Bernie Sanders endorses former rival Joe Biden for president

Bernie Sanders endorsed Joe Biden's presidential campaign on April 13, encouraging his progressive supporters to rally behind the presumptive Democratic nominee in an urgent bid to defeat President Donald Trump.

"I am asking all Americans, I'm asking every Democrat, I'm asking every independent, I'm asking a lot of Republicans, to come together in this campaign to support your candidacy, which I endorse," the Vermont senator said in a virtual event with Biden.

The backing came less than a week after Sanders ended his presidential campaign, which was centered around progressive policies such as universal health care. It's a crucial development for Biden, who must bridge the Democratic Party's entrenched ideological divides to put together a coalition that can beat Trump. Democratic disunity helped contribute to Hillary Clinton's loss to Trump in 2016.

Perhaps eager to avoid a repeat of that bruising election year, Sanders offered his endorsement much earlier in the 2020 campaign. Sanders backed Clinton four years ago, but only after the end of a drawn-out nomination fight and a bitter dispute over the Democratic platform that extended to the summer convention.

Biden and Sanders differed throughout the primary, particularly over whether a government-run system should replace private health insurance. Biden has resisted Sanders' "Medicare for All" plan and has pushed instead a public option that would operate alongside private coverage.

Appearing in a split screen with Biden, Sanders said there's "no great secret out there that you and I have our differences."

But Sanders said the greater priority for Democrats of all political persuasions should be defeating Trump.

"We've got to make Trump a one-term president," he...