Joe Biden Joe BidenSenate Republicans face tough decision on replacing Ginsburg What Senate Republicans have said about election-year Supreme Court vacancies Biden says Ginsburg successor should be picked by candidate who wins on Nov. 3 MORE told a CBS reporter to "calm down" after he asked the former vice president why he had attacked Sen. Bernie Sanders Bernie SandersKenosha will be a good bellwether in 2020 Biden's fiscal program: What is the likely market impact? McConnell accuses Democrats of sowing division by 'downplaying progress' on election security MORE (I-Vt.), a top rival of Biden's for the Democratic presidential nomination.

"Yesterday, you said you accepted Bernie's apology, now you're attacking him," said Ed O'Keefe, the veteran reporter covering the 2020 presidential campaign for the network. "Why are you doing that? Why wasn't his apology enough, Mr. Vice President? Why attack Sanders?"

After the last question, Biden, who had been ready to leave the press area, turned back to O'Keefe with a wide-eyed expression and walked back toward him.



"Why, why, why, why, why, why, why?" Biden said, waving his hands toward O'Keefe and bending toward him slightly.

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"You're getting nervous, man. Calm down, it's OK!" Biden said, putting his hands gently on O'Keefe's shoulder.

"He apologized for saying I was corrupt, he didn't say anything about whether or not I was telling the truth about Social Security," Biden then states, as O'Keefe recorded the conversation.

Biden proceeded to give the reporter a soft tap with his fist before leaving the area.

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Biden and Sanders have been battling over Social Security and an op-ed by a supporter of Sanders who called Biden corrupt. Sanders apologized for the op-ed, but his campaign has pressed forward with its argument that Biden had supported efforts to cut Social Security. Biden says he had only supported efforts to fix Social Security.

Earlier Wednesday on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," Biden accused Sanders and his campaign of taking statements he'd made about Social Security decades ago out of context.



"I find it amazing that we go back and look at statements and many of them, most of them [are] taken out of context of 10, 30, 35 years ago," Biden told co-hosts Joe Scarborough Charles (Joe) Joseph ScarboroughScarborough calls on Cuomo to walk back statement he made about Trump: 'Out of bounds' Mika Brzezinski: 'Super grossed out' by Trump speech attendees 'who put their lives at risk' Democrats tear into Trump's 'deep state' tweet: His 'lies and recklessness' have 'killed people' MORE and Mika Brzezinski Mika Emilie BrzezinskiMika Brzezinski: 'Super grossed out' by Trump speech attendees 'who put their lives at risk' Trump hurls insults at Harris, Ocasio-Cortez and other women Trump targets 'Complete psycho' Scarborough, 'ditzy airhead' Brzezinski while praising 'Fox & Friends' MORE.



"It's like me going back and pointing out how Bernie voted against the Brady Bill five times while I was trying to get it passed when he was in the House, or how he voted to protect gun manufacturers," he continued. "He's made up for that, he's indicated that was [the] past."

Biden and Sanders are running neck and neck in Iowa with the Hawkeye State's caucuses less two weeks away.