Love it or Hate it, Hillary is the "third Obama term" candidate

[ProSense]

19. The

"grand bargain" was short-lived. The two bills signed into law over the last month reversed the sequestration.

Senate Sends Budget Bill to the White House

Wednesday, December 18, 2013

WASHINGTON, Dec. 18 – The Senate tonight passed and sent to President Barack Obama a budget that averts another government shutdown, eases sharp spending cuts known as sequestration and spares Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid from proposed cuts in benefits.

In what he called a difficult decision, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) voted with the 64 - 36 majority to pass the budget package but voiced disappointment that it does nothing to create jobs and continues tax breaks for profitable corporations.

The budget keeps the government running and avoids cuts in Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. The threatened cuts in the retirement and health care programs were staved off thanks in part to a petition drive Sanders organized. As founder of the Defending Social Security Caucus, Sanders worked with seniors’ organizations and others to gather more than 700,000 signatures from opponents of the cuts.

The budget also restores some of the across-the-board spending cuts. “It will allow modest increases in funding for programs that are important to many Vermonters like Head Start, Meals on Wheels, low-income heating assistance and education,” Sanders said.

A member of the Senate Budget Committee, Sanders faulted the bill for doing nothing to create jobs. “At a time when Americans are clear about the need to create millions of new jobs, this bill does nothing about high unemployment. In fact, it doesn’t even help the 1.3 million Americans who are about to lose their unemployment benefits,” Sanders said.

He also had hoped the agreement would do more to lower deficits by closing tax loopholes that benefit profitable corporations and wealthy individuals. “I am disappointed that my Republican colleagues continue to protect corporate loopholes which are costing us about $100 billion every single year,” Sanders said. “At a time of growing income and wealth inequality, this budget doesn’t ask the wealthy and profitable corporations to pay a nickel more in taxes,” he added.

http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/senate-sends-budget-bill-to-the-white-house

Statement on Funding Bill Passage

Thursday, January 16, 2014

WASHINGTON, Jan. 16 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement tonight after the Senate voted 72-26 to approve a House-passed $1.1 trillion bill to fund the government for the remainder of fiscal 2014:

“This is most certainly not the budget that I would have written. At a time when one out of four corporations pays nothing in federal income taxes and income inequality is exploding, this budget fails to ask the richest Americans or most profitable corporations to pay a nickel more in taxes.

“Having said that, this bill makes some significant improvements to the status quo. It adds $1 billion to Head Start to help some 90,000 kids get the early education that they need. This bill will increase funding for home heating assistance, which is very import for senior citizens on fixed incomes and families with young children in Vermont.

“While this is not the bill that I would have written, the alternative – another government shutdown – would have been catastrophic for our country and for the economy.”

http://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/statement-on-funding-bill-passage

Sanders' concern is that it didn't include an extension of unemployment benefits and more funding for job creation.