Foinse: Dreams Coitianta
Sen. Bernie Sanders traveled to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s home state of Kentucky on Sunday to slam the GOP chieftain for “working overtime to represent the needs of the wealthy” while obstructing legislation that would expand healthcare, slash poverty, and strengthen voting rights.
“As we speak, Senator McConnell is leading the effort against the long-term structural changes that working people in Kentucky and throughout our country desperately need,” Sanders (I-Vt.) said during a rally in Louisville with Charles Booker, a former state representative who is hinting at a bid to unseat Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.).
“It’s a question of whose interests the government represents. It’s a question of whether you fight for the needs of the wealthy and large corporations who fund your campaigns, or the working families of our country.”
—Ar cheann. Bernie Sanders
“How does it happen that Mitch McConnell is working overtime to block legislation that would improve the lives of so many working-class people in Kentucky, while he is doing everything that he can to make the richest people in America even richer? And the answer is pretty simple: Follow the money,” the Vermont senator said, pointing to McConnell’s well-known history of raising money from Wall Street banks, insurance giants, and fossil fuel companies.
Noting that McConnell still wields significant power in the narrowly divided Senate despite losing control of the chamber in January, Sanders said Democrats must be willing to use the procedural tools at their disposal to bypass Republican obstruction and approve ambitious legislation to tackle the country’s myriad crises, from Covid-19 to climate change.
“If Republicans refuse to work with us, if Senator McConnell and Republicans in the Senate continue their strategy of obstructionism, it means passing a progressive agenda through the Senate with 51 votes, instead of 60, by using budget reconciliation,” said Sanders. “And I say that as chairman of the Senate Budget Committee. The American people are hurting, they want action and we have got to deliver for them.”
“And when my Republican colleagues complain about this approach, let me remind them: When Mitch McConnell was the majority leader, he used the reconciliation process to pass trillions of dollars in tax breaks primarily to the top one percent and multinational corporations,” the Vermont senator added, referring to the 2017 An tAcht um Chiorruithe Cánach agus Poist. “He used reconciliation to drill for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.”
Specifically, Sanders called on the Democratic Senate to pass a $15 minimum wage, allow Medicare to directly negotiate drug prices with pharmaceutical companies, lower the Medicare eligibility age and expand its benefits, cancel student loan debt, and make public colleges and universities tuition-free.
“The difference in ideology between Senator McConnell and myself, between the Republican Party and the progressive movement, is not a question of big government versus small government,” said Sanders. “That’s not what it’s really about. It’s a question of whose interests the government represents. It’s a question of whether you fight for the needs of the wealthy and large corporations who fund your campaigns, or the working families of our country.”
Sanders’ push for unilateral Democratic action to advance a sweeping legislative agenda comes as the Biden White House is reportedly signaling to Republican lawmakers in private that it is willing to make concessions on its $2.3 trillion infrastructure proposal in an effort to win bipartisan support—an approach likely to frustrate progressive leaders sa Chomhdháil.
An The Washington Post Thuairiscigh Sunday that “some Democrats are hunting for a framework to sell the infrastructure proposals that doesn’t sound too liberal, hoping to frame it as what they call ‘bold moderation,’ which they hope might be less objectionable to centrists of both parties.”
But Sanders, Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), and other congressional progressives have implored Biden not to weaken the infrastructure bill in a potentially futile bid to win support from a party that has vocally bashed the proposal and offered a vague alternative that’s just a fraction of the size.
Last month, the Senate parliamentarian Rialaigh that Democrats can pass additional bills this year through the filibuster-proof reconciliation process, whereby legislation can pass with a simple-majority vote. To pass legislation through regular order, Democrats would need to win over at least 10 Senate Republicans.
“If Senator McConnell could use the reconciliation process to give tax breaks to billionaires,” Sanders said Sunday, “we can use that same process to protect the interests of working families.”
“If you believe in a vibrant democracy and not authoritarianism,” Sanders continued, “if you believe that all Americans are entitled to economic security and that we must stand with the working families of this country, if you believe that all people, regardless of race, country of origin or sexual orientation are entitled to equal justice, if you believe in environmental sanity and the need to combat climate change, the choice is clear.”
Read Sanders’ full remarks, as prepared for delivery:
Let me thank all of you for being here today. Hopefully next time we can do away with the masks and social distancing
I also want to thank Charles Booker for his remarks and, more importantly, for the great Senate campaign he ran last year which electrified the country. Despite being heavily outspent, he showed what energy and grassroots activism can achieve. And, boy, do we need progressive voices like Charles’ is the U.S. Senate.
I’m also delighted to return to the Muhammad Ali Museum. Muhammad Ali was a personal hero of mine.
But the reason I’m here today is not just to say hello to Charles or to remember Muhammad Ali.
I’m here for a very simple reason. The senior senator from the state of Kentucky, Mitch McConnell, is not just Kentucky’s senator. Until a few months ago he was the Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate, and now he is the Minority Leader. In other words, he is today the highest ranking Republican elected official in the country—a man with enormous power.
And what I want to do now, which we just don’t do often enough, is to compare Senator McConnell’s ideology, his Republican ideology, his votes, his actions, his vision for the future of America with the progressive vision—a vision which demands that government represent all of the people, and not just the 1% and wealthy campaign contributors. A vision which believes that the foundations of government should rest on the pillars of justice: economic justice, racial justice, social justice and environmental justice.
Chun comparáid éifeachtach a dhéanamh, lig dom tosú ag insint duit a bhfuil ar eolas agat cheana féin. Táimid ag maireachtáil i nóiméad gan fasach i stair Mheiriceá, nóiméad a mbeidh ár bpáistí agus ár gclann clainne ag léamh faoi ina leabhair staire.
We have endured the worst public health crisis in more than 100 years with almost 600,000 Covid related deaths, and the worst economic collapse since the Great Depression of the 1930s.
We have seen millions of Americans marching in the streets to end systemic racism and police brutality—something that, unfortunately, the people of Louisville are more than familiar with.
Leanaimid de bheith ag tabhairt aghaidh ar an mbagairt eiseach atá ar ár bplainéad maidir le hathrú aeráide, agus todhchaí an phláinéid i mbaol go litriúil.
Agus táimid tar éis maireachtáil trí éirí amach foréigneach i gcoinne an daonlathais i gCapitol an náisiúin agus gluaiseacht láidir den eite dheis i dtreo údarásachais.
Sa lá atá inniu ann, i Kentucky, i Vermont agus ar fud ár dtíre, tá breis is leath dár ndaoine ag maireachtáil paycheck go paycheck agus tá na milliúin fostaithe ar thuarastal ocras. Tá thart ar 90 milliún Meiriceánach gan árachas nó gannárachas agus níl sé d'acmhainn acu dul chuig dochtúir, agus ní féidir le duine as gach ceathrar Meiriceánach íoc as an gcostas uafásach ard a bhaineann le drugaí ar oideas.
In ainneoin geilleagar domhanda atá thar a bheith iomaíoch, níl na céadta mílte daoine óga den lucht oibre in ann airgead a fháil don choláiste agus tá na milliúin ag streachailt le leibhéil uafásacha fiachais na mac léinn.
Over half a million Americans are homeless, gentrification is sweeping the country, 18 million households are spending at least 50% of their limited incomes on housing and millions worry about eviction.
Unbelievably, in the United States of America, we have seen working families all over this country, including in my own city of Burlington, Vermont waiting in car lines for emergency food packages to feed their families.
In terms of education millions of young people, including my 7 grandchildren, have been forced to miss classes because of the pandemic and the unprecedented disruption of education in this country.
Ba í seo, le fada, an bhliain is measa agus is measa i stair nua-aimseartha Mheiriceá.
Ach a ligean ar a bheith soiléir. Níl gach duine gortaithe inár dtír. Cé go bhfuil na mílte Meiriceánaigh ag maireachtáil in éadóchas eacnamaíoch, tá na daoine an-saibhir éirithe níos saibhre.
Le linn na paindéime uafáis seo, tá méadú níos mó ná trilliún dollar ar a saibhreas ag 650 billiúnóir i Meiriceá. I Meiriceá inniu, tá níos mó saibhris anois ag beirt ná an 40 faoin gcéad is ísle agus tá níos mó saibhris ag an gcéad duine is airde anois ná an 92 faoin gcéad is ísle dár ndaoine.
Deartháireacha agus deirfiúracha: Is tráth ríthábhachtach é seo i stair Mheiriceá.
Sna míonna amach romhainn, tá cinneadh bunúsach le déanamh againn.
Will we build a government, an economy and a society that works for all of us and not just the 1 percent?
Nó an leanfaimid leis an imeacht i dtreo oligarchy agus údarásachas ina bhfuil cuid shuntasach den gheilleagar i seilbh líon beag billiúnairí thar a bheith saibhir agus cumhachtach agus a rialaíonn siad agus a mbíonn tionchar ollmhór acu ar shaol polaitiúil ár dtíre?
Sin í ceist bhunúsach ár gcuid ama.
Tá mé anseo inniu i Kentucky ní hamháin toisc go bhfuil Mitch McConnell ina Phoblachtach nó ina cheannaire ar an bPáirtí Poblachtach sa Seanad.
Táim anseo inniu mar go bhfuil Mitch McConnell ag obair ragoibre chun ionadaíocht a dhéanamh ar riachtanais na ndaoine saibhre agus na ndaoine cumhachtacha agus chun an bonn a bhaint de riachtanais na dteaghlach atá ag obair, daoine scothaosta, daoine tinne, na leanaí agus na mbochtán.
I’m proud to tell you, as Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, I worked hard with President Biden to pass the American Rescue Plan that provided a $1,400 direct payment to every working class adult in America and their children—including over 4 million people right here in Kentucky.
Tá an reachtaíocht seo ag gearradh ráta bochtaineachta leanaí ina dhá leath trí chreidmheas cánach suas le $3,600 a chur ar fáil a théann chun sochair go díreach do bhreis agus milliún leanbh i Kentucky.
Tá an reachtaíocht seo ag laghdú go mór ocrais i Meiriceá.
Tá sé ag cur $300 sa bhreis in aghaidh na seachtaine ar shochair dhífhostaíochta ar fáil do níos mó ná 100,000 duine i Kentucky amháin a chaill a bpoist gan aon locht orthu féin.
Tá sé ag cur cosc ar na milliúin teaghlach a chaitheamh amach as a dtithe agus ar na sráideanna.
Agus táim bródúil as a insint duit go bhfuil an Plean Tarrthála Mheiriceá ag cur cosc ar níos mó ná 24,000 mianadóir guail agus Teamsters i Kentucky a bpinsin a laghdú suas le 60 faoin gcéad a fheiceáil.
But I am not proud to tell you that Mitch McConnell led the effort against that bill and was able to convince every Republican in the Senate and the House to oppose it. We passed that bill at 5 o’clock in the morning, with Vice President Harris casting the tie breaking vote.
And let’s be clear: it’s not just the American Rescue Plan that Mitch McConnell opposed.
As we speak, Senator McConnell is leading the effort against the long term structural changes that working people in Kentucky and throughout our country desperately need.
Tá sé i gceannas ar an iarracht i gcoinne íosphá $15.
Tá sé i gceannas ar an iarracht i gcoinne cúram leanaí uilíoch, saoire teaghlaigh íoctha agus leighis agus é a dhéanamh níos éasca d'oibrithe dul isteach sna ceardchumainn.
He is leading the effort against H.R. 1, legislation fundamental to preserving our democracy—legislation which will end voter suppression, make it easier for people to vote and get big money out of politics.
And this I will never forget. On New Year’s Eve, Mitch McConnell blocked legislation I was offering to provide working class Americans with a $2,000 direct payment because, get this, he claimed it was “socialism for the rich.”
Tá mé tromchúiseach. Sin a dúirt sé. Seo fear nach raibh aon fhadhb aige seic aisíocaíochta cánach $ 129 milliún a thabhairt do Amazon mar thoradh ar bhille cánach 2017 a chuir sé chun cinn. Ní raibh aon fhadhb aige briseadh cánach de $126 billiún a thabhairt do theaghlach Charles Koch, teaghlach arbh fhiú $1.4 billiún é agus a chuir go mór le feachtas an Pháirtí Poblachtach.
In Mitch McConnell’s world if you are a multi-billionaire campaign contributor, it’s OK to receive a $1.4 billion tax break. That’s how the system works. But if you are a teacher or a construction worker who makes $75,000 a year, a $2,000 direct payment is “socialism for the rich.”
Well, the good news is that we won that battle. Working class adults and their kids got the full $2,000 direct payment that they deserved and which is helping to grow our economy.
Ach nuair a bhreathnaíonn muid ar an Seanadóir McConnell agus a idé-eolaíocht Phoblachtánach, ní hamháin go bhfuil sé ag déanamh anois. Sin é atá déanta aige le déanaí. Faoi Trump, bhí sé i gceannas ar an iarracht chun iarracht a dhéanamh cúram sláinte a bhaint de suas le 32 milliún Meiriceánach agus chun préimheanna Meiriceánaigh níos sine a ardú go suntasach tríd an Acht um Chúram Inacmhainne a aisghairm. An féidir leat é sin a shamhlú? Is sinne an t-aon tír mhór ar domhan nach dtugann ráthaíocht cúram sláinte do chách, agus bhí McConnell ag iarraidh na milliúin a chaitheamh as an gcúram sláinte a bhí acu.
Ag tráth ina raibh saibhreas ollmhór agus éagothroime ioncaim, bhí Mitch McConnell i gceannas ar an iarracht trilliún dollar i sosanna cánach a sholáthar don aon faoin gcéad is airde agus do chorparáidí móra.
Bhí sé i gceannas ar an iarracht chun cead a thabhairt do billiúnaithe agus corparáidí toghcháin a cheannach trína abhcóideacht láidir ar Citizens United, cinneadh tubaisteach na Cúirte Uachtaraí.
Anois, is í an cheist is dóigh liom gur chóir do dhaoine a chur ná cén fáth a bhfuil Mitch McConnell ag déanamh a bhfuil á dhéanamh aige?
How does it happen that Mitch McConnell is working overtime to block legislation that would improve the lives of so many working-class people in Kentucky, while he is doing everything that he can to make the richest people in America even richer?
Agus is é an freagra simplí go leor: Lean an t-airgead.
Over the course of his career, Senator McConnell has received huge campaign contributions from Wall Street banks like Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase—from health insurance companies like Blue Cross/Blue Shield, United Healthcare and Humana—from pharmaceutical companies like Eli Lilly and Pfizer – from fossil fuel companies like Koch Industries and Marathon Petroleum, and of course, from Walmart and the NRA.
Agus cad a chuireann na corparáidí ollmhóra agus na grúpaí sainleasa seo ina choinne?
Tá siad i gcoinne an t-íosphá a ardú go pá maireachtála. Agus is amhlaidh a dhéanann Mitch.
They oppose guaranteeing healthcare as a human right. And so does Mitch.
They oppose taking any action to lower the outrageous prices Americans pay for prescription drugs. And so does Mitch.
Cuireann siad i gcoinne aon reachtaíochta a rith chun dul i ngleic le hathrú aeráide. Agus is amhlaidh a dhéanann Mitch.
The NRA has given over $1.2 million in campaign contributions to Mitch McConnell—and they oppose every piece of gun safety legislation that has ever been introduced.
Agus cad a thacaíonn le ranníocóirí feachtais an tSeanadóra McConnell?
Tacaíonn siad le sosanna cánach ollmhóra do na corparáidí saibhre agus móra.
Tacaíonn siad le dírialú Wall Street agus thacaigh siad go láidir le fóirithint Wall Street.
Tacaíonn siad le Slándáil Shóisialta, Medicare agus Medicaid a ghearradh.
Is é sin le rá, tá príomh-rannpháirtithe feachtais Mitch McConnell ag iarraidh a mhalairt chruinn a dhéanamh ar a bhfuil tromlach mór mhuintir Mheiriceá ag iarraidh orainn a dhéanamh agus mar atá Mitch McConnell.
Bhuel, ní gá a rá, féachaim ar an domhan rud beag difriúil ná Mitch McConnell.
Creidim go bhfuil sé ríthábhachtach go léireoimis do mhuintir Mheiriceá gur féidir lenár rialtas freagairt go héifeachtach dá riachtanais agus an dínit atá tuillte acu a athbhunú.
Cibé an dtaitníonn nó nach dtaitníonn an Seanadóir McConnell leis, is é anois an t-am le geilleagar agus rialtas a chruthú a oibríonn dúinn go léir, ní hamháin don aicme billiúnaí agus do rannpháirtithe saibhre an fheachtais.
Cad a chiallaíonn sé sin i dtéarmaí nithiúla fíor?
Ciallaíonn sé nach mór dúinn an t-íosphá feidearálach a ardú ó phá ocras de $7.25 in aghaidh na huaire go $15 in aghaidh na huaire agus ardú a bhfuil géarghá leis a thabhairt do 32 milliún oibrí. I Stáit Aontaithe Mheiriceá ba chóir go n-ardóidh post tú as an mbochtaineacht, ní tú a choinneáil ann.
Ciallaíonn sé geilleagar lánfhostaíochta a chruthú trí na milliúin post a n-íoctar go maith leo a chruthú ag atógáil ár n-infrastruchtúir atá ag titim amach, ag tógáil tithíochta inacmhainne, ag nuachóiriú ár scoileanna, ag dul i ngleic le hathrú aeráide agus ag déanamh infheistíochtaí ollmhóra in éifeachtúlacht fuinnimh agus fuinnimh in-athnuaite.
Ciallaíonn sé deireadh a chur leis an náire idirnáisiúnta ar na Stáit Aontaithe a bheith ar an t-aon tír mhór ar domhan nach ráthaíonn cúram sláinte mar cheart nó saoire íoctha teaghlaigh agus leighis a sholáthar d'oibrithe.
Yes. As we continue the fight for Medicare for All, we must substantially reduce the eligibility age for Medicare, and expand it to include hearing, vision and dental care. It is a moral obscenity that millions of senior citizens cannot afford hearing aids, eyeglasses or dentures.
Yes, we must provide at least 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave. If the pandemic has taught us anything it is that health care must be a human right, not an employee benefit.
It means taking on the greed of the pharmaceutical industry and substantially reducing the price of prescription drugs. The American people cannot continue to pay, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs. We can no longer tolerate one out of five Americans not being able to afford the life-saving medicine prescribed by their doctors. It is time for Medicare and the federal government to do what every major country on earth does: Negotiate with the pharmaceutical companies to lower the outrageous prices of prescription drugs.
It means making public colleges, universities, trade schools and HBCUs tuition free and canceling student debt for working families. If we are going to have the best educated workforce in the world, we cannot continue to punish an entire generation of young Americans with a lifetime of student debt for “the crime” of doing the right thing—getting a college education.
Ciallaíonn sé go ndéanfaí réamh-kindergarten agus cúram leanaí uilíoch agus ar fáil do gach teaghlach i Meiriceá. Sa tír is saibhre i stair an domhain, ní féidir linn leanúint ar aghaidh ag déanamh faillí i leanaí óga agus leanaí óga.
Ciallaíonn sé go mbeidh sé níos éasca d’oibrithe dul isteach sna ceardchumainn ionas gur féidir leo dul i mbun caibidlíochta maidir le pá, sochair agus coinníollacha oibre níos fearr.
Ciallaíonn sé go gcaithfimid é a dhéanamh níos éasca, ní níos deacra, vótáil, agus cosc a chur ar na billiúinéirí polaiteoirí a cheannach trí aistriú chuig maoiniú poiblí na dtoghchán.
It means demanding that the wealthiest Americans and most profitable corporations start paying their fair share of taxes. No. We cannot continue to allow large profitable corporations like Nike and Federal Express to make billions of dollars in profits and pay nothing in net federal income taxes over the past three years. We cannot continue to allow billionaires to pay a lower effective tax rate than teachers, truck drivers or nurses. We need real tax reform.
Ciallaíonn sé athchóiriú inimirce daonnachtúil agus cosán chuig saoránacht. Ní féidir linn a thuilleadh glacadh le leanaí sa tír seo ag maireachtáil ar eagla nach mbeidh a dtuismitheoirí ann dóibh lá amháin nuair a thagann siad abhaile ón scoil.
Ciallaíonn sé deireadh a chur le ciníochas sistéamach, athchóiriú ceartais choiriúil a chruthú agus deireadh a chur leis an gcogadh tubaisteach ar dhrugaí. Tá. Ní mór dúinn marijuana a dhéanamh dleathach agus taifid ghabhála marijuana a dhíbirt. Caithfimid deireadh a chur le príosúin phríobháideacha agus ionaid choinneála agus deireadh a chur le bannaí airgid. Níl aon tairbhe níos mó as daoine a chur faoi ghlas agus iad a chaitheamh sa phríosún.
Agus tá. Má dhiúltaíonn Poblachtánaigh oibriú linn, má leanann an Seanadóir McConnell agus Poblachtánaigh sa Seanad ar aghaidh lena straitéis um bhacainn, ciallaíonn sé clár oibre forásach a rith tríd an Seanad le 51 vóta, in ionad 60, trí úsáid a bhaint as athmhuintearas buiséid. Agus deirim é sin mar Chathaoirleach ar Choiste Buiséid an tSeanaid. Tá muintir Mheiriceá ag dul amú, tá gníomh uathu agus caithfimid seachadadh a dhéanamh ar a son.
Agus nuair a dhéanann mo chomhghleacaithe Poblachtacha gearán faoin gcur chuige seo, lig dom iad a mheabhrú. Nuair a bhí Mitch McConnell ina Cheannaire Tromlaigh, d’úsáid sé an próiseas athmhuintearais chun trilliún dollar a chur ar aghaidh i sosanna cánach go príomha go dtí an t-aon faoin gcéad is airde agus na corparáidí ilnáisiúnta. Bhain sé úsáid as athmhuintearas chun druileáil le haghaidh ola sa Tearmann Fiadhúlra Náisiúnta Artach.
Ina theannta sin, bhí sé in ann triúr breithiúna den eite dheis den Chúirt Uachtarach a dheimhniú thar thréimhse an-ghearr trí vóta tromlaigh simplí.
Is é mo thuairim, dá bhféadfadh an Seanadóir McConnell úsáid a bhaint as an bpróiseas athmhuintearais chun sosanna cánach a thabhairt do bhilliúnairí, is féidir linn an próiseas céanna sin a úsáid chun leasanna na dteaghlach atá ag obair a chosaint.
My friends. The difference in ideology between Senator McConnell and myself, between the Republican Party and the progressive movement, is not a question of big government versus small government. That’s not what it’s really about. It’s a question of whose interests the government represents. It’s a question of whether you fight for the needs of the wealthy and large corporations who fund your campaigns, or the working families of our country, many of whom—Black, White, Latino, Asian American, Native American—are facing economic desperation.
Tá an rogha an-soiléir. Má chreideann tú i ndaonlathas bríomhar agus ní údarásachas, má chreideann tú go bhfuil gach Meiriceánach i dteideal slándála eacnamaíoch agus go gcaithfimid seasamh le teaghlaigh oibre na tíre seo, má chreideann tú go bhfuil gach duine, beag beann ar cine, tír thionscnaimh nó claonadh gnéasach i dteideal ceartas comhionann, má chreideann tú i sláinteachas comhshaoil agus an gá atá le dul i ngleic le hathrú aeráide, tá an rogha soiléir.
Lig dúinn dul ar aghaidh agus an ghluaiseacht fhorásach a thógáil agus rialtas a chruthú a oibríonn do chách, agus ní hamháin don bheagán.
Is trí fhlaithiúlacht a léitheoirí amháin a mhaoinítear ZNetwork.
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