Many of progressive Sen. Bernie Sanders' (I-VT) supporters feel that the Democratic Party's establishment robbed him of the presidential nomination in both 2016 and 2020 by way of a rigged and decidedly undemocratic primary process.

During a recent interview, Sanders seemed to agree with that sentiment as well as that the Democratic Party, at least in terms of its actions and despite its rhetoric, posed a legitimate "threat to democracy," the Washington Examiner reported.

In both 2016 and 2020, Sanders had clearly been the favorite candidate of Democratic primary voters, but in both instances, the Party's establishment took overt and covert actions that disfavored the independent Vermont senator and instead promoted former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former President Joe Biden as the nominees, respectively.

Sanders doesn't argue against claim that Democratic primaries are "rigged"

On Monday, Sen. Sanders was the featured guest on the latest episode of comedian Andrew Schulz's "Flagrant" podcast, and the Democratic Party's failures were one of the several topics discussed during the at-times humorous conversation.

About midway through the discussion, according to Mediaite, Schulz referenced the 2016 and 2020 primaries and asserted, "[As] Democrats, we felt, that we didn’t have a say on who could be president."

"We talk a lot about the Republicans being autocrats and oligarchs and taking over democracy. But from the Democrat perspective -- and I’m a lifelong Democrat -- I felt like the Democratic party completely removed the democratic process from its constituents," he continued. "And I think they need to have some accountability of that."

"No argument here," Sanders said as Schulz went on to note how heartbroken he was that Sanders supported Clinton as the nominee after the Democratic establishment "stole it from you."

The senator defended his unenthusiastic endorsement by observing the "Not a great choice" he and other voters had of Clinton versus then-businessman Donald Trump in that election.

Sanders agrees that Democratic establishment is a "threat to democracy"

Moments later, per Mediaite, podcast co-host Akaash Singh interjected, "Could we not also say, ostensibly, there hasn’t been a fair primary for the Democrats since 2008? Are they not also a threat to democracy?"

"Yes, fair enough. That is … yeah," Sanders replied. "I’m not gonna argue with that point. And that’s why I’m proudly an Independent."

The Vermont senator went on to point out the "hatred" displayed toward him and his legion of supporters in 2016 and 2020 by the Democratic establishment that refused to "open the door" to an outsider candidate with ample support from voters but who lacked the backing of wealthy donors and corporate interests.

Party run by wealthy donors and "out of touch" consultants

According to Newsweek, Sen. Sanders told Schulz and his co-hosts about what he believed was the biggest problem with the Democratic Party's establishment wing and how it had negatively impacted not only his presidential aspirations but also the broader demand for reforms among the electorate.

"The Democratic establishment is funded by wealthy people," the senator observed. "You have consultants who are really way out of touch with reality who make a whole lot of money in campaigns, and the working class is ignored."

In urging voters from all across the political spectrum to challenge the status quo of the political establishment in both parties, Sanders said, "What the oligarchs and the ruling class want you to believe is that you're powerless. And once you accept that, they win."