Bernie Sanders allegedly told Elizabeth Warren that a woman can’t win the presidency.
Back in December of 2018, Warren and Sanders had a meeting in Warren’s Washington, D.C. apartment discussing the reality of them one day running against each other for the position of commander in chief. The two decided that if they did run against one another, that they’d remain friendly and civil in order to protect the progressive movement. They also shared how they felt they could best defeat #DonaldTrump; Warren added that she felt she would be a worthy opponent against the orange plague and would be able to win over female voters by promising to rebuild the economy.
According to CNN, Sanders responded to Warren’s statement by saying he doesn’t think a woman can win. CNN reports that this account comes from two people Warren spoke with directly after the encounter and two people familiar with the meeting. That evening, Sanders reportedly expressed frustration at what he believed was a growing issue among Democrats regarding identity politics, per one person who knew about the conversation. Warren told Sanders that she disagreed with his belief, according to three of the four sources.
But, in response to the report, Sanders told CNN, ”It is ludicrous to believe that at the same meeting where Elizabeth Warren told me she was going to run for president, I would tell her that a woman couldn’t win,” he said. “It’s sad that, three weeks before the Iowa caucus and a year after that private conversation, staff who weren’t in the room are lying about what happened. What I did say that night was that Donald Trump is a sexist, a racist, and a liar who would weaponize whatever he could. Do I believe a woman can win in 2020? Of course! After all, Hillary Clinton beat Donald Trump by 3 million votes in 2016.” Warren’s communications director has declined to comment.
The U.S. has never seen a female president out of all its 45 past presidents. The same sentiment about woman leaders was shared amongst the country when #HillaryClinton became a presidential candidate. Warren is one of three women currently running along with Tulsi Gabbard and Amy Klobuchar.
