The Slatest

Watch an MSNBC Host Confront Bernie Sanders Delegates About Denial

This is fun. MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle interviewed a pair of Iowa Bernie Sanders delegates on Tuesday, essentially asking them to justify the entire Bernie or Bust movement’s raucous obstinacy on Day 1 of the Democratic National Convention.

Ruhle asked the pair, Kate Larson and Jason Brown, a series of very direct questions about why some Sanders supporters were still fighting a race that has been over for weeks and what exactly they hoped to achieve. The duo responded by either insisting that Hillary Clinton wasn’t technically the nominee yet, or by arguing that their candidate had been disrespected because the opening day of the convention to nominate Hillary Clinton for president was focused on nominating Hillary Clinton for president.

The entire quite funny and entertaining video is above, but here are some of the highlights:

Ruhl: First I want to commend you both, the passion and presence you have shown thus far, clearly yesterday we saw you morning, noon, and night. But do you have it out of your system? What are we going to expect today, Jason?

Brown: Well we’re going to do everything we can for our candidate. We represent the Democrats in the state of Iowa and we’re going to do the right thing for them.

Ruhl: What does that mean? In the state of Iowa, Bernie Sanders didn’t win. Mathematically, we already knew he wasn’t getting the nomination. We’re here at this point at the DNC. Hillary is the nominee. What is the point of continuing this message?

Larson: Half of Iowa elected Bernie Sanders and the ideals that he believes in. So we were elected from District One to do a job to represent not only Bernie Sanders for president, but the ideals that he carries on.

Ruhl: But disrupting the opening prayer, could one not argue that’s pretty disrespectful?

Brown: Actually, I thought it was disrespectful to have the prayer have an endorsement for Secretary Clinton.

Ruhl: She’s the nominee.

Brown: But technically not yet.

It went on like this.

Ruhl: Bernie Sanders, he built the fire. He lit it and now he is saying ‘guys, time to put it out.’ Are you not listening to your candidate?

Larson: I would argue is that he is not saying that we put anything out. He’s saying we need to continue and fight harder.

Ruhl: For Hillary Clinton. He said it last night.

Larson: For Progressive candidates. And we’ve made a lot of progress and we do have some faith that she has gone farther left and will support things that we care about.

….

Larson: It was supposed to be Bernie Sanders’ night, right? He is speaking. There was very little mention or recognition of the candidate. And in a four-day convention we would have at least liked the chance to vote, be recognized for what we’ve done. But instead, within the first ten minutes of the convention ‘we are here to elect Hillary Clinton. We are here to elect Hillary Clinton.’

Ruhl: But we are. You are. This is a convention for the next president of the United States. If you want to take your support for possible politicians who have your progressive values, why not take those efforts and that money to people running for other offices? Hillary Clinton is the expected nominee.

Larson: And we will. Sen. Sanders is still a candidate. He has not released his delegates. And we’re going to do everything we can for our candidate.

The Nile is a river in Egypt. Denial is a thing that some Bernie Sanders delegates are still apparently going through.

Read more Slate coverage of the 2016 campaign.