Bernie Sanders has launched a barbed attack on new Democratic frontrunnerJoe Biden, accusing him of being bankrolled by the wealthy and incapable of being a president who put first the interests of the poor and working people.
With election officials confirming Mr Sanders was set to win four of the Super Tuesday states compared to the ten bagged by the former vice president, the Vermont senator found himself on the back foot, fighting to keep his bid in the fight.
Speaking to supporters in Burlington, Vermont, where he was elected mayor in 1981, Mr Sanders sought to pitch what has come down as a showdown between the two men as a question about “which side are you on”.
“Are you on the side of working people, and are you willing to stand up against the greed and corruption of the corporate elite,” he said.
“Or are you on the side of the billionaires and corporations that are trying to buy the election?”
Mr Sanders was apparently unaware that billionaire Michael Bloomberg had ended his $500m campaign for the nomination and endorsed Mr Biden. He said “Joe” would now be getting Mr Bloomberg’s support, another thing to distinguish it from his.
“There has never been a campaign in recent history which has taken on the entire political establishment,” said Mr Sanders. “That is an establishment that is working frantically to try to defeat us.”
Among the things he said were trying to defeat him was a super PAC, The Big Tent Project, that had been spending millions of dollars on political advertising aimed at him.
“Does anyone seriously believe that a president backed by the corporate world is going to bring about the changes in this country that working families and the middle class and lower-income people desperately need,” he added.
Mr Sanders also said he had spoken to Elizabeth Warren, who performed badly on Tuesday. There is widespread speculation she will soon leave the race, but there is much less clarity about which candidate she will endorse, if either.
With Mr Biden now appearing to have the momentum ahead of a flurry of additional primary contests later this month, including Florida, an endorsement from Ms Warren might provide him a crucial lifeline.
Yet he said it was right to “respect the time and the space that she needs to make her decision”.
