Rep. Keith Ellison (D., Minn.) spoke Wednesday at the University of Minnesota, where he said that former President Barack Obama deserved some of the blame for the Democrats collapsing in 2016.

"Speaking of presidential politics, was President Obama responsible for some of the failures of 2016 and if so, how?" one of the moderators asked.

"Yeah, he was," Ellison said.

Ellison, who serves as the deputy chairman of the Democratic National Committee, said Obama could have been a better party leader.

"I totally voted for many things that he supported … But Barack Obama could have been a better party leader, and I think that the fact that he wasn't has put his legacy in jeopardy," Ellison said.

Ellison said Obama's legacy will not revolve around the building that will be constructed to hold his presidential papers in Chicago.

"His legacy is the work that he has done, which I believe is tremendous. But, given that we did not – we lost a lot of state house seats, governorships, secretaries of states, his true legacy is in danger," Ellison said. "And I think that he can't say that he wasn’t part of those losses. I mean, who else. Right?"