"The Amendment King"
In 2002, Sanders introduced an amendment in the House that blocked the Bush Administration from implementing a rule allowing companies to cut the pensions of older workers by as much as 50 percent.
"Little to show"? That amendment protected the pensions of countless American workers. And, through compromise and negotiation, Sanders eventually passed another amendment that helped 130,000 IBM workers regain $320 million in pension benefits.
Sanders fought to control prescription drug prices long before many of his colleagues realized there was a problem. Unlike his opponents, many of whom seem to prefer talk to action, Sanders actually did something about it. How's this for action? In 1999 he was the first member of Congress to take constituents across the border to Canada to buy low-cost prescription drugs.
Many of these constituents were breast cancer patients who were able to purchase their medications in Canada for almost one-tenth the price being charged in the United States.
As a member of Congress, Sanders introduced legislation to allow consumers to receive free credit reports and free credit scores. When Republicans refused to go along, Sanders compromised and got a deal done.
"Little to show"? Today everyone in America can get their credit reports free of charge once a year, thanks to Sanders' efforts.
Senate Action
Once in the Senate, the Sanders record of accomplishment continued. During the debate over the Affordable Care Act, Sen. Sanders worked with Rep. Jim Clyburn and won a deal which dramatically increased access to community health centers.
"Little to show"? These centers provide primary medical care, dental care, low-cost prescription drugs and mental health counseling to more than 24 million Americans.
After the Postal Service announced it was closing 15,000 post offices, Sanders rallied an ad hoc group of more than two dozen senators and reached a compromise: these post offices would stay open, but with reduced hours. That wasn't what Sanders wanted, but the alternative was much worse.
In 2009, when milk prices plummeted, Sanders was able to win $350 million in additional aid for struggling dairy farmers, many of whom were on the brink of bankruptcy. Very few experts on Capitol Hill thought that this amendment had a chance to pass the Senate. Many thought this amendment was pie-in-the-sky. But not only did it pass the Senate, it became law.
The provisions Sen. Sanders added to a 2009 climate change bill, and his efforts in support of that bill, led to $3.2 billion in energy efficiency grants to reduce greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming. The program has made more than 86,000 buildings energy efficient, installed more than 9,500 solar energy systems, and created thousands of good-paying jobs.
In addition to concrete accomplishments like these, Bernie Sanders has used his time in Congress to significantly shift the political debate. Social Security is a good example: During 2009 and 2010, insiders in both parties were talking about cutting Social Security benefits.
In response, Sanders formed the Defend Social Security Caucus in the Senate and helped form a grassroots coalition of senior citizens, veterans, the disabled, women, and labor groups to oppose these proposed "bipartisan" cuts.
Those efforts helped dramatically change the political momentum. When Sanders offered an amendment opposing Social Security cuts in 2013 it passed the Senate by acclamation.
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