- Sen. Bernie Sanders appeared on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert after the State of the Union address.
- President Joe Biden capped off the address by saying he's optimistic about the country's future.
- Sanders said that Biden "likes people more than I like people."
Sen. Bernie Sanders is feeling the grump.
The Vermont senator took the stage in an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, following President Joe Biden's first State of the Union address on Tuesday night.
In his address, the president touched on everything from Ukraine to the pandemic to the economy, touting economic achievements while acknowledging the pressing issues facing the country. Biden ended the address on an uplifting note, saying "I'm more optimistic about America today than I've been my whole life because I see the future that's within our grasp."
Comedian Colbert asked Sanders if he shared Biden's optimism. The answer: An unequivocal no.
"That's his personality. He's generally more optimistic than I am," Sanders said with a laugh. "It's a good thing! He likes people more than I like people."
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Sanders also touched on the onslaught of events over the past two years, from the onset of the pandemic to the January 6 insurrection before Biden assumed office to climate change, and the fact that Russia's invasion of Ukraine comes after all of that.
"Let's be clear: This is the most difficult moment in our lifetimes," Sanders said when asked about the significance of the address against the backdrop of the Russian invasion.
If he had been the one delivering the address, Sanders would have said that "we're an anxious country right now."
"We have gone through so much," Sanders told Colbert. "But I think, as he indicated, the strength of our country is always the people, and our history is that when things get tough, we stand up and we fight back — and I think the American people are prepared to do that right now."
On the economic front, progressive frustration has mounted over Democrats' failure to secure most of their economic agenda. Sanders is chief among those who argue the party faces the real risk of political blowback if their efforts to pass a social and climate bill totally collapses ahead of the midterms. Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia sank the House-approved bill over two months ago and there's been very little in the way of progress on another.
"I think these provisions are enormously popular," Sanders told Insider on Monday. "The American people now are frustrated with the lack of action from Congress."
Manchin started sketching out another plan on Wednesday that was largely centered on prescription drug reforms and overhauling the tax code. Sanders once again felt the grump, seeming tepid about the idea of an overly Manchinized spending plan.
"I don't care what he wants," he told reporters. "We're talking about what the American people want. He doesn't like it he can vote against it, that's his business."