Bernie Sanders defended Hillary Clinton on Sunday as the "superior" candidate for president, despite admitting that he was bothered by newly-leaked audio of her mocking his supporters.

In an audio recording released Friday, the Democratic presidential hopeful could be heard telling donors at a fundraiser in February that Sanders supporters were "children of the Great Recession" who "live in their parents' basement[s]."

Asked during an appearance on CNN's "State of the Union" whether the audio bothered him, Sanders responded: "Well, look, of course it does."

"But we were in the middle of a campaign and … in some of the statements that I made about Hillary Clinton, you can see real differences," he quickly added. "So we have differences. There's nothing to be surprised about. That's what a campaign is all about."

The Vermont senator, who ran a hard-fought primary campaign against Clinton before endorsing her ahead of the Democratic convention, also said that he agreed with some of what she said.

"There are young people who went deeply into debt, worked very hard to get an education and yet they're getting out of school and can't find decent paying jobs," Sanders said, adding that "they are living in their parents' basement" and it will take a "political revolution" to fix that "major problem."

"But what would you say to a Bernie Sanders supporter who listens to that tape and says that sounds condescending to call me a basement-dwelling barista?" Tapper shot back.

"This is what the message would be: take a hard look not at Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump," Sanders responded. "Take a hard look at the needs of the American people … and after you take a hard look at their positions on the issues, you will find that Clinton is far and away the superior candidate."