Joe Biden Joe BidenPelosi slams Trump executive order on pre-existing conditions: It 'isn't worth the paper it's signed on' Hillicon Valley: Subpoenas for Facebook, Google and Twitter on the cards | Wray rebuffs mail-in voting conspiracies | Reps. raise mass surveillance concerns Fox News poll: Biden ahead of Trump in Nevada, Pennsylvania and Ohio MORE's campaign on Wednesday defended the former vice president from mounting criticism from his Democratic White House rivals after he invoked his working relationships with two segregationist senators in the 1970s and pointed to it as an example of "civility" that no longer exists in the Senate.

Biden campaign spokeswoman Symone Sanders Symone SandersBiden campaign ratchets up courting of Black voters, specifically Black men The Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by The Air Line Pilots Association - Trump, Biden renew push for Latino support Sunday shows - Trump team defends coronavirus response MORE issued a lengthy response on Twitter on Wednesday afternoon after multiple Democratic presidential rivals blasted Biden for mentioning former Sens. James Eastland (D-Miss.) and Herman Talmadge (D-Ga.) during a speech at a fundraiser the previous night.

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"[Biden] did not praise a segregationist. That is a disingenuous take. He basically said sometimes in Congress, one has to work with terrible or down right racist folks to get things done. And then went on to say when you can't work with them, work around them," Sanders tweeted.

"Joe Biden has been an ally in the fight for civil rights for years. I am all here for VALID CRITICISM, but suggesting that Joe Biden - the man who literally ran for office against an incumbent at 29 because of the civil rights movement, the man who was at the forefront of marriage equality before it was politically popular, the man who served as President Obama's VP, the man who literally launched his 2020 campaign calling out Nazis in Charlottesville along with Trump's equivalency - suggesting he is actively praising a segregationist is just a bad take and a willfully disingenuous act," she wrote in multiple tweets.

.@JoeBiden did not praise a segregationist. That is a disingenuous take. He basically said sometimes in Congress, one has to work with terrible or down right racist folks to get things done. And then went on to say when you can't work with them, work around them. — Symone D. Sanders (@SymoneDSanders) June 19, 2019

Joe Biden has been an ally in the fight for civil rights for years. I am all here for VALID CRITICISM, but suggesting that Joe Biden - the man who literally ran for office against an incumbent at 29 because of the civil rights movement, the man who... — Symone D. Sanders (@SymoneDSanders) June 19, 2019

Actively praising a segregationist is just a bad take and a willfully disingenuous act. — Symone D. Sanders (@SymoneDSanders) June 19, 2019

Biden's campaign issued the response as Democratic rivals pounced on his remarks from a fundraiser Tuesday night, with Sen. Cory Booker Cory Anthony Booker3 reasons why Biden is misreading the politics of court packing Bipartisan praise pours in after Ginsburg's death DHS opens probe into allegations at Georgia ICE facility MORE (D-N.J.) saying Biden was “wrong” to invoke his working relationships Eastland and Talmadge as an example of political compromise and calling on him to apologize.

“You don’t joke about calling black men ‘boys,’ ” said Booker, who is black. “Men like James O. Eastland used words like that, and the racist policies that accompanied them, to perpetuate white supremacy and strip black Americans of our very humanity."

“I have to tell Vice President Biden, as someone I respect, that he is wrong for using his relationships with Eastland and Talmadge as examples of how to bring our country together,” he added. “And frankly, I’m disappointed that he hasn’t issued an immediate apology for the pain his words are dredging up for many Americans. He should.”

Sen. Bernie Sanders Bernie SandersThe Hill's Campaign Report: Trump faces backlash after not committing to peaceful transition of power Bernie Sanders: 'This is an election between Donald Trump and democracy' The Hill's 12:30 Report: Trump stokes fears over November election outcome MORE (I-Vt.) echoed Booker’s call for an apology, adding that Biden’s remarks were particularly harmful “at a time when the Trump administration is trying to divide us up with its racist appeals.”

Democratic Sens. Kamala Harris Kamala HarrisHundreds of lawyers from nation's oldest African American sorority join effort to fight voter suppression Biden picks up endorsement from progressive climate group 350 Action 3 reasons why Biden is misreading the politics of court packing MORE (Calif.) and Elizabeth Warren Elizabeth WarrenHillicon Valley: Subpoenas for Facebook, Google and Twitter on the cards | Wray rebuffs mail-in voting conspiracies | Reps. raise mass surveillance concerns On The Money: Anxious Democrats push for vote on COVID-19 aid | Pelosi, Mnuchin ready to restart talks | Weekly jobless claims increase | Senate treads close to shutdown deadline Democratic senators ask inspector general to investigate IRS use of location tracking service MORE (Mass.), New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio Bill de BlasioOVERNIGHT ENERGY: California seeks to sell only electric cars by 2035 | EPA threatens to close New York City office after Trump threats to 'anarchist' cities | House energy package sparks criticism from left and right EPA threatens to close New York City office after Trump threats to 'anarchist' cities New Year's Eve in Times Square to be largely virtual amid pandemic MORE and former Rep. John Delaney John DelaneyCoronavirus Report: The Hill's Steve Clemons interviews Rep. Rodney Davis Eurasia Group founder Ian Bremmer says Trump right on China but wrong on WHO; CDC issues new guidance for large gatherings The Hill's Coronavirus Report: Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas says country needs to rethink what 'policing' means; US cases surpass 2 million with no end to pandemic in sight MORE (Md.) also blasted Biden over the comments he made Tuesday night in which he touted his ability to work with the two staunch segregationists during his time in the Senate despite their disagreements.

“At least there was some civility. We got things done. We didn't agree on much of anything. We got things done. We got it finished,” Biden said of Eastland and Talmadge.

Biden has long cast himself as a supporter of civil rights and polls show he enjoys strong support among African American voters, many of whom associate him positively with former President Obama.

Biden launched his campaign in April with a broadside levied at President Trump Donald John TrumpSteele Dossier sub-source was subject of FBI counterintelligence probe Pelosi slams Trump executive order on pre-existing conditions: It 'isn't worth the paper it's signed on' Trump 'no longer angry' at Romney because of Supreme Court stance MORE over his reaction to the deadly 2017 Charlottesville riots between white supremacists and counter-protesters. Trump infamously said he believed there were “very fine people on both sides.”

Yet progressives, eager to cut down Biden's comfortable leads in early primary polls, have pointed to his association with Republicans during his time in the Senate as evidence that the former vice president may be too eager to work across the aisle if he were elected.

“I know the new New Left tells me that I’m – this is old-fashioned,” Biden said Tuesday. “Well guess what? If we can’t reach a consensus in our system, what happens? It encourages and demands the abuse of power by a president. That’s what it does.”