Party Leaders Rally Around Clinton
Endorsement for Clinton by President and Vice-President sends signal to Sanders. W. Post: “Shortly after Sanders emerged from his meeting with Obama, word got out that the president was going to trumpet an endorsement of his former secretary of state in a video … The theme of the day soon became Democratic unity, drowning out the conversation about what policy changes and other concessions Sanders might exact in exchange for exiting the race.”
Sen. Warren endorses Clinton, praises Sanders. NBC: “Warren called the long primary ‘constructive’ … She said Sanders ‘took these issues and he really thrust them into the spotlight’ and brought millions in to the Democratic Party … she believes Sanders supporters will support Clinton. ‘The way I see this is that there is a very big and important home here,’ Warren said.”
Warren meets Clinton today. W. Post: “The sit-down … will fuel speculation about her prospects as a potential vice presidential pick … The two women do not have a particularly deep relationship, but that could change…”
Sanders holds boisterous rally in DC before final Tuesday primary. NYT: “[Sanders] showed no signs of slowing down [but] did not utter Mrs. Clinton’s name at a Thursday night rally … Cornel West, the scholar and Sanders surrogate, alluded to the idea that voters might be choosing between Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Trump … ‘we know the difference between a neo-liberal and a neo-fascist, so you make your own decision.'”
Hillary to give speech on women’s issues. W. Post: “As she has on other issues — most notably in a major foreign policy speech last week — Clinton will highlight Trump’s own words as evidence … during a speech at the Planned Parenthood Action Fund membership event in Washington on Friday.”
Clinton hires key Sanders staffer. Politico: “…the campaign has hired Bernie Sanders’ director of student organizing to serve as her national campus and student organizing director … Kunoor Ojha is the Clinton campaign’s first major hire from the Sanders campaign … a significant step in the former secretary of state’s outreach to the Vermont senator’s most ardent backers.”
Republican senator may vote Clinton. The Hill quotes: “If she’s elected as president, I’m sure we would work very well together. It is unlikely that I would vote for her. I’m not ruling anything out, but it’s very unlikely.”
“Democrats Will Learn All the Wrong Lessons From Brush With Bernie” argues Rolling Stone’s Matt Taibbi: “Democratic voters tried to express these frustrations through the Sanders campaign, but the party leaders have been and probably will continue to be too dense to listen. Instead, they’ll convince themselves that, as [James] Hohmann’s [Washington] Post article put it, Hillary’s latest victories mean any ‘pressure’ they might have felt to change has now been ‘ameliorated.'”
Trump Is A Deadbeat
Trump has a history of wage theft, finds USA Today: “…he has been involved in more than 3,500 lawsuits over the past three decades — and a large number of those involve ordinary Americans … who say Trump or his companies have refused to pay them … Trump’s companies have also been cited for 24 violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act since 2005 for failing to pay overtime or minimum wage…”
Some Republicans still want to deny Trump the nomination. NYT: “Stopping Mr. Trump at this point could prove additionally difficult … Trump can now count on about half the seats on the platform and rules committees … [Hugh] Hewitt advocated opening the convention to let the delegates decide the nominee because ignoring Mr. Trump’s flaws, he said, was like ‘ignoring Stage IV cancer.'”
HuffPost explores why Speaker Ryan endorsed Trump: “According to those sources close to Ryan, a big part of the endorsement was the effect that the speaker not endorsing would have on Republicans down-the-ballot … Ryan’s calculation was that it’s better to get behind Trump and try to motivate Republicans to get to the polls than to create a rift, give the reality TV personality an excuse for his loss and simultaneously create a Democratic wave…”
