Bernie Sanders to Campaign Through DC Primary but Vows to Work With Hillary Clinton

President Obama huddled with Bernie Sanders in the Oval Office today.

ByABC News
June 9, 2016, 1:39 PM

— -- After a private Oval Office meeting with President Barack Obama, Sen. Bernie Sanders said today he expects to “work together” with Hillary Clinton to defeat Donald Trump while vowing to continue campaigning up to the Washington, D.C., primary on Tuesday.

Sanders arrived at the White House this morning for the meeting, two days after Obama effectively declared Clinton the winner of the Democratic primary contest.

"I look forward to meeting with her in the near future to see how we can work together to defeat Donald Trump," Sanders said after the meeting.

While he vowed to compete in next week's primary, he promised to carry only his platform to his party's convention this summer.

"These are some of the issues that many millions of Americans have supported during my campaign,” Sanders said. “These are the issues that we'll take to the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia at the end of July."

Sanders thanked Obama and Vice President Joe Biden for not putting their “thumb on the scales” during the Democratic primaries. The senator offered no review of his 1-1/2-hour meeting with the president.

Hardly two hours after Obama released his Tuesday evening statement congratulating Clinton, Sanders took to a stage in California to inform supporters of his plans to stay in the race until the convention.

Obama told attendees at a fundraiser in New York on Wednesday night, “We just ended or sort of ended our primary season.” Top Democratic supporters of Sanders have similarly told ABC News of their readiness to rally behind Clinton.

But White House officials have maintained that Obama still has not officially endorsed Clinton, although they say that is imminent.

The White House has not provided details about the conversation between Obama and Sanders, but it was expected to center on shaping a new role for Sanders and his policy proposals in a party establishment roiled by the self-proclaimed Democratic socialist's calls for a political revolution.

Sanders has been outspoken on his issues of disagreement with Clinton, saying he will stand firm on his push for the party to adopt a $15 per hour minimum wage and paid family and medical leave as platform positions.

After the meeting, Sanders went to Capitol Hill to hold meetings with other top Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada and Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York. He will then meet privately with Biden at the Naval Observatory in Washington.