About a month ago, my husband and I had lunch with a friend, who lived in Burlington through the Bernie years. Burlington is a small town and she was very engaged and knew Bernie and Jane well. In speaking of the time when he would have to concede to HRC, I suggested that he would make a great speech that would argue how Clinton was better than Trump on everything Sanders cared about - economic justice, healthcare, the environment etc.
Her reaction was to slyly smile and offer a "pinkie bet" that that he would go directly after Trump on all the many many many things that they are worlds apart on and that though he might repeat what he said in the early primaries that HRC was infinitely better than any Republican, he would not shift into actively advocating for HRC issue by issue. This was before the Brooklyn debate where Sanders did essentially what she said he would.
My husband's comment to me on the way home from the lunch was that his impression of what I said Sanders would do is really closer what Kerry (had he been in that position) would have very diplomatically done, ignoring issues where this would not be believable or honest. After the Brooklyn debate, I emailed that she had won, but she graciously said it was still open until the convention was over.
After thinking about it, given the independents that have come to believe in Bernie, I actually think that a speech that is focused on Trump from Bernie would have greater impact than a more conventional one where he praises HRC effusively. A large part of Bernie's appeal is his authenticity. A speech where he is speaking from his heart and gut against Trump would resonate more than one that could be spun as him flip flopping from his criticisms of the campaign. Now there ARE issues where he and HRC are in accord - and he likely will mention them.
I think that I will lose the bet AND I think that Bernie being Bernie will be more useful to Clinton than Bernie becoming something different than the unpolished, gruff, Vermont Democratic Socialist that he has always been -- and who is loved in his state for being just that.
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