Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) responded to political strategist James Carville saying the Democratic Party “can’t be more liberal” than Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) because they will not be able to pass any of their legislation.
Sanders shrugged off Carville’s remarks, saying he does not think Carville is “terribly relevant to what happens in Congress right now.”
“[S]enator Manchin has said he’s not in favor of lowering the eligibility age [for Medicare]. Do you think that was probably why Joe Biden didn’t include your provision in his plan?” host Chuck Todd asked.
“No, I don’t think so,” Sanders replied. “James Carville can live in his world. I don’t think he’s terribly relevant to what happens in Congress right now. Here is the story, very simple story — is that right now for the last 55 years, since Medicare was developed in 1965, it has not included coverage for dental care, hearing aids and eyeglasses. And I can tell you in Vermont and all over this country, you’ve got senior citizens whose teeth are rotting in their mouth, older people who can’t talk to their grandchildren because they can’t hear them because they can’t afford a hearing aid, and people can’t read a newspaper because they can’t afford glasses. So, to say dental care, hearing aids and eyeglasses should be a part of Medicare makes all the sense in the world.”
Follow Trent Baker on Twitter @MagnifiTrent
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