Bernie Sanders, in first rally of campaign, hits hard at President Trump

US Senator Bernie Sanders arrives for a rally to kick off his 2020 US presidential campaign, in the Brooklyn borough of New York City on March 2, 2019. (Photo by Johannes EISELE / AFP)JOHANNES EISELE/AFP/Getty Images less US Senator Bernie Sanders arrives for a rally to kick off his 2020 US presidential campaign, in the Brooklyn borough of New York City on March 2, 2019. (Photo by Johannes EISELE / AFP)JOHANNES EISELE/AFP/Getty ... more Photo: JOHANNES EISELE;Johannes Eisele / AFP / Getty Images Photo: JOHANNES EISELE;Johannes Eisele / AFP / Getty Images Image 1 of / 3 Caption Close Bernie Sanders, in first rally of campaign, hits hard at President Trump 1 / 3 Back to Gallery

NEW YORK — Bernie Sanders kicked off his presidential campaign Saturday miles from the rent-controlled apartment where he grew up in Brooklyn and forcefully made the case that he is nothing like fellow New Yorker Donald Trump, proclaiming himself the Democrat best prepared to beat the incumbent in 2020.

“My experience as a child, living in a family that struggled economically, powerfully influenced my life and my values. I know where I came from,” Sanders boomed in his unmistakable Brooklyn accent. “And that is something I will never forget.”

The Democrats in the 2020 race have taken varied approaches to Trump, with some avoiding saying his name entirely, while others make implicit critiques of his presidency. Sanders has never shied from jabbing Trump in stark terms, and during his speech at Brooklyn College, he called Trump “the most dangerous president in modern American history” and said the president wants to “divide us.”

The Vermont senator positioned himself in opposition to Trump administration policies from immigration to climate change. Beyond the issues themselves, Sanders, who grew up in the heavily Jewish neighborhood of Flatbush in a middle-class family, drew a stark contrast between himself and the billionaire in the White House who hails from Queens.

“I did not have a father who gave me millions of dollars to build luxury skyscrapers, casinos and country clubs,” said Sanders, who has lived in Vermont for decades. He pegged his allowance as a kid at 25 cents a week.

Sanders also said he “did not come from a family of privilege that prepared me to entertain people on television by telling workers, ‘You’re fired.’”

Sanders enters the race at a moment that bears little resemblance to when he waged his long-shot bid in 2016. Democrats have been mobilized by the election of Trump and are seeking a standard-bearer who can oust him from office. Many of Sanders’ populist ideas have been embraced by the mainstream of the Democratic Party. The field of Democrats that he joins includes liberal candidates, most notably Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, who share similar sensibilities.

Sanders’ rally was his first campaign event since saying a week ago that he would run again for the White House. Hours before his speech in Brooklyn College’s East Quad, a line of supporters snaked down the snowy streets.

As he began his speech, Sanders himself hinted at how he sees the race, a campaign that runs beyond traditional battleground states. “This is a 50-state campaign,” he said. “We will not concede a single state to Donald Trump.”

Juana Summers is an Associated Press writer.