Florida gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum on Monday night attempted to assuage fears he may be too much of a "Bernie Sanders Democrat" by touting his endorsement of "moderate" Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election.
Fox News host Brett Baier spoke to Gillum briefly and asked him how he fights the perception that he is from the same mold of democratic socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.), who caucuses with Democrats.
"The criticism of you is that people perceive you as kind of a Bernie Sanders Democrat and that scares some moderates maybe. How do you fight that?" Baier asked.
"Well one, I endorsed Hillary Clinton. I was proud to accept the endorsement of Bernie Sanders, the endorsement of President Obama, of Democrats on the right, middle, and left," Gillum said.
Gillum endorsed Clinton less than 30 days before the March 15, 2016 Democratic primary in Florida.
The Republican Governors Association castigated Gillum for thinking that Clinton is a "conservative Democrat," calling him "out-of-touch."
"Andrew Gillum is so far to the left, he thinks Hillary Clinton – one of the most liberal Presidential nominees in U.S. history - is a conservative Democrat," said Jon Thompson, RGA communications director. "This out-of-touch admission once again proves that Gillum is too extreme for Florida."
Gillum, who is funded by liberal billionaires like George Soros and Tom Steyer, faces former Rep. Ron DeSantis (R., Fla.), who just finished one of his strongest fundraising weeks, hauling in $8.2 million last week.