Bernie Sanders struck a defiant tone Tuesday night, vowing to fight on even as Hillary Clinton was declared the presumptive Democratic nominee.
Speaking in California as results of the nation’s largest primary started to come in — Clinton won the Golden State, and by larger margins than expected, early Wednesday — the Vermont senator said he would compete in the District of Columbia primary June 14 and at the Democratic National Convention in July.
“Next Tuesday, we continue the fight,” he told thousands of screaming supporters. “We are going to fight hard to win the primary in Washington, D.C., and then we take our fight for social, economic, racial and environmental justice to Philadelphia.”
His campaign also announced plans for a rally Thursday in the nation’s capital which, with a population that is nearly half African-American, is expected to go heavily for Clinton. Sanders will spend Wednesday in his home state.
But Sanders’ vow to continue his fight was undercut by indications that the campaign was preparing to wind down operations.
In the coming days, the campaign will lay off at least half its staff — almost everyone other than Sanders’ top aides, those working next week’s primary and his convention workers, according to multiple reports.
Both Sanders and Clinton received calls from President Barack Obama Tuesday night, congratulating both candidates on “running inspiring campaigns that have energized Democrats, [and] brought a new generation of Americans into the political process,” White House press secretary Josh Earnest said in a statement.
The president also agreed to Sanders’ request for a meeting, planned for Thursday. The Oval Office sit-down could clear the way for Obama to formally endorse Clinton, his rival for the 2008 nomination who became a close ally as his secretary of state.
“The president looks forward to continuing the conversation with Sen. Sanders,” Earnest said, “about how to build on the extraordinary work he has done to engage millions of Democratic voters, and to build on that enthusiasm in the weeks and months ahead.”
Obama has been eager to step off the sidelines to campaign against presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump. The White House indicated Monday that an endorsement could come as soon as this week, now that Clinton has secured a majority of the pledged delegates, and has cleared the 2,383 threshold of combined pledged delegates and superdelegates.
While in Washington, Sanders will also meet with Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, who has been one of his only allies in CongressThe Nevada Democrat, who endorsed Clinton in February, urged Sanders last week to “give up” in the face of insurmountable odds.
With two more years left in his Senate term, Sanders is poised to return to his day job with a much more prominent voice than when he launched his campaign last June. Sanders spent the majority of his career as an independent who caucused with Democrats, but is expected to take on a role as the de facto chair of the a growing progressive caucus, along with Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren and other hopefuls running in November.
More from U.S. News
Clinton Claims Democratic Nomination, Scores More Primary Victories
Bernie Sanders Can’t Sustain His Revolution Long Term
What Should Bernie Sanders Do Now That Hillary Clinton Won the 2016 Race?
Sanders Stays Defiant, Even as his Campaign Winds Down originally appeared on usnews.com
