After his meeting at the White House with President Obama, Senator Bernie Sanders held a press conference where the contours of party unity began to emerge.
Aides to Sanders said his top priorities are a $15 minimum wage, college affordability, and stricter regulations on Wall Street.
He also praised President Obama and Vice President Biden for their impartiality.
"Let me begin by thanking President Obama and thanking Vice President Biden for the degree of impartiality they established during the course of this entire process. What they said in the beginning is that they would not put their thumb on the scales, and in fact they kept their word. And I appreciate that very, very much.”
Senator Sanders gestured movement toward uniting with Secretary Clinton to defeat Donald Trump.
"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 that represents all of us and not just the 1 percent," he declared.
Greg Sargent notes some differences in the language Sanders used today, as opposed to in previous statements to the press.
The fact that Sanders acknowledged the impartiality of the process is potentially a key tell. Sanders no doubt will continue to criticize the DNC’s handling of the process — with some justification — but his criticisms of the DNC are very specific, oriented towards the handling of the debates and other procedural matters. If he is willing to say that the overall process was impartial, that may signal that at the end of the day, he may prove willing (depending on how negotiations over the platform proceed) to do all he can to reassure his supporters later that the overall outcome was and is legitimate.
It’s also notable that Sanders did not repeat his vow to continue to flip super-delegates to his side. Instead, he said he would be taking his “issues” to the convention, which isn’t the same thing.
Bernie Sanders is a smart guy who ran an amazing campaign. He doesn't want Donald Trump in the White House, Take this as a signal that he is moving ahead toward unity with Clinton and the Democratic Party.
