Presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders Bernie SandersNYT editorial board remembers Ginsburg: She 'will forever have two legacies' Two GOP governors urge Republicans to hold off on Supreme Court nominee Sanders knocks McConnell: He's going against Ginsburg's 'dying wishes' MORE on Friday walked back some of his criticism of GOP contender Jeb Bush’s recent assertion that Americans should “work longer hours” to grow the economy.



ADVERTISEMENT

Sanders had pounced on the former Florida governor’s Wednesday assertion as evidence he was out of touch with economic reality.When Chris Cuomo, host of CNN's “New Day” accused Sanders (I-Vt.) of “twisting” the Republican's words, saying Bush meant to lament the lack of full-time jobs in the current economy, Sanders agreed.

“If he is talking about the need for more full-time jobs rather than part-time jobs, he’s absolutely right, that’s what we have to do,” Sanders, who is seeking the Democratic nomination, said.



“But I want to reiterate, our people work today the longest hours of any people in any major industrialized country.”



Bush’s comments had drawn significant scrutiny from Democrats who panned the assertion as out of touch. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham ClintonBiden leads Trump by 36 points nationally among Latinos: poll Democratic super PAC to hit Trump in battleground states over coronavirus deaths Battle lines drawn on precedent in Supreme Court fight MORE's presidential campaign tweeted a graph showing American productivity climbing while wages leveled off, a none-too-subtle jab at Bush.



Sanders himself panned the former Florida governor and said, he “does not seem to understand what is happening in our economy today.”

He also pushed back against accusations that Clinton, his chief rival, is untrustworthy, as Republicans have piled on her in light of national polling.

"I have known Hillary Clinton for 25 years. I respect her, and I like her. I think she's getting beaten up all over the place and sometimes it's unjustified," he said.

Sanders trails Clinton significantly in national polling, but recent polls out of New Hampshire show him within 12 percentage points of the lead.