Joe Biden held a news conference Friday to introduce Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo for commerce secretary and Boston Mayor Marty Walsh for labor secretary. He also addressed something that has been on a lot of people’s minds, why he didn’t pick Senator Bernie Sanders to lead the Department of Labor. Here’s what he said:
“I did give serious consideration to nominating my friend Bernie Sanders to this position. I’m confident he could have done a fantastic job. I can think of no more passionate ally to working people in this country, but after Tuesday’s results in Georgia, giving democratic control to the United States Senate and a tie vote, Bernie and I agreed — as a matter of fact, Bernie said ‘we can’t put control of the Senate at risk on the outcome of a special election in Vermont. He agreed we couldn’t take that chance.”
But Biden says this won’t mean that Sanders won’t have a hand in economic and labor policies:
“We also discussed how we would work together, travel the country together, helping Marty, meeting with working men and women who feel forgotten, left behind in this economy. We agreed we’ll work closely on our shared agenda, on increasing working power to protect the dignity of work. I want to thank Bernie for his continued friendship and leadership, and I look forward to working together.”
Watch his remarks above.