Bernie Sanders has kicked off his presidential campaign 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 up."
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 neighbourhood 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.
More than 200 miles away in suburban Washington, Trump revelled in his 2016 victory and said Republicans "need to verify it in 2020 with an even bigger victory."
While Trump didn't mention Sanders explicitly in a two-hour speech, he railed against the policies of "socialism" in a continued attempt to portray Democrats as out of touch with ordinary Americans. Sanders is a self-described democratic socialist.
Sanders enters the race at a moment that bears little resemblance to when he waged his long-shot bid in 2016.
Democrats have been mobilised 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 a number of liberal candidates, most notably Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, who share similar sensibilities.
As Sanders launched his campaign in Brooklyn, Warren was campaigning in Waterloo, Iowa and was questioned repeatedly about Sanders. Though the two have been friends since before they came to the Senate, Warren did not endorse Sanders in 2016, a decision that angered his supporters.
"I'm going to be blunt - we can't go back and relitigate 2016," she told a voter who asked why she declined to back Sanders. "We've gotta keep our focus on how we're going to win in 2020."
Sanders' rally was his first campaign event since announcing a week ago that he would run against Trump for the White House. Sanders will make his first trip to the leadoff caucus state of Iowa next week, with plans to campaign in Council Bluffs, Iowa City and Des Moines. He is headed to the early state of Iowa
