Appearing together on a video link, Bernie Sanders officially endorsed Joe Biden for president Monday by telling his former rival, “We need you in the White House.”

Biden became the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee last week, when the Vermont senator suspended his own bid for the nomination.

“So today I am asking all Americans, I’m asking every Democrat, I’m asking every independent, I’m asking a lot of Republicans to come together in this campaign to support your candidacy, which I endorse, to make certain we defeat somebody who I believe–and I’m speaking just for myself now–is the most dangerous president in the modern history of this country,” said Sanders, offering what sounded like a full-throated endorsement of Biden amidst concern some of Sanders’s supporters wouldn’t be willing to pull the lever for Biden in November.

Sanders actually conveyed “an enormous responsibility” on Biden to defeat Trump, who has become anathema to Democrats, many independents and even a number of Republicans who identity as “Never Trumpers.”

“We’ve got to make Trump a one-term president and we need you in the White House. I will do all that I can to see that that happens, Joe,” Sanders said. “And I know that there is an enormous responsibility on your shoulders right now, and it’s imperative that all of us work together to do what has to be done — not only in this moment, but beyond this moment and the future of this country. And in that regard I have been very pleased that your staff and my staff have been working together over the last several weeks to coming up with a number of task forces.

“These are task forces that will look at some of the most important issues facing this country: the economy, how we create an economy that works for all, not just the few; education, how we create the best educational system in the world for all of our peopled; how we deal with climate change that, as you indicated, is an existential threat to the planet; how we deal with criminal justice, because we don’t want to continue having more people in jail than any other country on Earth; how we deal with immigration reform; and how we have a health care system that is so much better than what we have right now,” he added.

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