“I am doing everything that I can and will continue to do everything that I can to make sure that Donald Trump does not become president of the United States”, Sanders said on NBC’s “Meet the Press”.
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The endorsement came shortly after Obama met Clinton’s rival in the Democratic primary contest, US Senator Bernie Sanders, at the White House.
Clinton has secured the support of enough delegates to become the Democrats’ presumptive nominee.
In a video released on the internet on Thursday, President Barack Obama officially announced his support for his former opponent, Hillary Clinton, in her second bid to win the seat once occupied by her husband, Bill Clinton. Afterward, Mr Sanders said he thanked Mr Obama and Vice President Joe Biden for remaining impartial through the Democratic primary campaign.
You need Javascript and either Adobe Flash or Html5 to view this video. “He wants four more years of Obama – but nobody else does!” he wrote on Twitter, to which Clinton replied, still on Twitter, “Delete your account”. Hillary Clinton is the 16 woman to run for President of the United States. “…These are issues that have got to be dealt with, and I look forward to sitting down with Sec”.
Al Jazeera’s White House correspondent Patty Culhane, reporting from Washington, said that it was clear why Sanders visited the White House.
Mr Obama’s long-expected endorsement, delivered via an online video, included a forceful call for unity and for “embracing” Mr Sanders’ economic message, which has fired up much of the liberal wing of his party.
“President Obama and Mrs Clinton are set to start campaigning together soon”.
Despite the urgency to unite the party, the White House said on Thursday it was up to Sanders to make the decision as to when and how he ends the campaign.
Mr Obama’s backing of Mrs Clinton heaps further pressure on Vermont senator Bernie Sanders to bow out of the race.
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But in a sign that his sights were now more on helping the Democratic ticket than on leading it, Sanders made clear who his foe would be in the weeks and months ahead. “Sanders to peel away from the process because the American voters have got to concentrate on Trump versus Clinton, and we’ve got to put those two candidates beside each other”, Butterfield, the six-term congressman from Wilson, said in an interview June 2.
