In reversal, Clinton would back Sanders

WASHINGTON — In an abrupt about-face, Hillary Clinton said Tuesday night that she would endorse her 2016 rival Bernie Sanders if he wins the Democratic nomination to face President Donald Trump in November.

The former secretary of state had earlier refused to say whether she would endorse Mr. Sanders in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter published Tuesday, instead telling the outlet: “I’m not going to go there yet.” She had also offered a broad condemnation of the progressive candidate’s style of politics.

“I thought everyone wanted my authentic, unvarnished views!” Ms. Clinton tweeted Tuesday night. “But, to be serious, the number one priority for our country and world is retiring Trump, and, as I always have, I will do whatever I can to support our nominee.”

Her initial comments ripped open the scars of the brutal 2016 primary battle between Mr. Sanders and Ms. Clinton just as Democrats are poised to begin voting on their next nominee. Mr. Sanders’ loyalists believed the Democratic establishment had rigged the primary in favor of Ms. Clinton, who won the nomination but ended up losing the general election.

For her part, Ms. Clinton wrote in her memoir “What Happened” after her 2016 defeat that she felt some of Mr. Sanders’ criticism of her had helped propel Mr. Trump to victory, and she begrudged Mr. Sanders for not backing her campaign quickly enough after she sewed up the nomination. In The Hollywood Reporter interview, she accused Mr. Sanders of fostering a toxic culture in his campaign.