PHILADELPHIA — Sen. Bernie Sanders received a rousing reception from New England delegates during their breakfast, during which he praised Hillary Clinton as the party’s nominee and cautioned that she needs a Democratic Congress.
During the opening minutes of the speech, Sanders thanked delegates from New Hampshire, Maine and Vermont, his home state, having won all three states during his primary campaign. Particularly, he thanked New Hampshire for kick-starting his campaign with his primary victory there on Feb. 9 and Vermont for sticking by him throughout his political career.
“We started in New Hampshire way, way down in the polls,” Sanders said, thanking them for forcing others to take his campaign seriously in the wake of the victory before soon touching on Vermont.
“What can I say, our home state,” Sanders told the delegates, noting that he won 86 percent support. “Thank you Vermont. Thank you for your love.”
Sanders also noted that as of yesterday, his campaign officially shuttered after Clinton officially clinched the nomination during the roll call vote. He told the group that he talked to President Obama following the vote, saying that the president was “kind enough to call.” However, he and his supporters were thankful for his work, especially in northern New England.
“A lot of pride,” said Rep. Peter Welch, who supported Sanders’ bid. “Of course, New Hampshire is really what put him on the map. It electrified the country when he had such a stunning victory there. So people here are really proud of what Bernie accomplished and very proud of their involvement in the campaign … It was great of Bernie to come because this is where his heart is.”
The Vermont senator spent most of the rest of his address taking on Donald Trump, calling him the worst GOP nominee modern U.S. history.
Sanders wasn’t the only former presidential candidate to address the group. About 30 minutes earlier, former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley took the stage, arguing that the Democrats have “cleansed the palate” the week after the Republican convention took place in Cleveland.
