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"When people say Bernie is crazy, no. Bernie is talking about inequality. That is the burning issue in the United States."

That is a message that progressives, and particularly Bernie Sanders supporters, have been trying to drive home with the leadership of the Democratic party since Hillary Clinton's brutal loss in the 2016 presidential race often, some have felt, to little avail. But it's no longer a message coming from outside the establishment: it's now the opinion of Tom Steyer, the largest donor to the Democratic party.

Mic recently caught up with Steyer, a California hedge fund billionaire who spent a whopping $87 million on Democratic candidates and causes in 2016 and endorsed Clinton after the primaries, to discuss the state of play for Democrats in the Trump era the good, bad and yes, the ugly. Today, Steyer is an unabashed supporter of Sanders' progressive vision.

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Former Vice President Joe Biden

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Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.)

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Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.)

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Sen. Kamala Davis (D-Calif.)

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Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)

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Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.)

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Facebook CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg

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Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.)

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Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.)

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Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper

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New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo

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Former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley

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Former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro

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Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.)

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Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.)

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Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.)

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Former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick

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New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio

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Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban

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Environmental activist Tom Steyer

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Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez

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Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton

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Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe

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California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom

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Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg

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Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz

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Former first lady Michelle Obama

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Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson

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Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii)

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Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.)

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Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-N.Y)

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California Gov. Jerry Brown

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Media mogul Oprah Winfrey

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Former Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.)

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Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean

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Former Vice President Al Gore

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Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.)

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Former Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.)

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Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti

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Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.)

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New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu

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Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.)

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Washington Gov. Jay Inslee

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"There is an absolute, unspoken war between corporate interests and the American people," he said. "That's the underlying subtext for all of the public discussions within the Democratic party."

"We're seeing a deliberate attempt to take away [working families'] future by really rich people. Until we address that, I don't think we're dealing with the reality Americans are facing today," he continued.

But Democrats, Steyer said, have yet to develop a compelling and positive message to channel the energy Sanders generated on the campaign and help the party win back working class voters in the Rust Belt who flipped for Trump let alone turn their own base out at the polls on Election Day.

For Steyer, that message must start with inequality, not jobs. "Before you freak out on the jobs question, which everyone loves to do, understand that we [only] have 4.3% unemployment," Steyer said.

"But what we do have is a whole bunch of people who have jobs they can't live on," he added, a reference to the thinking behind the Fight for $15 and other progressive campaigns to raise working class wages.

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The Democrats' biggest donor says the party is blowing it and should get behind Bernie's platform - AOL