Sharing his fundraising update during a call with supporters in Bethesda, Maryland on Friday, former US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden also lashed out at a hardline group of Bernie Sanders supporters.
"What we can't let happen is let this primary become a negative bloodbath. I know I'm going to get a lot of suggestions on how to respond to what I suspect will be an increasingly negative campaign that the Bernie Brothers will run. But we can’t tear this party apart and re-elect [incumbent Donald] Trump. We have to keep our eyes on the ball, in my view”, he argued.
Biden apparently referred to "Bernie Bros", a colloquial term for Sanders supporters, who have repeatedly been criticised for aggressive tactics on social media platforms, including Twitter.
Netizens have, meanwhile, remained at odds over Biden’s “Bernie Brothers” remarks, with some pointing the finger at the former US vice president.
“I think Joe Biden just murdered his chance of beating Donald Trump”, one user wrote on their Twitter page, in what was echoed by another who pledged that “we will never like Joe Biden”.
Others, however, signalled their support for Biden, admitting that they “love” him and warning that “Sanders should really discipline his most hardline supporters and surrogates who have promoted online bullying and political violence.
Last month, Sanders reacted angrily to his hardline supporters attacking Nevada's Culinary Union on Twitter for saying that his "Medicare for All" healthcare plan would strip union members of their existing health care coverage. The Democratic presidential hopeful condemned the Bernie Bros' actions as “unacceptable”.
On 10 March, Sanders will face Biden in the next round of primaries, which will come following the former US vice president’s win in the Super Tuesday voting earlier this week.