Biden Adopts Sanders’s Medicare, Loan Plans: Campaign Update

(Bloomberg) -- A day after Bernie Sanders dropped out of the presidential race, Joe Biden signaled support for two new progressive policies as he seeks to unite the Democratic Party around him.

Biden said he supported lowering the Medicare eligibility age to 60 from 65 and forgiving student debt for low-income and middle-class individuals who have attended public colleges and universities.

“Senator Sanders and his supporters can take pride in their work in laying the groundwork for these ideas, and I’m proud to adopt them as part of my campaign at this critical moment in responding to the coronavirus crisis,” Biden said in a statement.

Over the past month, Biden adopted Elizabeth Warren’s bankruptcy proposal and a means-tested version of Sanders’ free college tuition policy. The Biden and Sanders camps have been in communication over the past several weeks, and the new policies are part of a larger effort by the former vice president’s campaign to reach out to the party’s left wing.

Georgia Postpones Primary Again (3:40 p.m.)

Georgia has pushed back its primary for a second time, delaying the vote until June 9 just weeks after moving the initial March 24 date to May.

The state, with more than 10,000 cases of coronavirus and 379 deaths, isn’t alone in deciding to postpone elections in response to the pandemic. New Jersey moved on Wednesday to push its presidential primary from June 2 to July 7. Fifteen other states and Puerto Rico have either delayed primaries or switched to vote-by-mail because of the pandemic.

Georgia’s primary is now scheduled to take place on the day of the Democratic National Committee’s deadline for delegates to be selected. A DNC official said Wednesday the party was considering changes to that schedule. -- Ryan Teague Beckwith and Emma Kinery

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.