Rep. Jim Clyburn urges Democrats to 'sell Joe Biden to people who may be wavering'

Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) is receiving credit for reviving former Vice President Joe Biden's presidential campaign, and he's "satisfied" with the way Biden has capitalized on his support.

Clyburn gave a passionate endorsement of Biden ahead of Saturday's South Carolina primary, which Biden handily won. Since then, Biden has racked up several key endorsements, with three ex-Democratic candidates — former South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg, Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), and former Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-Texas) — announcing on Monday night they are backing him.

Clyburn told MSNBC's Brian Williams on Tuesday if Biden keeps receiving endorsements, raising money, and making speeches that connect with voters, "he is going to be very successful and he will be our nominee and I really deeply feel he will be the next president of the United States." He encouraged Democrats across the country to "go out and sell Joe Biden to people who may be wavering. This country is a great country, it does not need to be made great. Our challenge it seems to me is to make this country's greatness accessible and affordable for all Americans."

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Biden can do that, he continued, because he has "proposals to make health care accessible and affordable, housing accessible and affordable, education accessible and affordable. You name it, he has proposals people believe in." No one is "interested in getting anything for free," Clyburn said, an apparent dig at Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). "They want to be able to afford it and have access to it. So if we get that message out, I believe we will be successful in November."