Sanders slams ‘dangerous’ Trump in speech launching campaign from Brooklyn

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) slammed President Trump as “dangerous” during a campaign rally in his native Brooklyn on Saturday to kick off his 2020 Democratic presidential bid.

“Thank you for being part of a campaign which is not only going to win the Democratic nomination, which is not only going to defeat Donald Trump, the most dangerous president in modern American history … I want to welcome you to a campaign which says, loudly and clearly, that the underlying principles of our government will not be greed, hatred and lies,” Sanders said. “It will not be racism, sexism, xenophobia, homophobia and religious bigotry.”

“I want to welcome you to a campaign which says loudly and clearly that the underlying principles of our government will not be greed, hatred and lies,” Sen. Bernie Sanders says in Brooklyn rally kicking off his 2020 bid for president. https://t.co/khOtAc1cQq pic.twitter.com/cmReyyUhgW

— CNN (@CNN) March 2, 2019

Sanders announced in a video released last month that he would launch another White House bid, joining a crowded Democratic field in 2020. He reiterated Saturday many of his past criticisms of the Trump administration while seeking to underscore his place as a progressive standard-bearer in the presidential race.{mosads}

The Independent Vermont senator touted his calls for a $15 minimum wage, a “Medicare for all” single-payer health care program, tuition-free public colleges and a pivot toward sustainable energy in order to combat climate change.

“The principles of our government will be based on justice: economic justice, social justice, racial justice and environmental justice,” he said. 

Sanders, a self-described democratic socialist, is running against several Senate colleagues for the Democratic nomination, including Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.), among others.

Former Vice President Joe Biden is also mulling entering the race, and polls have consistently shown Biden and Sanders near the top of polls in early voting states.