Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) rebuked former Chicago mayor and likely 2028 presidential candidate Rahm Emanuel and establishment Democrats writ large on Sunday, saying “the people are sick and tired of the status quo” while casting progressive Democratic Senate candidates as the future of the Democratic Party.

While speaking with Margaret Brennan on Face the Nation, Sanders said socialist candidates such as Abdul el Sayed in Michigan and Lt. Gov. Penny Flanagan in Minnesota represent “grassroots excitement and enthusiasm.” Sanders’ role as one of the Democratic Party’s most influential progressive figures has grown in significance after multiple socialist candidates won congressional primaries over more establishment figures earlier this summer.