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U.S. Senator and committee ranking member Bernie Sanders, Independent from Vermont, questions Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr., during a Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions hearing on the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2026 for the Department of Health and Human Services, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, May 14, 2025.
(Photo by Jim Watson / AFP via Getty Images)
'Totally Unconscionable': Sanders Rips GOP Bill That Would Kick 11 Million Off Medicaid to Enrich Billionaires
"That's what Trumpism is about... You're a working stiff, you're entitled to nothing."
Jun 05, 2025
Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont on Wednesday night made his latest forceful case against the Republican Party's billionaire tax giveaway and spending bill now making its way through Congress, calling it outrageous for President Donald Trump and his GOP allies to be proposing sweeping cuts to Medicaid, food assistance, and other key programs all while handing the nation's richest individuals and corporations—already drowning in extreme wealth—even more beneficial tax treatment.
"It's totally unconscionable," said Sanders about the legislation that the Congressional Budget Office this week confirmed would kick an estimated 11 million people off their healthcare coverage. "And to do that in order to give massive tax breaks to people today on the top—who have never ever had it so good—is beyond cruel."
- YouTubeyoutu.be
"They are going to drive people out of Medicaid so they can save substantial sums of money—some $700 billion and then transfer that to the wealthiest people in this country through massive tax breaks for the rich and very large corporations."
"This comes on top of that fact," added Sanders, "that our current healthcare system is broken [and] dysfunctional. We got 85 million people already who are uninsured or underinsured—many of them are working. This will only make an already terrible situation even worse."
"That is what Trumpism is about: For the superior people―the Elon Musks in the world, the people who are successful―we're gonna make them more successful," he said. "You're a working stiff, you're entitled to nothing."
An Unconstitutional Rampage
Trump and Musk are on an unconstitutional rampage, aiming for virtually every corner of the federal government. These two right-wing billionaires are targeting nurses, scientists, teachers, daycare providers, judges, veterans, air traffic controllers, and nuclear safety inspectors. No one is safe. The food stamps program, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are next. It’s an unprecedented disaster and a five-alarm fire, but there will be a reckoning. The people did not vote for this. The American people do not want this dystopian hellscape that hides behind claims of “efficiency.” Still, in reality, it is all a giveaway to corporate interests and the libertarian dreams of far-right oligarchs like Musk. Common Dreams is playing a vital role by reporting day and night on this orgy of corruption and greed, as well as what everyday people can do to organize and fight back. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover issues the corporate media never will, but we can only continue with our readers’ support. |
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Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont on Wednesday night made his latest forceful case against the Republican Party's billionaire tax giveaway and spending bill now making its way through Congress, calling it outrageous for President Donald Trump and his GOP allies to be proposing sweeping cuts to Medicaid, food assistance, and other key programs all while handing the nation's richest individuals and corporations—already drowning in extreme wealth—even more beneficial tax treatment.
"It's totally unconscionable," said Sanders about the legislation that the Congressional Budget Office this week confirmed would kick an estimated 11 million people off their healthcare coverage. "And to do that in order to give massive tax breaks to people today on the top—who have never ever had it so good—is beyond cruel."
- YouTubeyoutu.be
"They are going to drive people out of Medicaid so they can save substantial sums of money—some $700 billion and then transfer that to the wealthiest people in this country through massive tax breaks for the rich and very large corporations."
"This comes on top of that fact," added Sanders, "that our current healthcare system is broken [and] dysfunctional. We got 85 million people already who are uninsured or underinsured—many of them are working. This will only make an already terrible situation even worse."
"That is what Trumpism is about: For the superior people―the Elon Musks in the world, the people who are successful―we're gonna make them more successful," he said. "You're a working stiff, you're entitled to nothing."
Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont on Wednesday night made his latest forceful case against the Republican Party's billionaire tax giveaway and spending bill now making its way through Congress, calling it outrageous for President Donald Trump and his GOP allies to be proposing sweeping cuts to Medicaid, food assistance, and other key programs all while handing the nation's richest individuals and corporations—already drowning in extreme wealth—even more beneficial tax treatment.
"It's totally unconscionable," said Sanders about the legislation that the Congressional Budget Office this week confirmed would kick an estimated 11 million people off their healthcare coverage. "And to do that in order to give massive tax breaks to people today on the top—who have never ever had it so good—is beyond cruel."
- YouTubeyoutu.be
"They are going to drive people out of Medicaid so they can save substantial sums of money—some $700 billion and then transfer that to the wealthiest people in this country through massive tax breaks for the rich and very large corporations."
"This comes on top of that fact," added Sanders, "that our current healthcare system is broken [and] dysfunctional. We got 85 million people already who are uninsured or underinsured—many of them are working. This will only make an already terrible situation even worse."
"That is what Trumpism is about: For the superior people―the Elon Musks in the world, the people who are successful―we're gonna make them more successful," he said. "You're a working stiff, you're entitled to nothing."
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