#RefundWarren is one of the top trends on social media after Elizabeth Warren accused fellow Senator and Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders of a sexist remark just weeks before the Iowa caucuses and hours before the CNN/Des-Moines Register Debate.
On Monday, January 13, a report surfaced that Sanders told Warren that a woman could not be president during a private 2018 meeting.
Warren added some validity to the claim by releasing a statement from her campaign director Kristen Orthman shortly after the report began picking up steam.
“Bernie and I met for more than two hours in December 2018 to discuss the 2020 election, our past work together and our shared goals: beating Donald Trump, taking back our government from the wealthy and well-connected, and building an economy that works for everyone,” the statement read.
“Among the the topics that came up was what would happen if Democrats nominated a female candidate. I thought a woman could win; he disagreed. I have no interest in discussing this private meeting any further because Bernie and I have far more in common than our differences on punditry.”
In response to a great deal of questions we’ve had today, below is a statement from Elizabeth Warren: pic.twitter.com/PdBCHJQCJE
— Kristen Orthman (@KristenOrthman) January 14, 2020
Bernie, meanwhile, has adamantly denied the claims.
“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,” Sanders said in a statement to CNN. “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.”
Since the alleged comments became public, Sanders and Warren supporters have been going back and forth on social media debating the he said/she said topic. Bernie supporters have been sharing older videos of the Senator saying a woman could be president while also helping #RefundWarren climb up the Twitter trends.
“In my view a woman could be elected president of the United States.” — Bernie Sanders, 1988 pic.twitter.com/WJd847DdmA
— Meagan Day (@meaganmday) January 13, 2020
Clinton–I mean–Warren wants it both ways.
She wants to keep it as a 'private conversation' while blabbing all about it all over the news…
Talk about self-serving & 2-faced…#WeDeserveBetter#RefundWarren https://t.co/aootLtOfo9
— #Siebe2020 for US House (@SiebeforORD1) January 14, 2020
Because she’s revealing herself as a fake, not so great politician, trying to use dirty below the belt cheap tactics to hurt a real public servant of the People like Bernie. Her shenanigans Ain’t gonna help boost her failing campaign. She’s just another politician. #RefundWarren https://t.co/9Yq1ZIDU43
— Greg Cipes (@GregCipes) January 14, 2020
#RefundWarren is a joke. Bernie said something f**ked up and he should own it. Also the idea that thousands of Berners donated to her campaign is hilarious. They only give money to their overlord.
— SeanKentComedy (@seankent) January 14, 2020
It will be interesting to see how this all plays out on the Tuesday night debate.
The January debate is scheduled to take place at Drake University on Tuesday, January 14. The debate — hosted by CNN and The Des Moines Register — will be the final Democratic debate before the Iowa caucus.