Donald Trump railed against Vice President Kamala Harris during a campaign rally on Wednesday night, describing his presumptive presidential rival as a “radical-left lunatic” who is “more liberal” than Bernie Sanders.
The Vermont senator disputed that suggestion, telling CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, “It is just possible for the 83,000th time that Trump is lying … no, I don’t think that is the case.”
“I think that the vice president had a very strong record in the U.S. Senate,” he continued, “a strong record working with President Biden in the administration. But no, I don’t quite think that her record is where mine is in terms of being progressive.”
When asked if he will “eventually come around” to officially endorsing Harris, Sanders was clear: “Look, I am going to do everything I can to make sure she wins … but I just want to hope that in the next few days and weeks we can make sure that we put together a campaign that focuses on the needs of the working class.”
“So make no mistake about it, I’m with her,” Sanders reiterated. “I’m going to do everything that they can, that I can, that the progressive movement can, to make sure that she is the next president.”
Progressive supporters of Sanders have coalesced to support Harris’ campaign, a move that was unthinkable by many during the 2020 election cycle when the two groups often went head to head. One reason for this wave of support might be that there’s no clear successor to Sanders’ political mantle, yet. As Politico’s Catherine Kim wrote, for example, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is not yet old enough to run for president of the United States herself.
There’s also the fact that when compared to months of Biden vs. Trump arguments about age, mental acuity and golf swings, it’s just fun to watch Harris take the limelight and run with it. As Sam Adler-Bell, cohost of the progressive “Know Your Enemy” podcast, put it on X, “She’s having the time of her life lol.”
Progressive Punch, a website that tracks the voting records of members of Congress, ranks Sanders as the 20th most progressive senator in D.C. — the list is topped by Sen. Mazie Hirono of Hawai’i and Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts.
