What has Bernie ever accomplished?

• Greening the U.S. Government (June 2007): A Sanders amendment made a change to the law so at least 30 percent of the hot water demand in newer federal buildings is provided through solar water heaters.

• Protecting Our Troops (October 2007): Sanders used an amendment to win $10 million for operation and maintenance of the Army National Guard, which had been stretched thin and overextended by the war in Iraq.

• Restricting the Bailout to Protect U.S. Workers (Feburary 2009): A Sanders amendment required the banking bailout to utilize stricter H-1B hiring standards to ensure bailout funds weren't used to displace American workers.

• Exposing Corruption in the Military-Industrial Complex (November 2012): A Sanders amendment required "public availability of the database of senior Department officials seeking employment with defense contractors" -- an important step toward transparency that revealed the corruption of the revolving door in action.

• Support for Treating Autism in Military Health Care: Sanders worked with Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) to pass an amendment by a vote of 66-29 ensuring that the military's TRICARE system would be able to treat autism.

He was even able to force an amendment that Ron Paul had been trying to pass forever, requiring the first-ever audit of the Federal Reserve.

Hillary sometimes seems to imply (or get surrogates to state outright) that Sanders would destroy Obamacare. To the contrary, he not only supported it, but also successfully pushed through an important amendment to fund free community health clinics:

"When the Affordable Care Act was in danger of not having the votes to pass, Sanders used his leverage to win enough funding for free health treatment for 10 million Americans through Community Health Centers. This gutsy move -- holding out until the funds were put into the bill -- has even Republican members of Congress requesting the funds, which have helped millions of Americans who otherwise would not have access."

How many ineffective dreamers (much less applicants for conscientious objector stature) have received praise from John McCain for their work on veteran's issues?

"Another moment came when Sanders, who was then chair of the Veterans committee, worked with Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), to overhaul the Veterans Administration. McCain praised Sanders' work on the bill in an interview with National Journal. Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) even went so far as to say the bill would never have passed without Sanders' ability to bring the parties to a deal."

In sum, when people compare the records of Sanders and Clinton in the Senate, they often stop at the most superficial level, looking only at bills bearing their names as sponsors. Digging just a little deeper, it is obvious that Sanders has been a committed, effective, and successful progressive legislator for decades. The skills needed to be president go beyond this, of course, and Congress is much more polarized than it has ever been. Nevertheless, Bernie's real accomplishments on behalf of some of the most vulnerable in society speak to the fact that, at least in Congress, Bernie has far outpaced Hillary when it comes to getting things done.