Transcript: Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan," July 26, 2026

Key Points:

• Senator Bernie Sanders opposes the $67 billion emergency funding request for the Iran war, calling the conflict unconstitutional and urging negotiation to end it quickly, while emphasizing the need to prioritize domestic issues like housing, healthcare, and climate change.
• Sanders supports progressive candidates like Troy Jackson in Maine and Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan, highlighting their focus on addressing economic inequality and criticizing the influence of billionaire-funded super PACs backing establishment candidates.
• He rejects criticism from Democratic establishment figures like Rahm Emanuel, arguing that grassroots progressive movements are gaining momentum by advocating for systemic changes such as Medicare for All and challenging the status quo on economic and social issues.
• Sanders attributes the lack of bipartisan progress on healthcare reform to the powerful influence of insurance and pharmaceutical companies, advocating for a single-payer Medicare for All system despite Vermont's previous struggles with such a model.
• On public health issues, Sanders expresses skepticism about the confirmation of Dr. Erica Schwartz as CDC leader due to concerns about resistance to political interference, and supports legislation requiring stronger warning labels on ultra-processed foods and restricting junk food marketing to children to combat obesity and diabetes.