Sanders leveraged into supporting Clinton

See this article. We knew this from the beginning when he made a deal to run as a Democrat. He traded Clinton support if he lost for the exposure he'd get by running as a Democrat. Yes, the DNC thwarted that exposure but if he'd run as an independent he would have gotten far, far less exposure and votes. And he wouldn't have had the leverage he has had on Clinton and the DNC's platform. It was a pragmatic and well-played trade off.