8 Quotes From Congress About Bernie Sanders

[Oilwellian]

Senator Jeff Sessions — Republican, Alabama

“I’ve always respected Bernie and we’ve gotten along personally well.”

Senator Jack Reed — Democrat, Rhode Island

“[He’s] a gentleman, thoughtful, a leader… If you want to have a pleasant discussion on not only policy issues but just issues of the day, he’s a pleasant guy.”

Senator Richard Burr — Republican, North Carolina

“[Sanders is] one who’s willing to sit down and compromise and negotiate to get to a final product.”

Senator Roger Wicker — Republican, Mississippi

“I learned early on not to be automatically dismissive of a Bernie Sanders initiative or amendment… He’s tenacious and dogged and he has determination, and he’s not to be underestimated.”

Senator Sherrod Brown — Democrat, Ohio

“[Sanders] would call them ‘tripartite amendments’ because we’d have him and he’d get a Republican, he’d get a Democrat and he’d pass things.

He’s good at building coalitions.”

Senator John Mccain — Republican, Arizona

“(While working on the Veterans Affairs legislation) "I found him to be honorable and good as his word.”

Senator Chuck Schumer — Democrat, New York

“He knew when to hold and knew when to fold and, I think, maximized what we could get for veterans.”

Senator Jack Reed — Democratic, Rhode Island (again)

“Frankly, without him, I don’t think we would have gotten [the Veterans Affairs legislation] done…

It was a great testament to his skill as a legislator.”

* *

You constantly hear about how Bernie Sanders is disliked by his colleagues — but this is simply untrue.

A simple Google search will reveal otherwise, and the fact that the media portrays him in such a different light says far more about them, and the lack of substantial journalism in this country, than Bernie Sanders himself.

He is excellent at building coalitions, compromising, and getting things done.

He is well-liked and well-respected by other senators, and has often worked with them to bring real change to the American people ( Sanders passed the most amendments of any representative serving alongside him while in the House).

DKos w/links

[madokie]

1. Sanders is a good guy

very deserving of where he is today in politics.
I say he will be our next President.

[Oilwellian]

5. I've been following him for years, madokie

Never in my wildest dreams did I think he could be in contention for the presidency. It's almost surreal.

[madokie]

8. It is surreal

awesome that we have a spokesman for us the people and he is our candidate. I'm convinced that the more people get to know him the better his chances are to the point where he'll waltz into the oval office come january 20 of 2017

He's an old man like me and he is on point, stays on his message and that message is the walk he's been talking all his political life. He's no late comer to the party by any stretch.

Bernie Sanders is the real deal.

[dorkzilla]

21. Cometh the hour, cometh the man. nt

[roguevalley]

18. It would be good for the record to get quotes from these three toads, Shaheen, McCaskill and Rendell

[safeinOhio]

30. A Man of a His Word

Right on Blinky

[tblue37]

42. I have read elsewhere that he is well liked on the Hill because he is a man of his word. He can be t

to do what he says he will do--and not to do what he says he won't. That wins respect and good will all around. Even Repiblicans trust and like him, whereas they can't necessarily trust their own side not to backstab or change their position if they think it might help them.

Integrity and decency are very attractive qualities. Even opponents find such character traits appealing.

Also, I suspect many GOP representatives and senators would prefer to do things that would help people and reverse our nation's decline, but they are too scared to go against the vicious, irrational mob that controls their partty. TPTB can harness the mob to publicly humiliate and censure them for the slightest deviation from the party hard line, and TPTB will finance a primary against anyone who takes a single step off the reservation.

Those who wish they could do something to help the country probably love it when Bernie finds a way to get in an amendment that the base won't catch the Republican supporting.

[Elmer S. E. Dump]

32. Oh, he will undoubtedly be the next U. S. President.

Don't (I know you don't) underestimate the power of truth and justice. It is ingrained in a well functioning society and is difficult to overcome. Yes, I admit I'm feeling incredibly BERNt!!

[Ichingcarpenter]

2. Also Bernie uses the Bully pulpit as a master of the game

To also sway public opinion for public policy and getting things done


Obama has that power, Clinton in his old days did but Hillary never has

[Oilwellian]

6. I think he will be very capable at...

guilting congress into getting things done for the people. The gig is almost up.

[Ichingcarpenter]

12. He has that gift to put things into perspective

with facts and figures for the average american to understand without sounding patronizing which is why I used to listened to him years ago every friday when he was on the Tomm Hartman radio show on Air America.

Now imagine Hillary doing that every Friday for years?

[Autumn]

3. Wonderful post. This certainly puts that "disliked by his colleagues" meme to rest.

[Oilwellian]

7. Thank you, Autumn

It's a Kos diary that I had to bring here.

[arcane1]

4. Standard Rovian technique is to apply your own weaknesses onto your opponent.

The "republicans would hate him more than they hate Clinton" lie is a classic example.

[VulgarPoet]

13. Ah yes, I believe that's what PatrickforO referred to as

"the Rovian Ratfuck".

[amborin]

9. Great post!

[oasis]

10. Let's hear from a GOP congressperson who will back Bernie's tax hike.

[Wilms]

11. How much do you make?? n/t

[oasis]

14. I'm a Capricorn and I use Pepsodent toothpaste.

A lifelong Democrat and a strong supporter of Hillary Clinton for president.

P.S. I can't be paid off.

[Ichingcarpenter]

15. He's talking about your tax bracket not your toothpaste

but I guess you knew that.

[oasis]

16. Since you correctly guessed what I knew, maybe you can guess

why I got a sideways response to my original post.

[arcane1]

17. You oppose the elimination of expensive insurance premiums? Good to know.

It's a losing proposition, but please, take the right-wing approach and see where it gets you

[Oilwellian]

24. Americans and businesses will LOVE not having to pay high insurance premiums

We will both save thousand$ every year. We know Republicans don't care how much the people will save, but they will jump on anything that helps business.

[eridani]

46. Anyone who prefers paying a %900/month "premium" to a $200/month "tqx"

--should not be running around outside without adult supervision.

[Art_from_Ark]

63. That reminds me of the time I was at the shop of a coin dealer friend

and another customer was ahead of me. The customer ahead of me was looking at a book of semi-rare Jefferson nickels. My dealer friend was offering the whole book for $10.
"I don't need the whole book", the customer said, "just a few dates".
So he picked out 5 or 6 coins, and my dealer friend said, "You know, if you buy those individually like that, it's going to cost you $15."
"I don't care," said the customer, "These are the only ones I need".
So he paid $15 for few coins, when he could have had everything for $10.

[A Simple Game]

19. You will, either just before the '18 midterm elections or shortly after from their replacement. n/t

[jeff47]

25. Let's hear from a GOP congressperson who will back Clinton's expansion of the ACA.

Oh wait....there aren't any of those either.

Well, we better settle because that way we get nothing instead of getting nothing.

[TIME TO PANIC]

27. Oh no, the republicans! I'm scared.

We can't do it.

[oasis]

38. I thought the OP was supposed to have a calming effect.

My bad.

[TIME TO PANIC]

39. I'm calm.

...and I'm sure both republicans and corporate democrats will oppose the tax hikes, that is why we should keep the bar low and settle for Clinton. I mean, it's not like this is a democracy where the will of the people influence their elected officials.

[sulphurdunn]

20. I'm surprised to read this.

I would have expected him to be disliked by most of his senatorial colleagues because most of them are assholes. So, if he can build coalitions with them, he's the man becasue assholes run the place.

[bbgrunt]

22. thank you. Bernie is a natural born leader.

[frylock]

23. Senator Barack Obama — Democrat, Illinois

She seems likable enough.

[rocktivity]

26. TRANSLATION: "4 Quotes From Democrat Superdelegates

Last edited Wed Feb 10, 2016, 06:07 PM - Edit history (2)

Who Won't Hesitate To Vote Against Hillary If Doesn't Win The Majority Of The Popular Vote Delegates -- Just Like They Did In 2008."

rocktivity

[TIME TO PANIC]

28. K & R!

[Spitfire of ATJ]

29. I heard he has no enemies which is unheard of in DC.

[NurseJackie]

31. Don't forgot the ubiquitous and obligatory "My Good Friend..."

... I think they were just being polite.

But, I'm sure it won't be long before some clever ad-writer manages to turn that quote from Sherrod Brown into an (implied) endorsement of Sanders.


Note to Jury: This post contains a combination of my opinion, my observations, and a little snark. It is not against the rules to have an opinion, or to state personal observations or to be snarky. No candidate or candidate's fans were smeared or attacked. Don't ban me, bro!

[Oilwellian]

44. So you think they're lying?

Sanders passed the most amendments of any
representative serving alongside him while in the House.

[valerief]

33. They all love Bernie and all hate Cruz. nt

[IllinoisBrenel]

34. He Gets Things Done!

And serves his constituents well!


[link:http://www.newsweek.com/bernie-sanders-most-popular-senator-397853|

[dragonfly301]

35. Alan Grayson had some complimentary tweets last night

Let me tell you something about @BernieSanders that you probably didn’t know. (1/3)

He served for 16 yrs in the House, and for much of that time, @BernieSanders passed more amendments on the Floor than any other Member (2/3)

.@BernieSanders passed good, solid progressive amendments. Lots of them. He was principled, and he was effective. (3/3)

I was surprised, I thought Grayson had endorsed Hillary.

[avaistheone1]

37. That's more than a solid endorsement.

Thanks dragonfly301

[Duval]

36. K&R! nt

[tblue37]

40. KnR for visibility. nt

[grntuscarora]

41. K&R!

[Dont call me Shirley]

43. "He's good at building coalitions." That destroys the "Bernie won't be able to get anything done

with congress" argument.

[glinda]

45. K&R

[bigwillq]

47. K and R (nt)

[DrDan]

48. "He is excellent at building coalitions, compromising, and getting things done."

strange that he cannot introduce bills and get them passed then, isn't it.

How many in his 25 years?

[concreteblue]

50. Well, it was not renaming a post office.....

The Veteran's Choice Bill was a pretty big deal for our vets. He wrote it AND got it passed bi-partisan. But keep Shilling. It looks great on you.

[DrDan]

53. How many?

Avoiding the question looks good on you.

[concreteblue]

54. At least as many as Hillary. And, like I said, It wasn't renaming a post office.

And then there is this:
"While Sanders chaired the Senate’s Veteran Affairs committee during the 113th Congress (2013-2014), 13 of the committee’s bills became law. That may not sound like a lot until you realize that the Senate Veterans Affairs (VA) committee only passed 8.5 bills into law on average during each of the past 20 Congresses and that these 13 bills became law during the second least productive Congress in American history."....."Sanders was so effective as a legislator that the (right-wing) Veterans of Foreign Wars awarded him its highest honor in 2015."

."How many bills did Clinton successfully shepherd into law as the chair of a Senate committee? Zero. Clinton did not chair any Senate committees during the three Congresses she served in because she did not accumulate enough seniority."
https://pplswar.wordpress.com/2015/10/21/fact-bernie-sanders-got-more-done-in-the-senate-than-hillary-clinton/

[DrDan]

56. what did your "not renaming a post office" mean? Just curious.

[concreteblue]

57. From the link

"As a Senator, Clinton sponsored three bills that became law: S.3145, S.3613, and S.1241. The first of these renamed a highway in New York state, the second renamed a post office in New York City, and the third established the Kate Mullany National Historic Site in Troy, New York and authorized funding to set the site up."
THe only Legislation she wrote and got signed into law were bills of little consequence. Did she co-sponsor other bills, some of great consequence? Of course. But so did Bernie. And his writing and getting passed and signed into law the Veteran's Choice Act dwarfs anything she accomplished as a Senator.
You asked the rhetorical question in your fishing expedition post. Enjoy your catch.

[DrDan]

58. the VA bill was one of three Bernie had passed. Do you know what his other two bills were?

[concreteblue]

59. One was renaming a post office. Yes. But you know this.

Your cleverness in no way changes the fact that your original question was a lame and impotent attempt to muddy the water.

[DrDan]

60. both were

So you consider 3 sponsored bills (2 of which renamed post offices) being passed in a 25-year career a sign of a leader? The sign of a person skilled at coalition building?

never mind. I know the answer to that as well.

[concreteblue]

62. Hillary also sponsored three bills. And you think she is a leader.

ALL THREE of which were as inconsequential as the one that renamed a post office.
And THAT shows what you are about.
Have a nice day.

[LS_Editor]

49. I am pleased with my U.S. Senators.

Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse are good guys.

Not so thrilled about Congressman Langevin.

[Enthusiast]

51. Kicked and recommended!

Thank you, Oilwellian!

[Betty Karlson]

52. Sanders: he gets things done! So pragmatic! (But principled too.)

Can we please nominate the president who gets things done? The one with the cross-ovger appeal and who knows how to work with senators from any party?

[Wounded Bear]

55. So, he's the Anti-Cruz?

[Uncle Joe]

61. Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, Oilwellian.