Bernie Sanders makes a play for Biden Labor secretary

[brooklynite]

Source: Politico

Sen. Bernie Sanders is hoping to be a part of Joe Biden’s potential administration and has expressed a particular interest in becoming Labor secretary, two people familiar with the conversations tell POLITICO.

“I can confirm he's trying to figure out how to land that role or something like it,” said one person close to the Vermont senator. “He, personally, does have an interest in it.”

Sanders on Wednesday declined to confirm or deny that he’s putting his name forward for the position.

“Right now I am focused on seeing that Biden is elected president,” he told POLITICO. “That’s what my main focus is.”

Read more: https://www.politico.com/amp/news/2020/10/22/bernie-sanders-biden-labor-secretary-431266

[Iliyah]

1. Sanders would be good . . .

a plus for labor.

[cstanleytech]

13. But how big a risk do we face that a Republican might get his Senate seat currently?

[pnwmom]

15. High risk. The current Governor is a Republican. n/t

[mcar]

2. ...

Link to tweet

?s=20

Bernie reveals plan for his own 100 day agenda to rival Biden's.

Also says he's prepared to back primary challenges against ANY Democrats who don't move to a progressive agenda.
"You're damn right I am."

[still_one]

3. Lol. I can just imagine what the polls would be if he was the nominee

[greenjar_01]

41. 60-40 Trump across the board

Would be a Reagan 84 election.

Trump desperately wanted to face Sanders or Warren. Desperately. The Biden smears were to knock him out of the primaries.

Luckily, Democratic primary voters (and especially people of color) recognized the danger and put the right candidate up against Trump.

[FirstLight]

4. without watching the video, wth does this mean?

I'm confused?

[mcar]

36. Bernie and his diehard supporter, Krystal Ball

trying to inject themselves into Biden's transition. Bernie apparently is releasing his own first 100 days agenda - something a president-elect generally does.

Bernie apparently doesn't realize, or doesn't care, that he lost in the primaries.

[betsuni]

8. Bernie says he wants to lay out an agenda for the working class.

Just saw a tweet where AOC says "send a massage that the Democratic Party needs to do better & step up for working families."

A $15 minimum wage bill already passed in the House, and probably lots of other progressive things to help working/middle class, as Democrats do. Republicans control the Senate, so if Democrats can take the Senate all these bills can pass, they're ready to go immediately.

Can someone explain to me why some people think the Democratic Party doesn't have a progressive agenda that helps the working class? I don't get it.

[cstanleytech]

14. I am really tired of that push for 15$ to be honest.

Why? Because as things stand unless there is an automatic feature built in that Republican's cannot interfere with people will eventually be in the same position they are now of the current wage not being enough but Republicans refusing and outright blocking any help to the average American worker.
No, what we really need is some sort of thing where a companies wages are linked to its corporate taxes and similarly the 1% taxes are linked to how many people are living with a wage that is 500% or below what the federal poverty amount is.

[Dopers_Greed]

19. Agreed

I think it should be calculated based on something like:

1. Cost of living in area
2. Median wage in area
3. Inflation
4. Overall GDP

Hell, I don't know. It could be whatever formula, as long as it increases it.

That way, it blows up the "B-b-b-b-but $15 is a lot for Alabama but not NYC" argument.

[Roy Rolling]

29. That's exactly what we want to avoid

Competing areas where different costs-of-living determine wages. That’s the point of having a standard $15. It isn’t perfect, but it’s a standard, a minimum.

Complexity favors Republicans who wish to hide exploitation in the fine print.

[George II]

33. Yes, she told voters in that tweet to NOT vote for Biden on the Democratic line.

[Sapient Donkey]

51. Is it this tweet or different one?

Link to tweet

[George II]

52. I believe that's the one.

[JI7]

18. Isn't he already in the Senate Right now ? Why does he need to wait to start to get to work ?

[George II]

34. Excellent question.

[mcar]

37. Good question

[Cha]

24. Yeah yeah.. I don't care. I want President

Biden if we should be so Fortunate.

There will be no shadow gov.

[George II]

35. His own agenda? Didn't Biden win the nomination and will hopefully be elected President?

[mcar]

38. Perhaps someone should let Bernie and the "reporter" know

[George II]

40. "reporter"....

[mcar]

42. ...

[TexasTowelie]

5. Since his Senate would be filled by a Republican governor,

I don't think that this is necessarily the best idea.

[still_one]

7. I don't think it is a good idea regardless

[Cha]

25. Exactly.. If we should be fortunate

enough to have Biden for President.. I trust his judgment on who he wants for his Labor Sec.

[still_one]

28. +++

[VarryOn]

6. He deserves something more substantial than Labor...

It's one of the kiddie table posts on the cabinet. See Energy, Interior, or Transportation.

My vote would be Commerce or maybe Treasury.

[Cha]

26. If we Get Joe Biden for Pres.. he will

choose who he wants for his Cabinet.. he's earned it.

[Yeehah]

46. Did anyone suggest otherwise?

[Sgent]

43. I don't know about that

especially if funded DOL includes OSHA, MMMS, Wage & Hour enforcement, PGBC, and supervision of all retirement plans including 401k.

Commerce does basically no enforcement and just sets standards (NIST), Census, economic forecasting / statistics. Commerce has a vote in things like trade rules and regulations, but that is often run directly out of the WH or at State.

[Gothmog]

9. Vermont has a GOP governor

We cannot afford to lose a senate Seat

[onetexan]

27. Good answer. Bernie should stay in the Senate, same as Elizabeth Warren is - both to help Dems

maintain a majority. Not a fan of Bernie putting cart before horse.

[Gothmog]

39. We will need sanders vote in the Senate

[paleotn]

10. Absolutely not.

We have a Republican governor and he's not likely to lose in November. He's Republican super light, but still a Republican. I do not want Phil Scott nominating a replacement. We will lose a Senate seat until a special election no later than 6 months after the seat becomes vacant. Unless we Dems get more than 50 seats in the next congress, it ain't happening.

[LudwigPastorius]

11. Senator Sanders still sounds good to me, and it should sound good to Bernie too.

...especially if that single seat is the deciding vote in an otherwise deadlocked Senate.

In such a scenario, he would wield much more power than if he took a mid-level cabinet position.

[JoeOtterbein]

12. I posted this story 1st...

...why is this repost on the front page?

DU

[NurseJackie]

30. LOL

There's no rule against posting links to the same article in TWO DIFFERENT FORUMS, is there?

[pnwmom]

16. Remaining in the Senate as a key member of the majority he'll accomplish much more than

in a Biden administration with a Senate run by Mitch McConnell.

[yuiyoshida]

17. sounds good but lets NOT COUNT OUR CHICKENS before they hatch

This Election is not won yet...

[Hekate]

20. I missed the part where we already won the election

[Dopers_Greed]

21. Wouldn't that be a step down for him?

Seems like Dems constantly forget how powerful Senators are.

[George II]

31. According to the headline, who is "making a play" for the job?

[Skittles]

22. no

[TeamPooka]

23. Senators can't serve in this administration. We need to hold the Senate. Without it the whole

thing goes to shit.

[George II]

32. Another article by that person reading things into something that aren't....

Always basing the substance of an article on "one person close to XXXX".

[tormadjax]

44. Lets wait until there is a Labor Sec opening first eh? n/t

[IronLionZion]

45. I want President Biden to appoint Mitch McConnell to something

just to take that Kentucky Senate seat. And then fire Mitch.

Bernie would probably be a decent labor secretary. I would trust Biden to choose qualified people for every cabinet post. Vermont's senate seat wouldn't stay GOP for very long.

[marble falls]

47. Works for me.

[Cha]

48. Biden will Choose if we should be so fortunate..

That Works for me.

[ehrnst]

49. I hope he's learned something about the rights of organized labor to talk to the press.

From 2019:

Sanders denounced his union employees for exercising their NLRB endorsed right to speak to the press. I suppose he either didn't know enough about labor rights, or he thought that his own union staff were exempt from those rights if it meant they could do something that displeased him, or he assumed their fealty to the extent that they would never dare exercise them in a way that displeased him.

The NLRB found this rule to be unlawful and explained: “Employees have a statutory right to speak publically about their complaints or concerns with their terms and conditions of employment, including to the press, without employer authorization.”

https://www.natlawreview.com/article/can-you-terminate-employee-talking-to-press

"It does bother me that people are going outside of the process and going to the media," he said. "That is really not acceptable. It is really not what labor negotiations are about, and it's improper."

Sanders said, ahead of a weekend Iowa campaign swing: "We are disappointed that some individuals have decided to damage the integrity of these efforts. We are involved in negotiations. And some are individuals that have decided to damage the integrity of that process before they were concluded."

https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/elections/presidential/caucus/2019/07/19/bernie-sanders-campaign-staff-wage-15-hour-union-elizabeth-warren-campaign-wages/1781159001/

[Demsrule86]

50. NO and NO. There is a GOP governor in Vermont. We need the Senate seat more than

Sanders as labor secretary.