US: Bernie Sanders endorses Joe Biden for president

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden for president.

While making the endorsement on Monday April 13, 2020, Sanders vowed to work assiduously towards seeing Biden in the White House.

“I will do all that I can to see that that happens, Joe,” Sanders declared.

Sanders disclosed this during a livestream broadcast by Biden’s campaign on his website and on social media.

Meanwhile, the endorsement of Biden by his leading Democratic rival marks a significant change for Democrats as the party seeks to intensify efforts and turn its focus toward the November match-up with President Donald Trump.

Sanders’ quick endorsement of Biden in mid-April, just five days after he suspended his campaign, was a stark contrast to the 2016 Democratic race, when Sanders continued to battle Hillary Clinton into June.

This time, the former vice president and the Vermont senator sought to immediately address the distrust some of Sanders’ supporters have for Biden after a primary campaign in which the two repeatedly clashed on issues like foreign policy and health care.

“I think that your endorsement means a great deal,” Biden said.

“It means a great deal to me. I think people are going to be surprised that we are apart on some issues but we’re awfully close on a whole bunch of others. I’m going to need you — not just to win the campaign, but to govern,” he added.

“I look forward to working with you and bringing some great people into those task forces,” Sanders stated.

“Not in a million years would we have believed we would be talking to each other in our respective homes, that we could not do rallies, that we could not get out of the house,” Sanders said.

At a point, Sanders inquired to know if Biden could support a national $15-an-hour minimum wage, and Biden responded in the affirmative.

They both discussed their areas of agreement on Trump’s handling of the coronavirus crisis, with Biden highlighting how it would hurt young people, who have been Sanders’ core constituency.