Aki Soga

Free Press Reader Engagement Editor

Sen. Bernie Sanders said he sees no need to reveal personal financial information required of presidential candidates and due May 15 because he is no longer running for president.

"It doesn't make any sense," Sanders told the Burlington Free Press on Monday, saying he was under no more obligation to reveal his finances than anyone else not currently a presidential candidate. He called the time and money required to complete the filing for himself and his wife, Jane, "a waste of time."

The Federal Election Commission gave Sanders a 45-day extension on the May 15 deadline for revealing information about his current finances, then granted a second 45-day extension on June 30. Sanders officially dropped out of the race before his second deadline extension expired.

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and his Democratic counterpart, Hillary Clinton, both filed their disclosures by the original May 15 deadline.

Sanders shrugged off those who criticized his refusal, saying, "I get criticized all the time."

Sanders spoke to the Free Press on Monday about the financial disclosure controversy as part of a wide-ranging discussion that included the impact of his presidential bid on his role as a U.S. senator for Vermont, what his role in the Senate might be after the November election and his plans for campaigning on behalf of Clinton.

Sanders said his presidential campaign allowed him to raise the profile of issues important to Vermonters, including negotiating with the Clinton campaign to include issues such as free tuition at public colleges, doubling funding for community health centers and a focus on energy efficiency within the climate change plank.

"The role I played pushing the discussion in important issues will end up having a significant impact on Vermont," he said.

In describing the tone of the current match-up between Trump and Clinton, Sanders called the Republican nominee "the worst candidate for president" in modern history, adding Trump is "running a campaign based on bigotry."

Sanders also pointed to Trump's joining so-called birthers in questioning President Barack Obama's qualification for the office as an attempt "to undermine the legitimacy of the first African American president. ... An ugly and racist effort."

"Nobody asked for my birth certificate," Sanders said. "Maybe it's just that my skin color is different."

Sanders plans to campaign actively for Clinton, as well as for Senate Democrats and progressive House candidates, including an appearance at an AFL-CIO rally on Labor Day in New Hampshire.

Following the November elections, Sanders hopes to become chairman of Senate Budget Committee and the Health Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, but that would happen only if the Democrats regain control of the upper house.

Sanders, who ran for president as a Democrat, says he will remain an independent and caucus with the Democrats for the remainder of his Senate term, because he was "elected as an independent." He declined to talk about what his party affiliation might be should he seek re-election in 2018, saying, "We have another election to get through first."

This story was first posted online on Aug. 22, 2016. Contact Aki Soga at asoga@freepressmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @asoga.

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