WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Sherrod Brown, a potential 2020 Democratic presidential contender, is shrugging off arguments from liberals that signing onto the climate change plan known as the Green New Deal is essential to winning over the party's base.
He says, "I don't need to co-sponsor every bill that others think they need to co-sponsor to show my progressive politics."
Of the declared and potential Democratic presidential candidates in the Senate, Brown is alone in declining to sign onto the sweeping Green New Deal.
The Ohio senator also is keeping his name off the single-payer health care plan, another litmus tests for liberal activists.
Brown's decision gives him a unique lane should he decide to formally join the presidential primary.
He spoke to reporters on Tuesday.
