Following reports in the Washington Post that the Russian government is interfering in the 2020 presidential election, Bernie Sanders has issued a stern warning to Vladimir Putin.
“Unlike Donald Trump, I do not consider Vladimir Putin a good friend. He is an autocratic thug who is attempting to destroy democracy and crush dissent in Russia,” Sanders said in a statement on Friday.
“Let’s be clear, the Russians want to undermine American democracy by dividing us up and, unlike the current president, I stand firmly against their efforts, and any other foreign power that wants to interfere in our election.”
Sanders said he understood Russians were again trying to interfere in the campaign. Some “ugly stuff” online had been attributed to his campaign that could be coming from fake Russian accounts, he said.
“I don’t care, frankly, who Putin wants to be president. My message to Putin is clear: stay out of American elections, and as president I will make sure that you do,” Sanders warned.
“In 2016, Russia used internet propaganda to sow division in our country, and my understanding is that they are doing it again in 2020. Some of the ugly stuff on the internet attributed to our campaign may well not be coming from real supporters.”
Sanders finished by reiterating that his campaign was the strongest to defeat Donald Trump.
