Elizabeth Warren: 'I am not a' Democratic Socialist

Warren made the comment at an event at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas, where she was being interviewed by writer Anand Giridharadas, who asked her to explain the "crux of the difference" between her views and those of Sanders, an independent from Vermont who identifies as a Democratic Socialist.

"Bernie has to speak to what Democratic Socialism is," replied Warren, who represents Massachusetts in the Senate.

"And you are not one?" Giridharadas asked.

"I am not. And the centrists have to speak to whatever they are doing. What I can speak is to is how I am doing," Warren said.

She continued: "All I can tell you is what I believe. And that is there is an enormous amount to be gained from markets. That markets create opportunities."

"Markets have to have rules. They have to have a cop on the beat," she said, adding that "markets without rules are theft."

Earlier in her conversation with Giridharadas, Warren declined to discuss a conversation she had with Sanders that preceded her run for president in which Sanders reportedly discouraged her from joining the field of 2020 candidates.

"Bernie and I had a private dinner. My view is that dinner stays private," Warren said.