Anthony Weiner, the husband of Hillary Clinton's closest aide, Huma Abedin, is suggesting that Bernie Sanders run as an independent. Sanders, of course, is currently challenging Clinton for the Democratic nomination in the 2016 presidential race.

"Our party needs a kick in the butt. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts), Paul Krugman, and Jon Stewart are currently the standard bearers for that sentiment. But Bernie Sanders? I just don’t know," Weiner, a former member of Congress, writes in Business Insider.

After a career of steadfastly insisting that the Democratic party was not his home, now he wants to not only be a member of the party but its standard bearer? What changed? Is Bernie’s newfound party affiliation just a practical decision to run in a party that can win rather than risk being a Nader-esque spoiler on a third party line in November? That’s a fair calculation, but doesn’t it wipe away Bernie’s three decades of standing as a principled Socialist? Many times over the course of his career Bernie has repeated the line that his independence made him more able to speak truth. He argued forcefully that being a Socialist was his identity and not function of political expediency. Well, duh, nobody chooses to be a Socialist to smooth their political path. Yet, as 2016 approaches, here he is filing papers all over the country presumably declaring himself a member of the Democratic Party.

Weiner himself has lots of praise for Sanders. "Sanders has been drawing crowds of thousands at his rallies and is quickly becoming the main primary rival of Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton. I totally get Bernie Mania," writes the wannabe pundit.

Of course Weiner is explicitly saying that the avowed socialist Sanders needs to explain his new found affinity for the Democratic party. But the alternative of course is that Sanders run as an independent, which, after reading Weiner's column, one can only conclude makes the most sense to Huma Abedin's husband.