YEARNING FOR BERNIE
Sanders backers vow no surrender
PHILADELPHIA — Irate Bernie Sanders delegates are promising to fight all week for their candidate as the Democratic National Convention heads into day two today — even as Sanders himself is urging the booing to stop.
At a raucous meeting yesterday with his most loyal supporters, the Vermont U.S. senator implored his hundreds of delegates to defeat Donald Trump in November, calling the Republican nominee a “bully and a demagogue.” He said it was imperative to elect Hillary Clinton and her running mate, Virginia U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine.
“Make no mistake. We have made history,” Sanders told the crowd. He stressed that the accomplishments and progress would be lost if Clinton doesn’t win.
The appeal elicited jeers and cheers, as delegates shouted, “We want Bernie!”
Sanders backers said they are looking for the DNC to “do more” to help heal fractures in the wake of a WikiLeaks email dump that appeared to show party favor for Hillary Clinton.
“It’s confirmed the worst fears of Sanders supporters that the DNC was not a fair player in this election and I think it hurts the Democratic party tremendously,” said Antony Iarrapino, a Montpelier, Vt., resident and the rules delegate for Sanders’ home state delegation.
“It’s too bad, because Bernie Sanders brought a lot of new energy into the party.”
Sanders’ supporters were still fired up later in the day, and even angry at the former candidate for backing Clinton.
“If he continues to endorse Hillary Clinton, politically, I am done with him,” said Melissa Muldoon, 35, who drove down to Philly for the day to protest the two-party system and support Green Party candidate Dr. Jill Stein.
“I appreciate Bernie for everything he has done; however, his endorsement of Hillary and the DNC does not sit well with me,” she said.
Jon Brunette, 34, who joined Muldoon on the 22-hour trek, said Sanders has “has left a lot of people at a crossroads. It was not about voting for Bernie Sanders, it was about needing to change things.”
That means it could be a long week at the DNC as the Clinton camp looks for unity but faces discontent.
“There are a lot of Bernie supporters who are clearly not going to fall into unity on this issue this week,” Iarrapino said, adding that delegates may cast ballots for Sanders or Stein.
“But, having been in the rules committee on Saturday and losing a number of votes, I can tell you what it’s like to look at the numeric advantage of Hillary Clinton voters at this convention,” he said.