2016 Democratic
presidential nominee Hillary Clinton criticized Senator Bernie Sanders, a 2020
democratic candidate, in a new documentary set to be released March 6, saying
that “nobody likes him, nobody wants to work with him” and that he “got nothing
done.” Clinton declined to comment on whether or not she’d support Sanders if
he receives the Democratic nomination.
The comments came just
13 days before the Iowa caucus and drew sharp criticism from Democrats. The
criticism isn’t without reason. An election year isn’t the time for Clinton to
risk hurting Democrat’s unity.
Sanders responded
jokingly, saying that “on a good day, my wife likes me.”
Clinton partially walked
back her comments later Tuesday, saying that she would “do whatever I can to
support our nominee.” Still, her comments about Sanders are less than
flattering during a critical portion of his campaign.
After the 2016
Democratic National Convention, sanders threw full support behind Clinton,
telling his supporters “We have to do everything that we can to elect Secretary
Clinton.”
This isn’t Clinton’s
first time criticizing 2020 democratic candidates. In October, she said that a
female in the Democratic primary was a “favorite of the Russians,” in
reference to Representative Tulsi Gabbard. Gabbard launched a defamation suit
against Clinton Wednesday, alleging that the comments were a deliberate attempt
to derail her campaign.
The bottom line is that
Clinton’s comments serve as further distraction in an already contentious
primary race. And the kind of internal division she’s creating is dangerous.