Supposed Bernie Sanders-Elizabeth Warren Feud Litigated On Social Media

As the democratic primary enters into its final few months, the tight but friendly race between progressive candidates Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren has reportedly taken a turn.

Over the weekend, Politico reported that the Sanders campaign had given volunteers a script that explicitly attacks Elizabeth Warren, saying that she could not expand her base.

"I like Elizabeth Warren. [optional]” the script reads. "In fact, she’s my second choice. But here’s my concern about her."

The script continues to state that "she's brining no new bases into the Democratic party."

Scoop: Bernie stealthily goes negative on Warren w/ a volunteer script to tell Warren-leaning voters that she only appeals to the "affluent"/"highly-educated" &
"She's bringing no new bases into the Dem Party" (I re-typed script below to protect sourcing) https://t.co/4IxNYNosrO pic.twitter.com/afussXPPlB

— Alex Thompson (@AlxThomp) January 12, 2020

The script was not without its fair share of controversy. One of Politico's sources said that the campaign volunteers "were told never to go negative or contrast with other candidates." However, the campaign did not make an official statement on the script.

Warren expressed her disappointment in the campaign.

"I was disappointed to hear that Bernie is sending his volunteers out to trash me," Warren told NBC. "Bernie knows me and has known me for a long time. He knows who I am, where I come from, what I have worked on and fought for and the coalition and grassroots movement we are trying to build. Democrats want to win in 2020 we all saw the impact of the factionalism in 2016 and we can't have a repeat of that."

Still, the script's legitimacy was challenged online, with some calling Politico irresponsible for reporting on the script.

Bernie Sanders volunteer hits back:

Here’s what actually happened. A random user who’s only ever posted once before posted that document in the Sanders volunteer Slack group. A moderator promptly removed it and stated that it was NOT a campaign source. https://t.co/gt2xSvQNX5

— eric isaac (@ericisaac) January 12, 2020

Politico author Alex Thompson, however, stood by his reporting. "I provided all the info to Bernie's camp before publishing & they didn't deny its authenticity," he tweeted.

Also, no one on Bernie's team is refuting the story--either when we brought it to them beforehand or since we published it.

— Alex Thompson (@AlxThomp) January 12, 2020

The script did inspire quite a few memes, mocking the controversy from both angles.

Does the Warren campaign approve of their volunteers sending these sorts of rude texts? @ewarren pic.twitter.com/Ua4aDGWHZZ

— Virgil Texas (@virgiltexas) January 13, 2020

A Bernie volunteer just called me and asked if I was voting for warren and when I said yes they asked me if my refrigerator was running and I told them it was and they said “better go catch it!” and hung up on me. I’m shaking and crying rn.

— pokey pup (@Whatapityonyou) January 13, 2020

Bernie guy called me and said that I was “the fattest sounding guy he’d ever heard.” I said excuse me and he said “you’re excused to go on a diet”. I said I’d be voting for yang and he told me to “Jack off while you still can” (??)

— Famous Keven (@BrianJWooster) January 13, 2020

Things got uglier on Monday when CNN reported that Sanders told Warren that a woman could not win a presidential election.

They wrote:

Sanders expressed frustration at what he saw as a growing focus among Democrats on identity politics, according to one of the people familiar with the conversation. Warren told Sanders she disagreed with his assessment that a woman could not win, three of the four sources said.

Sanders denied the reports, calling them "ludicrous." In a statement, he told CNN:

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. 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.

Many Twitter users criticized the piece, questioning its authenticity. Some described the lack of named sources as an example of shoddy reporting, while others accused CNN of drumming up controversy to boost ratings for the upcoming debates.

CNN just published a controversial story about Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren literally a day before their presidential debate.

It's all part of an effort by networks to create contentious debate moments and drive up ad sales. Let me explain:pic.twitter.com/KEfM9FbqzK

— manny (@mannyfidel) January 13, 2020

Progressives. Allow me introduce you to the media ecosystem that has bedeviled conservatives in the Trump age:

Step 1) Leak a bullshit smear sans any real confirmation to CNN https://t.co/EO9BivXJlT

— Saagar Enjeti (@esaagar) January 13, 2020

CNN: 🚨BREAKING NEWS🚨 4 anonymous sources saying Bernie Sanders told Elizabeth Warren behind closed doors "dudes rule"
BERNIE: i didnt say that
WARREN CAMPAIGN: we're not gonna comment on that
CNN: This thing is heating up! What will happen next? Tune in to tomorrow's CNN DEBATE

— jack allison (@jackallisonLOL) January 13, 2020

I do not believe that Bernie Sanders said to Elizabeth Warren, "A woman can't win the presidency." I don't think you believe it either. Don't pretend to just because it's politically convenient.

— Meagan Day (@meaganmday) January 13, 2020

Update: Elizabeth Warren released a statement on the controversy, confirming that Sanders had told her that he disagreed with her belief that a woman could win the election.

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