Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg went after Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders at the start of Tuesday night’s Democratic presidential debate, saying that Russian Dictator Vladimir Putin is helping Sanders get elected.
Bloomberg dodged a question about the economy, and instead brought up a recent report that Putin was helping Sanders in the Democratic primary. (RELATED: DNC Breaks With Bernie Sanders Over Castro Praise)
“Vladimir Putin thinks that Donald Trump should be president of the United States, and that’s why Russia is helping you get elected so you’ll lose to him,” Bloomberg told Sanders.
Sanders responded by condemning Putin’s reported support, and bringing up Bloomberg’s past praise of the Chinese Communist Party. (RELATED: Is The Corbynization Of The Democratic Party Complete?)
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“Let me tell Mr. Putin, I’m not a good friend of president Xi of China,” Sanders said. “I think President Xi is an authoritarian leader.”
“And let me tell Mr. Putin, who interfered in the 2016 election,” Sanders continued. “Hey, Mr. Putin if I’m president of the United States, trust me. You’re not gonna interfere in anymore American elections.”