Senator Bernie Sanders again sidestepped an opportunity to take a jab at Hillary Clinton in their battle for the Democratic presidential nomination.
The Vermont Senator, who said during the first debate that Americans are “sick and tired of hearing about your damn emails,” declined an opportunity during the fourth debate Sunday to criticize Bill Clinton’s past transgressions.
Sanders scoffed when he was asked if he regrets calling the past misdeeds of the former President “totally, totally, totally disgraceful and unacceptable” at a town hall in Iowa recently.
“That question annoys me,” Sanders told NBC’s Andrea Mitchell when asked about Bill Clinton again on Sunday. “I cannot walk down the street — Secretary Clinton knows this — without being told how much I have to attack Secretary Clinton, want to get me on the front pages of the paper, I’d make some vicious attack.”
“I have avoided doing that,” he said. “Trying to run an issue-oriented campaign.”
Read More: Full Text of the Fourth Democratic Debate in Charleston
Sanders added that though he does find some of Bill Clinton’s past behavior “deplorable,” his goal is to debate the issues, not the former President.
“I’m going to debate Secretary Clinton, Governor O’Malley, on the issues facing the American people,” he said, “not Bill Clinton’s personal behavior.”
More Must-Reads from TIME
- Where Trump 2.0 Will Differ From 1.0
- How Elon Musk Became a Kingmaker
- The Power—And Limits—of Peer Support
- The 100 Must-Read Books of 2024
- Column: If Optimism Feels Ridiculous Now, Try Hope
- The Future of Climate Action Is Trade Policy
- FX’s Say Nothing Is the Must-Watch Political Thriller of 2024
- Merle Bombardieri Is Helping People Make the Baby Decision
Contact us at letters@time.com