Sanders Calls On Candidates To Reject Donations From Health Industry: ‘You Can’t Change A Corrupt System By Taking Its Money’
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) invited his fellow presidential candidates to join him in refusing to accept contributions over $200 from political action committees, lobbyists and executives of health insurance and drug companies. But an ABC News review of FEC records identified at least three contributions of more than $200 from two individual donors who could be considered executives at companies in those fields.
The New York Times:
Sanders Calls For Rivals To Reject Money From Health Care Industry
Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, seeking to bring fresh momentum to his presidential campaign, offered a vigorous defense on Wednesday of his signature issue, “Medicare for all,” and called for all Democratic candidates to pledge to reject contributions from the health care industry. Mr. Sanders argued in a formal address, whose themes were familiar to anyone who has followed his political career, that the current health care system was an “international embarrassment,” and he offered his own vision for a single-payer program that he said would guarantee health care for every American. (Ember, 7/17)
Politico:
Sanders Calls On Democratic Rivals To Reject Drug, Insurance Industry Donations
"You can’t change a corrupt system by taking its money," Sanders plans to say Wednesday, according to prepared remarks shared with reporters. "If we are going to break the stranglehold of corporate interests over the health care needs of the American people, we have got to confront a Washington culture that has let this go on for far too long." Sanders, who is among the top-tier candidates in the Democratic race, pointed to data that the pharmaceutical and insurance industries have spent more than $330 million on lobbying in the past two decades. (Diamond, 7/17)
The Washington Post:
Sanders Rejects Donation From Drug, Insurance Execs
Candidates who are unwilling to do so, Sanders said, “should explain to the American people why those interests believe their campaigns are a good investment. ”Sanders’s pledge underscores his desire to expand the debate over health care beyond the competing policy proposals and shows how his campaign is seizing on health care as an effective issue to wield against the more centrist Biden — a fight Biden appears to welcome. Sanders has opted not to hold fundraisers catering to wealthy donors and is not seen by insurance and drug companies as an ally. (Sullivan, 7/17)
Politico:
Sanders Swipes At Rivals, Makes A Case For 'Medicare For All'
Some of Sanders' rivals, including former Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), have held fundraisers hosted by insurance company executives since launching their bids for the White House, and several others in the 2020 field have taken donations from the drug and insurance industries in past campaigns. (Ollstein, 7/17)
CBS News:
Bernie Sanders To Call On Democrats To Reject Big Donations From Insurers And Pharma
Sanders' pledge exempts "rank-and-file" employees. The 2018 data from the Center for Responsive Politics does not specify if donations came from executives versus employed workers. The pledge marks another notch in what is becoming the 2020 primary's most contested issue: What do Democratic voters want from their healthcare? (Korte, 7/17)
CQ:
Sanders Challenges Candidates To Swear Off Pharmaceutical Money
Sanders' challenge was not extended to President Donald Trump. “I am not going to even waste my breath," he said. "This is a president who, as you will recall, promised the American people that he would provide health care to everybody but instead came within one vote of throwing 32 million Americans off of the health care that they have." (Lindarte, 7/17)
ABC News:
Bernie Sanders Accepted Pharma Executives' Donations Prior To New Pledge
Bernie Sanders called on his fellow Democratic presidential candidates Wednesday to reject donations from health insurance and pharmaceutical industry executives during what was labeled as a "major address" in Washington, D.C., but an ABC News review of FEC records earlier in the day found that Sanders himself accepted some of the same types of donations earlier in the campaign cycle. (Kim, Kelsey and Rodriguez, 7/17)
The Hill:
Biden Campaign Pushes Back On Sanders' Call To Reject Donations From Insurers, Drug Makers
Joe Biden's campaign pushed back after Sen. Bernie Sanders's (I-Vt.) called on 2020 campaigns to reject contributions from health insurance and drug companies, which was seen as a dig aimed at the former vice president. Sanders, without naming any specific campaign, made the demand Wednesday in a speech defending his "Medicare for All" plan, which Biden has harshly criticized. (Klar, 7/17)
