Democratic New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker took aim at President Donald Trump during Sunday morning’s “State of the Union” on CNN, saying that he was “worse than a racist.”

The New Jersey Senator, who is also a contender for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, argued that Trump has used racist statements to stir up hatred among Americans, which makes him effectively worse than someone who just holds racist views.

WATCH:

Guest host Dana Bash began the segment by asking Booker about the president’s “racist” comments about Democratic Reps. Ayanna Pressley (MA), Ilhan Omar (MN), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY) and Rashida Tlaib (MI). Noting that Booker had called Trump’s comments “racist,” Bash asked why he had stopped short of saying that the president was a racist.

“Well, I actually am not,” Booker responded. “The reality is this is a guy who is worse than a racist. He’s actually using racist tropes and language for political gain to use this as a weapon to divide our nation against itself and this is somebody who is very similar to George Wallace, to racists who use the exact same language.” (RELATED: Cory Booker Helps Asylum Seekers Cross The Border)

“Somebody texted me during his rallies, I’ve seen this before in black and white and seeing it again decades later where I thought our country was beyond this. I’m seeing this in full color,” Booker continued. “So this election in many ways is yet another chapter in our American history. This is a referendum not on him but actually a referendum on the heart and soul of our country, who are we going to be.”

President Trump commented on the same four Democratic congresswomen, known unofficially as “the Squad,” early Sunday, saying that he didn’t believe them capable of loving America.