King-sized beds, chilled rooms and even a book to read were must-haves for Sanders during hotel room stays while campaigning across the US ahead of the 2020 election, a new book by former Politico journalist Edward-Isaac Dovere has revealed.
The book, titled “Battle for the Soul: Inside the Democrats’ Campaigns to Defeat Trump,” hit bookshelves on Wednesday and provided a list of demands that Sanders required for his hotel stay while on the campaign trail.
Excerpts from the book reveal that Sanders required a king-sized bed, low-temperature rooms, a book and some assorted snacks, such as mixed nuts. In particular, the 79-year-old politician was found to be very adamant that his hotel rooms be kept at a temperature of 60 degrees fahrenheit.
In a report from The Hill, Dovere detailed that Sanders once “shamed a hotel employee for not being able to get the thermostat below 65 degrees.” When the young woman couldn’t get the thermostat to work, Sanders reportedly said, “So, Chloe... You don’t want me to sleep tonight?”
Sanders also reportedly enjoys bathtubs, blankets made of cotton and assorted nuts. It’s also alleged that the Vermont senator did not like to accept room upgrades, often offering his room to traveling aides.
"If there's a bomb in there, it's yours tonight," the senator joked in the book, according to Fox News.
One scrutiny Sanders has come under fire for is flying private instead of commercial, like he’d done before during his 2016 bid for the White House.
“He would always be a little embarrassed pulling into the private terminals, but boy, did he get a kick out of not worrying about being late for a flight that couldn’t take off without him,” Dovere wrote, Fox News reported.
So far, netizens have responded to reports about Sander’s preferences with a level of sarcasm and sass built off of generations watching the lawmaker during his decades of political action.
Sanders also made headlines on Thursday when he, along with Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT), introduced a new bill giving colleges-athletes the right to bargain with their prospective teams over rights to likeness and image.