LAS VEGAS — Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders is "disowning" any of his supporters who lob sexist attacks online.
During Wednesday night's debate in Las Vegas, the Vermont senator defended his supporters after leaders of the influential Culinary Union said that they've received attacks from some Sanders backers online and over the phone.
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Of his online army, Sanders said that "99.9% of them are decent human beings," but that "if there are a few people who make ugly remarks, who attack trade union leaders, I disown those people."
Pete Buttigieg rebutted Sanders, challenging him to ask himself: “Why did this pattern arise? Why is it especially the case among your supporters?”
He also suggested that Sanders' supporters were taking his lead, saying that “leadership is about what you draw out of people, it's about how you inspire people to act.”
Pete Buttigieg says Mike Bloomberg and Bernie Sanders are “the two most polarizing figures on this stage” and the Democratic Party can’t let its presidential primary come down to those two candidates.
Buttigieg said during Wednesday night’s debate that the party shouldn’t have to choose “between a socialist who thinks capitalism is the root of all evil and the billionaire who thinks that money ought to be the root of all power.”
The former South Bend, Indiana, mayor said the choice would be between “one candidate who wants to burn this party down and another candidate who wants to buy this party out.” He said the party should instead put forth someone who “is actually a Democrat.”
Sanders shot back and said his campaign is trying to give a voice and power to working people “rather than your billionaire campaign contributors.”