Bernie Sanders defends his support for Clinton in 2016

[betsuni]

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"When he finally endorsed Hilary on July 12, speaking to a crowd in which many of his supporters jeered her name and held signs saying 'Won't vote Hillary,' he looked grumpy and grudging and devoted most of his speech to congratulating himself and his followers on the 'fight to create a government which represents all of us, and not just the one percent ... .' He boasted of the races he had won, and was unable to resist a jab at party leaders by citing Clinton's abundance of superdelegates (read, in Sander's code: party hacks).

"It was not exactly a rousing call, designed to energize his supporters and redirect their passion toward Clinton. While Clinton had focused her endorsement for Obama on his accomplishments and abilities, Sanders returned once again to his own campaign, citing the impressive attendance at his rallies, and emphasizing that 'this campaign is not really about Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump, or Bernie Sanders, or any other candidate who sought the presidency. This campaign is about the needs of the American people and addressing the very serious crises that we face.' Conceding that 'as we head into November, Hillary Clinton is far and away the best candidate to do that,' he then launched into what was essentially an accounting of the economic and social positions he and Hillary shared, which gave the lie to the vast gulf between 'revolutionary' Bernie and 'establishment' Hillary he had run on.

"Of Hillary's qualifications to run the nation, Sanders mentioned just two accomplishments: 'as a great First Lady who broke precedent in terms of the role that a First Lady was supposed to play as she helped lead the fight for universal health care' and 'as a fierce advocate for the rights of children.' Stellar accomplishments, yes, but rather gender typed, and hardly doing justice to the myriad ways in which Clinton had served the country."

Susan Bordo