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Sanders, Democrats Call Trump's Bluff on Drug Price Executive Order
"If Trump is serious," said Sen. Bernie Sanders, "he will support legislation I will soon be introducing to make sure we pay no more for prescription drugs than people in other major countries."
May 12, 2025
If U.S. President Donald Trump actually wants to curb out-of-control prescription drug prices, he'll throw his support behind legislative efforts instead of trying to do so unilaterally—an approach that's unlikely to survive legal challenges.
That was the message that Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and congressional Democrats sent to the White House after Trump signed an executive order Monday aimed at pushing "pharmaceutical manufacturers to bring prices for American patients in line with comparably developed nations."
The order resembles an effort that a federal judge blocked during Trump's first term after the pharmaceutical industry mobilized against it.
Sanders, a longtime proponent of legislative action to address exorbitant medicine prices, said he agrees it is "an outrage that the American people pay, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs."
"As Trump well knows, his executive order will be thrown out by the courts," said Sanders. "If Trump is serious about making real change rather than just issuing a press release, he will support legislation I will soon be introducing to make sure we pay no more for prescription drugs than people in other major countries. If Republicans and Democrats come together on this legislation, we can get it passed in a few weeks."
If Trump is serious about making real change rather than just issuing a press release, he will support legislation I will introduce to ensure we pay no more for prescription drugs than people in other major countries. If we come together, we can get it passed in a few weeks.
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— Senator Bernie Sanders (@sanders.senate.gov) May 12, 2025 at 1:01 PM
Sanders and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) have previously teamed up on a bill that would end drugmakers' monopoly control over a medication and allow generic competition if it is priced higher in the U.S. than in other rich nations.
An analysis released last year by the RAND Corporation estimated that prescription drug prices in the U.S. are, on average, 2.78 times higher than prices in Canada, Germany, France, and other comparable countries.
Khanna wrote on social media that he supports Trump's "effort to ensure Americans do not pay more for drugs than those in other countries." But, like Sanders, Khanna warned the executive order is likely doomed to fail.
"Instead of an EO that will get challenged again by Big Pharma, why not work with Bernie Sanders and me to make this law," the California Democrat wrote.
The pharmaceutical industry has made its opposition to Trump's latest order clear. In a statement, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America CEO Stephen Ubl claimed that "importing foreign prices from socialist countries would be a bad deal for American patients and workers."
"It would mean less treatments and cures and would jeopardize the hundreds of billions our member companies are planning to invest in America," Ubl added, rehashing a common and false industry talking point.
"Donald Trump is all hat and no cattle when it comes to lowering the price of prescription drugs."
Since taking office, Trump has repeatedly claimed to support aggressive action to bring down drug prices while simultaneously working to roll back progress toward that goal. Last month, as Common Dreamsreported, Trump signed an executive order aimed at delaying Medicare price negotiations for a broad category of prescription drugs.
The price negotiations began during the Biden administration following Democratic lawmakers' passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, a law whose drug pricing provisions have so far withstood Big Pharma's legal onslaught.
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) said in response to the president's executive order that "Donald Trump is all hat and no cattle when it comes to lowering the price of prescription drugs."
"Trump spent his entire first term blathering about Big Pharma, but in the end he always backed down instead of fighting for American seniors and families," said Wyden. "Democrats took on Big Pharma and won by finally giving Medicare the power to negotiate lower drug prices on behalf of seniors and capping their out-of-pocket costs for expensive prescriptions. If Trump was serious about lowering drug prices, he would work with Congress to strengthen Medicare drug price negotiations, not just sign a piece of paper."
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Progressives Mark Mother's Day With Calls to 'Honor Our Moms With Action'
"Today on Mother's Day, let's remember every mother deserves a livable wage, affordable childcare, paid family leave, and the ability to retire with dignity," said Sen. Bernie Sanders.
May 11, 2025
As the Republicans who narrowly control both chambers of Congress plot cuts to programs that serve the working-class to pay for tax giveaways to the wealthy, progressive lawmakers on Sunday marked Mother's Day by renewing calls for policies that would improve the lives of U.S. families.
Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), founder of the Congressional Mamas' Caucus, said in a video shared to social media that "this Mother's Day, we're gonna fight to protect Medicaid, we're gonna fight for childcare, and we're gonna fight to make sure that our children have access to clean water."
Other representatives featured in the video also pledged to fight for federal programs, including Medicaid, which provides health coverage to low-income individuals; Head Start, which provides early childhood education and programming for working-class parents; and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), commonly called food stamps.
President Donald Trump's administration recently reversed course on Head Start cuts by leaving them out of the proposed fiscal year 2026 budget—at least for now—but, as USA Todaynoted earlier this month, "other preschool and after-school programs may be in jeopardy as the Republican-controlled Congress wrestles over the federal budget this summer."
As part of that budget battle, GOP lawmakers are targeting programs including SNAP and Medicaid. In a U.S. House of Representatives floor speech, Tlaib declared that "too often, mothers are left behind in this chamber."
"In the richest country in the world," the mother-of-two argued, "no mother should worry about feeding her children or affording basic care. Ending child poverty is a policy choice. I introduced the End Child Poverty Act to provide universal child benefit for every child in our country and cut child poverty by 60%. Paid leave, affordable childcare, and universal school meals should be guaranteed, not privileges."
Tlaib also noted the Black Maternal Health Caucus' Momnibus Act, a bill she co-sponsors that aims to address the nation's maternal health crisis, and a new Mamas' Caucus campaign to battle GOP efforts to cut hundreds of billions of dollars from Medicaid. She said that "this Mother's Day, I'm asking all of you to not only thank our mothers, but do it with action as we recommit to fighting for the dignity and health of every mother in our nation."
Like Tlaib, Rep. Jonathan Jackson (D-Ill.) used Mother's Day to recognize the U.S. maternal health crisis.
"As we honor our mothers, we must also recognize that too many are being failed by a system that should protect them," he said on social media. "In the U.S., Black women are nearly three times more likely to die from pregnancy-related complications than white women, regardless of income or education. The U.S. has the highest maternal mortality rate among developed countries. Over 80% of pregnancy-related deaths in the U.S. are preventable. This is unacceptable."
"We will continue fighting for mothers today, tomorrow, and every day for their right to safe, dignified care, bodily autonomy, compassionate treatment, and healthy equity in America," Jackson added.
Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) on Sunday advocated for his Child Care for America Act, which aims to make childcare $10 per day for families but raise the pay floor for industry workers to $24 an hour.
Khanna, Jackson, and Tlaib have all backed the fight for Medicare for All—and the related bill for that was reintroduced late last month by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Reps. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) and Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.).
"Today on Mother's Day, let's remember every mother deserves a livable wage, affordable childcare, paid family leave, and the ability to retire with dignity," Sanders said Sunday. "America must become a nation which treats all mothers and their kids with the respect and dignity they deserve."
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) honored her own mom on Mother's Day by resharing, in a series of social media posts, the story about how she supported their family by securing a minimum wage job.
"After my daddy had a heart attack, he couldn't work for a while. Bills piled up. We lost our family station wagon. It looked like the house would be next to go. At night, I'd overhear my parents talk, and that's when I learned words like 'mortgage' and 'foreclosure,'" she recalled. "One day, I walked into my parents' bedroom. My mother's face was red and puffy. A dress was laid out over the bedspread—the dress that only came out for weddings, graduations, and funerals."
"'We are not going to lose this house,' she kept saying. 'We are not going to lose this house.' She'd never worked outside the home. She was terrified," Warren continued. "But she knew what she had to do. I watched her put that dress on, put on her high heels, and blow her nose. She walked to Sears. She got a minimum wage job. And that minimum wage job saved our house and saved our family."
"Today, the federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour—a wage that has not increased in over 15 years. With that, a family living on minimum wage is living in poverty."
The senator said that "this story is written on my heart. I'm remembering my mother's courage this Mother's Day. I'm thinking about all the mamas out there fighting for their families. And I'm thinking about all the ways the deck is stacked against mothers and families today. A mother today would not be able to work a minimum wage job and keep everyone afloat. Today, the federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour—a wage that has not increased in over 15 years. With that, a family living on minimum wage is living in poverty."
"And, without quality, affordable childcare, mothers have been shoved out of the workforce," she noted. "They will feel the consequences—in lost earnings, in lower Social Security benefits—for the rest of their lives. And, notably, most women who get abortions today are already mothers. Many are working multiple jobs that don't pay enough to support their children. Abortion bans make it even harder for those families to make ends meet."
While GOP policymakers are working to restrict reproductive freedom and cut safety net programs, Warren made her priorities clear: "I'm working to give every mother and every family a fighting chance—and I'm in this fight all the way."
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Sanders Says Trump Arrest of Wisconsin Judge Is About One Thing Only: 'Unchecked Power'
"Let's be clear. Trump's arrest of Judge Dugan in Milwaukee has nothing to do with immigration. It has everything to do with his moving this country toward authoritarianism."
Apr 25, 2025
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders led congressional progressives on Friday in condemning the Trump administration's arrest of a county judge in Wisconsin for allegedly helping an undocumented man evade capture by federal immigration agents.
FBI agents arrested 65-year-old Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan, who faces felony charges of obstruction and concealing an individual, whom she is accused of giving refuge in her chambers as federal officers sought to arrest him.
In a statement accusing President Donald Trump of "illegally usurping congressional powers," Sanders (I-Vt.) said: "Let's be clear. Trump's arrest of Judge Dugan in Milwaukee has nothing to do with immigration. It has everything to do with his moving this country toward authoritarianism."
"Trump continues to demonstrate that he does not believe in the Constitution, the separation of powers, or the rule of law."
"He is suing media that he dislikes. He is attacking universities whose policies he disagrees with. He is intimidating major law firms who have opposed him," Sanders continued. "He is ignoring a 9-0 Supreme Court decision to bring Kilmar Abrego García back from El Salvador, where he was illegally sent. He is threatening to impeach judges who rule against him."
"Trump's latest attack on the judiciary and Judge Dugan is about one thing—unchecked power," the senator asserted. "He will attack and undermine any institution that stands in his way. Trump continues to demonstrate that he does not believe in the Constitution, the separation of powers, or the rule of law. He simply wants more and more power for himself."
"It is time for my colleagues in the Republican Party who believe in the Constitution to stand up to his growing authoritarianism," Sanders added.
Other progressive lawmakers also condemned Dugan's arrest, with Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) calling this "a red alert moment" that we "all must rise against."
Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) said on the social media site X: "Judge Dugan's arrest is outrageous and a fear tactic to our independent judiciary. Trump has always thought he was above the law, but now he's enabling his goons to push that limit as far as it can go. His reckless deportations and flaunting of the Constitution will fail."
Rep. Summer Lee (D-Pa.)
said on social media that "arresting judges is the kind of crackdown you see in a police state."
"This is how dictators take power," Lee warned. "They manufacture crises, undermine our institutions, and erode our checks and balances. If they'll come for one, they'll come for all."
Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) said that "Trump's playbook is simple: punish anyone who stands in his way."
"This ain't law and order—it's a rise of authoritarianism in real time," she added.
The FBI arrested a Wisconsin judge who stood up for due process for immigrants. This is unprecedented. All of us need to stand up and speak out against arresting judges in this country. We are living in dangerous times.
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— Rep. Ro Khanna ( @khanna.house.gov) April 25, 2025 at 11:07 AM
Accusing the Trump administration of a "shocking" willingness to "weaponize federal law enforcement," Rep. Gwen Moore (D-Wis.) contended that the FBI "coming into a community and arresting a judge is a serious matter" that would require a "high legal bar."
Moore added, "I am very alarmed at this increasingly lawless action of the Trump administration," including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which has "been defying courts and acting with disregard for the Constitution."
Advocacy groups including Voces de la Frontera, Milwaukee Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (MAARPR), and Milwaukee Turners led a Friday afternoon protest against Dugan's arrest outside the Milwaukee County Courthouse.
HAPPENING NOW: A HUGE crowd of protesters have gathered outside a Milwaukee courthouse to support Judge Hannah Dugan after her arrest earlier today
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— Marco Foster ( @marcofoster.bsky.social) April 25, 2025 at 1:46 PM
"To refer to this heinous attack as alarming would be an understatement," MAARPR said in a statement accusing FBI Director Kash Patel of "intentionally being public with his announcement and accusations" and "seeking to bypass Dugan's due process and label her as a criminal before she even has an opportunity to speak up."
"It's no coincidence that Patel and the FBI have acted this way when the agency has a long history of bypassing any due process," the group said. "They are seeking to send a clear message: Either you play along with Trump's agenda, or pay the consequences."
MAARPR continued:
During this period of racist and political repression, we must stand together to denounce today's actions by the FBI. What happened to Dugan is not new. The FBI and other agencies have been emboldened in recent months, snatching people off the streets, separating families, terrorizing communities, breaking doors down of pro-Palestine activists, and contributing to the unjust deportation of immigrants who don't have criminal records. What is new is that they have gone after a judge.
"The conditions we face are scary, but it will be the people united who can put an end to this terror by the FBI, ICE, and all other agencies committing such acts of injustice," the group added. "The people united will stand against Trump and his agenda."
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