Bernie Sanders deplores violence, but says Democratic convention could get 'messy'

On Monday in Los Angeles, Bernie Sanders sat down with The Associated Press and talked about the ongoing tensions in the Democratic primary fight and the future of the Democratic Party. "It goes without saying that I condemn all forms of violence, but I hope the media does its job and not exaggerate what happened in Nevada and elsewhere," he said, alluding to raucous fights between Sanders supporters and Democratic officials.

Sanders repeated his assertion that the leadership of the Democratic Party has a choice to make about welcoming in his supporters or just going "to fancy fundraisers, at, you know, $50,000 a plate" and shutting the door on dedicated Sanders fans. "I think if they make the right choice and open the doors to working-class people and young people and create the kind of dynamism that the Democratic Party needs — it's going to be messy," Sanders said. "Democracy is not always nice and quiet and gentle. But that is where the Democratic Party should go."

The interviewer asked, "You think the convention could be messy?" And Sanders replied: "So what? Democracy is messy. Every day of my life is messy. But if you want everything to be quiet and orderly and allow, you know, things to just proceed without vigorous debate, that is not what democracy is about." Sanders then asked what would happen if he won "a major victory in California? Will people say, 'Oh, we're really enthusiastic about Hillary Clinton despite the fact that Bernie Sanders has now won whatever it may be, 25 states, half the states?'" If he won big in California, the Democratic insiders who make up the superdelegates "may rethink that," Sanders said. "That is why you want the process to play out."

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California and the five other final states are voting on June 7. So far, Clinton has won 24 states to Sanders' 20. She is leading Sanders by 271 pledged delegates — if you include superdelegates, Clinton needs just 90 more to clinch the nomination — and, according to The Washington Post's calculations, Clinton has won about 2.9 million more votes than Sanders (including caucus states). Watch Sanders talk about the Democratic Party's big decision below. Peter Weber