Sanders’ Puerto Rico Fight Shows Limits to His Clout in Congress
- Candidate is urging fellow Democrats to block House debt bill
- Some lawmakers concerned about bill’s financial control board
Senator Bernie Sanders speaks in New York on April 18, 2016.
Photographer: Victor J. Blue/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Bernie Sanders is making a forceful case against House legislation on Puerto Rico’s debt crisis. But if he hoped that winning millions of votes as a presidential contender would make people sit up and listen, it’s not working out that way.
His Senate colleagues did not mention the Vermont senator when they met behind closed doors Tuesday and discussed the Puerto Rico bill, according to Sherrod Brown of Ohio. The first House Democrat to endorse Sanders, Raul Grijalva of Arizona, was involved in the bill negotiations and has signed on to the deal. And Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid said Tuesday that he wants to see what the House passes before "we start choosing sides."