In Philly, Sanders says what Clinton said to Wall Street behind closed doors 'is fine'

If former Democratic presidential nominee Bernie Sanders is bothered by the release of hacked emails that suggest Hillary Clinton had a cozy relationship with Wall Street, he isn't showing it.

"Whatever Clinton may have said behind closed doors, that's fine," Sanders said in Philadelphia on Saturday, according to CBS3. He later clarified in a statement he is determined to implement the Democratic Party's platform, which among other things "calls for breaking up the largest financial institutions in this country, re-establishing Glass-Steagall and prosecuting those many Wall Street CEOs who engaged in illegal behavior."

Sanders has long supported bringing back the Glass-Steagall act, which was enacted after the Great Depression to stop commercial banks from engaging in the investment business. It was reversed by then-president Bill Clinton in 1999.

The remarks are a change of tone for Sanders, who criticized Clinton's relationship with Wall Street during the Democratic primary and repeatedly called on her to release the transcripts from her paid, closed-door speeches.

"Now, I kind of think if you get paid a couple hundred thousand dollars for a speech, it must be a great speech," Sanders said at a CNN primary debate in March. "I think we should release it and let the American people see what the transcript was."

Sanders, in Philadelphia on Saturday to attend a rally for Clinton supporters at the University of the Arts, spent the bulk of his time criticizing Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.

"Trump insults woman and more every single day," the Vermont senator said, too embarrassed to repeat the crude comments made in a 2005 video released on Friday by the Washington Post.

In the video, Trump boasts about the need to have sex with a married woman and brags he could "grab them by the pussy" because he was a famous celebrity.

"I think you've got a spoiled brat," Sanders told CBS3 after the event. "I think you've got a person who grew up very, very wealthy who thinks that he is entitled to do anything that he wants." Vice President Joe Biden said the words consistuted "sexual assault."

Sanders' focus on Trump as a campaign surrogate comes as many of his supporters have expressed anger over the leaked comments Clinton supposedly made to banks and big businesses.

"This is a very clear illustration of why there is a fundamental lack of trust from progressives for Hillary Clinton," Tobita Chow, chair of the People's Lobby in Chicago, told Reuters. "The progressive movement needs to make a call to Secretary Clinton to clarify where she stands really on these issues and that's got to involve very clear renunciations of the positions that are revealed in these transcripts."

So far, the Clinton campaign has refused to confirm the accuracy of the emails, which were released Friday by WikiLeaks and its founder, Julian Assange.

"We are not going to confirm the authenticity of stolen documents released by Julian Assange, who has made no secret of his desire to damage Hillary Clinton," said campaign spokesperson Glen Caplin.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.