Former Clinton Adviser Calls Sanders a 'Weak Frontrunner,' Says Democrats Aren't 'Looking for a Revolution'

CNN commentator Paul Begala dismissed Senator Bernie Sanders as a "weak frontrunner" with a "revolutionary" message that is unlikely to resonate with Democratic voters Wednesday.

Although he acknowledged Sanders winning the New Hampshire primary on Tuesday and recently emerging as the frontrunner, Begala suggested that Democratic voters would really prefer a moderate candidate during a panel discussion on the network.

"He's a weak frontrunner," Begala told host Jake Tapper in response a question about the strength of the Sanders campaign. "A win's a win and you've got to give him credit."

The pundit insisted that momentum for Sanders had stalled while second and third place finishers Pete Buttigieg and Sen. Amy Klobuchar were surging. He said that increased turnout in the state combined with the poor finish of Sen. Elizabeth Warren should have resulted in a larger margin of victory for Sanders if his candidacy were strong.

"This is not a party looking for a revolution, I'm telling you," said Begala. "If you look at Pete, if you look at Amy, they're not running on a revolutionary ticket and they're moving quickly. They gained 10 points last week."

Begala previously served as an adviser to former President Bill Clinton. He announced in late January that he would be taking a leave of absence from serving on the board of the group Democratic Majority for Israel during primary season, after it was reported that the group was launching attack ads against Sanders.

Also taking part in the panel discussion was Karen Finney, a former spokesperson for the DNC and the 2016 presidential campaign manager of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. She agreed with Begala and expressed skepticism that Sanders could manage to appeal to a wide base of Democratic voters.

Finney was asked about the significance of a popular recent talking point by moderate Democrats, pointing out that adding together votes for candidates like Buttigieg and Klobuchar equals more total votes than the total of Sanders alone. She championed the idea that the calculation was evidence primary voters would prefer a moderate over Sanders.

"That's absolutely true," Finney said. "I'm one who believes that this primary is going to go long and it's going to be a lot of back and forth of voters trying to decide who they really believe can really beat Donald Trump. But also trying to remind Bernie we're not Democratic Socialists, by the way."

"He's got a job to do, he's trying to talk about unity and building a broad coalition," Finney added. "I just don't know if most of the party is going to buy it. He's going to have his chance to make the case. We'll see."

Fellow commentator Scott Jennings, who served in the administration of former President George W. Bush, remarked that only Klobuchar had the "courage" to raise concerns about Sanders and socialism during the New Hampshire Democratic debate on Friday. Finney responded that candidates worrying about appealing to Sanders supporters was a "problem."

"This is part of the problem they're afraid of his base," said Finney. "That's part of the problem."

In addition to his New Hampshire win, Sanders has taken the lead in several recent national polls and most observers expect him to be a strong contender in the upcoming Nevada caucus, set for February 22.

Newsweek reached out to the Sanders campaign for comment but did not receive a response in time for publication.