Sen. Bernie Sanders called on all his supporters to back former Vice President Joe Biden while unleashing a blistering condemnation of President Donald Trump during a primetime speech at the Democratic National Convention Monday night.
Sanders began his remarks by painting a bleak picture of the current state of the U.S., using the examples of climate change, systemic racism, the Covid-19 pandemic and the economic collapse that has accompanied the spread of the virus.
The Vermont independent, who is now a two-time runner-up for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination after he ended his campaign in April, placed the blame squarely on Trump for the plight of the nation.
“Nero fiddled while Rome burned. Trump golfs,” Sanders said, drawing a parallel between the demise of the Roman empire and the U.S.
“His actions fanned this pandemic resulting in over 170,000 deaths and a nation still unprepared to protect its people,” he added.
Sanders used much of his eight-minute speech to highlight the importance of the 2020 election — a common Democratic theme throughout the election cycle — and impress upon his audience the need to elect Biden to the White House.
Sanders stated that the progressive movement and the policy gains he has spearheaded since announcing his first presidential bid in mid-2015 was “getting stronger every day,” and in order for it to continue, his supporters must rally behind the more moderate Biden.
“If Donald Trump is re-elected, all the progress we have made will be in jeopardy,” Sanders said.
“My friends, I say to you, to everyone who supported other candidates in this primary, and to those who may have voted for Donald Trump in the last election: The future of our democracy is at stake. The future of our economy is at stake. The future of our planet is at stake,” the 78-year-old junior senator said from a livestream from Burlington’s Hen of the Wood restaurant.
Sanders’ pledge of support for Biden, which took place just days after he dropped out of the race, were a stark contrast from his speech at the Democratic National Convention four years ago.
In 2016, Sanders and his supporters were fighting tooth and nail for a more progressive policy platform to be adopted by the party — a task made more difficult by the acrimony between Sanders and presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.
But since April in the 2020 election cycle, Sanders and Biden — who have both said they genuinely like each other — have worked together to cultivate unity in the Democratic Party, going so far as to establish “unity task forces” with representatives from each camp to develop policy platforms.
“While Joe Biden and I, and our supporters, have strong disagreements about some of the most important issues facing our country, we also understand that we must come together in order to defeat Donald Trump, the most dangerous president in modern American history,” Sanders said last month.
The task forces encompass climate change, criminal justice reform, the economy, education, immigration, and health care.
However, in a rebuke of Sanders’ signature proposal, Medicare for All, the Democratic National Committee’s Platform Committee voted 125-36 to reject the single-payer plan.
The panel also rejected separate proposals to expand Medicare to children and all people over 55, and to legalize marijuana — another policy Sanders has pushed for. In response, more than 600 Democratic delegates have vowed to oppose any platform that does not include universal healthcare.
Sanders was the last speaker Monday night before former First Lady Michelle Obama gave an 18-minute closing keynote speech that ended the first day of the convention.
Tuesday will continue with former Secretary of State John Kerry, Sanders ally Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, former President Bill Clinton and Jill Biden, the candidate’s wife, all speaking.
