Sen. Tim Scott, South Carolina Republican, on Monday said Sen. Bernard Sanders of Vermont would be the most difficult general election matchup for President Trump.

Mr. Scott said if Mr. Trump is on his game, he doesn’t think there’s a candidate who can beat him.

“If there is a second choice other than himself it would be Bernie Sanders,” Mr. Scott said on “CBS This Morning.” “Bernie Sanders brings that outside game in a similar fashion that President Trump did in 2016.”

Mr. Scott’s comments come as Republicans and some Democrats are expressing doubt that Mr. Sanders, a self-described “democratic socialist,” can win a national election and are predicting down-ballot carnage for Democrats if Mr. Sanders wins the party’s presidential nomination.

Still, Mr. Trump himself said on Monday that Mr. Sanders would be tougher to beat than most of the other Democratic contenders.

Mr. Sanders is coming off wins in Nevada and New Hampshire after finishing in a virtual tie for first place in Iowa with former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg.

Mr. Scott said former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg would be the easiest candidate for Mr. Trump to defeat.

“He has so many challenging story headlines,” Mr. Scott said. “The narratives, for as President Trump calls him, ‘Little Mike’ would be easy for President Trump to take strong advantage.”

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