Biden Blasts Sanders: He Has Been Talking About Medicare for All for Years but ‘Nothing Happened’
Former Vice President Joe Biden took aim at Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.) over his record on getting legislation passed into law.
In an interview on NBC News’ “Meet The Press” on Sunday, Biden blasted Sanders for failing to pass a Medicare for All plan despite talking about it for decades. Biden also touted his efforts to win the needed votes to pass the Affordable Care Act — or Obamacare.
“He’s never got anything done,” Biden said, adding, “He’s been talking about healthcare, Medicare for all, universal healthcare for all for 35 years. Nothing’s happened. I helped get passed Obamacare. I helped move it forward. I got the votes. I’m in a position where I take something and I’ll promise you I’ll get done.”
Watch the interview below:
Additionally, Biden ripped into plans for Medicare for all proposed by Sanders and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.)
“Bernie requires, and Elizabeth’s plan requires you to give up all private insurance. These folks have broken their necks, the Culinary Union and others, to get the most comprehensive healthcare that’s out there. And they’ve given up wages. Now they’re being told you gotta give it up. You can’t keep it. And it’s going to cost thirty trillion dollars or more. And I can’t tell you who’s going to pay for it. I mean come on. I think people are so tired of the lack of straight forwardness out there.”
Biden’s comments come just days before the Nevada caucuses, which take place Feb. 22., where the influential Culinary Union recently warned its members that Sanders’ Medicare for all plan would cost them their existing healthcare plans. However, the union has said it will not endorse a candidate ahead of the primary.
After Sanders came in a close second in the Iowa caucuses and eeked out a victory in Nevada, several prominent Democrats have begun speaking out about Sanders, warning that he could be damaging to the Democratic Party’s electoral prospects across the board.
Published in IJR
Last night, I was chatting with someone who lived and worked in three countries, two of which have socialized medicare. One of them was the US. He, rightly so, thinks we are nuts.
He has worked in Canada for the last seven years and he got like a $35K “raise” when he moved there because he wasn’t held ransom by their health care system. In Brazil, where he was born, he said that they pay 5% for their health care and they cover everyone, too, except for dental.
We as a nation need to wake up.
So how do you get 217 House members and 60 U.S. Senators to vote for M4A? Send them all to talk to your friend? Are you claiming everyone will get a “$35K ‘raise'”? Will that be doctors and healthcare workers–RN’s, Resp therapist, Physical therapist, X-ray techs, Occupational therapists? We know it won’t be those in the commercial healthcare industry. PLEASE don’t spend your $35 raise before you get it.
I am really interested in exactly which of the 35 2020 Senate races you see being replaced with a Far LEFT candidate? Ben Sasse, Martha McSally, Cory Gardner, Tom Cotton, Jim Inofe? AOC & Bernie endorsement flipped ZERO seats in 2018. Ads were run against D’s claiming they would join Bernie. They were a deterrent not a help in winning the House. Sen Sinema flipped the Arizona seat as a MODERATE, not a Bernie endorsee.
Are you anticipating that your fellow Bernie Bros are going to follow the dimwitted Republicans patiently waiting 10 years to hear details of the healthcare plan to replace Obamacare? Good luck with that.
YOU had to be paying attention in 2010 when the R’s claimed Obamacare was socialized medicine. Despite needing to be a low-information voter to believe subsidies to buy commercial insurance is socialized medicine, WHICH IJR poster appears embarrassed that they were sucked in to such foolishness. D’s lost control of the House and eventually the Senate. R’s promised they would repeal and replace Obamacare—-Still these folks are not admitting they were suckered BUT they must know they WERE—-Trump, Ryan, and McConnell could not come up with a plan. The “plan” is not going to be announced until some undetermined time “after 2020.”
Dear Leader applies pressure to get what he wants. Bernie has his plans to apply a different pressure. If he gets into the Whitehouse, do you really think that he will be completely powerless? More progressives will be elected this time, too, so he will be backed by more friends. The 2021 Congress won’t be exactly the same as today.
The person I was talking with got his “raise” because he wasn’t paying our ridiculous health insurance cost. Once we get M4A, we ALL get the same advantage, but we need to convince enough voters to fight for change too.
You don’t have a better plan. King Donald The Loser LIED about having a better (non)plan, and all corrupt politicians are told by their donors to resist change. Bernie knows what needs to be changed and I feel he can achieve what needs to be done. We need someone who will at least TRY for us.
Maybe Joe shouldn’t be calling Bernie out on years spent in the Senate with little to show. Joe represented DE for almost 40 years, but he’s now bragging about a bad piece of legislation bearing Obozo’s name?
Maybe Joe’s made too many trips behind the high school gym.
It’s curious that Joe is not bragging about his own legislative accomplishments, if he has any.
Care to Phil us in?
I am confused, I Ching. Don’t YOU know?
Great that Biden is taking credit for pushing Obamacare along. Nothing to brag about there.
Joe’s missing the point that it’s called Obamacare not Bidencare for a reason.
I hate to disagree with Joe, but Bernie Bros are not looking for straight talk any more than Trumpers are. Bernie Bros are convinced everyone in Congress is going to do a 180 and vote for Bernie policies simply because he says the magic word of “Revolution.” They are convinced, without explanation that the voters of Red States are going to replace their current representatives with AOC endorsed candidates. The majority of D’s want straight talk, but Bernie’s supporters are not the majority of even Democrats. Straight talk will only work after Joe comes up with a plan to Make America Sane Again.
Red state voters get sick, too. They go broke when they get sick, too. They want a different health care system, too. A LOT of them want something better than what we have now. They WANT something better, cheaper and more effective, less deadly. Don’t you?
M4A can be fully paid for at about half the rate of what we pay now, it covers everyone, so it costs less, it will increase our GDP by a good amount. Even “conservative” people can understand these things.
So where is your sane plan to make things better, huh? Keep the same-old same-old? No, you are better than that.
We HAVE to do things differently than what we have now. We MUST do things differently, which means we first have to TRY.
You assume red state voters understand what socialized medicine means vs what they are told it means.
Its a huge hurdle and Bernie is far to radical in all category which is going to hinder his ability to make headway in any category even if he is elected.
Right or wrong – that is reality and Bernie supporters simply refuse to be reasoned with.
The “Bernie Bro” idea is mostly a myth played up by anecdotal experience and a very biased media.
Are there some angry supporters? Of course, but if I got called a brownshirt, I would be ticked off, too. If I watched Bernie get screwed by the DNC and Clinton’s funding of them, I would be ticked off, too. You see what you WANT to see.
I wasnt refering to Bernie Bros, i was more talking about Bernie Supporters in general.
And many Democrats are pretty annoyed with the Democrat party being pushed in a radical left direction that they didnt want nor support either – so let’s call that even.
The progressive left are not “radical lefties”, though. They represent the center of this country. All of their policies favor well with Democrats, independents AND American Fascists.
Bernie Sanders is pretty far left. There is a reason he was an Independent before trying to force his way into the Democrat party.
And if your platform is, “I know whats good for you better than you” then you’ve lost. That isn’t a battle you’re going to win with moderates.
You’re counting on “Kids love my hairy legs”, Gropin’ Joe making America Sane again, when HIS sanity’s in question? Good luck with that!!
ROFLMFAO!!!!!!
In WHAT world is Joe Biden less sane than the Pussy grabber? Less sane than the pathological liar? Less sane than the guy who thinks there were airports during the Revolutionary War? Good luck with THAT!