Bernie says we need more. You agree?

Wednesday, September 29

In this July 28, 2021, photo, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., talks to reporters at the Capitol in Washington. The progressive advocacy group Our Revolution is rebranding now that Bernie Sanders is no longer the undisputed leader of the left. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) ORG XMIT: WX201

$3.5 trillion reconciliation bill: To cut or not?

Midweek! Here's what we have today.

Today's biggest story revolves around the $3.5T federal spending plan. We have a column from Sen. Bernie Sanders about why we must not cut any more from the bill, paired with a piece from the Editorial Board about why money must be cut from the plan.

Sen. Bernie Sanders: $3.5 trillion reconciliation bill can't be cut

By Sen. Bernie Sanders

We live in an unprecedented moment as our country faces enormous crises, including COVID-19, climate change, attacks on democracy, income and wealth inequality, and the multidecade decline of the American middle class.

As chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, I proposed a $6 trillion reconciliation bill that would begin to address these long-neglected problems. A strong majority of the Democratic caucus supported that proposal, but not all.

As a result, we made a major compromise to reduce that budget from $6 trillion to $3.5 trillion. This entire package would not add to the deficit and would be paid for by demanding that the wealthiest people in our country and large, profitable corporations start paying their fair share of taxes.

Today's Editorial Cartoon

Mike Thompson, USA TODAY

USA TODAY

•	McConnell plays a game of chicken with his debt ceiling stance: Mike Thompson toon

Our View: Cut President Biden's $3.5 trillion proposal or lose it all

By The Editorial Board

"The next few days will be a time of intensity," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said over the weekend. History will judge whether Democrats in Congress are up to the challenge.

With control of Congress by razor-thin margins, the party has a chance to implement sweeping historical changes to help save the climate, greatly reduce child poverty, and improve the lives of lower-income and middle-class Americans. They must not let this opportunity slip away by quarreling over too many initiatives that cost too many trillions of dollars.

With every Democratic vote in the Senate and nearly every one in the House a prerequisite for passing the largest spending bill in history, a handful of moderates have made clear they will not vote for anything costing $3.5 trillion over a decade (the proposal is so chockful of ideas, it has come to be known only by its price tag).

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Columns on qualified immunity

Here's a new section we're adding to the newsletter. Currently we are doing a series examining the issue of qualified immunity. The project is made possible in part by a grant from Stand Together. Stand Together does not provide editorial input.

•	A bad cop sexually assaulted me. Qualified immunity protected him and his boss.
•	Qualified immunity: 8 myths about why police need it to protect the public
•	'Blow his head off': Supreme Court must strip federal agents of absolute immunity