Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) stated on Wednesday that he is worried that President Biden's management of the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas could result in his loss in the election.
When questioned by CNN's Kaitlan Collins about the possibility of Biden losing in November, particularly among young, progressive voters, Sanders expressed, "Well, that's what I worry about."
"I believe Biden has achieved a lot. And the point I want to make, and have made before, Joe Biden is not running against God," Sanders continued. "He's not running against the perfect candidate. He's running against the guy, named Donald Trump, the most dangerous president in the history of this country."
Sanders, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, has been a strong critic of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the continued U.S. support to Israel during the increasing death toll in Gaza. According to local health officials, more than 34,700 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since Hamas's Oct. 7 attacks that sparked the ongoing war.
Shortly before the Wednesday interview, Biden cautioned that he would stop providing Israel with offensive weapons if Israeli forces launch an invasion of the southern Gaza city of Rafah, leading to discontent among many conservatives. The White House has repeatedly warned against a full-scale invasion of Rafah, where over 1 million civilians are seeking shelter after being forced to evacuate other parts of the area.
Sanders highlighted the interruption as a step forward, but stated he wants to see "even more" from the president.
"Well, I think it's a positive step forward. I think we need to do even more," Sanders stated. "The bottom line is, Kaitlan, is what Netanyahu has done in Gaza is unconscionable."
Last week, Sanders suggested the pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses across the U.S. against the war in Gaza could be Biden's Vietnam War, in reference to the anti-war protests that shook schools in the 1960s.
Sanders tried to clarify his statements in Wednesday's interview, telling Collins, "Of course, this is not Vietnam. Of course, tens of thousands of American soldiers are not dying in this war."
"The point was a political point. And that is that Lyndon Johnson, in many ways, was a very, very good president," he said, later adding, "He chose, despite all of those accomplishments, he chose not to run for reelection in 1968, because of his support for the war, and the opposition, grassroots opposition to the war in Vietnam. That's the point to be made. It's a political question."
