Sanders Urges Ban on Super PACs in Democratic Primaries

The Vermont senator says money in politics is out of control, Democratic Party should limit expenditures when choosing nominees.

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Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) called for an end to super PAC money in Democratic primaries at a Progressive Democrats of America event on the eve of the first night of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

Sanders campaigned earlier this summer for Squad members Reps. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) and Cori Bush (D-MO). They lost their primaries amid massive amounts of super PAC spending, particularly from pro-Israel forces ties to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). The two races were among the most expensive Democratic primaries in history.

“What you’re seeing from AIPAC and other super PACs is simply outrageous,” Sanders said. “Democrats often talk about the need to end Citizens United, and we agree. They talk about moving to public funding of elections. But if you’re serious about the power of money in politics, you can say today, sorry, no super PACs allowed in primaries.”

Political parties do have control over the terms of primary elections. A growing number of progressive Democrats, led by former Communications Workers of America president Larry Cohen, have been suggesting that the DNC could disqualify super PAC spending in their primary elections to select Democratic nominees.

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This obviously would create a huge fight within the party, but the logic is that, while current campaign finance law grants free-speech rights to billionaires and corporations, a political party has the right to make the determination that big money should be kept out.

Sanders isn’t blind to the forces of big money within the Democratic Party, of course. He advised people attending the convention in Chicago to look at the super boxes in the United Center arena and suggested that they go for a million dollars or more. “You’ve got lobbyists, the big-money interests floating all over the place,” Sanders said.

But in theory, the party could absolutely limit the types of spending in the primary elections that they manage. A super PAC ban is likely to be a rallying cry for progressives who see themselves as under assault from pro-Israel, crypto, and other interests in primaries.

Sanders spoke at a tribute to the Rev. Jesse Jackson during the Progressive Democrats of America’s “Progressive Central” gathering on Sunday night and then answered questions from The Nation’s John Nichols. His remarks on money in politics came after his remarks during a question-and-answer session.

The speech was Sanders’s usual mélange of statistics about how America is failing to deliver on economic justice for working-class Americans. Pointing to his wife, he joked, “Jane says I should hand out Prozac after my speeches.”

He did say that President Biden was the most progressive president in recent memory in economic terms considering what he was prepared to do with his Build Back Better plan that was scuttled by the Senate, and for his work on the American Rescue Plan, which was signed into law.

Asked about the Harris-Walz campaign, Sanders said that “Kamala for a variety of reasons has created a whole lot of excitement and energy. We’re going to do everything we can to make sure she wins.” When Nichols mentioned that Tim Walz is sometimes called “the Bernie Sanders of Minnesota,” Sanders frowned a bit, saying, “The same people who say that invented the idea that Kamala Harris is more radical than Bernie. In neither case is it true, unfortunately.”

The senior senator from Vermont continued, “What I like about Tim is he is a very down-to-earth guy. I like him, and his record as governor in Minnesota is a good record given the small margin they have in the state legislature. I was glad that the vice president chose him.”

Sanders will address the convention on Tuesday.

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