Sanders’ Rift With Culinary Workers Reveals A Labor Union Civil War Over ‘Medicare For All’

Politico: Labor’s Civil War Over ‘Medicare For All’ Threatens Its 2020 Clout
“Medicare for All” is roiling labor unions across the country, threatening to divide a critical part of the Democratic base ahead of several major presidential primaries. In union-heavy primary states like California, New York, and Michigan, the fight over single-payer health care is fracturing organized labor, sometimes pitting unions against Democratic candidates that vie for their support. (Kullgren and Ollstein, 2/18)

The Washington Post: Sanders Rejects Ocasio-Cortez’s Suggestion On Health-Care Compromise
Sen. Bernie Sanders distanced himself Tuesday from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s recent suggestion that compromising on health care would be acceptable, arguing that his Medicare-for-all plan is “already a compromise.” The comments, coming in a televised town hall hosted by CNN, highlighted a rare difference between the senator and the congresswoman (D-N.Y.), one of his most prominent supporters — notably, over one of the central planks of his presidential campaign platform. (Sullivan, 2/18)

Politico: Sanders Disagrees With AOC Over Medicare For All
The Vermont senator told CNN’s Anderson Cooper at a Las Vegas town hall that he loves Ocasio-Cortez and credited her for transforming politics and getting young people involved. “But my view is that Medicare for All, the bill that we wrote, is in a sense already a compromise,” Sanders said. He added that the proposal has a four-year transition period that would bring down the age required for Medicare eligibility from 65 to 55 to 45 to 35. (McCaskill, 2/18)

Politico: Sanders Condemns Supporters’ Attacks On Culinary Union
Sen. Bernie Sanders on Tuesday night said he condemns any of his supporters who make “vicious attacks” against others. Sanders’ supporters came under fire last week after Nevada’s powerful Culinary Union offered criticism of his Medicare for All proposal. According to the Nevada Independent, two top union officials received threatening messages over the phone, email and Twitter from Sanders’ supporters. The union announced Friday that it would not endorse a political candidate ahead of the Nevada caucuses this Saturday. (McCaskill, 2/18)

Other election news focuses on South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg’s health stances, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s criticism of the Democrats’ health plans, the abortion divide, and more —

The New York Times: Fact-Checking Pete Buttigieg Before The Nevada Caucuses
Pete Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Ind., has had strong showings in the first two Democratic presidential nominating contests. As he seeks to build support ahead of Nevada’s vote on Saturday, Mr. Buttigieg has sought to explain his record with black residents of South Bend, distinguish himself from his competitors on health care, and parry attacks on the issue of campaign finance. Here’s a fact check. (Qiu, 2/18)

The Associated Press: McConnell Takes Aim At Democratic Presidential Candidates
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday that health insurance proposals from the Democratic candidates for president would hurt business owners. During a speech in Louisville at a conference for the Distilled Spirits Council, McConnell said he’s “never seen a Democratic party like we’re confronted with today.” He said even the centrist Democrat candidates who propose a public option for health insurance over Medicare for all are supporting government-based insurance. (2/18)

The Associated Press: Democrats Diverge On Outreach To Anti-Abortion Swing Voters
In a party that’s shifted leftward on abortion rights, Democratic presidential hopefuls are offering different approaches to a central challenge: how to talk to voters without a clear home in the polarizing debate over the government’s role in the decision to end a pregnancy. While Bernie Sanders said this month that “being pro-choice is an absolutely essential part of being a Democrat,” his presidential primary opponent Amy Klobuchar took a more open stance last week in saying that anti-abortion Democrats “are part of our party.” Klobuchar’s perfect voting score from major abortion-rights groups makes her an unlikely ally, but some abortion opponents nonetheless lauded the Minnesota senator for extending a hand to those on the other side of an issue that’s especially important for Catholics and other devout voters. (Schor, 2/18)

Politico: POLITICO-Harvard Poll: Health Care Costs Are Top Priority Heading Into Elections
Americans have a clear message for President Donald Trump and the Democratic candidates vying to replace him: Lower health care costs. The vast majority of Americans rank cutting health care and prescription drug costs as their top priorities heading into election season, regardless of party affiliation, according to a new POLITICO-Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health survey. (Cancryn, 2/19)

Roll Call: Bloomberg’s New Marijuana Policy Is Short On Details 
Former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg formalized his stance on marijuana Tuesday, calling for decriminalization as part of a broader criminal justice platform. But the paragraph-long marijuana policy leaves a lot of questions about what federal marijuana policy would look like under a Bloomberg administration. (Kopp, 2/18)