Will progressives unite around Biden?

This appeared in The Millennial Source

Since winning the primaries over his main challenger, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, former Vice President Joe Biden has received plenty of criticism from the progressive wing of the party, which generally sees itself as being to the left of Biden politically.

Much of this criticism stems from Biden’s status as a veteran of the political establishment, with critics arguing that his willingness to work with conservatives is antithetical to progressive causes.

Others are wary of Biden’s record, particularly his initial support for the Iraq War and his past positions on criminal justice, and are concerned over recent allegations that Biden sexually assaulted a female staffer in 1993.

Although he ended up winning the Democratic primaries, candidates perceived to be more progressive than Biden still have strong bases of support, no one more so than Sanders, a self-styled democratic socialist, who rallied millions of voters to the progressive cause.

As the presumptive Democratic nominee for president, Biden is making attempts to bring these more progressive voters into the fold, or to at least convince them that he deserves their vote.