Bernie Sanders to Jimmy Fallon: Donald Trump's divisive 'crap is not going to work in the United States'
On Tuesday's Tonight Show, Jimmy Fallon told guest Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) that if he were to win the presidential election, he would be the first president from New York since F.D.R. — "That is a model to follow, he was a great president," Sanders said — but so would Donald Trump. Given Trump's headline-grabbing proposal to ban all Muslims from traveling to the U.S., Fallon asked Sanders for his thoughts. Sanders had some to share, about Trump and other past "demagogues trying to divert attention away from the real issues."
America has "enormous" problems, Sanders said, but Trump is trying to "divide us up. A few months ago we were supposed to hate Mexicans — and he thinks they're all criminals or rapists — and now we're supposed to hate Muslims. And that kind of crap is not going to work in the United States of America. I think what the American people understand is that, given the problems that we face, that we've got to stand together, come together, and create a decent life for all of our people, and stop this scapegoating of one group or another."
For all the problems facing the U.S., Sanders sounded pretty upbeat about his chances in the Democratic primary and the general election: "I look forward to beating Donald Trump. I would enjoy that race very, very much. But first we've got to get past Secretary Clinton — I think we're going to do that as well." Watch below. Peter Weber
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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
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