Human lower jaw viewed from the left

The jaw is any opposable articulated structure at the entrance of the mouth, typically used for grasping and manipulating food. The term jaws is also broadly applied to the whole of the structures constituting the vault of the mouth and serving to open and close it and is part of the body plan of most animals.

Arthropods[link]

The mandibles of a Bull ant

In arthropods, the jaws are chitinous and oppose laterally, and may consist of mandibles or chelicerae. These jaws are often composed of numerous mouthparts. Their function is fundamentally for food acquisition, conveyance to the mouth, and/or initial processing (mastication or chewing). Many mouthparts and associate structures (such as pedipalps) are modified legs.

Vertebrates[link]

In most vertebrates, the jaws are bony or cartilaginous and oppose vertically, comprising an upper jaw and a lower jaw. The vertebrate jaw is derived from the most anterior two pharyngeal arches supporting the gills, and usually bears numerous teeth.

Jaws of great white shark

The jaw in fish[link]

Moray eels have two sets of jaws: the oral jaws that capture prey and the pharyngeal jaws that advance into the mouth and move prey from the oral jaws to the esophagus for swallowing

The vertebrate jaw probably originally evolved in the Silurian period and appeared in the Placoderm fish which further diversified in the Devonian. The two most anterior pharyngeal arches are thought to have become the jaw itself and the hyoid arch, respectively. The hyoid system suspends the jaw from the braincase of the skull, permitting great mobility of the jaws. While there is no fossil evidence directly to support this theory, it makes sense in light of the numbers of pharyngeal arches that are visible in extant jawed vertebrates (the Gnathostomes), which have seven arches, and primitive jawless vertebrates (the Agnatha), which have nine.

It is thought that the original selective advantage garnered by the jaw was not related to feeding, but to increased respiration efficiency. The jaws were used in the buccal pump (observable in modern fish and amphibians) that pumps water across the gills of fish or air into the lungs in the case of amphibians. Over evolutionary time the more familiar use of jaws (to humans), in feeding, was selected for and became a very important function in vertebrates. Many teleost fish have substantially modified their jaws for suction feeding and jaw protrusion, resulting in highly complex jaws with dozens of bones involved.

The jaw in amphibians, reptiles, and birds[link]

The jaw in tetrapods is substantially simplified compared to fish. Most of the upper jaw bones (premaxilla, maxilla, jugal, quadratojugal, and quadrate) have been fused to the braincase, while the lower jaw bones (dentary, splenial, angular, surangular, and articular) have been fused together into a unit called the mandible. The jaw articulates via a hinge joint between the quadrate and articular. The jaws of tetrapods exhibit varying degrees of mobility between jaw bones. Some species have jaw bones completely fused, while others may have joints allowing for mobility of the dentary, quadrate, or maxilla. The snake skull shows the greatest degree of cranial kinesis, in order to allow the snake to swallow large prey items.

The jaw in mammals[link]

In the evolution of the mammalian jaw, two of the bones of the jaw structure (the articular bone of the lower jaw, and quadrate) were reduced in size and incorporated into the ear, while many others have been fused together.^[1] As a result, mammals show little or no cranial kinesis, and the mandible is attached to the temporal bone by the temporomandibular joint. Temporomandibular joint disorder is a common disorder of this joint^{[citation needed]}, and can cause pain and loss of joint mobility.

Sea urchin jaws[link]

Sea urchins possess unique jaws which display 5-part symmetry, termed the "Aristotle's lantern". Each unit of the jaw holds a single, perpetually-growing tooth composed of crystalline calcium carbonate.

See also[link]

• Tooth
• Gnathostomata - jawed vertebrates
• Muscles of mastication
• Otofacial syndrome
• Predentary
• Premaxilla
• Prognathism
• Rostral bone

References[link]

External links[link]

Look up jaw in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Prehistoric Fish Had Most Powerful Jaws
• Jaw at the US National Library of Medicine Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)

Bernie Sanders
United States Senator from Vermont
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2007 Serving with Patrick Leahy
Preceded by	Jim Jeffords
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Vermont's At-large district
In office January 3, 1991 – January 3, 2007
Preceded by	Peter P. Smith
Succeeded by	Peter Welch
Mayor of Burlington
In office 1981–1989
Preceded by	Gordon Paquette
Succeeded by	Peter Clavelle
Personal details
Born	Bernard Sanders (1941-09-08) September 8, 1941 (age 70) New York City, New York
Political party	Independent - (Democratic Socialist)
Other political affiliations	Democratic (affiliated non-member) Progressive (affiliated non-member) Liberty Union
Spouse(s)	Jane O'Meara
Children	Levi Sanders
Residence	Burlington, Vermont
Alma mater	University of Chicago (B.A.)
Occupation	Carpenter Filmmaker Writer Researcher
Religion	Judaism
Website	www.sanders.senate.gov

Bernard "Bernie" Sanders (born September 8, 1941) is the junior United States Senator from Vermont. He previously represented Vermont's at-large district in the United States House of Representatives. Sanders also served as mayor of Burlington, Vermont.

Sanders is a self-described democratic socialist,^[1][2] and has praised European social democracy (though he has also criticized its contemporary "Third Way" departure). He is the first person elected to the U.S. Senate to identify as a socialist.^[3] Sanders caucuses with the Democratic Party and is counted as a Democrat for the purposes of committee assignments, but because he does not belong to a formal political party, he appears as an independent on the ballot. He was also the only independent member of the House during much of his service there.

Early life, education and early career[link]

Sanders, the son of Jewish Polish immigrants to the United States, was born in Brooklyn, New York. He graduated from James Madison High School in Brooklyn and later attended the University of Chicago, graduating with an B.A. in political science in 1964.^[4] After graduating from college, Sanders spent time on an Israeli kibbutz, an experience which shaped his political views.^[5] In 1964, Sanders moved to Vermont, where he worked as a carpenter, filmmaker, writer and researcher, among other jobs.^[4]

Statewide runs in the 1970s[link]

Sanders' political career began in 1971, when he joined the anti-Vietnam War Liberty Union Party in Vermont. In the special U.S. Senate election of January 1972, recently appointed incumbent Republican Robert Theodore Stafford defeated Democratic nominee Randolph Mayor and LU nominee Sanders 64%-33%-2%.^[6] In the November 1972 gubernatorial election, Democrat Thomas Salmon defeated Republican Luther Fred Hackett and Sanders 55%-44%-1%.^[7] In the 1974 U.S. Senate election, Democrat Patrick Leahy defeated Republican Richard Mallary and Sanders 49%-46%-4%.^[8] In the 1976 gubernatorial election, Republican Richard Snelling defeated Democrat Stella Hackel and Sanders 53%-40%-6%.^[9] In 1979, Sanders resigned from the Liberty Union party and worked as a writer and the director of the non-profit American People's Historical Society.

Mayor of Burlington[link]

In 1981, at the suggestion of his friend Richard Sugarman, a religion professor at the University of Vermont, Sanders ran for mayor of Burlington and defeated six-term Democratic incumbent Gordon Paquette by 10 votes, in a four-way contest. (An independent candidate, Richard Bove, split the Democratic vote after losing the primary to Paquette).

Sanders won three more terms, defeating both Democratic and Republican candidates. In his last run for mayor, in 1987, he defeated a candidate endorsed by both major parties.

During Sanders' first term, his supporters, including the first Citizens Party City Councilor Terry Bouricius, formed the Progressive Coalition, forerunner of the Vermont Progressive Party. The Progressives never held more than six seats on the 13-member city council, but held enough votes to keep the council from overriding Sanders' vetoes. Under Sanders, Burlington became the first city in the country to fund community-trust housing. His administration also sued the local cable television provider and won considerably reduced rates and a substantial cash settlement.

Sanders ran for governor for the third time in 1986. He finished third with 14.5% of the vote – enough to deny incumbent Democrat Madeleine Kunin a majority; she was then elected by the state legislature, pursuant to Vermont law. In 1988, when seven-term incumbent Representative Jim Jeffords made a successful run for the Senate, Sanders ran for Jeffords' vacated seat in the House and narrowly lost to Peter P. Smith, the former lieutenant governor and the 1986 Republican candidate for governor.

Sanders taught at Harvard University in 1989 and Hamilton College in 1991.

U.S. House of Representatives[link]

Rep. Sanders in 2006

Elections[link]

In 1988, incumbent Republican U.S. Congressman Jim Jeffords decided to retire from Vermont's At-large congressional district to run for the U.S. Senate. Republican Lieutenant Governor Peter Smith won the election with a plurality of 41%. Sanders, who ran as an independent, got 38%. Democratic nominee Paul N. Poirier, a State Representative, got 19% in third place.^[10]

In 1990, Sanders ran for the seat again and defeated the incumbent Smith 56% to 40%. He became the first independent elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 40 years^[11] (since Frazier Reams) and the first U.S. Congressman to describe himself as a socialist in 60 years (since Victor Berger).^[12]

In 1992, he won re-election with 58%.^[13] In 1994, in the midst of the Republican Revolution that swept Republicans into control of the Congress, Sanders had his most difficult re-election campaign, defeating Republican State Senator John Carroll 50% to 47%; no Democrat was on the ballot.^[14] In 1996, he defeated Republican State Senator Susan Sweetser and Democrat Jack Long 55%-33%-9%.^[15] He didn't have another competitive re-election campaign after 1996. He won re-election in 1998 (63%), 2000 (69%), 2002 (64%) and 2004 (67%).^[16][17] In total, Sanders was re-elected seven times and was the longest-serving independent member of the House. Despite his independent status, he won re-election with less than 55% only once (1994).

Although relations between Sanders and House Democratic leadership were not always smooth, the Democrats never actively campaigned against Sanders after his first run for Congress as an independent. While Democratic candidates ran against him in every election except 1994 (when Sanders managed to win the Democrats' endorsement), they received little financial support.^{[citation needed]}

Tenure[link]

Sanders' lifetime legislative score from the AFL-CIO is 100%. As of 2006^[update], he has a grade of "C-" from the National Rifle Association (NRA). Sanders voted against the Brady Bill and in favor of an NRA-supported bill to restrict lawsuits against gun manufacturers in 2005.^[18] Sanders voted to abolish the so-called "marriage penalty" for income taxes and also voted for a bill that sought to ban human cloning. Sanders has endorsed every Democratic nominee for president of the United States since 1992. Sanders is a co-founder of the House Progressive Caucus and chaired the grouping of mostly liberal Democrats for its first eight years.

Sanders voted against the resolutions authorizing the use of force against Iraq in 1991 and 2002 and opposed the 2003 invasion of Iraq. But he later joined almost all of his colleagues in voting for a non-binding resolution expressing support for U.S. troops at the outset of the invasion, although he gave a floor speech criticizing the partisan nature of the resolution and the Bush administration's actions in the run-up to the war. On April 7, 2006, in regard to the investigation of the leak of CIA agent Valerie Plame's identity, Sanders said, "The revelation that the president authorized the release of classified information in order to discredit an Iraq war critic should tell every member of Congress that the time is now for a serious investigation of how we got into the war in Iraq and why Congress can no longer act as a rubber stamp for the president."^[19] Sanders supports universal health care and opposes what he terms "unfettered" free trade,^[20] which he argues deprives American workers of their jobs while exploiting foreign workers in sweatshop factories.

In June 2005, Sanders proposed an amendment to limit provisions that allow the government to obtain individuals' library and book-buying records. The amendment passed the House by a bipartisan majority but was removed on November 4 that year by House-Senate negotiators and never became law.^[21] Sanders followed this vote on November 5, 2005, by voting against the Online Freedom of Speech Act, which would have exempted the Internet from the restrictions of the McCain-Feingold Bill.

In March 2006, after a series of resolutions calling for him to bring articles of impeachment against the president passed in various towns in Vermont, Sanders stated it would be impractical to impeach George W. Bush, given the "reality that the Republicans control the House and the Senate." Still, Sanders made no secret of his opposition to the Bush Administration, which he regularly attacked for cuts in social programs he supports.^[22][23][24]

Sanders is a critic of Alan Greenspan. In June 2003, during a question-and-answer discussion with the then-Federal Reserve chairman, Sanders told Greenspan that he was concerned that Greenspan was "way out of touch" and "that you see your major function in your position as the need to represent the wealthy and large corporations."^[25] Sanders said in 1998 that investment banks and commercial banks should remain as separate entities.^[26]

Republicans have attacked Sanders as "an ineffective extremist" for successfully sponsoring only one law and fifteen amendments in his eight terms in the House.^[27][28] Sanders responded by saying that he had gotten "the most floor amendments of any member of the House since 1996 [passed]."^[29] Former Democratic National Committee chair Howard Dean has stated that "Bernie Sanders votes with the Democrats 98 percent of the time."^[30]

U.S. Senate[link]

Elections[link]

Sanders had mentioned on several occasions that he would run for the Senate if Jeffords (with whom he has a longstanding friendship) were ever to retire and he entered the race on April 21, 2005, following Jeffords' announcement that he would not seek a fourth term. New York Senator Chuck Schumer, chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, endorsed Sanders; Schumer's backing was critical, as it meant that any Democrat running against Sanders could not expect to receive any significant financial help on a national level.

Sanders was also endorsed by Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada and Democratic National Committee chairman and former Vermont governor Howard Dean. Dean said in May 2005 that he considered Sanders an ally who votes with House Democrats. Then-Senator Barack Obama also campaigned for Sanders in Vermont. Sanders entered into an agreement with the Democratic Party to be listed in their primary but to decline the nomination should he win, which he did easily.^[31]

Speculation abounded that the state's popular Republican governor, Jim Douglas, would enter the race as well. Many pundits believed Douglas was the only Republican who could possibly defeat Sanders. However, on April 30, Douglas announced he would seek a third term as governor. In the view of many pundits, this effectively handed the open seat to Sanders.

Sanders consistently led his Republican challenger, businessman Richard Tarrant, by wide margins in polling. In the most expensive political campaign in Vermont's history,^[32] Sanders defeated Tarrant by an approximately 2-to-1 margin in the 2006 midterm election. Many national media outlets (including CNN) projected Sanders the winner before any returns came in.

Sanders is only the third Senator from Vermont to caucus with the Democrats — following Jeffords and Patrick Leahy. He made a deal with the Democratic leadership similar to the one Jeffords made after Jeffords became an independent. In exchange for receiving the committee seats that would be available to him as a Democrat, Sanders votes with the Democrats on all procedural matters unless he asks permission of Majority Whip Richard Durbin. However, such a request is almost never made and is almost never granted. He is free to vote as he pleases on policy matters but almost always votes with the Democrats.^{[citation needed]}

Tenure[link]

Sanders and Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) introduced the Global Warming Pollution Reduction Act of 2007 on January 15, 2007. The measure would have provided funding for research and development on geologic sequestration of carbon dioxide, set emissions standards for new vehicles and a renewable fuels requirement for gasoline beginning in 2016, established energy efficiency and renewable portfolio standards beginning in 2008 and low-carbon electric generation standards beginning in 2016 for electric utilities and would have required periodic evaluations by the National Academy of Sciences to determine whether emissions targets are adequate.^[33]

On September 24, 2008, Senator Sanders posted on his website a letter to Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson against the initial bailout proposal, drawing more than 8,000 citizen co-signers in the first 24 hours.^[34] On January 26, 2009, Sanders and Democrats Robert Byrd, Russ Feingold and Tom Harkin were the sole majority members to vote against confirmation of Timothy Geithner to be United States Secretary of the Treasury.^[35]

On December 10, 2010, Senator Sanders delivered an 8½ hour speech against the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010, the proposed extension of the Bush-era tax rates that eventually became law, saying "Enough is enough! [...] How many homes can you own?" (A long speech such as this is in the tradition of a filibuster, though because it did not block Senate action, it didn't technically qualify as a filibuster under US Senate rules.)^[36]

In response to his 'filibuster,' "activists across the country started talking up the notion of a 'Sanders for President' run in 2012, either as a dissident Democrat in the primaries or as a left-leaning Independent."^[37] Hundreds of people signed online petitions urging Sanders to run and pollsters began measuring his support in key primary states.^[37] Progressive activists such as Rabbi Michael Lerner and economist David Korten publicly voiced their support for a prospective Sanders run against president Barack Obama.^[37] Sanders has disavowed any interest in a presidential run, saying he was "very proud to be Vermont's senator," and maintained that "I am very content to be where I am, but I am flattered by that kind of response."^[37]

On January 19, 2011, Sanders announced that his 8 1/2 hour speech given on December 10, 2010, would be published in February 2011 by Nation Books. The book is entitled The Speech: A Historic Filibuster on Corporate Greed and the Decline of Our Middle Class, and authorial proceeds go to Vermont nonprofit charitable organizations.^[38]

Sanders is very popular in Vermont. Polling conducted in August 2011 by Public Policy Polling found that Sander's approval rating was 67% and his disapproval rating was just 28%, making him the third most-popular Senator in the country.^[39]

Committee assignments[link]

• Committee on Environment and Public Works
  • Subcommittee on Clean Air and Nuclear Safety
  • Subcommittee on Green Jobs and the New Economy (Chairman)
  • Subcommittee on Transportation and Infrastructure
• Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
  • Subcommittee on Energy
  • Subcommittee on National Parks
  • Subcommittee on Water and Power
• Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
  • Subcommittee on Children and Families
  • Subcommittee on Primary Health and Aging
• Committee on Veterans' Affairs
• Committee on the Budget

Political positions[link]

Bernie Sanders speaking at Bobfest '09.

Senator Sanders describes himself as a democratic socialist.^[1][2]

Health care[link]

He is a staunch supporter of a universal health care system.^[40]

Renegotiaton of NAFTA[link]

He is a strong advocate for renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and is a strong opponent of the current United States trade policy towards Latin America and China.^{[citation needed]}

Iraq War[link]

Sanders opposed the 2003 invasion of Iraq from its start and voted against it in the House of Representatives.^[41] He has called for a speedy withdrawal and increased veterans' benefits.

Media freedom[link]

Sanders has also been a leader in calling for media reform and opposes increased concentration of ownership of media outlets.^[42] He appeared in Orwell Rolls in His Grave and Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism, two documentaries on the subject.^[43]

Global warming and the environment[link]

He warns about the dangers of global warming^[44]

U.S. Federal Reserve audit[link]

Sanders introduced a Senate companion bill to H.R. 1207, which would conduct an audit of the Federal Reserve.^[45]

Civil rights[link]

He is a vocal supporter of gay rights, supporting same sex marriage and of pro-choice legislation.^[4] He voted against the Defense of Marriage Act as a member of the House of Representatives.^[46]

Nuclear power[link]

Following the 2011 Japanese nuclear accidents, Sanders called for a moratorium on the licensing of new nuclear plants and relicensing of existing ones, in an effort to slow down what's been touted as a nuclear renaissance in the United States.^[47] Sanders wrote to President Barack Obama asking for him to appoint a special commission to review the safety of U.S. nuclear plants. Sanders also wants to repeal a federal law that he says leaves the taxpayers to pick up most of the costs of a major nuclear accident. He says, "in a free-enterprise system, the nuclear industry should be required to insure itself against accidents."^[47]

Personal life[link]

Sanders is married to Jane O'Meara, former president of Burlington College, and has one son, Levi Sanders, from a previous marriage.^[48] His brother, Larry Sanders, is a Green Party District Councillor for Oxford East^[49] in Oxfordshire, England.

Sanders is one of two sitting U.S. Senators who went to James Madison High School in Brooklyn (the other being Chuck Schumer). Before Sanders became a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, his roommate was Richard I. Sugarman, a professor at the University of Vermont. Coincidentally, the only other Independent currently serving in the U.S. Senate, Joe Lieberman (I-CT) shared a suite with Professor Sugarman when the two attended Yale University in the 1960s.^[50]

For the Friday segment "Brunch with Bernie" of the Thom Hartmann radio program, Hartmann interviews Sanders and the senator answers listeners' calls.^[51]

Sanders also starred in his own weekly five-minute show, "Senator Sanders Unfiltered," hosted at Sandersunfiltered.com. The site has not been updated since early 2010.

Electoral history[link]

Most recent election shown below. For a complete list see: Electoral history of Bernie Sanders

Footnotes[link]

Further reading[link]

• Steven Soifer, The Socialist Mayor: Bernard Sanders in Burlington, Vermont. Westport, CT: Bergin & Garvey, 1991.

External links[link]

• United States Senator Bernie Sanders official U.S. Senate site
• Friends of Bernie Sanders official campaign site'
• Bernie Sanders at The Internet Movie Database
• Biography at WhoRunsGov.com at The Washington Post
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Congressional profile at GovTrack
• Congressional profile at OpenCongress
• Issue positions and quotes at On the Issues
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs
• Collected news and commentary at The New York Times
• Works by or about Bernie Sanders in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
• "War of the wealthy against working families" – video of speech from C-SPAN2
• Bernie Sanders Denounces Tax Cut in 8.5 Hour Senate Speech – video report by Democracy Now!

v t e United States Senators from Vermont Class 1 M. Robinson Tichenor Chipman Smith J. Robinson Tichenor Seymour Swift Phelps Foot Edmunds Proctor Stewart Page Greene Partridge Austin Flanders Prouty Stafford Jeffords Sanders Class 3 Bradley Paine Bradley Chase Fisk Palmer Chase Prentiss Crafts Upham Phelps Brainerd Collamer Poland Morrill Ross Dillingham Dale Gibson, Sr. Gibson, Jr. Aiken Leahy