Bernie Sanders pushes for a 'moral economy' at San Pedro campaign stop

The debate proposal between Donald Trump and Beie Sanders is off. Again. For now.

Trump issued a statement Friday afteoon that killed any prospect of the two squaring off unless he were to somehow become the Democratic presidential nominee - a longshot given the significant delegate deficit he faces in rival and frontruer Hillary Clinton.

“As much as I want to debate Beie Sanders - and it would be an easy payday - I will wait to debate the first place finisher in the Democratic Party,” Trump said in a statement. “Probably Crooked Hillary Clinton, or whoever it may be.”

Sanders still kept hope alive for the debate, however, at a small meeting with victims of oil drilling pollution in Inglewood and the natural gas leak in Porter Ranch at Keeth Hahn State Park in Inglewood.

“I heard he was going to debate me. Then I heard he was not going to debate me. And I heard he was going to debate me. And now you’re telling me that he is not going to debate me,” Sanders said. “I hope he changes his mind. Again. Mr. Trump is known to change his mind many times a day.

Two networks had agreed to host the two candidates in a debate and the Sanders campaign has pushed the issue since the debate prospect was first broached by Trump earlier this week.

Sanders has been amid a presidential campaign blitz through Southe Califoia. Friday moing, he stopped at the docks in San Pedro Friday - a part of the Vermont senator’s ambitious plan to reach 200,000 voters before the state’s June 7 primary.

• VIDEO: Beie Sanders puppet cheers on his candidate in San Pedro

The 30-minute speech before a crowd of about 1,000 mostly union dock workers - members of the Inteational Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 13 - rarely mentioned Clinton, but he did take repeated shots at corporate America, Wall Street and the Republican’s presumptive presidential nominee, Donald Trump.

He said he was inspired by Pope Francis and the ideas of a “moral economy.”

“A moral economy is not an economy where CEOs make tens of millions of dollars a year, ship our jobs abroad and take away health care from their workers,” Sanders said. “That is the type of corporate culture that has got to be fundamentally changed. There is more to life than billionaires making more money.”

• RELATED STORY: One-on-one with Beie Sanders: His plan to win Califoia, take back Kentucky

Sanders has been buoyed by a recent Califoia field poll that showed him trailing Democratic frontruer Clinton by two points and recent overtures by Republican presumptive nominee Donald Trump’s suggestion the two have a debate.

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Sanders didn’t address the debate proposal during the rally.

With the Vincent Thomas Bridge and the USS Iowa in the backdrop - the same battleship Trump spoke on in September at the begiing of his campaign - Sanders got a warm welcome from the ILWU workers and the crowd on the edge of Memorial Day Weekend.

The ILWU is made up of 60 local unions with about 42,000 members in Califoia, Washington, Oregon, Alaska and Hawaii. It’s executive board endorsed Sanders earlier this month, but Sanders was dealt a blow earlier this week when the United Auto Workers union backed Clinton over Trump - saying she “has shown under pressure her ability to lead and get elected in November.”

But a prevailing theme of the Sanders’ bid for the Democratic nomination has been electability. He has made his case to crowds in Carson, Santa Monica, East Los Angeles, Pomona and San Beardino that he fares better than Clinton in head-to-head polls against Trump.

• RELATED STORY: Election 2016: Beie Sanders campaigns in Pomona

In the Real Clear Politics polling average, Sanders beats Trump by almost 11 points while Clinton leads the real estate mogul by just one point.

He continued to promote the viability of his candidacy.

“Our ideas are the future of this country,” he said. “Let’s stand up. Let’s fight for them. Let’s win this election.”

Sanders remains a long shot to be the Democratic nominee.

Clinton, counting superdelegates, is fewer than 100 delegates from securing the nomination when the party holds its convention in Philadelphia in July. Sanders would need a huge win in Califoia, New Jersey and have a sizable chunk of those superdelegates flip their support from Clinton to Sanders.

Sanders will be in Santa Barbara, Santa Maria and Bakersfield Saturday before hitting Visalia and Fresno Sunday.