During an interview with Rachel Maddow Tuesday night, Bernie Sanders slapped Planned Parenthood and the Human Rights Campaign as being "part of the political establishment."

This pronouncement came after both organizations endorsed Hillary Clinton.

I really don't see this rhetoric as helpful to Bernie Sanders or true, for that matter. Planned Parenthood and the Human Rights Campaign are progressive organizations with progressive values, and they have the right to endorse whoever they wish to endorse for whatever reasons they choose to endorse.

And by the way, hasn't Planned Parenthood been through enough grief from the right without taking it from the left too?

Here's the video:

Bernie is just wrong to say HRC and Planned Parenthood "are, in fact, part of the establishment." Just wrong. pic.twitter.com/wkuuI0kKDr

— Matthew McGregor (@mcgregormt) January 20, 2016

Sanders also compared Clinton to Dick Cheney, which strikes me as particularly ugly rhetoric. There are some lines that just needn't be crossed, given that one of these two candidates will be the Democratic nominee and will need the other's supporters to win the White House.

This kind of attack is unnecessary and divisive, no matter who is the nominee. I can't imagine Hillary Clinton making any kind of parallel comparison that wouldn't completely light up Bernie's supporters and drive a wedge deep into the party before November.

If Bernie wins the nomination, he's going to need those "political establishment" organizations to get behind him.

I, for one, would appreciate it if he dialed back the ad hominem attacks on allies and focused on Republicans if he's that confident he'll be the nominee. No need to destroy allies in the larger picture that way.