Senator Bernie Sanders, who Joe Biden defeated in the race for the Democratic party's presidential nomination, has said he would be open about joining the Biden cabinet. The ultra progresive leader is reportedly looking for the crucial role of Labor Secretary in a possible Biden cabinet.
However, it is not clear if the Biden transition team has sent feelers to Senator Sanders, who twice lost the race to become the president - against Hillary Clinton in 2016 and Biden this year.
"If I had a portfolio that allowed me to stand up and fight for working families, would I do it? ... Yes, I would," Sanders said, according to CNN.
Sanders, who is often criticized for taking the Democrats to the extreme left of the political spectrum, however played the pitch with a certain dose of ambiguity, suggesting he did not get any specific request from the transition team. Sanders said he would be happy to play any role in which he could help the working classes.
"What's true is I want to do everything I can to protect the working families of this country who are under tremendous duress right now. ... Whether that's in the Senate, whether that's in the Biden administration, who knows," Sanders said. "Well, let's see how that unfolds," he added.
The report also states that Sanders has already started lobbying with powerful union chiefs even as the Biden team is working on choosing people to fill key portfolios.
Relationship Between Biden and Sanders
Sanders has referred to Biden as a 'good friend' in the past, despite the two levelling criticism against each other on the campaign pitch. However, in September, Sanders' wife Jane toned down the nature of the 'friendship', saying that the two have a working relationship. The relationship between the two stalwarts is "built on work", Jane explained in an interview with Buzzfeed.
"There's a mutual respect ... There's a trust and a collegiality," said Jane.
It remains a fact that Sanders's relationship with Biden is better than the one he had with Hillary Clinton, who defeated him in the 2016 race. "I think the difference now is that, between you and me, I have a better relationship with Joe Biden than I had with Hillary Clinton," Sanders told the Hill in June 2020.
Though he differs with Biden, a centrist Democrat, on key policy questions, he believes that the President-elect is more open towards the progressive faction within the party. "Joe has been open to having his people sit down with some of the most progressive folks in America, and that's a good sign," Sanders had said.
