I've never questioned Bernie Sanders' integrity or commitment, but I am not convinced this was the best use of the limited time in the 'lame duck' session given the long agenda remaining ~ I also question if anyone could or did stay engaged during the whole time Sanders was speaking ~ and given how deeply I believe the Rs will indeed cut the unemployed's only lifeline without blinking, mostly I question how Sanders' impassioned argument to not enact the tax agreement fits with "... his genuine commitment to those who too often have no champions" ~ Sooz

SANDERS SPEAKS.... After Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) held the Senate floor yesterday for eight-and-a-half hours, it's tempting to embed the whole thing. But given YouTube's time limits on clips, it would take roughly 34 separate videos to capture the floor appearance from start to finish.

I can, however, include this 12-minute clip, posted by Sanders' office and flagged by Joan McCarter, which helps give viewers a taste.

I'll gladly concede that I only caught parts of the senator's remarks, but my sense is that his core message -- "We can do better" -- has broad applicability. To be sure, Sanders appears to have been motivated by his strong opposition to the tax policy agreement hammered out by the White House and congressional Republicans, but let's not overlook the larger context here.

Sanders, it seems, doesn't just want to "do better" with this one tax deal; he wants the country's entire approach to economic inequalities to "do better." The senator was relentless in his criticism of the pending agreement, but his was a larger critique on the gap between rich and poor, concentrated wealth, trade, and Wall Street.

It was a rebuke, not just of the Republican provisions in the tax deal, but of what he sees as systemic flaws in U.S. economic policy.

This was the kind of message that Americans almost never hear, especially from elected officials in Washington, which only made the display that much more dramatic. What's more, many of Sanders' observations had the added benefit of being accurate.

The speech was not a literal filibuster -- there was no bill on the Senate floor at the time -- but that doesn't much matter, and it certainly doesn't take away from the extraordinary nature of Sanders' effort.

I'd add, just as an aside, that I'm one of Bernie Sanders' constituents, and I've voted for him at every available opportunity, helping elect him to the U.S. House and U.S. Senate. And if anyone saw yesterday's remarks as some kind of hollow stunt -- a politician grandstanding for ego and self-promotion -- think again. Whether one agrees with the senator or not, Sanders brings an unrivaled sincerity and passion to his work. He took to the floor yesterday, not because some lobbyist handed him talking points, not because he wants to be on television, not because he's driven by some personal ambition, but because he cares deeply about working families, and intends to fight to do what he can to help them.

Even I don't always agree with Sanders, but I know better than to question his genuine commitment to those who too often have no champions.

As for the political world's reaction, I'd also add that it was hard not to smile as Congress' lone socialist made the transition from quirky Vermonter with an unbreakable Brooklyn accent to liberal folk hero.

—Steve Benen 8:00 AM December 11, 2010

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archiv ... 027034.php

I always liked Sanders. He's a real independent and a reasonable individual. Too bad there aren't more like him.

Did anyone see the part when he talked about the Walmart owners?



Let us be very clear: This tax applies only--only--to the top three-tenths of 1 percent of American families; 99.7 percent of American families will not pay one nickel in an estate tax. This is not a tax on the rich, this is a tax on the very, very, very rich.

   If my Republican friends had been successful in doing what they want to do, which is eliminate this estate tax completely, it would have cost our Treasury--raised the national debt by $1 trillion over a 10-year period. Families such as the Walton family, of Wal-Mart fame, would have received, just this one family, about a $30 billion tax break.

   I find it hard to believe when we are talking about massive cuts in programs for working families, when we have this huge national debt, that anybody would be agreeing to lowering the estate tax rate to 35 percent. That is what this agreement does and I think that is a very bad idea.

http://sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/news/?id=e35eddb4-0d83-4c55-92c0-e448c55526ff

It's hard to conceive that much wealth. It borders on obscene.

Actually... I'm glad I'm not.

Being on everybody's kidnap list doesn't sound like much fun.