Sen. Bernie Sanders Bernie SandersOutrage erupts over Breonna Taylor grand jury ruling Dimon: Wealth tax 'almost impossible to do' Grand jury charges no officers in Breonna Taylor death MORE (I-Vt.) on Saturday described an article from Politico about his wealth as being anti-Semitic.

“Call that what it is, an anti-Semitic article,” the 2020 presidential candidate said after The Young Turks host Cenk Uygur mentioned the article in an interview.

ADVERTISEMENT

Politico's article, "The Secret of Bernie’s Millions," has been blasted by progressives as being anti-Semitic for its portrayal of the Jewish senator's wealth. The illustrations accompanying the article in particular have drawn criticism.

One illustration depicts Sanders beside a tree made of money, while another shows a grinning Sanders appearing to hold his house in the palm of his hand while two other properties he owns sit on his shoulders.

Last month, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Alexandria Ocasio-CortezWells Fargo CEO issues apology after saying there was a 'limited pool of Black talent' Brand responds to Trump claim protesters throw tuna cans at police: 'Eat em, don't throw em' CNN's Don Lemon: 'Blow up the entire system' remark taken out of context MORE (D-N.Y.) tweeted that the illustrations were a clear example of historic anti-Semitic stereotypes surrounding Jewish people and wealth, adding that the news site published the images because Sanders is "a progressive politician they don’t like."

"Can ⁦@politico⁩ explain to us how photoshopping money trees next to the only Jewish candidate for president and talking about how 'cheap' and rich he is *isn’t* antisemitic?" the congresswoman wrote. "Or are they just letting this happen because he’s a progressive politician they don’t like?"

Can ⁦@politico⁩ explain to us how photoshopping money trees next to the only Jewish candidate for president and talking about how “cheap” and rich he is *isn’t* antisemitic?



Or are they just letting this happen because he’s a progressive politician they don’t like? pic.twitter.com/O9qvDBw4ib — Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) May 25, 2019

Several of Sanders's campaign staff made similar arguments.

"Meet @Politico -- a DC newspaper that sees a president call Nazis 'very fine people,' and then decides to create a graphic putting a money tree behind the president's Jewish opponent, whose father's family was killed by Nazis," David Sirota, a speechwriter with Sanders's 2020 campaign tweeted.

Sanders's chief of staff, Ari Rabin-Havt, concurred with Sirota, calling one of the images an "anti-Semitic trope."

Saturday was the first time Sanders himself publicly commented on the report.