Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) believes that presidential hopeful Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) is consistently grumpy because he has been unsuccessful in passing any socialist policies during his tenure in the Senate.
“Asked why [Sanders] is so angry, the answer is simple: 28 years in Congress and never able to pass even a scintilla of his socialist agenda,” Romney tweeted on Wednesday. “All hat, no cattle.”
Sanders, who often appears cantankerous, addressed the perception of his grumpy demeanor during an interview with NowThis News earlier in July.
“They think I’m grumpy all of the time and I’m only grumpy most of the time,” Sanders responded when asked what most people commonly get wrong about him. “There are some times I’m not grumpy.”
“Now is not one of those times,” he added with a smile.
Sanders’ presidential campaign, however, reportedly believes the unflattering perception could be harming his chances of winning the Democratic presidential nomination. Top advisors were urging the Democratic socialist to try and shake the reputation and appear more personable to voters, The Atlantic reported in March.
Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT), who has known the Vermont lawmaker for nearly four decades and now endorses his presidential run, attributes Sanders’ personality to a combination of discomfort and a refusal to become more engaging based solely on principle.
“He’s a very decent guy. Warm and cuddly, he’s not,” Welch told The Atlantic.
However, Welch agreed with campaign aides who contend it would be beneficial for Sanders to humanize himself during his latest bid for the presidency.
“His favorite mode is outrage,” Welch continued. “I think it’s very wise of him to try and show another side.”
Sanders’ campaign responded to Romney’s assertion on Wednesday, stating that the Utah senator should also be angry about conditions within the United States.
“I’m angry because multi-millionaires like you and Trump have rigged our economy at the middle class’ expense,” Sanders tweeted at Romney. “I’m angry because millions are living paycheck to paycheck. I’m angry because 34 million Americans are uninsured. Why doesn’t that anger you?”
The heated exchange came on the heels of the first round of the second Democratic primary debates on Tuesday night, where Sanders and fellow progressive candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) tried to further differentiate themselves from their more moderate challengers.
While on stage, Sanders accused CNN debate moderator Jake Tapper of using “Republican talking points” when he inquired about Americans’ potential opposition to losing their private health insurance.
“Let me clear one thing up, if people talk about having insurance, there are millions of people who have insurance that can’t go to the doctor and when they come out of the hospital, they go bankrupt,” Sanders said while discussing his “Medicare-for-All” plan. “All right?”
“What I am talking about and others up here are talking about is no deductibles and no co-payments, and Jake, your question is a Republican talking point,” he continued amid cheers.
Romney’s office has not responded to The Daily Wire’s request for comment.