两届总统候选人参议员伯尼·桑德斯预测，未来的竞选将是“艰难的”，但他说，他相信副总统卡玛拉·哈里斯“很有可能赢得”总统选举。
“她肯定会以数百万张选票赢得普选，我认为她有很大的机会赢得许多战场州，”桑德斯周日告诉《本周》的联合主播乔恩·卡尔。“我认为人们对川普一贯的无耻谎言越来越厌倦，我认为不管人们如何看待卡玛拉·哈里斯，我认为他们希望白宫稳定。”
采访是在几天后进行的民主党人结束了一次活跃的大会该党强调“自由”是其竞选的首要信息。
当被问及哈里斯在接受提名的演讲中对确保国家军事实力的评论时，桑德斯警告说，不要增加支出。
他说:“美国现在的国防开支超过了排在其后的10个国家的总和。”。“我同意副总统的意见。我们想要世界上最强的防御，但我认为适可而止。你看到军事承包商的利润飙升，我认为我们可以拥有世界上最强大的国防，而不用每年花费一万亿美元。”
桑德斯说，哈里斯应该把她的信息集中在经济和选民的福利上。
“我们的收入和财富不平等程度超过了这个国家历史上的任何时候，”他说。“因此，我碰巧相信，结束全球主要国家中儿童贫困率最高的尴尬局面非常重要。”
卡尔还问桑德斯，在大会上不给“未承诺”运动一个平台对哈里斯来说是否是一个错误。支持巴勒斯坦的抗议者和自由运动的积极分子曾多次要求在民主党全国代表大会上发言。然而，该请求被该党官员拒绝。
随着美国在加沙与哈马斯的战争接近第11个月，桑德斯一直是国会山呼吁美国改变对以色列政策的主要声音之一。他还公开反对以色列总理本雅明·内塔尼亚胡。
“我碰巧认为，我们不应该再给内塔尼亚胡的右翼极端主义政府一分钱，”他说。“他们当然有权针对哈马斯的残暴袭击进行自卫。他们从来没有权利，也没有权利对全体巴勒斯坦人民发动战争，杀害4万人，伤害8万人，摧毁保健系统、教育系统和民用基础设施。”
他补充说，“美国纳税人的钱不应该去饿死加沙的儿童。”
卡尔然后问桑德斯关于国家的移民斗争和如何哈里斯对南部边境的看法已经转移了。
“当哈里斯在2020年与你和其他人竞争民主党提名时，她说她赞成非法越境合法化。她甚至暗示她会支持废除[移民和海关执法局]，”卡尔说。
“我们在边境遇到了危机。我们必须确保芬太尼不会流入这个国家。我们必须打击非法移民，”桑德斯回答道。“但我们需要全面的移民改革。我怀疑这就是副总统所支持的。”
共和党人攻击哈里斯，将她与乔·拜登总统任期内在美墨边境的高水平移民遭遇和担忧联系起来。哈里斯试图通过强调她作为检察官的时间和对失败的两党边境政策改革法案的支持来反驳这一点。哈里斯此前支持非法越境合法化，并表示她相信美国移民和海关执法局的“使命”...很成问题，必须重新审视。”
Bernie Sanders predicts 'rough' campaign ahead but thinks Harris has 'very good chance to win'
Two-time presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders predicted the campaign ahead will be "rough" but said he believesVice President Kamala Harris"has a very good chance to win" the presidential election.
"She's certainly going to win the popular vote by millions of votes, and I think she has a great chance to win many of the battleground states," Sanders told "This Week" co-anchor Jon Karl on Sunday. "I think people are growing tired and fatigued with Trump's consistent and outrageous lies and I think no matter what people may think of Kamala Harris, I think they want stability in the White House."
The interview came just days afterDemocrats wrapped a lively conventionwhere the party highlighted "freedom" as their overarching message for the campaign.
Asked about comments Harris made in her acceptance speech about ensuring the nation's military strength, Sanders cautioned against increased spending.
"The United States is now spending more than the next 10 nations combined on defense," he said. "I agree with the vice president. We want the strongest defense in the world, but I do think enough is enough. You're seeing military contractors profits soaring, and I think we can have the strongest defense in the world without spending a trillion dollars a year."
Sanders said Harris should focus her messaging on the economy and welfare of voters.
"We have more income and wealth inequality than we have ever had in the history of this country," he said. "So I happen to believe it's important that we end the embarrassment of having the highest rate of childhood poverty of almost any major country on earth."
Karl also asked Sanders if not giving the "Uncommitted" movement a platform at the convention was a mistake for Harris. Pro-Palestinian protesters and activists with the Uncommitted movement had repeatedly requested a speaking slot during the Democratic National Convention. The request, however, was denied by party officials.
Sanders has been one of the leading voices on Capitol Hill calling for a change in U.S. policy toward Israel as its war against Hamas in Gaza approaches its 11th month. He also has been outspoken against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
"I happen to think that we should not be giving another nickel to Netanyahu’s right-wing extremist government," he said. "They certainly had a right to defend themselves against the atrocious Hamas attack. They never had the right, do not have the right to go to war against the entire Palestinian people, kill 40,000, injure 80,000 and destroy the health care system, the educational system and the civilian infrastructure."
He added, "American taxpayer dollars should not go to starve children in Gaza."
Karl then asked Sanders about the nation's immigration struggles and howHarris' views on the southern borderhave shifted.
"When Harris ran for the Democratic nomination against you and others in 2020, she said she favored decriminalizing illegal border crossings. She even suggested she was she would be in favor of abolishing [Immigration and Customs Enforcement]," Karl said.
"We have a crisis at the border. We’ve got to make sure that fentanyl does not get into this country. We have to crack down on illegal immigration," Sanders replied. "But we need comprehensive immigration reform. And I suspect that's what the vice president supports."
Republicans have attacked Harris by tying her to the high level of migrant encounters and apprehensions at the U.S.-Mexico border over President Joe Biden's term. Harris has tried to counter that by highlighting her time as a prosecutor and support for the failed bipartisan border policy reform bill. Harris previously supported decriminalizing illegal border crossings and said she believed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's "mission ... is very much in question and has to be reexamined."
