The conversation regarding super delegates has been very divisive in the Democratic Party. Hillary Clinton supporters cite her overwhelming super delegate support as evidence Hillary Clinton is the best candidate, while Bernie Sanders supporters cite it as evidence of corruption and an out-of-touch party, as many of those super delegates pledged allegiance to Secretary Clinton before the primaries even began.Super delegates don t cast their votes until the convention, so counting their votes before then when they can change until then is pointless, but it is noteworthy that Bernie Sanders finally received his first endorsement in the U.S. Senate. Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon wrote an op-ed in the New York Times outlining why he supports Bernie Sanders for president. In the op-ed, Senator Merkley said how he thinks both Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders are great candidates, but only Bernie Sanders will help us rethink how our economy and our politics work. Under President Obama s leadership, our country is fairer and more prosperous for all than it was seven years ago. But as we look toward the next administration, there is far more work to do. We need urgency. We need big ideas. We need to rethink the status quo,  wrote Senator Merkley.  It has been noted that Bernie has an uphill battle ahead of him to win the Democratic nomination. But his leadership on these issues and his willingness to fearlessly stand up to the powers that be have galvanized a grass-roots movement. People know that we don t just need better policies, we need a wholesale rethinking of how our economy and our politics work, and for whom they work. Oregon holds a closed primary on May 17th.Featured image courtesy of Flickr