Republican Sen. John Kennedy on Wednesday dismissed the Democratic presidential debate as “socialist” — fulfilling South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg’s warning Tuesday that no matter what Democrats do, they’ll always be seen as “a bunch of crazy socialists.”

When asked for his take on the previous night’s debate, Mr. Kennedy of Louisiana told Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom” that “the lesser of two socialists is still a socialist,” which would later be quoted by President Trump.

“I’m not impugning their integrity, but even from the less liberal candidates, I heard a job-killing, soul-crushing socialist agenda. The only thing missing was the Cuban national anthem,” he said, adding that Americans “will have a stark choice in this election. It will be growth versus redistribution. It will be: Do you believe in more freedom or more free stuff?”

Mr. Kennedy’s comment comes after the South Bend, Indiana, mayor and 2020 presidential hopeful criticized the internal battle between progressive and moderate Democrats, adding that Republicans will call them socialists regardless.

“It’s true that if we embrace a far-left agenda, They are going to say that we’re a bunch of crazy socialists. If we embrace a conservative agenda, you know what they’re gonna do? They’re going to say we’re a bunch of crazy socialists,” Mr. Buttigieg said.

Sign up for Daily Newsletters Manage Newsletters

Copyright © 2020 The Washington Times, LLC. Click here for reprint permission.