If Sanders' congressional colleagues are any basis, it may be time for the candidate to throw in the towel on his presidential hopes. At a meeting on Wednesday, Sanders was booed by Democrats as he refused to explicitly endorse Hillary Clinton.
One senior Democrat called the Vermont senator "self-obsessed" and that he was ruining any momentum or movement that he had created.
"It was frustrating because he's squandering the movement he built with a self-obsession that was totally on display," said one senior Democrat.
After delivering his opening remarks — which touched on Sanders’ favorite issues including campaign finance, Wall Street reform and trade — lawmakers inside the meeting pressed Sanders during a tense question-and-answer session on whether he would ultimately endorse Clinton and help foster party unity.
House Democrats including John Garamendi of California and Joyce Beatty of Ohio asked Sanders for specifics on when he would ultimately get behind Clinton — questions that were accompanied by some cheers and clapping from other House Democrats, sources inside the room said.
Sanders didn’t give them a clear answer, according to attendees. Instead, the Vermont senator emphasized that elections are not necessarily about winning, multiple sources said, but about transformations — an answer that was met with some boos from lawmakers, one person inside the room said.
Ouch. At this point, it seems as though Sanders may be a bit of a liability for the party. He has no way of winning the nomination, especially now given that Clinton won't be indicted. It's not exactly a surprise that some Democrats want him to give up before he does any real damage to the party.