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Sanders releases $62 billion plan to revitalize the VA CHARLES CITY, Iowa — Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., on Monday released a $62 billion plan to revitalize the Veterans Affairs Administration that proposes, among other things, to repair, modernize and rebuild the infrastructure of the VA to provide “cutting-edge health care services” to veterans. The plan, released on Veteran's Day, also pledges to fill nearly 50,000 vacancies at the VA within his first year in office. Sanders also proposes a simplification of the claims process, so veterans receive compensation in a timely manner, “without bureaucratic red tape,” the campaign says. Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., center, smiles after filing to be listed on the New Hampshire primary ballot on Oct. 31, 2019, at the Secretary of State's office in Concord, N.H. Charles Krupa / AP Much of the plan focuses on making sure veterans who deserve care, get it. Sanders says he plans to reform what the campaign calls “harmful VA regulations” that restrict access to care and benefits based on type of military discharge. The plan also calls for Veterans to be Able to use the “full complement” of benefits offered in the G.I. Bill. The campaign released a video Monday, featuring Sanders senior advisors Warren Gunnels and Jeff Weaver, and late Republican Sen. John McCain. The video, titled “Keeping our promises” focuses on Sanders’ and McCain’s bipartisan work to enact the Veterans' Access, Choice and Accountability Act of 2014, a bill that authorized 27 new facilities for the VA, and provided billions to hire doctors and nurses. Share this -







Sherrod Brown reiterates he isn't running for president, says he's happy with Dem field WASHINGTON — Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, said Sunday that he doesn't share the "hand-wringing anguish that my fellow Democrats have” about the state of the Democratic presidential field, reiterating that he's not interested in running for the office himself. Brown, who briefly flirted with a presidential bid this year, addressed the state of the race during a Sunday interview on NBC's "Meet the Press." Full Brown: 'I've never had the desire to be president' Nov. 10, 2019 07:14 "It's genetic that Democrats wring their hands about presidential candidates. I mean, we always do that. I think it's a good field. I think we're going to beat Trump," he said. "I go back to the promises this president's made. He makes promises to farmers and then he chooses the oil industry over family farmers in western Ohio. And I think that is eating away at his support." On the question of whether he'd consider changing his mind and running, Brown said he's never had a "big desire to be president of the United States." "I love what I'm doing and I just didn't have the huge ambition you need to be president of the United States," he said. But while he wouldn't discuss the strategies of specific candidates, he shared general advice as to how he thinks the field should position itself. He argued that Democrats have to do "do better" in talking to working-class voters, and that the candidates should focus on trying to strengthen ObamaCare rather than replacing it with a new program like Medicare for All. "Democrats want to get to universal coverage. Republicans want to take it away. That should be where we all go as a team, as Democrats, on all of this," Brown said. Share this -







Pete Buttigieg talks about his challenges attracting support from black voters CONCORD, N.H. – In an exclusive interview with NBC News, Democratic presidential candidate South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg discussed his campaign's outreach to black voters after an internal campaign memo detailed concerns over the campaign's ability to reach out to the black community, and whether Buttigieg's sexual orientation is an issue for those voters in states like South Carolina. Buttigieg told NBC News that while "homophobia is a problem" but "it’s unfair to suggest that homophobia is only an issue in the black community, when really it’s an issue in America." While Buttigieg has jumped toward the top of recent national polls, and polls in Iowa, a Monmouth University poll released a few weeks ago saw Buttigieg polling at only 3 percent in South Carolina among likely Democratic voters in the state. When likely Democratic black voters in South Carolina were polled, that support fell to 1 percent. Buttigieg discusses campaign outreach to black community, homophobia Nov. 9, 2019 01:38 Share this -







Tom Steyer campaign aide resigns following accusations of payments for endorsements DES MOINES, Iowa — Tom Steyer’s Iowa political director, Pat Murphy, has resigned in the wake of reports that he offered campaign contributions to local politicians in exchange for endorsing the billionaire's presidential candidacy. "After the conclusion of an investigation alleging improper communications with elected officials in Iowa, Pat Murphy has offered his resignation from the campaign effective immediately," Steyer campaign manager Heather Hargreaves said in a statement Friday evening. “Our campaign policy is clear that we will not engage in this kind of activity, or any kind of communication that could be perceived as improper." 2020 Democratic Presidential hopeful US billionaire philanthropist Tom Steyer speaks on-stage during the Democratic National Committee's summer meeting in San Francisco on Aug. 23, 2019. Josh Edelson / AFP - Getty Images In an interview with MSNBC earlier Friday, Steyer said such payments would not have been authorized by the campaign. “Nothing like that has ever been authorized. Nothing like that ever would be authorized,” Steyer said, noting that he found out about the allegations “through the airwaves.” While paying for endorsements is not strictly illegal, the action could violate campaign finance laws, if the payments were not disclosed. The Steyer campaign highlighted their policy that they would “not engage in this kind of activity, and anyone who does is not speaking for the campaign or does not know our policy.” Earlier Friday morning, following a public endorsement from state Rep. Russell Ott, Steyer answered questions a media availability in St. Matthews, S.C., where he reinforced the message that his campaign was working to “make sure we understand exactly what happened.” “I can promise you we'll deal with the highest, we will make sure this campaign is run with the highest standards of integrity,” Steyer said. In Iowa, Steyer has received just one endorsement, from former state Rep. Roger Thomas. Thomas confirmed to NBC News that he was never offered money in exchange for his support, and said, “I can positively assure you that I did not receive any compensation from Mr. Steyer or anyone involved in his campaign.” The resignation of Murphy comes after one of Steyer’s South Carolina deputy state director, Dwane Sims, quit after it was discovered that he used access he had previously been granted while working for the South Carolina Democratic Party to download data about rival Sen. Kamala Harris' campaign. “What I do know for sure is nothing, no information was ever used,” Steyer said at the same media availability Friday, adding that he called Harris and “left a message to say I'm sorry.” Share this -







Andrew Yang releases first TV ad in Iowa DES MOINES, Iowa — Entrepreneur Andrew Yang Thursday became the latest Democratic presidential candidate to hit the airwaves in Iowa, releasing his first TV ad that highlights his connections to the Obama administration and emphasizes his ability to take on industries like big tech and health care. The one-minute ad, titled “New Way Forward,” opens with scenic shots of waves crashing against rocks and views of the San Francisco bridge as a narrator says, “The son of immigrants who came here seeking the American dream — Andrew Yang.” The ad ends on an image of him and his wife, Evelyn. The 60-second ad touts Yang’s record as a businessman and his connections to the Obama administration, “President Obama named Andrew a champion of change, and his ideas are a blueprint for a new way forward,” the narrator says as photos of Yang meeting with the former president flash across the screen. The rhythm of the music takes a slightly darker tone as the ad turns to Yang’s plans for taking on Wall Street, big drug companies, and polluters before declaring, “Andrew Yang: parent, patriot — not a politician.” The campaign says it is spending more than $1 million to air the ad across the first-in-the-nation caucus state. Notably, the ad does not verbally mention Yang’s signature Freedom Dividend plan to give every adult American $1,000 a month, but displays the text “Universal Basic Income” text over a clip of Yang addressing a rally: “We have to rewrite the rules of the 21st century so that they work for us.” Of the candidates still in the race, Yang is the 11th Democratic hopeful to release television ads in Iowa this election cycle. Yang wasn't in the state during the month of October but did visit on Nov. 1 for the state party's Liberty and Justice dinner. He has instead been spending significant time in New Hampshire and holding rallies in major cities nationwide. The ads, which will run across broadcast channels, allow Yang to reach caucus voters even when he’s not in the state. “This is a significant media buy across the state of Iowa,” said Yang senior adviser Mark Longabaugh in the release. “Democratic voters will see Andrew Yang's message multiple times over the next week, learning about his credentials, family and unique plan to move our country 'a new way forward.’” The ad is the campaign’s first produced by Devine, Mulvey, and Longabaugh, the media consulting firm and longtime Bernie Sanders advisers who split with the Sanders campaign earlier this year. In latest polls, Yang has 3 percent support in Iowa, 5 percent in New Hampshire, and 3 percent nationally. Yang appears to have qualified for the November date, but has not yet met the polling threshold for the December debate. Share this -







Amy Klobuchar shuts down women candidates not being "likable" ROCHESTER, N.H. — After filing to appear on the Democratic primary ballot in New Hampshire Wednesday, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., appeared at a town hall even where she was asked the "likability" factor and how it could impact the candidates. The question was asked in reference to a new New York Times/Siena College poll in which some respondents said they'd support a male candidate over a female candidate when the two people's ideologies were similar, which was also featured on an episode of The New York Times’ podcast "The Daily" earlier this week. Klobuchar shuts down question on women candidates being 'unlikable' Nov. 6, 2019 03:39 Klobuchar responded by focusing on the three female senators in the race, saying that herself, Elizabeth Warren and Kamala Harris have all had tough jobs that show they know how to lead in different ways. "We have all had tough jobs, okay. Tough jobs. And really good tough jobs that show we know how to lead," Klobuchar said. "You have to make tough decisions and that's the truth, and it has haunted all three of us in different ways but I think overall, this is the interesting part, we wouldn't be on that debate stage and where we are running for president if we hadn't been tough enough to have those jobs." She added, “So I am just like, seriously, this is not a measure we use with men and so I find all of us quite likeable.” Klobuchar went on to add that the women senators in the presidential race don’t agree on everything, just like men, but that their differences are policy-centered. “We finally have these women out there and yeah, we don't agree on everything — big surprise —just like men don't,” she said. Policy differences aside, Klobuchar said it's a positive development that there are so many women running for president this time around and reminisced on what it was like when Hillary Clinton sought the presidency in 2016. "I cannot even imagine how that felt for her on election night and how everyone felt in this room, but what I do know is she actually did break the glass ceiling because of the fact that we have so many women that are in leadership now." “Does it make me mad sometimes? Yes, yes it does. And I think experience should be valued,” Klobuchar closed. “I'm just hoping and betting that they are going to connect that experience and ability, not just with a man, but with a woman. Then I win." Share this -







Tulsi Gabbard appears to qualify for November debate WASHINGTON — Hawaii Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard is poised to appear on November's presidential debate stage after finishing with 3 percent in a new poll of Iowa. That makes Gabbard the 10th candidate expected to appear on the stage at this month's debate in Atlanta, sponsored by MSNBC and The Washington Post. She's hit the threshold of three percent in four national or state polls, as well as raising money from 165,000 unique donors, according to an NBC News analysis of publicly released polls and donor numbers. That same Quinnipiac University poll found Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., South Bend, Ind. Mayor Pete Buttigieg, Vermont Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders and former Vice President Joe Biden all jockeying for the top position. Warren led narrowly with 20 percent, followed by Buttigieg's 19 percent, Sanders' 17 percent and Biden's 15 percent. Behind the pack were: Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., with 5 percent

Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., with 4 percent

Billionaire Tom Steyer with 3 percent

Gabbard with 3 percent

Businessman Andrew Yang with 3 percent Share this -





