WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - After a prolonged holdout, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., finally announced his endorsement of presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton in a speech on Tuesday.
In an appearance with Clinton in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Sanders said he intends to do everything he can to make certain the former Secretary of State will be the next president.
'Hillary Clinton understands that we must fix an economy in America that is rigged and that sends almost all new wealth and income to the top one percent,' Sanders said. 'Hillary Clinton understands that if someone in America works 40 hours a week, that person should not be living in poverty.'
'She believes that we should raise the minimum wage to a living wage,' he added. 'And she wants to create millions of new jobs by rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure - our roads, bridges, water systems and wastewater plants.'
Sanders, who made income inequality a key focus of his campaign, claimed presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump believes states should have the right to abolish the concept of the minimum wage altogether.
The Vermont Senator also questioned what Trump's nominees to the Supreme Court would mean for civil liberties, equal rights and the future of the country.
'While Hillary Clinton supports making our tax code fairer, Donald Trump wants to give hundreds of billions of dollars in tax breaks to the very wealthiest people in this country,' Sanders said.
He added, 'His reckless economic policies will not only exacerbate income and wealth inequality, they would increase our national debt by trillions of dollars.'
Sanders concluded his remarks by stating that Clinton will make an outstanding president and that he is proud to stand with her.
The endorsement from Sanders comes after he held out for several weeks despite the fact that Clinton had easily surpassed the number of delegates needed to clinch the nomination.
The holdout was seen as part of an effort by Sanders to secure changes to the Democratic Party platform that were more in line with his progressive ideology.
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