New Sanders stump speech staple: The Donald

WATERLOO, Ia. — The Donald now appears to enjoy a prime spot in Bernie Sanders’ stump speech.

While campaigning in Iowa Saturday, the Vermont senator peppered jabs at Republican candidate Donald Trump throughout his speeches.

Saturday morning in Anamosa, Sanders took aim at Trump’s controversial plan to ban Muslims from entering the United States. He listed that proposal among a litany of efforts from the rich and powerful that he said were designed to "divide us up."

Later in the day at Dubuque's Grand River Center, Sanders included Trump in his castigation of the mainstream media's coverage of politics.

"I know this is a very radical idea, but maybe the campaign should be about the American people and not Donald Trump," he said.

Sanders repeatedly slammed Trump for comments he made in August that a low minimum wage was necessary for the United States to remain globally competitive.

"Having a low minimum wage is not a bad thing for this country,” Trump told MSNBC at the time.

“Well, it may not be a bad thing if you’re a billionaire," Sanders said in Dubuque Saturday afternoon. "But it’s sure as hell not a good thing if you’re a working person trying to survive."

Sanders is championing a federal minimum wage of $15 as a cornerstone of his middle-class-centric platform.

Sanders rarely mentions Hillary Clinton, his primary competition for the Democratic nomination, by name. While he does take jabs at Republican stances, he has so far restrained from calling out individual candidates in Iowa appearances.

For her part, Clinton has made Republican criticism a staple of her primary campaign. Earlier in the week, Clinton said Trump's proposed Muslim ban was "not only a shameful idea, that’s a dangerous idea."