Before nearly 3,000 people at the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena, Sanders started his hour-long speech arguing that he could still win the Democratic Party’s nomination because he is the strongest candidate to beat Donald Trump.
“We are all going to do everything we can to make certain that a Republican does not occupy the White House,” he said. “In order to do that, we need the strongest Democratic candidate possible. And you are looking at him. … We are the strongest candidate. If people are worried about that, as they should, we are going to work together to get the nomination.”
Washington will hold its Democratic caucus on Saturday, and Sanders made another swing through the state Thursday, starting at the Arena. Nearly 10,000 came to hear Sanders speak Sunday at the Convention Center, but only about 1,000 were allowed in the room for his rally due to fire code restrictions.
With the huge turnout Sunday and a lopsided victory in Tuesday’s Idaho caucuses - notably with 84 percent of the vote in Boundary County - Sanders clearly sees fertile political ground in the Inland Northwest.
..
Besides Trump, he took on his Democratic opponent, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. He noted that a Super PAC is working on Clinton’s behalf and vowed to never to allow a Super PAC to work on his. He also used an argument President Barack Obama used against Clinton for the Democratic nomination eight years ago.
“I voted against the war,” Sanders said referring to the Iraq War. “Secretary Clinton heard the same evidence. She voted for the war.”