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At This Hour
Sen. Bernie Sanders Endorses Former Rival Hillary Clinton; Clinton Speaks to Supporters at New Hampshire Rally. Aired 11:30a-12p ET
Aired July 12, 2016 - 11:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT), FMR. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: And the profound lesson that I have learned is that this campaign is not really about Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump or Bernie Sanders or any other candidate who sought the presidency.
[11:30:14] This campaign is about the needs of the American people and addressing...
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And addressing the very serious crises that we face. And there is no doubt in my mind that, as we head into November, Hillary Clinton is far and away the best candidate to do that.
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It is very easy to forget, and Republicans want us to forget where we were seven and a half years ago when President Obama came into office.
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As a result of the greed, recklessness and illegal behavior on Wall Street, our economy was in the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.
Some 800,000 people a month were losing their jobs. We were running up a record-breaking deficit and the world's financial system was on the verge of collapse.
We have come a long way in the last seven and a half years and I thank President Obama...
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I thank President Obama and Vice President Biden for their leadership in pulling us out of that terrible recession.
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But I think we can all agree that much, much more needs to be done. Too many Americans are still being left out, left behind and ignored. In the richest country in the history of the world, there is too much poverty, there is too much despair.
(APPLAUSE) This election is about the single mother I saw in Nevada who, with tears in her eyes, told me that she was scared to death of the future because she and her daughter were not making it on the $10.45 an hour she was earning.
This election is about that woman and the millions of other workers in this country who are falling further and further behind as they try to survive on totally inadequate wages.
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Hillary Clinton understands that we must fix an economy in America that is rigged and that sends almost all of the new wealth and income to the top one percent.
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Hillary Clinton understands that if someone in America works 40 hours a week, that person should not be living in poverty.
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She believes, we all believe that we must raise the minimum wage to a living wage.
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And further, she wants to create millions of new jobs by rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure...
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Our roads, our bridges, our water systems, our wastewater plants. But her opponent, Donald Trump, well, he has a very different view.
He believes that states should have the right to lower the minimum wage or even abolish the concept of the minimum wage.
(BOOING)
[11:35:03] SANDERS: If Donald Trump is elected, we will see no increase in the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, a starvation wage. This election is about which candidate will nominate Supreme Court justices who are...
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Who will nominate Supreme Court justices who are prepared to overturn the disastrous Citizens United decision.
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A decision which is allowing billionaires to buy elections and is undermining our democracy. This election is about who will appoint new justices on the Supreme Court who will defend a woman's right to choose.
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Who will defend the rights of the LGBT community.
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Who will defend workers rights, the needs of minorities and immigrants and the government's ability to protect our environment.
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If anyone out there thinks that this election is not important, take a moment to think about the Supreme Court justices that Donald Trump will nominate and what that means to civil liberties, equal rights and the future of our country.
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This campaign is about moving the United States toward universal health care.
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And reducing the number of people in our country who are uninsured or underinsured.
(APPLAUSE) Hillary Clinton wants to see that all Americans have the right to choose a public option in their health care exchange, which will lower the cost of health care for millions.
She also believes that anyone 55 years or older should be able to opt in to Medicare.
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And she wants to see millions more Americans gain access to primary health care, dental care, mental health counseling and low- cost prescription drugs...
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Through a major and dramatic expansion of community health centers throughout this country.
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Hillary is committed to seeing thousands of young doctors, nurses, psychologists, dentists and other medical professionals practice in underserved areas as we follow through on President Obama's idea of tripling funding for the National Health Service Corps.
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In New Hampshire, in Vermont and across this country, we have a major epidemic of opiate and heroin addiction. People are dying every day from overdoses. Hillary Clinton understands that if we are serious about addressing this crisis, we need major changes we need major changes in the way we deliver mental health treatment throughout this country.
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And that is what expanding community health centers will do, and that is what getting medical personnel into the areas we need them most will do.
[11:40:08] SANDERS: And what is Donald Trump's position on health care? Well, no surprise there. Same old -- same old Republican contempt for working families. He wants to abolish the Affordable Care Act, throw -- throw 20 million people off of the health insurance they currently have and cut Medicaid for low-income Americans.
(BOOING)
The last thing we need today in America is a President who doesn't care about whether millions of Americans will lose access to the health care coverage they desperately need.
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We need more people with access to quality health care, not fewer. Hillary Clinton also understands that millions of our seniors, disabled veterans and others are struggling with the outrageously high cost of prescription drugs. She and I are in agreement that Medicare must negotiate drug prices with the pharmaceutical industry.
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And that we must expand the use of generic medicine. Drug companies should not be making billions in profit while one out of five Americans are unable to afford the medicine they need.
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The greed of the drug companies must end. This election is about the grotesque level of income and wealth inequality that currently exists, the worst it has been in our country since 1928.
Hillary Clinton knows that something is fundamentally wrong when the very rich become richer, while many others are working longer hours for lower wages. She knows that it is absurd that middle-class Americans are paying an effective tax rate higher than hedge fund millionaires. And that there are corporations in this country that make billions of dollars a year in profit, yet, because of the loopholes that their lobbyists created in a given year, they don't pay a nickel in federal taxes. That is wrong.
(BOOING)
While Hillary Clinton supports making our tax code fairer and more progressive, Donald trump wants to give hundreds of billions of dollars in tax breaks to the very wealthiest people in this country. (BOOING)
His reckless economic policies will not only exacerbate income and wealth inequality, they will increase our national debt by trillions of dollars. This election is about the thousands of young people I have met throughout this country who have left college deeply in debt, the many others who cannot afford to go to college, and the need in this country to have the best educated work force in a highly competitive global economy.
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Hillary Clinton believes that we must substantially lower student debt and that we must make public colleges and universities tuition- free for the middle class and working families of this country.
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This is a major initiative that will revolutionize higher education in this country and improve the lives of so many of our people. Think of what it will mean.
[11:44:57] Think of this, when every child in this country, regardless of the income of his or her family, knows that if they study hard, if they take school seriously, yes, they will be able to get a college education and leave school without debt.
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SANDERS: This election is about climate change, the greatest environmental crisis facing our planet.
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And the need to leave this world in a way that is healthy and habitable for our children and future generations.
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Hillary Clinton is listening to the scientists who tell us that if we do not act boldly in the very near future, there will be more drought, more floods, more acidification of the oceans, more rising sea levels. She understands that we must work with countries around the world in transforming our energy system away from fossil fuel and -- and away from fossil fuels and into energy efficiency and sustainable energy.
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And that when we do that, we can create a whole lot of good- paying jobs.
Well, Donald Trump, like most Republicans, sadly and tragically is choosing to reject science, something no presidential candidate should ever do. He believes that climate change is a hoax. In fact, he wants to expand the use of fossil fuels. That would be a disaster for our country and for the entire planet.
This election is about the leadership we need to pass comprehensive immigration reform and repair a broken criminal justice system.
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It's about making sure that young people in this country are in good schools or in good jobs, not in jail cells.
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Secretary Clinton understands that we do not need to have more people in jail than any other country on earth at an expense of $80 billion a year.
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In these stressful times for our country, this election must be about bringing our people together, not dividing us up.
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While Donald Trump is busy insulting Mexicans and Muslims and women and African Americans and our veterans, Hillary Clinton understands that our diversity is one of our greatest strengths.
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Yes, we become stronger when black and white, Latino, Asian American, Native American, all of us stand together. Yes, we become stronger when men and women, young and old, gay and straight, native- born and immigrant fight to rid this country of all forms of bigotry.
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It is no secret that Hillary Clinton and I disagree on a number of issues. That is what this campaign has been about. That is what democracy is about.
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SANDERS: But I am happy to tell you that at the Democratic Platform Committee which ended Sunday night in Orlando, there was a significant coming together between the two campaigns and we produced...
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[11:50:19] ... we produced, by far, the most progressive platform in the history of the Democratic Party.
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You our job now is to see that platform implemented by a Democratically controlled Senate...
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A Democratically controlled House...
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And a Hillary presidency.
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And I intend to be in every corner of this country to make certain that happens.
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I have known Hillary Clinton for 25 years. We were a bit younger then.
(LAUGHTER)
I remember her as a great first lady who broke precedent in terms of the role that a first lady was supposed to play.
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And as she helped lead the fight to universal health care.
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I served with her in the U.S. Senate and know her as a fierce advocate for the rights of our children.
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and I know her and all of you know her as one of the most intelligent people that we have ever met.
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Hillary Clinton will make an outstanding president and I am proud to stand with her today.
Thank you all very much.
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HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESUMPTIVE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: Hello, New Hampshire!
(APPLAUSE) It is so great...
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It is so great to be here with so many friends, old and new.
AUDIENCE: Hillary! Hillary! Hillary! Hillary!
CLINTON: Thank you.
AUDIENCE: Hillary! Hillary! Hillary!
CLINTON: Thank you so much. I -- I have to say, it is such a great privilege to be here with Senator Sanders. Being here with him in New Hampshire, I can't help but reflect how much more enjoyable this election is going to be now that we are on the same side.
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Because you know what? We are stronger together.
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And I want to give a special thanks to someone who has been with Senator Sanders every step of the way, not just throughout this campaign, but over the years. His wonderful wife, Jane Sanders.
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Also, I've had the pleasure of meeting his son, Levi Sanders. Thank you.
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I also appreciate greatly having the opportunity for all of us to hear from the speakers beforehand, Governor Maggie Hassan, the next senator from the state of New Hampshire...
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[11:55:04] CLINTON: Senator Jeanne Shaheen, who is doing a tremendous job for you...
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And we are delighted to have heard from and have with us Bill McKibben and Jim Dean. Over these last few weeks, Bernie and I have worked together on plans to put college within reach for more people, and to ensure that everyone in America has access to quality, affordable health care.
And now, with your help, we are joining forces to defeat Donald Trump, win in November, and yes, together build a future we can all believe in.
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Just as Bernie said, over the years, I've gotten to know him as a colleague and a friend. His reputation for passionate advocacy hasn't always made him the most popular person in Washington, but you know what, that's generally a sign you're doing something right.
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And throughout this campaign, Senator Sanders has brought people off the sidelines and into the political process. He has energized and inspired a generation of young people who care deeply about our country and are building a movement that is bigger than one candidate or one campaign.
So thank you, thank you, Bernie, for your endorsement, but more than that...
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Thank you for your lifetime of fighting injustice. I am proud to be fighting alongside you, because, my friends, this is a time for all of us to stand together. These have been difficult days for America.
Taking -- yes, they do. And taking on -- taking on the systemic racism that plagues our country, and rebuilding the frayed bonds of trust and respect between law enforcement and the communities they serve will require contributions from all of us. And we have to begin by starting to listen to each other, and
more than that, we then have to come together to do something that will help us fix these problems and heal these wounds. We have to reform our broken criminal justice system, take back our democracy from the wealthy special interests, and make our economy work for everyone, not just those at the top.
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And you know what, we have to do all these things at the same time. That's why throughout this campaign we've been calling for eliminating racial profiling and disparities in sentencing, ending the era of mass incarceration, dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline, providing more employment opportunities for formerly incarcerated people.
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In addition to that, I am proposing two new steps that get law enforcement the support they need, while also stopping the tragedy, the tragedy of black men and women and black children being killed in police incidents.
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First -- first, let's bring law enforcement and the communities they swear to protect and serve together to develop national guidelines on the use of force by police officers.
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CLINTON: And second, let's provide better training on implicit bias.
[12:00:05] That remains a problem even in our best police departments, but it also remains a problem across society.
