Sanders is trying to influence changes in the Democratic Party platform this month, though Clinton has already proposed an expansion in her college affordability plan.
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Three Democrats involved in planning Tuesday’s event, who spoke to the United States newspaper on condition of anonymity, said the anticipated endorsement is the results of weeks of talks between the two campaigns aimed at unifying the party.
Bernie Sanders, nearing an expected endorsement of Hillary Clinton, lightly weighed in on the presumptive Democratic nominee’s search for a running mate.
Despite the math making it impossible for Sanders to wrestle the nomination from Clinton, he pressed for policy commitments from the Clinton campaign and party leaders and helped develop the platform that will be considered at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia.
But while she has made efforts to appear more open to the Sanders platform (for instance, with her recent education plan), many supporters remain insistent that a vote for Clinton is a betrayal of political values.
Sanders, in an interview on Thursday, came as close to endorsing Clinton as he ever has, saying: “We have got to do everything that we can to defeat (Republican rival) Donald Trump and elect Hillary Clinton”.
Clinton’s stop in New Hampshire on Tuesday comes during a week when she will also be campaigning with a potential vice presidential pick. He has also pushed for concessions in the party platform to oppose the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a 12-country trade deal negotiated by President Barack Obama’s administration, even before the next president is sworn in.
It’s not really an unexpected move at this point but is still a significant moment in Sanders’ long and officially ongoing campaign.
Sanders dodged questions about when he would endorse Clinton, but confirmed that the endorsement will come once the two campaigns reach a consensus on certain policy disagreements.
Rep. Sander Levin, D-Mich., said there was a “general feeling that it is important that he endorse right away”, adding that it was expressed directly to Sanders. Sanders was booed in a meeting with House Democrats on Wednesday for failing to support Clinton. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt, stand together before the start of the Univision, Washington Post Democratic presidential debate at Miami-Dade College, Wednesday, March 9, 2016, in Miami, Fla. In the closing moments of the meeting, Sanders supporters shouted down an amendment that implied Clinton was the nominee. This 23 percent sounds high, but 86 percent of Sanders supporters say that there is less than a 50-50 chance they end up supporting Trump.
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While the date and location of such an endorsement event had not previously been reported, it has been clear for a while that Sanders would endorse Clinton.
