Bernie Sanders: GOP Debate 'Too Painful To Watch'

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders watched the Republican primary debate on CNN Wednesday evening, live-tweeting a number of critical remarks, but said it was too "painful" to sit through the entire three-hour production.

"It was really painful," Sanders told CNN's "New Day" in a Thursday interview, according to The Hill. "I couldn't go on for the whole three hours. I gave up after two-and-a-half."

"What was really remarkable is the degree to which they avoided the major issues facing the American people and believe that every single problem facing humanity is all attributed to Barack Obama. He has caused all of the problems," the self-described democratic socialist continued, reported Mediaite. "We seem to have forgotten that when Bush left office, 800,000 people were losing their jobs every single month, the world's financial system was on the verge of collapse and our deficit was a record-breaking $1.4 trillion."

"This country and our planet face enormous problems," he wrote in a Facebook post that garnered over 183,000 likes and 37,000 shares. "And the Republican candidates barely touched upon them tonight. And when they did, they were dead wrong on virtually every position they took. The Republican Party cannot be allowed to lead this country. That's why we need a political revolution."

Sanders said it was a shame that the debate didn't focus on comprehensive immigration reform and a pathway towards citizenship, or income and wealth inequality.

"Income and wealth inequality were not discussed at all," Sanders said. "Nor did I hear a word about racial injustice in this country. In terms of climate change, I did not hear anyone say this is a planetary crisis. If we don't act now, a bad situation will be worse in later years."

He also criticized Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal for attempting to discredit his socialist stance during the undercard debate held earlier Wednesday.

"It is easy to try to frighten people," he said of Jindal, reported The Hill. "Socialism, oh my word, we should be shaking in our boots."

"Why are we the only major nation on Earth that doesn't guarantee universal healthcare?" Sanders asked. "Forget Scandinavia, I live across the border from Canada."

Below are a few of Sanders' often sarcastic comments he tweeted during the debate using the hashtag #DebateWithBernie:

Tags

Vermont, 2016 presidential election