Sanders Scoffs At Clinton Criticism: ‘I Worked As Hard As I Could’ To Elect Her

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton listens as Sen. Bernie Sanders speaks during an event at the University of New Hampshire, September 28, 2016. Image by AFP/Getty Images

By Aiden Pink September 17, 2017

Sen. Bernie Sanders rebuffed former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s claim that he did not do enough to help his former Democratic party nomination rival win the 2016 presidential election.

“I worked as hard as I could to see that Hillary Clinton would be elected president,” Sanders told “Meet the Press” on Sunday.

In her new book “What Happened” and during its ensuing publicity tour, Clinton had been critical of what she saw as Sanders’ unrealistic policy proposals and half-hearted campaign support.

“The political sin he committed was the failure to move quickly to unify the party and his supporters,” Clinton told CNN last week.

Sanders denied that he had the power to unite the party after he lost the nomination.

“People say, ‘Well, not everybody who voted for Bernie ended up voting for Hillary,’” Sanders said. “No kidding. That’s what happens in politics. If my memory is correct, in 2008, something like 24 percent of the people who voted for Hillary Clinton in the primaries ended up voting for John McCain.”

Politico noted that Sanders’ claim is mostly backed up by 2008 polling data.

Contact Aiden Pink at [email protected] or on Twitter, @aidenpink.

Aiden Pink is the Deputy News Editor for the Forward. Contact him at [email protected] or on Twitter, @aidenpink.

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