Will Bernie Sanders Withdraw if He Has No Viable Path to the Nomination?

[MineralMan]

He should, but I don't think he will. I think he will follow the same pattern he did the last time, fighting all the way to the convention and then fighting at the convention. I think his supporters will boo Joe Biden at the convention, just as they booed Hillary Clinton and those who nominated her there.

When I look toward the future, I look at the past to figure out what is likely to happen.

I hope, if Joe Biden's momentum carries him to a clear majority of pledged and unpledged delegates before the convention takes place, that Bernie Sanders will withdraw and endorse him even before the Convention. That's what Hillary Clinton did in 2008, when she called for a unanimous nomination by acclaim for Barack Obama.

I hope Bernie Sanders steps up and does the same if he knows he will not be the nominee. I'm not confident that he will do that, but I hope he does. Joe Biden would do that, if the situation somehow reverses itself. I know he would.

[apcalc]

2. I have my own theories about why he does what he does.

It remains to be seen if he steps aside graciously, should he be behind in delegates with no hope of getting ahead. I hope so.

[showblue22]

3. He won't.

He's OK with burning everything down. In fact, he would probably be proud of himself for doing so.

[TwilightZone]

4. I think he'll stay in until Biden has a majority, which is fine.

I'd prefer that he stay in until then, actually, because that would prevent his supporters from insisting that he would have won if he'd just stayed in, etc. It would eliminate a source of contention.

If Biden comes in with a majority, I don't think Sanders will have the same standing at the convention he had last time and I think there's going to be much less tolerance for disruption and animosity, because people seem to understand that rallying behind Biden is key to defeating Trump. So, less drama, less media attention, etc.

[MineralMan]

5. That works for me.

[relayerbob]

7. I tend to agree

We need to be absolutely clear on the winner. I think Biden will end this with a clear, and likely pretty overwhelming, majority. We need to end all doubt.

To that end, however, I think Biden should more or less ignore the bullshit and move on to fighting Trump, elevate the discussion out of the primary noise, as much as is reasonable. Stick with his very powerful message of unity, leave the small percentage of the Bernie supporters who choose to wallow in the mud there, in the mud, alone. Most Bernie supporters are good folks and want to see Trump out and normalcy back.

[padah513]

10. +1

[TwilightZone]

11. Agree completely about ignoring the noise.

I think it's fine if he runs ads about Sanders to help try to close the door and obviously, they will debate, but the focus needs to be on Trump, on issues, and on the message, and not the sideshows. Bloomberg is helping there as I figured he would.

Ironically, Biden was running a general election campaign pretty much from day one. It was only relatively recently that he's had to focus on his primary opponents.

[mwooldri]

6. I do not believe he will withdraw.

He will want to push Joe Biden closer to his own positions, just like he did with Hillary in 2016.

[NurseJackie]

8. It will be a test of his leadership. If he refuses to concede or withraw...

... then he will have failed another test.

[MineralMan]

9. Well, for me, a test of his leadership is how well he

tries to control the behavior of his supporters. So far, I've seen no sign that he tries at all to do that.

Ergo, not a very good leader.

[Sloumeau]

12. Bernie will stay in it until the convention.

Even if Biden is kicking his butt weekly.

[LizBeth]

13. $

[MineralMan]

14. Please use some words to expand on that. They're free here.

[TexasTowelie]

15. I could understand Bernie staying in the race until the last votes are taken

in the June primaries. However, he should be prepared to concede the following day rather than keep fighting for another seven or eight weeks during the gap between the final primary and the convention.

[PJMcK]

16. Sanders is a wild card, isn't he?

The fact that you even had to ask this question illustrates the uncertainty of Sanders' campaign.

Remember that just a week or so ago, the discussion was what would happen if Sanders had a plurality but not a majority of delegates going into the convention. The argument from Sanders' supporters was that the person with the most votes should get the nomination. Well, do they still support that position now that the race is down to two candidates? Will Sanders support Biden when he wins the majority of delegates? Or will he fight through to the convention making demands all along the way.

What would a real leader do?

Frankly, I don't expect consistency from Sanders or his supporters. They have not demonstrated it in the past and like you, I look to the past to predict future behavior.

Sanders is a spoiler with some great ideas. But he is not a leader and his past has adequately demonstrated that.

[helpisontheway]

17. Nope..nt

[comradebillyboy]

18. I don't think so. He will do a repaeat of his 2016 performance.

[SidDithers]

19. If history is any indication, nope...nt

Sid

[Turin_C3PO]

20. Hopefully he learned from 2016.

I’m optimistic and have a feeling he’ll do the right thing this time around and drop out when it becomes clear Biden has an insurmountable lead in delegates. Prove me right, Bernie!

[showblue22]

21. No he won't

It will be worse than 2016. He's going to lose badly Tuesday which gives him zero path. He will then ratchet up the negativity.