Bernie Sanders Debunks Right-Wing Media Spin Of Hacked Clinton Audio

Written by

Published

On CNN’s State of the Union, former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders debunked the right-wing media’s spin that Hillary Clinton attacked his supporters as “basement dwell[ers]” in recently-published hacked  audio of remarks at a closed door fundraiser in February. Conservative media sites and Fox News distorted Clinton’s comments to claim she had been mocking Sanders’ supporters as “broke and delusional.”  In an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper, the Vermont senator said there is “nothing” surprising about the fact that he and Clinton had differences during the primaries, as “that is what a campaign is all about.” He clarified that Clinton’s “very important point” was that young voters “can’t find jobs commensurate with the education that they received … and this is an issue that we must address.”

From the October 2 edition of CNN’s State of the Union:         

JAKE TAPPER (HOST): Take a listen to what Secretary Hillary Clinton said about you and your supporters back in February when she was at a closed door fundraiser. I want to make it clear that this is just an excerpt of these comments and it came from an e-mail hack. Take a listen.

[...]

TAPPER: You are out there working very, very hard for Secretary Clinton, trying convince your supporters to back someone that many of them did not trust. What was your reaction when you heard that, calling your ideas indefensible, saying that you were selling them false promises?

BERNIE SANDERS: Well, two things. If you listen to the whole discussion that she had, a very important point that she made is that a lot of young people who went into debt, worked very hard to get a good education, get out of school and can't find jobs commensurate with the education that they received and there's a lot of unhappiness about young people and this is an issue that we must address. But the bottom line here is that I think that what Secretary Clinton and I have done since the election, since the primary nominating process we have worked together in a number of areas. Secretary Clinton has worked with me to make certain that public colleges and universities become tuition free for all families earning $125,000 or less. That we double funding for community health centers, which means that we'll have access to primary care for millions more Americans and, by the way, apropos to Donald Trump not paying any taxes, she's come up with an estate tax proposal which will ask the very wealthiest people in this country, wealthiest families in this country to start paying their fair share.

TAPPER: I get that, Senator. But she's calling other ideas you pitched, not the ones that you two are working on together, but she called other ones false promises and said what you were doing was indefensible. That must bother you.

SANDERS: Well, look, of course it does. But we were in the middle of a campaign and I trust -- if you go to some of the statements that I made about Hillary Clinton you could see real differences. So we have differences. There’s nothing to be surprised about. That is what a campaign is all about.