WASHINGTON — Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton said her challenger, Sen. Bernie Sanders, has “every right” to finish his campaign how he chooses, even though her extended 2008 contest for the nomination with Barack Obama was much closer in votes than this year’s contest.

The former secretary of state also isn’t concerned that Sanders’ continuing campaign is helping Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, she said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

Clinton leads the Vermont senator by 2,293 delegates to 1,533, with 2,383 needed to secure the nomination, according to tallies by the Associated Press that include superdelegates — party leaders and elected officials not bound to vote for any candidate.

Trailing in the popular vote to Clinton as well as with pledged delegates, Sanders in recent weeks said superdelegates committed to Clinton should flip, based on opinion polls that show that he would run more strongly against Trump than would Clinton.

“If you look at virtually all of the polls done in the last six, seven weeks, in every one of them, nationally polls and statewide polls, we defeat Trump by larger margins — in some cases, significantly larger margins — than does Secretary Clinton,” Sanders said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.”

Clinton has said Trump is unfit to be president. She continued her criticism on Sunday.

“There’s no evidence he has any ideas about making America great, as he advertises,” she said. “He seems to be particularly focused on making himself appear great.”

Clinton she would consider engaging Sanders in another debate before the June 7 California primary, in which most of the remaining pledged delegates in the Democratic race will be awarded. So far, she said, “I haven’t thought about it.”

Clinton, who last week said during a campaign stop that she wanted to put her husband, former President Bill Clinton, in charge of the economy, clarified Sunday what his role would be.

“I am going to ask my husband, who has a great track record in creating jobs, putting people to work, revitalizing communities, to be in an advisory role working with me, working with our Cabinet, to try to figure out what we can do,” she said.

(c)2016 Bloomberg News

Visit Bloomberg News at www.bloomberg.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.