Vermont’s two U.S. senators, Bernie Sanders and Patrick Leahy, speaking at a news conference Thursday, signaled optimism that Congress can pass major legislation such as a $3.5 trillion domestic budget, but implored their colleagues to pick up the pace.
Sanders and Leahy are the chairmen of the Senate’s consequential budget and appropriations committees, respectively, putting them at the helm of major bill negotiations this fall. Sanders, in particular, has publicly sparred with moderate Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, who have held up budget negotiations for weeks.
Democrats hold only slim majorities in both the Senate and the House, and Sanders told reporters Thursday that “every single person has got to be on board.”
“So this is not easy, but everybody knows the enormity of the stakes involved and we are going to pass it,” he said.
At a press conference with Washington reporters last week, Sanders said “it’s not good enough to be vague,” and implored Manchin and Sinema to offer specifics as to why they oppose the budget. Manchin has referred to the budget numerous times as a move toward an “entitlement society.”
Asked Thursday whether he has spoken to Manchin and Sinema since last week, Sanders answered that the senators “speak on a regular basis” and there “is a sense of urgency” to get the budget done. As for Manchin and Sinema’s specific grievances, Sanders said the senators “are making progress.”
“Trust me, we are working on this bill 24/7 and we are going to get it done and we are going to have Sen. Manchin and Sen. Sinema on board, as well,” he said.
The $3.5 trillion plan allocates federal dollars to expand Medicare, lower prescription drug costs, mitigate climate change, improve child care access and more — policies that Sanders argued again on Thursday that the majority of Americans favor.
“I believe, given the enormous support that this legislation has from the American people, from the president of the United States, from some 96% of the Democratic caucus in both the House and Senate — yeah, we are going to pass this,” Sanders said.
A Quinnipiac poll from late July and early August found that 62% of Americans surveyed said they supported “a $3.5 trillion spending bill on social programs such as child care, education, family tax breaks and expanding Medicare for seniors,” while 32% said they did not.
At Thursday’s news conference, Leahy appeared frustrated with his Washington colleagues’ stalling, saying he is “so tired” of them worrying about the political optics of their stances. He harkened back to his first three months in the Senate, when he had to vote on whether to continue funding the Vietnam War.
“They told me I’d never be reelected if I voted against it,” said Leahy, who has held his seat since 1975. “The funding for the Vietnam War was cut off by a one-vote margin: mine.”
He said he knew it was the right thing to do, and urged his colleagues to also consider what the right thing to do is for their constituents now.
“These are issues that the vast majority of Americans across the political spectrum, throughout the country, support,” Leahy said. “Then why the hell don’t we get down there and vote for them?”