Sen. Ben Sasse (R., Neb.) had harsh words for both the Democratic and Republican parties on Sunday, saying neither has a long-term vision for America. During an appearance on CNN’s "State of the Union," Sasse and host Jake Tapper discussed a recent tweet from the senator, in which he said often considers leaving the GOP.
"Yep — regularly consider it (except the "from Dem" part)," Sasse wrote in response to person who suggested that Sasse leave the Republican party.
yep — regularly consider it
(except the 'from Dem" part) https://t.co/ZZCQKOPhL9— Ben Sasse (@BenSasse) September 8, 2018
Tapper asked the senator about his reasons for considering a split from the Republican Party.
"Why and what is stopping you from doing so?" he asked.
Sasse responded that he does not think of himself as a Republican. "I think I’ve been saying for three years that I conceive of myself as an independent conservative who caucuses with the Republicans," Sasse said.
"But frankly," the senator added, "neither of these parties have a long-term vision for the future of the country."
Sasse proceeded to castigate both parties for yelling at one another and not standing for any positive agenda.
"There is massive stuff happening in America and these parties are really pretty content to do 24-hour news cycle screaming at each other," Sasse said.
"The main thing that the Democrats are for is being anti-Republican and anti-Trump, and the main thing Republicans are for is being anti-Democrat and anti-CNN," Sasse continued. "And neither of these things are really worth getting out of bed in the morning for."
The Nebraska senator said the parties need to look ahead and have a plan for the next decade. "I’ve been saying for a long time that these parties need to reform and have a future-focused vision and we are not there yet," he said.
Sasse has been a frequent critic of President Donald Trump, as well as both major political parties. During the 2016 campaign, he wrote, "Neither political party works. They bicker like children about tiny things, and yet they can’t even identify the biggest issues we face. They’re like a couple arguing about what color to paint the living room, and meanwhile, their house is on fire."
The senator added, "There are dumpster fires in my town more popular than these two ‘leaders,'" referring to Trump and Hillary Clinton.
More recently, Sasse attacked the president for claiming trade wars are good and also criticized the president’s handling of the Helsinki summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin back in July.