Vermont senator Bernie Sanders reaffirmed his progressive platform and vowed to stay in the Democratic presidential primary after meeting with President Obama at the White House Thursday. But the self-proclaimed socialist signaled he may be inching towards realizing the calls from many Democrats for party unity around presumptive nominee Hillary Clinton.
In a statement to the press following his meeting with the president, Sanders thanked both Obama and Vice President Joe Biden for their “impartiality” throughout the primary process. He also hinted at future cooperation with Clinton.
“I spoke briefly to Secretary Clinton on Tuesday night. I congratulated her on her very strong campaign,” Sanders said. “I look forward to meeting with her in the near future to see how we can work together to defeat Donald Trump and to create a government which represents all of us, and not just the one percent.”
Still, the Vermont independent said he would stay in the race until “the last primary of the Democratic nominating process,” and told reporters he was awaiting a more accurate California vote count, where he lost by a wide margin to Clinton on Tuesday.
“I look forward to the full counting of the votes in California, which I suspect will show a much closer vote than the current vote tally,” he said.
He also reiterated his commitment to issues such as income inequality and college affordability, promising to press these topics at the Democratic National Convention in July.
“These are some of the issues that many millions of Americans have supported during my campaign,” he said. “These are the issues that we will take to the Democratic National Convention.”
After his California loss, the Sanders campaign said it would lay off half his campaign staff. Still, Sanders has vowed to push his platform at the Democratic convention, where he gained influence after sparring with Democratic National Committee chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz. Some of his supporters have also refused to back Clinton, citing his campaign as a “movement based on … ideas.”
During Thursday’s meeting, Obama was expected to praise Sanders for his progressive efforts while urging the Vermont senator to give in to a greater strategy of party unity after a rocky season of Democratic infighting. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said Wednesday that Obama would not formally endorse Hillary until after his meeting with Sanders. The Post reports Obama will endorse Clinton in a video released later Thursday.
Democrats such as congressman Raúl Grijalva of Arizona, Sanders’s first congressional backer, have been gently pushing Sanders to accept Clinton as the presumptive nominee.
“He’s gonna do the right thing,” Grijalva told the Washington Post.
Sanders will also meet with Senate minority leader Harry Reid Thursday, where he is expected to inquire about a shakeup in Democratic leadership, including a Wasserman Schultz ouster.
