PORTSMOUTH, N.H. — Bernie Sanders threw his support behind presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton at a boisterous but at times awkward rally here Tuesday, more than a month after Clinton effectively clinched the nomination.
“She will be the Democratic nominee for president and I intend to do everything I can to make certain she will be the next president of the United States,” the senator from Vermont said in this battleground state, where Sanders and Clinton appeared side by side on a stage in a packed high school gym.
Both candidates touted the need to come together to defeat Republican Donald Trump, and both offered effusive praise for the other — words not uttered during the bruising Democratic primaries. But their body language was stiff, and it was clear from shouts of “We love you Bernie!” that not everyone who supported Sanders was ready to move on.
Even with a few scattered signs of discord, however, Clinton and Sanders presented a more unified portrait of the Democratic Party than Republican Donald Trump has been able to do with the GOP, which remains deeply fractured over Trump’s candidacy just a few days ahead of its national convention in Cleveland.
Clinton sought to emphasize unity in her speech, entering with Sanders to a Bruce Springsteen anthem that was standard at his rallies. Speaking directly to Sanders’s supporters, Clinton welcomed them to her campaign and encouraged them to “make it your own.”
“You will always have a seat at the table when I am in the White House,” she said.
Much remains unknown about whether the political marriage between Clinton and Sanders will work. As they shook hands on their way to the stage, both were guarded by separate Secret Service teams and waved in different directions. And signs of lingering tension remained as some supporters yelled at one another and a police officer intervened to mediate a dispute in the bleachers.
The crowd was sprinkled with “Bernie for President” placards, and some of his supporters were decked out in Bernie T-shirts.
“I’m not going to say I’m delighted,” said Brynn McDonnell, 24, a former Sanders volunteer in the audience, when asked about the endorsement. “I think it's a political move he has to make.”
“There are some Bernie supporters who want to go for Trump, and it's important for people to understand that Bernie is the antithesis of Trump,” explained McDonnell, who recently moved to New Hampshire from Iowa.
While they have a common enemy in Trump, Clinton and Sanders don’t have much of a personal or professional relationship. Their chemistry Tuesday offered a marked contrast to that on display at a recent Clinton event featuring Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), another darling of the party’s progressive wing. While Warren punched the air to accentuate Clinton’s applause lines, both Clinton and Sanders were more tepid in their enthusiasm for one another. Clinton and Warren felt like a tag team; Clinton and Sanders appeared more simply as a joint appearance.
As Clinton spoke, Sanders stood with his hands alternately clasped behind him and in front of him, applauding politely as Clinton talked about the need to learn from the Dallas shootings and to implement her other agenda items.
The rally began with two Sanders supporters speaking: environmental leader Bill McKibben and Jim Dean, the leader of Democracy for America, a grass-roots group that endorsed Sanders in the primaries.
Dean announced that his group would now be throwing its support behind Clinton.
McKibben touted Sanders’s appeal to young voters and said he hoped the Democratic Party would “not disappoint them” going forward.
“Secretary Clinton, we wish you Godspeed in the fight that now looms,” McKibben said.
Underscoring the theme of unity, New Hampshire Gov. Maggie Hassan and U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen — both Clinton supporters — also addressed the crowd before Clinton and Sanders appeared.
Although Clinton effectively clinched the nomination last month, aides said Sanders has no plans to suspend his campaign or formally exit the race before the convention two weeks from now in Philadelphia.
Sanders decision to keep his campaign alive has alienated many Democrats, who thought the senator should have been more gracious in accepting defeat after a grueling nominating process. But it may have given him more leverage to push for changes to the party platform.
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