Sen. Bernie Sanders, the independent senator from Vermont, held his own State of the Union response on Tuesday where he slammed President Donald Trump for being “compulsively dishonest” and creating a looming immigration “crisis” by ending the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
Sanders’ response, which sounded a lot like his stump speeches during his campaign for the Democratic nomination in the 2016 election, was broadcast live online late Tuesday.
Sanders slammed the Trump administration’s tax cuts, border wall proposal and called the President a “bully” in his live stream, using the same term Rep. Joe Kennedy used in his official response to the State of the Union for the Democratic party.
“Trump talked about DACA and immigration (during his State of the Union address) but what he did not tell the American people is that he precipitated this crisis in September,” Sanders said. “We need to seriously address the issue of immigration.”
He also slammed Trump for not acknowledging Russia’s interference in the 2016 election.
“How can this President not talk about the reality that Russia interfered in this election,” he said, adding, “And, according to his CIA director, will likely interfere in the 2018 midterms we will be holding … Unless you have a very special relationship with Mr. Putin.”
Trump's first State of the Union address
He said that Americans don’t want a president who is “compulsively dishonest” or a “bully.”
“When ordinary people stand up and fight for justice, there is nothing that we cannot accomplish,” he said. “That has been the history of America and that is our future.”
Last year, Sanders delivered a similar speech after Trump’s joint address to Congress, urging his supporters to “continue the fight” against Trump’s administration.
Sanders is rumored to be considering another run for the presidency in the 2020 election. His political team is putting together an early game plan for the 2020 presidential race, according to Politico.