 comments) SHARE Friday, October 26, 2018 We Must Stop Helping Saudi Arabia in Yemen
The likely assassination of the Saudi critic and Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi underscores how urgent it has become for the United States to redefine our relationship with Saudi Arabia, and to show that the Saudis do not have a blank check to continue violating human rights.
(4 comments) SHARE Saturday, March 11, 2017 Bernie Sanders: Trump Should Avoid a Bad Zika Deal
Will the president negotiate a better deal for the taxpayers of this country and our soldiers? Or was the president lying when he claimed he would make only the best deals on behalf of the American people? We will soon find out.
(1 comments) SHARE Thursday, January 10, 2013 Bernie Sanders: Opposing Jack Lew Appointment as Treasury Sec
At a time when the middle class is collapsing and millions of workers are unemployed, I do not believe he is the right person at the right time to serve in this important position.
SHARE Thursday, July 22, 2021 The biggest win for the working class in generations is within reach
When the gap between the very rich and everyone else is growing wider, when some of the wealthiest people and biggest businesses in the world pay nothing in federal income taxes, the billionaire class and large profitable corporations must finally start paying their fair share of taxes.
(1 comments) SHARE Wednesday, April 25, 2012 Social Security is Strong:
Under the proposed legislation, the wealthiest Americans would pay the same payroll tax rate already assessed on those with incomes up to $110,100 a year. Social Security officials have calculated that the simple change would keep the retirement program strong for another 75 years. The legislation also follows through on a proposal that President Barack Obama made in 2008 when he was running for president.
(2 comments) SHARE Sunday, November 3, 2013 The Gap Between the Very Rich and Everyone Else
When the richest 1% own 38% of the financial wealth of America, while the bottom 60% own a mere 2.3% -- we cannot balance the budget on the backs of people who have virtually nothing. When 95% of all new income during 2009 through 2012 went to the top 1%, while tens of millions of working Americans saw a decline in their income, we cannot cut programs that these workers depend upon.
(5 comments) SHARE Tuesday, November 13, 2012 Stand With Working Families
With this victory behind them, the president and Democratic leadership must make it very clear that they will stand with the middle class and working families of our country. These are the people struggling to keep their heads above water economically, the people who worry about whether they can afford health care and whether their kids will be able to attend college.
(10 comments) SHARE Friday, March 22, 2019 Chicago -- An Extraordinary Time In My Life
As someone who came from a working class family, Chicago provided me, for the first time in my life, the opportunity to put two and two together in understanding how the real world worked. To understand what power was about in this country and who the people were who had that power. To learn about racism and poverty and other social ills.
(1 comments) SHARE Sunday, March 3, 2019 Bernie Sanders Chicago Speech
Speech at Navy Pier in Chicago to an estimated 12,500 supporters in overflow crowd
(2 comments) SHARE Friday, December 21, 2012 Protect Disabled Veterans; Defend Social Security; Tragedy in Connecticut
Bernie Sanders:Defend Social Security
Social Security has a $2.7 trillion surplus, can pay all benefits owed to all eligible Americans for the next 21 years. Because it is funded independently, has not contributed one penny to the deficit. Bernie called for protecting disabled vets, and cited need for improved and accessible mental health care,decried violence in movies/ video games and keeping guns out of bad hands.
SHARE Sunday, August 2, 2020 Bye-bye
The next 93 days may very well be the most important in our country's history. Donald Trump must be defeated.
(7 comments) SHARE Thursday, June 11, 2015 Sanders Announces Family Values Agenda
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today outlined a family values agenda, a package of legislation to provide paid family and medical leave, paid sick leave and paid vacation.
"When you look at what other wealthy countries are doing, what you find is that the United States of America is the only advanced economy that does not guarantee its workers
(3 comments) SHARE Tuesday, January 10, 2017 Trump Has to Preserve Health Care or Admit He's a Liar
If Republicans get their way, 30 million Americans, 82 percent of whom are from working families, will lose their health insurance. With Medicare privatized, seniors will see their premiums increase by as much as 50 percent while their benefits are cut and funding for nursing-home care dries up.
(2 comments) SHARE Friday, March 30, 2018 We must rally the American people around an agenda that works for them, not the billionaire class
It is just not enough for the American people to have something to vote against, they must have something to vote for. Voters knew the myriad of problems with Donald Trump in 2016, and they still elected him. Today, despite all of his scandals and outrageous behavior, his approval ratings are close to the same levels as they were back then.
(4 comments) SHARE Thursday, August 19, 2021 The planet is in peril. We're building Congress's strongest-ever climate bill
The latest International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report is clear and foreboding. If the United States, China and the rest of the world do not act extremely aggressively to cut carbon emissions, the planet will face enormous and irreversible damage.
(12 comments) SHARE Monday, July 16, 2018 If the economy is "roaring," why are so many Americans still struggling?
All over America workers are asking themselves why, if the economy is "booming," are they forced to work longer hours for lower wages. Why, if the economy is "roaring," are they not able to afford childcare, send their kids to college or put aside enough money for a decent retirement.
(7 comments) SHARE Monday, January 25, 2010 Four Reasons Why Democrats Should Oppose the Bernanke Reappointment
In a letter to Senate colleagues, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today offered four reasons why Democrats should oppose the reappointment of Ben Bernanke as Chairman of the Federal Reserve. Here is the letter
(1 comments) SHARE Wednesday, July 20, 2011 Disaster Warning on 'Gang of Six'
Sanders: "The plan would result in devastating cuts to Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and many other programs that are of vital importance to working families in this country. Meanwhile, tax rates would be lowered for the wealthiest people and the largest, most profitable corporations."
(6 comments) SHARE Wednesday, December 23, 2015 To Rein In Wall Street, Fix the Fed
To rein in Wall Street, we should begin by reforming the Federal Reserve, which oversees financial institutions and which uses monetary policy to maintain price stability and full employment. Unfortunately, an institution that was created to serve all Americans has been hijacked by the very bankers it regulates.
(6 comments) SHARE Friday, February 12, 2021 Disappointed in Some Democrats
Dmocrats promised the American people that if we won both races in Georgia and took control of the Senate, we were going to pass a very popular COVID relief bill, including : $2,000 checks for the working people. Democrats won, and now it's time to deliver.
(9 comments) SHARE Friday, June 17, 2016 Prepared Remarks...The Political Revolution Continues
Real change never takes place from the top down, or in the living rooms of wealthy campaign contributors. It always occurs from the bottom on up -- when tens of millions of people say "enough is enough" and become engaged in the fight for justice. That's what the political revolution we helped start is all about. That's why the political revolution must continue.
(7 comments) SHARE Sunday, May 1, 2016 Prepared Remarks -- National Press Club
It's incumbent upon super delegates to take a hard and objective look at which candidate stands the better chance of defeating Trump. And in that regard, I think the evidence is extremely clear that I would be the stronger candidate to defeat Trump or any other Republican. This is not just the subjective opinion of Bernie Sanders. This is based on virtually every national and state poll done in the last several months.
(2 comments) SHARE Wednesday, June 20, 2012 Label Genetically Engineered Food
Sen. Sanders has written an amendment to the farm bill that would let states require that any food or beverage containing genetically-engineered ingredients be clearly labeled.
(2 comments) SHARE Tuesday, February 26, 2013 Sanders Disputes Manufacturers on Climate Bill
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today disputed claims by the National Association of Manufacturers on the economic impact of a carbon tax.
"The price that America cannot afford to pay is the price of doing nothing to reverse global warming," said Sanders.
(3 comments) SHARE Saturday, November 30, 2013 Don't cut the big benefit programs
We must not cut Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid. he time is long overdue for Congress to end corporate tax loopholes and ask the wealthiest people in this country to start paying their fair share of taxes. Let's be clear: Social Security is not an entitlement program. It is an earned income benefit that has been enormously successful in cutting the rate of senior poverty.
(2 comments) SHARE Sunday, June 2, 2013 We Must Not Accept This Economic "New Normal"
We need to tackle the planetary crisis of global warming by creating jobs transforming our energy system away from fossil fuels and into energy efficiency and sustainable energy. We need to end the scandal of one of four corporations paying nothing in federal taxes while we balance the budget on the backs of the elderly, the children, the sick and the poor.
(4 comments) SHARE Wednesday, October 1, 2008 Don't Make Working People Bail Out Wall Street
This country faces many serious problems in the financial market, in the stock market, in our economy. We must act, but we must act in a way that improves the situation. We can do better than the legislation now before Congress. This bill does not effectively address the issue of what the taxpayers of our country will actually own after they invest hundreds of billions of dollars in toxic assets.
(2 comments) SHARE Tuesday, February 25, 2014 A Huge Victory on Social Security
Some of you may have heard that, unlike his last year's budget, President Obama will NOT be proposing cuts in Social Security through a so-called "chained CPI" in his FY 2015 budget. This is not only a huge victory for seniors and working families, it is an enormously impressive victory for grass-roots progressive politics.
(1 comments) SHARE Wednesday, December 30, 2020 I Object
As a result of the pandemic, tens of millions of Americans have lost their jobs and their incomes. In the middle of the winter, families now face the threat of eviction and the possibility of being thrown out in the streets.
(3 comments) SHARE Wednesday, October 9, 2013 The Political Crisis in Washington
The real issue here is not just the desire of Republicans to defund Obamacare. At a time when the middle class is collapsing and poverty is increasing, these right-wing ideologues want to repeal virtually every piece of legislation passed in the last 80 years which protects the elderly, the children, the sick, the poor and the environment.
(6 comments) SHARE Monday, November 7, 2016 Here's how to send a message to Big Pharma
Prop. 61 is a common-sense reform. It ties the prices that the state of California pays for drugs for about 6 million patients, including Medi-Cal recipients and active and retired state employees, to the prices that the Department of Veterans Affairs pays. The nation is watching California. When Prop. 61 passes, I predict the revolution against drug industry price-gouging will sweep across the country like a prairie fire.
(5 comments) SHARE Monday, September 3, 2007 Sen. Bernie Sanders: Why He Opposes the Nussle Appointment as OMB Director
Personally, I like Jim Nussle. We came to Washington together and I worked with him for 16 years in the House of Representatives. He's smart. He is passionate.
Now, some of my colleagues may say ask, well if you like Mr. Nussle, and you believe that he is smart and passionate, why are you so opposed to his nomination?
That is a very fair question. Let me give you an answer.
(1 comments) SHARE Thursday, September 10, 2015 War Should Be the Last Option: Why I Support the Iran Nuclear Deal
If Iran moves toward a nuclear weapon, all available options remain on the table. I think it is incumbent upon us, however, to give the negotiated agreement a chance to succeed, and it is for these reasons that I will support the agreement.
(1 comments) SHARE Monday, March 14, 2011 Deficit Reduction Requires Shared Sacrifice
The rich are getting richer. The middle class and poor are getting poorer. What is the Republican solution to the deficit crisis? More tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires. Savage cuts in programs that are desperately needed by working families.
SHARE Monday, January 4, 2016 Rejecting the influence of billionaires on politics
The economic and political systems of this country are stacked against ordinary Americans. The rich get richer and use their wealth to buy elections, and I believe that we cannot change this corrupt system by taking its money. If we're serious about creating jobs, health care for all, climate change, and the needs of our children and the elderly, we must be serious about campaign finance reform.
(2 comments) SHARE Monday, September 19, 2011 On Obama's Deficit Plan
I welcome the president's decision to let states seek health care waivers in 2014 -- three years earlier than under the health-care law. This will give needed support and encouragement to Vermont as we seek to lead the nation in health reform.
SHARE Tuesday, September 15, 2020 While the Arctic Is on Fire
We do not have any time to waste in addressing the climate emergency facing our country and the world. According to the scientific community, we have only a few years to act before there will be irreparable damage.
(14 comments) SHARE Tuesday, April 1, 2008 Bernie Sanders: The Finnish Success Story
Why did I ask the Ambassador from Finland to come to Vermont to talk a little bit about his country? The answer is pretty simple. We as a state and nation should do our very best to learn as much as possible about the best kind of economic and social models that exist throughout the world and, where these models make sense, we should see how we can adopt them to this state and this country. This is especially true today.
(5 comments) SHARE Wednesday, July 11, 2018 A dangerous Supreme Court pick
Donald Trump's first nomination, Neil Gorsuch, has quickly become one of the most radical right-wing members of the court. The evidence suggests Brett Kavanaugh could go even further. The damage Brett Kavanaugh could do won't just last until the next election. He could serve on the Court for decades, making dangerous decisions for years to come.
SHARE Monday, April 16, 2012 Front-Burner Issues in the Senate
The outrageous income and wealth inequality in America continues to get worse. Almost all new income is going to the wealthiest people in our country, the people who need it the least, while the middle class continues to collapse and tens of millions of Americans struggle daily just to put food on the table, fill up their gas tanks to get to work and pay for their housing.
(12 comments) SHARE Friday, October 26, 2007 Why I Will Vote "No" on Mukasey
The attorney general of the United States must be a defender of our constitutional rights. Because President Bush thinks he can do whatever he wants to do in the name of fighting terrorism, we need an attorney general who can explain to the president what the Constitution of this country is all about.
That is why I will be voting against his nomination.
(3 comments) SHARE Saturday, September 19, 2015 Watch Bernie Sanders Speak on Morality and Justice at Liberty University
I spoke at Liberty University because I believe that it is important for those with different views in our country to engage in civil discourse -- not just to shout at each other or make fun of each other.
It is very easy for those in politics to talk to those who agree with us -- and I do that every day. It is harder, but not less important, to try and communicate with those who do not agree with us.
(1 comments) SHARE Friday, October 2, 2009 Michael Moore & Me
What we have seen in this country is an unfettered type of cowboy capitalism, and the result of that has been, that the people on top have made out like bandits and many of them are bandits.
(1 comments) SHARE Saturday, September 17, 2011 Wall Street's Secret Oil Games
Sen. Bernie Sanders explains the reason why he chose to disclose confidential oil speculation data to the public.
(2 comments) SHARE Sunday, September 6, 2020 Trump's Attacks on Election Integrity Is a Threat to Everything This Country Stands For
Donald Trump is a pathological liar. According to documented reports he has told more than 20,000 lies and distortions since he has been president. This is, obviously, deeply disturbing behavior for anyone who is president of the United States.
SHARE Wednesday, December 19, 2018 Sanders, Feinstein Oppose Inclusion of Israel Anti-Boycott Act in Appropriations Bill
As Congress considers a year-end appropriations bill, Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) called on Senate leadership not to include S. 720, the "Israel Anti-Boycott Act."
"We believe including this bill would violate the spirit of cooperation and commitment that Senate appropriators have made to oppose controversial riders on appropriations bills," the senators wrote in a letter
(1 comments) SHARE Thursday, March 21, 2013 Grand bargain could be grand sellout
We must not balance the budget on the backs of the elderly, the children, the sick and the poor. We must not cut Social Security, disabled veterans' benefits, Medicare, Medicaid, education and other programs that provide opportunity and dignity to millions of struggling American families.
SHARE Friday, July 26, 2013 Bernie Buzz: Wal-Mart Welfare
Bernie Buzz: Wal-Mart Welfare
In the midst of all the discussion about welfare reform, it turns out that the major welfare beneficiary in our country is the Walton family of Wal-Mart fame. The wealthiest family in America is worth more than $100 billion. One way they got so rich is by paying workers so little that tens of thousands of Wal-Mart employees use food stamps to feed their families and Medicaid to pay doctor bills. Series: Updates from Elected Officials (1 Articles, 693 views)
(5 comments) SHARE Wednesday, January 9, 2013 The Soul of America
Despite such terminology as "fiscal cliff" and "debt ceiling," the great debate taking place in Washington now has relatively little to do with financial issues. It is all about ideology. It is all about economic winners and losers in American society. It is all about the power of Big Money. It is all about the soul of America.
SHARE Saturday, September 12, 2009 Economic Crisis: One Year Later
Sen. Bernie Sanders discusses the collapse of the middle class, who is responsible & his collaboration with an unlikely congressman,Ron Paul, to try to do something about it.
(9 comments) SHARE Saturday, March 21, 2009 A Growing Outrage
If the bonus recipients want to argue that they had some contractual right to the money, I say let them go to court. Let them explain to a judge and jury why they deserve these bonuses after they helped create the largest financial crisis in our nation's history and after they turned to taxpayers to keep the company from collapsing.
SHARE Monday, May 21, 2012 Let's End Polluter Welfare
Sen. Sanders authors a column describing his legislation to end all subsidies to the fossil fuel industry, the End Polluter Welfare Act.
(3 comments) SHARE Thursday, April 4, 2013 Too Big to Jail?
Sen. Sanders writes about his bill to break up big banks.
(3 comments) SHARE Thursday, December 18, 2008 Navy Sinks Billions into Spare Parts
The U.S. today has a $10.6 trillion national debt and huge unmet needs in such areas as health care, education, infrastructure and sustainable energy. Unfortunately, in the midst of all of this the Pentagon, with a greatly expanded budget of $540 billion, continues to waste billions every year.
(3 comments) SHARE Friday, November 7, 2008 The Road to Economic Recovery
In these very difficult economic conditions, doing nothing is not an option. When the Senate reconvenes of November 17th, I intend to fight for an economic recovery program that is significant enough in size and scope to respond to the major economic crisis this country now faces.
(1 comments) SHARE Tuesday, August 13, 2013 Four Questions for Fed Chair Candidates
Sens. Sanders and Warren submit four questions that should be asked of any candidate for the Federal Reserve.
SHARE Monday, April 22, 2013 Earth Day
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), a member of the Senate environment and energy committees and the sponsor of legislation to curb greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming, issued the following statement on Monday's observation of Earth Day:
(6 comments) SHARE Tuesday, June 24, 2008 From Staffer to Contractor: Stopping the Pentagon's Revolving Door
As Congress prepares to consider the annual Department of Defense authorization bill and other military spending legislation totaling more than $700 billion, the need for more aggressive scrutiny is abundantly clear. A good place to start would be by slowing down the "revolving door" that allows high level Pentagon bureaucrats and military officers to go to work for major defense contractors.
(16 comments) SHARE Friday, March 7, 2008 Changing our National Priorities
We have a moral responsibility to put children ahead of millionaires and billionaires. That is why, during the Senate's consideration of the budget resolution, I will offer an amendment to restore the top income tax bracket to 39.6 percent for households earning more than $1 million a year.
(4 comments) SHARE Friday, October 16, 2009 The Dow and the Down and Out
While markets surged past 10,000, the official unemployment rate stood near 10 percent. The United States is in a unique historical position. People on top are doing extraordinarily well, but in the real world the middle class is collapsing.
(3 comments) SHARE Friday, October 30, 2009 The Environment and the Economy
Good environmental policy is good economic policy. We are not only helping to save the planet in terms of global warming, we are also moving to get this country out of the economic crisis that we are in right now. Are we making some progress? We really are.
SHARE Friday, August 21, 2009 Healthcare Reform 101
At town hall meetings I've hosted in Vermont we proved something that makes us proud. We live in a state where people can have different points of view, yet we can listen to each other and treat each other with respect.
In Vermont, there are many others like me who think the best way to solve the health care crisis (and save $400 billion a year in the process) ...
(3 comments) SHARE Thursday, July 17, 2008 Health Care for All
Our health care system is deteriorating. There are now 47 million people who have no health insurance, 8 million more than when President Bush took office. Millions more are uninsured. Costs are soaring. The result is not only widespread human tragedy but major economic problems.
SHARE Wednesday, March 17, 2010 Bernie Sanders: Stronger Financial Reform Needed to Avert Another Economic Crisis
"We have got to make it crystal clear to Wall Street that the era of wild speculation and greed is over. "Unfortunately, the financial reform bill, as currently written, does not go far enough in making the kinds of changes we desperately need."
SHARE Friday, November 13, 2009 Health Care for All Americans (VIDEO)
We are in a very interesting moment. I would hope from the grassroots of America people would tell Congress to do the right thing on this terribly important issue.
SHARE Friday, October 9, 2009 War and Peace
President Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to reduce nuclear arms, ease tensions with the non-Western world and stress diplomacy. Americans should be proud that we have a president who is restoring respect for our country around the globe. This well-deserved prize is an inspiration for the president and for rest of us to do some really hard thinking about how we create a more peaceful and just world.
(1 comments) SHARE Friday, August 14, 2009 Health Care Town Meetings
Shouting down and intimidating someone from speaking their mind is not exactly a Vermont town meeting value, nor should it be an American town meeting value. It simply suggests fear of ideas that you may not be familiar with or disagree with.
SHARE Friday, December 4, 2009 Where Was the Fed?
We need a new Fed chairman. We need somebody who is going to pay attention to small- and medium-sized business, somebody who is going to do everything he or she can to grow our economy and create decent paying jobs, somebody who is going to protect consumers against outrageously high interest rates on their credit cards, and somebody who is going to stand up for ordinary people.
SHARE Friday, August 28, 2009 Farewell Senator (VIDEO)
Ted Kennedy will go down in history as one of the giants of the U.S. Senate and one the most accomplished legislators in American history. He will also be remembered, by those who knew him, as an extremely warm and caring human being whose public service was a brilliant reflection of his love and devotion to his country, his friends and his family.
(1 comments) SHARE Monday, April 21, 2008 Bernie Sanders on The Colbert Report
Vermont's independent U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders will be a guest Monday night on The Colbert Report. Sanders said, "I've been on the O'Reilly show a couple of times, so I don't think this can be any worse than that. In fact, it should be a lot of fun."
(6 comments) SHARE Wednesday, July 8, 2009 The Health Care Crisis: Letters from Vermont and America
I sent an email to my Senate mailing list requesting support for a single-payer Medicare-for-All system, and for personal stories describing the problems people are having with their health care coverage. Within a few weeks, some 40,000 people signed the single-payer petition and more than 4,000 sent in their personal stories. I collected some of the letters in a booklet,"The Health Care Crisis: Letters from V.t and America."
SHARE Saturday, July 28, 2007 ‘Open Access’ Essential To Media Reform
Media ownership in this country is facing the largest crisis of ownership since the era of William Randolph Hearst’s yellow journalism.