Some Democratic contenders for president aren't saying whether they would re-open investigations into President Donald Trump if they were to oust him from the White House in 2020.
Their reluctance comes as some liberals, including fellow 2020 challenger Sen. Elizabeth Warren, have increased the pressure on Democratic leaders to pursue impeachment following the release of a redacted version of the Mueller report.
During recent stops in early-voting states, two U.S. senators in the race and South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg wouldn't say whether they'd press the Justice Department to reopen investigations into Trump.
Democratic presidential candidate South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg talks with reporters during a campaign stop at a dairy company in Londonderry, N.H., Friday, April 19, 2019. (AP PhotoCharles Krupa)
"Well, let's see because when I'm elected president that will still be about two years from now, so ask me that question then," Sen. Kamala Harris of California said Saturday while campaigning in South Carolina.
Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Buttigieg focused on existing investigations of the president. Campaigning in Nevada on Friday, Booker said it's premature to say whether he would instruct his attorney general to reopen the Trump investigations if he's elected president.
"You are talking about January 2021," Booker told reporters in Reno. "We have a lot of investigations that are going on right now."
Buttigieg echoed that sentiment Friday as he prepared to campaign in New Hampshire this weekend, saying that "it depends what the basis for it is."
"It's certainly the case that there are various unanswered questions," he said. "I don't know that that has to happen from a president directing an attorney general to do something, though, because a lot of this just works through the legal system."
A voter attending a house party for Warren in New Hampshire on Saturday thanked her for calling for impeachment. However, some Democratic voters are wary of how impeachment could embolden Trump supporters.
Associated Press writer Juana Summers in Orangeburg, South Carolina, and Scott Sonner in Reno, Nevada, contributed to this report.
Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont announced Monday he will run for reelection this year, squelching speculation that the 82-year-old progressive icon might retire at a time when the Democratic Party is anxious about the advancing age of its top leaders.
Hailing from a Democratic stronghold, Sanders' decision virtually guarantees that he will return to Washington for a fourth Senate term. And his announcement comes at a critical moment for Democrats as the party navigates a growing divide over Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza.
Sanders has criticized President Joe Biden's handling of the U.S. relationship with Israel even as he's hailed much of Biden's domestic agenda ahead of what could be a tough reelection fight for Biden against presumptive GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump.
Sanders said he wants the war in Gaza ended immediately, massive humanitarian aid to follow and no more money sent to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
"We are living in a complicated and difficult political moment," Sanders told The Associated Press on Monday. “I very strongly disagree with Biden in terms of the war in Gaza.”
At home, he said, the presidential election is between Biden and Trump, “and Donald Trump is in my view the most dangerous president, has been the most dangerous president in American history.”
With the prospect of Trump's possible return to the White House, Sanders framed his bid to return to the Senate as being driven by concerns about the future of democracy in the U.S. In an announcement video, he said that in many ways the 2024 election “is the most consequential election in our lifetimes.”
“Will the United States continue to even function as a democracy, or will we move to an authoritarian form of government?” he said. He questioned whether the country will reverse what he called “the unprecedented level of income and wealth inequality” and if it can create a government that works for all, and not continue with a political system dominated by wealthy campaign contributors.
Known for his liberal politics and crusty demeanor, Sanders has been famously consistent over his 40 years in politics, championing better health care paid for by the government, higher taxes for the wealthy, less military intervention and major solutions for climate change. He has also spent his career trying to hold corporate executives to account, something that he’s had more power to do as chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.
Sanders is an independent. He was a Democratic congressman for 16 years and still caucuses with the Democrats.
He sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 2016 and 2020. He said a year ago that he would forgo another presidential bid and endorse Biden’s reelection this year.
“I have been, and will be if re-elected, in a strong position to provide the kind of help that Vermonters need in these difficult times,” Sanders said in a review of his positions as chairman of the important Senate panel and a member of the chamber's Democratic leadership team, as well as a senior member of various other committees.
AP writer Mary Clare Jalonick contributed from Washington.
FILE - Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., smiles as he addresses Unite Here Local 11 workers holding a rally, April 5, 2024, in Los Angeles. Sanders is running for re-election. The 82-year-old, from Vermont, announced Monday, May 6, that he's seeking his fourth term in the U.S. Senate. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)
FILE - Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., speaks during a news conference, Jan. 25, 2024, at the Capitol in Washington. Sanders is running for re-election. The 82-year-old, from Vermont, announced Monday, May 6, that he's seeking his fourth term in the U.S. Senate. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File)
