Sen. Bernie Sanders says there’s several reasons he’s “angry,” and one of them is Mitt Romney.

Sanders was hitting back at Romney after the former Massachusetts governor-turned-Utah senator took a shot a him in a tweet Wednesday morning, calling the Vermont senator and 2020 presidential candidate ‘all hat, no cattle.”

“Asked why @BernieSanders is so angry, the answer is simple: 28 years in Congress and never able to pass even a scintilla of his socialist agenda,” the 2012 Republican presidential nominee tweeted Wednesday morning.

Romney’s tweet followed the first night of the second round of Democratic debates Tuesday night, in which Sanders emphatically defended his bold ideas to address issues like inequality, health care, and climate change. At one point, he was admonished by a Democratic rival for yelling.


Sanders fired back at Romney two hours later, tweeting the reason he was ticked was “because multi-millionaires like you and [President Donald] Trump have rigged our economy at the middle class’ expense.”

“I’m angry because millions are living paycheck to paycheck,” he wrote. “I’m angry because 34 million Americans are uninsured. Why doesn’t that anger you?”

I'm angry because multi-millionaires like you and Trump have rigged our economy at the middle class' expense. I'm angry because millions are living paycheck to paycheck. I'm angry because 34 million Americans are uninsured. Why doesn't that anger you? https://t.co/bhpn8Kgb9T — Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) July 31, 2019

During the debate, Sanders argued that ambitious proposals like Medicare-for-All and the Green New Deal were necessary “not only defeat Trump but to transform our economy and our government” to help the working class.

Romney responded Wednesday afternoon that “socialism isn’t the answer.”

“If it was, maybe Bernie would have something to show for his 3 decades in Congress,” he said.

Nice try, but socialism isn’t the answer. If it was, maybe Bernie would have something to show for his 3 decades in Congress. #AllHatNoCattle https://t.co/nvInZ17oEX — Mitt Romney (@MittRomney) July 31, 2019

Sanders, who identifies as a democratic socialist, has faced questions before about his legislative record. While marquee proposals like Medicare-for-All have not made meaningful progress in the Republican-controlled Senate, the independent congressman-turned-senator was once nicknamed the “amendment king” for his ability to pass roll call amendments in the House. During the 2016 presidential campaign, colleagues credited Sanders for shifting the debate in Democratic circles, but told Politico that his work rarely translated into successful legislation, besides a bipartisan Veterans Affairs reform bill in 2014.