Congress
Capitol agenda: Sanders could soon get a Senate bully pulpit
Bernie Sanders is already the most prominent voice on the American left. Now he’s on the brink of getting a powerful perch to do something about it.
Sanders is poised to lead Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions if Democrats flip the chamber next week — a chance to push the party further left and shape the next presidential contest in which he’s signaled he’s unlikely to be a candidate.
“If I have anything to say about it … the agenda of the Democratic Party is going to be extremely bold,” the 85-year-old independent said. “We’re going to do what the American people want.”
Sanders’ term runs through 2030, and with President Donald Trump in the White House for at least two more years, it’s unlikely many of his sweeping legislative dreams will be fulfilled anytime soon. But with a role atop the health panel, Sanders could leverage any Trump veto of his legislation along with his own oversight powers to paint the party’s priorities for voters heading into 2028.
He’s already signaling he would make a “Medicare for All” universal health plan a signature push next year.
As for labor matters, Sanders has said he would try to raise the minimum wage, advance legislation that would expand employees’ ability to unionize and also protect workers from artificial-intelligence-driven job loss.
On education, Sanders has called to make four-year public college tuition-free and to raise teacher pay.
During his first round with the HELP gavel in 2023 and 2024, Sanders’ legislative plans were stymied by a GOP-controlled House and more moderate Democratic colleagues.
But the Senate Democratic Caucus and the party writ large have moved closer toward Sanders since then, and several of the Senate’s 2028 White House hopefuls are from the left.
Sanders may also find himself with a GOP counterpart more willing to play ball to hold administration officials accountable. Sen. Lisa Murkowski — who has raised concerns about Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — could become the top Republican on HELP if Sen. Rand Paul continues to lead Homeland Security.
Joseph Geevarghese — the executive director of Our Revolution, which Sanders founded but is now an independent organization — added that a Chair Sanders “would put the affordability crisis at the center of what an opposition party should be doing” while extracting concessions from the Trump administration for working families.
“In that sense, he could become the party’s de facto leader,” Geevarghese added.
What else we’re watching:
— DEMS PLAN TRUMP TARGET FOR EPSTEIN PROBE — House Democrats are making increasingly clear they have no plans to abandon their line of inquiry into whether Trump was involved in Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking ring, should they retake the majority in the midterms. A new report, titled “The Case Against Donald Trump Emerging in the Epstein Files and DOJ’s Desperate Efforts to Cover It Up,” lists five women who have accused Trump “of raping or sexually assaulting them” in the company of Epstein.
— BLANCHE ON ALASKA: ‘THERE COULD BE A CRIME’ — Attorney General Todd Blanche defended the newly filed lawsuit to prevent Alaska state officials from certifying November’s election results if Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan loses. In a Sunday BLN interview, host Dana Bash asked what crime the administration was arguing was being committed, Blanche replied, “It depends.” “There could be a crime,” said Blanche. “But the real wrong here is that Alaskans are going to be confused and will not have their vote heard.”
Jordain Carney, Chris Marquette, Cheyanne M. Daniels contributed to this report.