When Bernie was positioned as the front runner, the voters responded. They wanted somebody else. Nobody here can argue too many candidates depressed Bernie’s margin of victory. Nope. He lost most states last night.
Nobody can argue that Bernie will bring out more voters. Look at the Virginia numbers. Almost double the turn-out from 2016 and Biden won it going away.
Nobody can argue the establishment put their thumb on the scale with super-delegates. People voted yesterday. People aren’t the establishment.
What’s left?
Arguing that Bernie has a path via the convention? Why would anybody give the nomination to somebody who has demonstrated he can’t win one of the most important voting blocs to Democrats, African Americans. They shouldn’t and they won’t.
Yes Bernie might win a few states yet, but he’s not going to have a majority of delegates at the convention. After last night, it’s highly unlikely he would have a plurality going to the convention.
So Bernie has two choices: recognize the above and gracefully bow out or continue to fight on and try to undermine the front runner in hopes of somehow reversing the above. The only way to try the latter however would be an approach which would harm Biden and still not endear Bernie to the rest of the party — nobody wins fans with a scorched earth approach.
There’s only one person who benefits from that.