Hillary Clinton appeared on Meet the Press today, and in a wide-ranging interview with Chuck Todd, she supported Sanders staying in the race, while also making clear that her eyes are on Trump and the general election.
Video can be found here.
Here are are highlights from the transcript.
On whether Senator Sanders is helping Trump by staying in the race:
Oh, I don't think so. I think that Senator Sanders has every right to finish off his campaign however he chooses. I do think there will then be the obvious need for us to unify the party. I faced the same challenge in 2008. I will certainly do my part, reaching out to Senator Sanders, reaching out to his supporters. And I expect him to do his. And he said about a week ago, he was going to spend seven days a week trying to defeat Donald Trump. And I believe that's the case.
On claiming the nomination:
Well, I think that having gone through 2008, as I did, it was much closer between then-Senator Obama and myself in 2008. I actually won nine of the last 12 contests in 2008, including Kentucky, West Virginia, Indiana, other states. And I wanted to make it clear that I know what this feels like, having lived through it. I have 3 million more votes. In the case of Senator Obama and myself, it was neck and neck in the popular vote.
I have far more pledged delegates. It was much closer between me and Senator Obama. And I am going to be the nominee. And I want to spend a lot of my time, as you've seen me do, really taking on Trump. Because I find what he says, the kind of candidacy he's presenting, to pose a danger to our country.
On Sanders asking the superdelegates to overrule voters:
Well, first of all, people have voted for me overwhelmingly in the Democratic primary process. And that is absolutely clear, and very different from where we were in 2008. I could make the case, which I did, that I was actually slightly ahead in the popular vote when we ended that primary. But I was behind in the pledged delegates. It's also fair to say that I have been vetted and tested, and I think that that puts me in a very strong position.
Let me say that I don't think he's had a single negative ad ever run against him. And that's fine. But we know what we're going into, and we understand what it's going to take to win in the fall. And finally, I would say that, you know, polls this far out mean nothing. They certainly mean nothing to me. And I think if people go back and look, they really mean nothing in terms of analyzing what's going to happen in the fall.
I just think that I'm in a much stronger position. Have been. And the voters who have turned out and given me 3 million more votes believe that as well.
