In her statement, Warren said “I have no interest in discussing this private meeting any further because Bernie and I have far more in common than on our differences on punditry. “We have been friends and allies in this fight for long time, and I have no doubt we will continue to work together to defeat Donald Trump and put our government on the side of the people.”
Sanders campaign manager Faiz Shakir had urged Warren to speak out on the CNN report earlier in the day, telling NBC News, “I believe strongly what we are talking about here is a lie.”
“I believe that she should come out and say yeah, that is not my recollection of events, of course Bernie Sanders does not believe that,” Shakir said.
The bitter back and forth between the two longtime friends comes one day before the two are due to share the stage at a Democratic presidential debate in Des Moines, Iowa.
The pair had defended each other against their more moderate rivals in past Democratic debates, but cracks in their relationship began to show in recent days after Sanders started surging in the polls.
Appeals court blocks Trump from firing Fed’s Lisa Cook, setting stage for SCOTUS clash
House Republicans honor Charlie Kirk while Dem leaders skip Capitol prayer vigil
Nurse Reportedly Punished for Warning That Doctor Openly Supported Bloody Kirk Assassination
Leftist Teacher Showed Charlie Kirk Assassination to Students Over and Over Again, Told Them He Deserved it: Report
Melania Trump Gets Apology and Retraction From Legacy Media Outlet Over Epstein Accusations
Washington Post Writer Fired Over Her Charlie Kirk Posts
White House pushes for $58M security increase in wake of Kirk assassination
Before Charlie Kirk murder, Utah Gov. Cox pushed effort to ‘disagree better’
Schiff report details thousands spent on Trump posters hanging from federal buildings
Florida attorney general clarifies open carry ‘law of the state’ after appeals court ruling causes confusion
Manchin memoir exposes secret Schumer deal that blindsided Pelosi and split Democrats
JD Vance: ‘I’ll Never Forget’ What Erika Kirk Told Me the Day After Charlie’s Death
From grief to growth: Turning Point USA becomes a rallying force for Gen Z in battleground Arizona
Teachers union chief Randi Weingarten promotes book on ‘fascist regimes’ days after Kirk’s assassination
Watch: Rush Limbaugh Remembers Meeting Charlie Kirk for the First Time and Correctly Predicts His Future
“The timing of this clearly shows that this is a desperate move,” one senior Sanders aide told NBC News. “Unfortunately Elizabeth Warren’s campaign has been going down in the polls, and this is the latest in an attack on one of her leading competitors.”
Politico reported over the weekend that the Sanders’ campaign had been giving volunteers talking points describing Warren as the candidate of elites.
Warren said Sunday she was “disappointed” by the campaign’s actions.
“I was disappointed to hear that Bernie is sending his volunteers out to trash me,” she told NBC News.
Sanders downplayed the Politico report, saying his campaign has “hundreds of employees” and “people sometimes say things that they shouldn’t.”
“I have never said a negative word about Elizabeth Warren who is a friend of mine. We have differences on issues, that’s what campaigning is about. But no one is going to be attacking Elizabeth,” Sanders said.
Sanders has in the past been critical of some of Warren’s policy positions, particularly health care.
Appeals court blocks Trump from firing Fed’s Lisa Cook, setting stage for SCOTUS clash
House Republicans honor Charlie Kirk while Dem leaders skip Capitol prayer vigil
Nurse Reportedly Punished for Warning That Doctor Openly Supported Bloody Kirk Assassination
Leftist Teacher Showed Charlie Kirk Assassination to Students Over and Over Again, Told Them He Deserved it: Report
Melania Trump Gets Apology and Retraction From Legacy Media Outlet Over Epstein Accusations
Washington Post Writer Fired Over Her Charlie Kirk Posts
White House pushes for $58M security increase in wake of Kirk assassination
Before Charlie Kirk murder, Utah Gov. Cox pushed effort to ‘disagree better’
Schiff report details thousands spent on Trump posters hanging from federal buildings
Florida attorney general clarifies open carry ‘law of the state’ after appeals court ruling causes confusion
Manchin memoir exposes secret Schumer deal that blindsided Pelosi and split Democrats
JD Vance: ‘I’ll Never Forget’ What Erika Kirk Told Me the Day After Charlie’s Death
From grief to growth: Turning Point USA becomes a rallying force for Gen Z in battleground Arizona
Teachers union chief Randi Weingarten promotes book on ‘fascist regimes’ days after Kirk’s assassination
Watch: Rush Limbaugh Remembers Meeting Charlie Kirk for the First Time and Correctly Predicts His Future
In an October interview with ABC, Sanders said his Massachusetts counterpart “is a very, very good senator. But there are differences between Elizabeth and myself. Elizabeth, I think, as you know, has said that she is a capitalist through her bones. I’m not.”
Before Sunday, Warren had largely avoided being critical of Sanders and his campaign, typically telling reporters asking about the differences between them that they’re friends and she doesn’t want to comment on other campaigns.