Sen. Bernie Sanders on midterm races in Minnesota and Wisconsin and Abdul El Sayed’s primary win

(CBS, KYMA) - Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) spoke with Margaret Brennan on Face the Nation Sunday about the midterm races in Minnesota and Wisconsin.

According to Brennan, Sen. Sanders has endorsed Peggy Flanagan, who is currently the Lt. Governor of Minnesota, and she'll be facing Angie Craig, leading her to ask if Sanders thinks the Minnesota race will have a similar dynamic to Michigan, where it was a tight race, and the senator said:

"I think it's going to be a tight race. I hope very much that Peggy wins. I think what we're seeing in Minnesota...in Michigan, and all across this country, is that people understand that we're living with an economy that is rigged. You have working families. 60% of our people living paycheck-to-paycheck. People can't afford groceries, housing, healthcare, basic necessities of life. And at the same time, they're seeing the richest people in this country become even richer. People are tired of the status quo politics and establishment policies-they want real change. And Peggy Flanagan is about bringing about real change, standing up to the big money interests. There is a reason why the super PACs and the billionaires are flooding Minnesota with all kinds of money. Same thing as Michigan. They don't want somebody to stand up for the working class in Minnesota."

Over in Wisconsin, Francesca Hong, a Democratic Socialist running for governor of Wisconsin, is expected to win her Democratic primary, and her campaign promises include free childcare, state-run grocery stores, more healthcare subsidies, and raising income tax on millionaires.

However, Brennan said Sanders doesn't support her.

When asked why he doesn't support her, and if her campaign promises are too extreme for him, the senator said:

"No, raising taxes on the rich, making sure that everybody in Wisconsin or America has health care as a right, sounds quite reasonable to me. I just look-we have a limited number of races that we can be involved in. Most of my focus on is getting people elected to the United States Senate, getting people elected to the House of Representatives. So, with one exception, we have not been involved in a governor's race. So that's somebody who I've known in Maine for many, many years."

During the interview, Brennan and Sanders talked about Abdul El-Sayed's primary win in Michigan.

President Donald Trump told reporters he was happy El-Sayed won because he implied he was "going to be an easier candidate to defeat."

In addition, The Economist released a poll saying the Democratic Party's victory probability fell to 48%, putting their chances of controlling the Senate to 49%.

This prompted Brennan to ask what his strategy is to combat those projections, to which the senator said:

"I look at that analysis a little bit differently...In Michigan, in my view, Abdul's victory was one of the most extraordinary victories in modern political history. You tell me, have you ever heard of a candidate winning who was outspent nine to one, $60 million in billionaire-funded super PAC money came into that race, half from AIPAC, and yet he managed to win. Now I think what we are seeing all over this country, from coast to coast, is that working people are sick and tired of being the only major country on earth that does not guarantee healthcare to all people as a human right? They're sick and tired of massive income and wealth inequality. Who believes...now I know we don't discuss this much in Congress or in the media, but nobody that I know thinks it makes sense that one man in America today. Mr. Musk owns more wealth than the bottom half of American society. Who believes that we should sustain and maintain a corrupt campaign finance system where billionaires are undermining American democracy? The reason that we're going to win is people, whether you're conservative or Democrat, tired of the status quo and of the massive levels of inequality that exist right now."

Later in the interview, Brennan and Sanders talked about the latter's concerns about super PACs and their involvement in primaries, saying he doesn't want Democrats to "unilaterally disarm."

According to Brennan, AIPAC now said they're going to support the Republican candidate, Mike Rogers, in the general election.

When asked if he's okay with Democrats accepting PAC money in the general election, but not in the primary, Sanders said:

"In the world that we live in, until we get rid of Citizens United and get rid of super PACs and move to public funding of elections, that is the reality. You can't allow Democratic candidates to be outspent 50 to one, but it is a corrupt campaign finance system, and Democrats can take charge of what takes place within their own primaries right now. General election can't, but within primaries, Democrats can get super PACs out. That's what they should do."

To watch more of Brennan's interview with Sanders, click here.