Bernie Sanders Asks Joe Manchin to say what an "entitlement society" is
https://twitter.com/sahilkapur/status/1445832361975840774?s=20
Bernie Sanders calls on Joe Manchin to explain what he means by an “entitlement society.” He asks if the West Virginia senator views Medicare vision/dental/hearing, child tax credit, universal pre-K, housing, 2y community college, climate action or other policies as entitlements.
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Victoria Brownworth
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Joe Manchin said $3T is too much because he doesn't want to "create an entitlement society," but his Big Pharma CEO daughter raised the price of the Epi-Pen by 5,000 percent, so maybe Manchin doesn't understand what entitlement really is.
2:54 PM · Oct 6, 2021·Twitter Web App
LOL, Joe Manchin is ''entitlement''.
The Democrat blocking progressive change is beholden to big oil. Surprised?
The Democrats want to tax the rich to create benefits for the 99%.
The Republicans want to keep our public schools from talking about racism.
Shouldn't this be under op/ed?
Its Bernie Sanders opinion , which he gave at a press briefing. That is news, not op ed.
If the only link to content is Twitter......
I'm sure I can find another link to Sanders statement if is that important to you.
BTW, twitter is an allowed source on NT.
PRESS RELEASE
Sanders Statement on Reconciliation and Sen. Manchin's Comments | Common Dreams
Sanders Statement on Reconciliation and Sen. Manchin's Comments
WASHINGTON -
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, Wednesday held a press conference at the Senate Radio and T.V. Studio Gallery on the budget reconciliation bill and Sen. Joe Manchin's (D-W.Va.) comments about the legislation. His remarks, as prepared for delivery, are below:
“As Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, I want to say a few words about the $3.5 trillion reconciliation bill that a number of us are fighting for and I’d also like to make some brief comments about what Senator Manchin said today about the bill.
“First, let’s be clear. Poll after poll including polls in West Virginia show us that what we are trying to do in this legislation is enormously popular.
“But it’s not just the American people. 48 out of 50 members of the Democratic caucus in the Senate support this bill. And 210 members, 96% of the Democratic caucus in the House, support this bill. And, by the way, the President of the United States supports this bill.
“And while we’re at it let me tell you who is vigorously opposed to this bill. The pharmaceutical industry is spending hundreds of millions of dollars in opposition because they don’t want us to lower the outrageous cost of prescription drugs.
“The health insurance companies are spending huge amounts because they don’t want us to expand Medicare to cover dental, hearing aids and eyeglasses.
“The fossil fuel industry, the coal companies and the oil companies are spending millions despite the fact that the scientists are virtually unanimous in telling us that we’ve got to end our dependence on fossil fuels and move to renewable energy and energy efficiency.
“And the billionaire class is spending a fortune because they love the idea of some of the richest people in this country and largest corporations not paying, in a given year, a nickel in federal income tax.
“In other words, we are taking on some of the most powerful special interests in this country who will end up spending many hundreds of millions in order to prevent us from protecting the interests of working families, the elderly, the children, the sick, and the poor, and protecting the planet for future generations.
“Senator Manchin talks about not wanting to see our country become ‘an entitlement society.’ Well, I’m not exactly sure what that means.
“Does that mean that we end the $300 direct payments for working class parents which have cut childhood poverty in half in America? Is protecting working families and cutting childhood poverty an ‘entitlement’?
“Does Senator Manchin think we should once again have one of the highest levels of childhood poverty of any major country on earth?
“At a time when millions of seniors have teeth in their mouths which are rotting, when they can’t afford hearing aids to communicate with their grandkids, when they can’t afford a pair of glasses to read a newspaper, does Senator Manchin believe that seniors are not entitled to digest their food and that they are not entitled to hear and see properly? Is that really too much to ask in the richest country on earth?
“Does Senator Manchin not believe that seniors and people with disabilities are entitled to stay in their homes, rather than be forced into expensive and understaffed nursing homes? If that’s what he believes than let him tell us that.
“Does Senator Manchin not believe that we have to end the absurdity of paying, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs - sometimes ten times more for a particular drug than any other country?
“Does Senator Manchin believe that we should be the only major country on earth not to guarantee paid family and medical leave? And that working mothers should not be able to stay at home with a sick kid? Are workers not entitled to that?
“Does Senator Manchin believe that working class parents in Vermont and West Virginia should have to pay 25 or 30 percent of their incomes on childcare so that they can go to work and make sure that their kids are decently taken care of?
“Are the children of this country not entitled to high quality childcare and pre-K education?
“Does Senator Manchin not believe that working families in this country are entitled to affordable housing and that we should not have some 600,000 people in America including many veterans who are homeless?
“Does Senator Manchin not believe that at a time when we have a major labor shortage because our young people lack the skills they need that they are not entitled to at least two years of free community college?
“And, perhaps, most importantly, does Senator Manchin not believe what the scientists are telling us that we face an existential threat regarding climate change, and that it is absolutely imperative that we move boldly to cut carbon emissions?
“Are our children and grandchildren not entitled to live in a healthy and habitable environment?
“Senator Manchin has been critical of the $3.5 trillion proposal that many of us support. But the time is long overdue for him to tell us with specificity what he wants and does not want and explain that to the American people.
“I look forward to working with Senator Manchin and everyone else to pass a strong reconciliation bill and a bipartisan infrastructure bill.”
Of that I have no doubt. However to think it's a news source and not just a source of opinion ad nauseum doesn't seem right. I was merely questioning the tag based on the source.
Some things on twitter are opinion and some thing on twitter are news.
Bernie is so full of shit, as per usual.
Thanks
An entitlement society is one in which mainly leftists that have contributed zero to the community or the country at large feel that the government should take care of them financially from cradle to grave, then extend that out to their offspring, and so on...and so on..and so on...
How about corporations that contribute zero to the society at large? You know, multi-billion dollar corporations that pay zero in taxes...
So....you equate contributing to society with paying taxes?
You do not think that paying your fair share of taxes contributes to society?
Of course. But that's not at all what you implied.
You do open a larger discussion as to the nature of "contributions to society" and "fair share".
If a corporation that pays zero taxes "contributes zero to society at large", why is the same not true of an individual? There are Americans who will spend their entire lives receiving more from the US Treasury than they pay in every single year. Do they "contribute zero to the society at large"?
If we focus the contribution discussion solely on billionaires, do we fail to differentiate between somebody like Elon Musk, who has contributed FAR more to society than almost anyone else, and Steve Cohen, who has really only enriched himself?
And just exactly what is anyone's "fair share"? Why is 21% unfair but 28% somehow magically changes everything? What's "fair" about my wife working her way through college only to pay far more in taxes than we do on our mortgage while her sister who dropped out of HS and got fired from Taco Bell (true story) gets paid tens of thousands of dollars annually to not work at all?
I don't think it's nearly as clear cut as people like to pretend.
No that's what YOU READ INTO MY COMMENT. Any IMPLICATION you see is created in your own mind.
Now you are trying to compare living breathing people, to an entity that exists on a legal document only. You cannot be serious with that comparison, can you?
And now you are going even further off topic, to individual people that I never even addressed or alluded to in my statement.
Now you are down to word play...wow.
Can you tell me that it is "fair" for corporations that make billions of dollars of net profit, in America, to not only pay no taxes each year, but at times to actually receive a tax refund?
You are correct, some parts are not clear cut. Other parts, however, are.
Corporations provide goods and services to society. They pay taxes, but pass those on to the consumer, which the consumer will be paying more in the way of inflation thanks to the ineptness of the Biden admin.
Only to make a profit, contributing only to their own bottom line. If there was no profit, they would stop providing those items.
You're arguing my side now.
Well, duh. Why would anyone sink their life savings into a business and not want to make a profit off it?
To think any other way is simply socialist....or communist thinking.
Passing taxes to the consumer has been the way of businesses since the dawn of businesses. Nothing will ever change that.
Did you remember what this discussion is about? Unless you are saying that corporations making profits, that they DON'T pay taxes on, contribute to society, I'm not sure what your point is.
Then you need to talk to your representatives, democratic and republican, that have allowed for loopholes over the years.
All caps and bold. I was sort of hoping for a civil, casual discussion.
You equated zero taxes with zero contribution to society. It would appear that you don't apply the same metric to people. I'm inviting you to explain your thought process and how you've come to the beliefs you hold. Y'know....in a civil, casual sorta way.
Obviously. Hence the phrase "larger discussion".
So I'm still interested to know, would you see a corporate mogul who is changing the world for the better in very many ways (like Elon Musk) differently than you would see a corporate mogul who really only helps himself and a few other very rich people (like Steve Cohen)? Or how about a corporation like Tesla that is leading the clean energy charge vs. a corporation like SAC Capital (which is a hedge fund)?
If we're going to use the phrase, we should be able to define it. Otherwise how do we know if we agree or disagree?
It certainly doesn't seem so on the surface, but I've been in business a long time and realize that things are almost always more complicated than they look from a distance. Sometimes they're cheating or gaming the system, but other times that's actually not what they're doing.
For example... I had a client (12 employees, now retired) who made his living building affordable housing all across the country and then selling the LIHTC tax credits he received to big companies like JP Morgan or Goldman Sachs. So while JPM paid less in taxes, they were instead subsidizing affordable housing in 12 different states.
The internal revenue code has thousands of programs like that, where Congress has decided at one time or another to make it attractive for companies to do something positive by reducing their taxes if they go along.
So like you said, some things are clear-cut and some not so much.
IDK...I'm a contributing member of society...I pay taxes.... I sure would like to see those taxes going to infrastructure. Just last evening I went across the overpass I always go across and saw the the plaque on it...built 1970
Again, this is not a discussion on the tax code, this is a discussion on how corporations do not contribute to society at large.
My representatives were the ones opposed to the last millionaire tax cuts.
Do you want a binky? Didn't mean to so upset you.
That is correct. As I clearly stated in an above comment, I do not compare human beings to entities that only exist on a legal document.
Then you should have read my previous comments. Human beings contribute to society with their very existence. Some contribute more than others, but the all contribute in one way or another.
Corporations exists as only a legal entity on a piece of paper, they contribute in no other way than through taxes which are supposed to go to the public in general.
Or off-topic deflection. Whichever you want to call it.
Your argument is trying to imply that a "corporation" and a "corporate mogul" are the same thing. They are not, one is a human being, the other is a legal term.
A corporation's only responsibility is to its profit margin and board of directors.
We're not talking government, we're talking corporations. A corporation being paid to act as a middle man is not a contribution, it is only doing so for profit. Is JPM subsidizing out of it's own pocket? Nope.
Me too.
I don't think there is much objection to actual infrastructure spending. Even the Squad want to see it, they're just holding it hostage to force their much larger, more controversial agenda.
ok this is where my liberal card gets pulled. I wanted that 1.3 trillon bill passed but some of the democrats are just being buttheads. Arkansas/Tennesse waited 6 months to have the I-40 bridge over the MIS river repaired for over 6 months. That put a damper on interstate commerce. I know that this bill wouldn't have done anything for those repairs but this is just an example when congress drags its feet on really important stuff
Are you offering one of your spares? Oh the unintentional irony....
How is Larry Nassar contributing to society? How about Brian Laundrie? How about Donald Trump?
The last time my mother was in the ER, the panhandler from the corner by my office was in the room next to hers. He was chained to the bed and there was a guard posted at the door to keep him from going on a meth rampage and attacking the staff and other patients. How is he "contributing to society"?
So...the corporations who produced the Covid vaccines....no contribution? The corporations producing all those windmills and solar panels that are helping us get off of fossil fuels... no contribution? The corporation that built the roads you drive on? The one that processes the payroll for millions of teachers? The one that pays to repair your car should the meth-head on the corner smash your windows?
I'm not sure it's as clear-cut as you think.
Well I could throw a tantrum in bold face capital letters telling you any implication you see is created in your own mind... But that's so 4.1.4.
You'll notice I did ask the questions seperately and I was actually looking for answers to both. Or either.
The board of directors represents the ownership. How is a corporation owing sole responsibility to its owners different from how a sole proprietor (who is by definition not a corporation) operates?
I'm capable of talking about lots of different ideas and how they intersect. In this particular case, I'm talking about government actions that influence the behaviors of corporations.
Explain why JPM paying taxes to the treasury, who would then turn around and grant that money to a developer is different from the treasurer just letting JPM pay the developer directly. You've said the former is a 'contribution'. Why would the latter not be?
Eh, I said the same thing. Some of them, by being idiots, will lose everything by being greedy.
Now you're just being obtuse.
Don't know, tell me about his history? Vietnam vet? You're trying to claim that he has never contributed to society in general, without knowing anything about him prior to seeing him restrained in a hospital bed.
Scientists and doctors produced the vaccine. People packed and distributed the vaccine. The corporation just took the money for the vaccine and distributed as little as possible to its employees to keep them working. Corporations do not make anything, employees (people) do, corporations just pay those people as little as they can to make those things.
Once again you are failing to understand that a corporation only exists on a legal document, a business owner is a human being.
Talk about it all you want, that is not part of this topic.
Really? JPM paying taxes turns ownership of that money to the government, it is no longer JPM's money. But then the government pays JPM money, part of which goes to other people, the rest stays as profit for JPM.
Would JPM pay the developer out of their own money, if not for the government paying them to do so? Nope.
Your way too smart to be carrying a card. All the intelligent people are in the middle somewhere.
Yeah, but the Dems certainly don't have a monopoly on that. The frustrating part of all of this is that the most responsible people in DC are taking the most heat.
Is it fixed yet? I know I had to divert around it back in May when we drove through there, but I haven't been back since.
Why thank-you very much. That was a nice compliment.
The bridge is fixed now thank goodness
Free college is a part of it. In fact that portion in which there are several other "freebies" of what's in the bill has the largest price tag at $726B
Here's the list:
$135 billion for the Committee on Agriculture Nutrition and Forestry. Funding to be used to address forest fires, reduce carbon emissions, and address drought concerns.
$332 billion for the Banking Committee. Including investments in public housing, the Housing Trust Fund, housing affordability, and equity and community land trusts.
$198 billion for the Energy and Natural Resources Committee. This would develop clean energy.
$67 billion for the Environment and Public Works Committee. These monies would fund low-income solar and other climate-friendly technologies.
$1.8 trillion for the Finance Committee. This part of the bill is for investments in working families, the elderly, and the environment. It includes a tax cut for Americans making less than $400,000 a year, lowering the price of prescription drugs, and ensuring the wealthy and large corporations pay their fair share of taxes.
$726 billion for the Health, Labor, Education, and Pensions Committee. This addresses universal pre-K for 3- and 4-year-olds, childcare for working families, tuition-free community college, funding for historically black colleges and universities , and an expansion of the Pell Grant for higher education.
$37 billion for the HSGAC Committee. This would electrify the federal vehicle fleet, electrify and rehab federal buildings, improve cybersecurity infrastructure, reinforce border management, invest in green-materials procurement, and invest in resilience.
$107 billion for the Judiciary Committee. These funds address establishing "lawful permanent status for qualified immigrants."
$20.5 billion for the Indian Affairs Committee. This addresses Native American health programs and facilities, education programs and facilities, housing programs, energy programs, resilience and climate programs, BIA programs and facilities, Native language programs, and the Native Civilian Climate Corps.
$25 billion for the Small Business Committee. This provides for small business access to credit, investment, and markets.
$18 billion for the Veterans Affairs Committee. This funds upgrades to veteran facilities.
$83 billion for the Commerce Committee. This goes to investments in technology, transportation, research, manufacturing, and economic development. It provides funding for coastal resiliency, healthy oceans investments, including the National Oceans and Coastal Security Fund and the National Science Foundation research and technology directorate.
I don't see the problem with any of those "freebies." To me the y look like things that should have been in the budget to begin with.
Of course they do...........to you
I see no problem either DH!
You don't recognize pork?
Blinders...........pure and simple. Partisan party first blinders with a pinch of virtue signaling.
This right here is the one that makes me nervous. Are they suggesting givin money to banks? I think we all know that this is a disaster in the making
Yep. Haven't we kind of seen another version of this?
Yep...2008 if I recall
Q: What is an entitlement?
A: Programs that provide what individuals are entitled to receive.
Examples: Military retirement, Social Security and Medicare.
Military retirement is EARNED thru ones military service.
Social Security and Medicare are EARNED by those who paid FICA taxes.
Ask Senator Manchin how many of his constituents are on some form of public assistance.