Today in Campaign 2016
- Two tribes became one this morning as Bernie Sanders appeared side-by-side with Hillary Clinton at a joint rally that marked a poignant reconciliation between the once bitter foes in the Democratic primary. Amid some of his most passionate supporters in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Sanders officially endorsed the former secretary of state in her battle against Donald Trump after a series of policy compromises were hammered out over the weekend.
- “I have come here to make it as clear as possible as to why I am endorsing Hillary Clinton,” Sanders said to exuberant applause, “and why she must become our next president.” Sanders prompted one or two boos from the emotional crowd of his supporters when he spelled out the mathematical realities to them once and for all, but left no doubt where he now stood.
- “Secretary Clinton has won the Democratic nomination,” Sanders said. “I congratulate her for that,” he added warmly, putting an arm on Clinton’s shoulder. “I intend to do everything I can to make certain she will be the next president.”
- Sanders’ supporters, it seems, are following his lead: 85% of Sanders supporters said they intended to vote for Clinton in the general election, according to a survey released last week byPew Research Center. Another 9% said they intended to vote for Donald Trump (a trend the Guardian noticed among its readers) and 6% said they either aren’t sure who they will vote for or will choose another candidate in November.
- Barack Obama paid tribute to the five officers killed in Dallas last week, as he insisted that racial discrimination still existed in the US and protesters against police violence could not be dismissed as “troublemakers or paranoid”.
- “I’m not naive. I have spoken at too many memorials in the course of this presidency,” Obama said. “I’ve seen how inadequate words can be at bringing about lasting change. I see the inadequacy of my own words.”
- US supreme court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, already facing criticism for her relatively mild comments that she cannot imagine what the country or the court might be like with Donald Trump as president, went even further with her critiques of the presumptive Republican nominee on Monday. In an interview with CNN legal analyst and court biographer Joan Biskupic published on Tuesday, Ginsburg called Trump “a faker” whose candidacy she initially thought “funny”.
- “He has no consistency about him,” she added. “He says whatever comes into his head at the moment. He really has an ego.”She also criticized the media for failing to scrutinize Trump’s refusal to release his tax returns and for giving him “free publicity”.
Paul Ryan: 'The good clearly outweighs the things I don't agree with' on Donald Trump
“How do you explain to the 1.6 billion Muslims that we trade with, that we ally with, that we live next door to, how you endorse” Donald Trump, a woman considering voting for a Libertarian ticket asks Paul Ryan.
“We do not discriminate against religion,” Ryan says. “When I see those principles being violated or compromised, whoever I am doing it, I am going to speak out against it.”
“You know I don’t agree with him on that particular policy, but on the other 92 policies… in the balance of things, the good clearly outweighs the things I don’t agree with!”
Jason Hill, a commercial banker, who is reluctantly supporting Donald Trump, asks about “perceptions around racism and bigotry and other issues.”
“What we strive for in our ideas and our principles are to provide for equal opportunities so that people can make the most of their lives,” Ryan says. “Those things are what animate our beliefs and our principles.”
“Those are the kinds of things that we feel strongly about, and those are inclusive principles - they apply to everybody.”
James West, a Staten Island Republican, who is undecided about voting for Donald Trump, asks Paul Ryan about post-partisanship being a “realistic goal.”
“As you know, it wasn’t my plan to become speaker of the House,” Ryan says. “For the firs time in six years, we got consensus on what we would replace Obamacare with… that, to me, was unifying.”
I just don’t think we should be talking about dividing at all - I think we should be talking about unifying.
- Paul Ryan, of Donald Trump’s declaration that Black Lives Matter is dividing the nation
Another audience question, this time from Heather Tarrant, a New York Republican, “do you know why we say” Black Lives Matter?”
“Let’s not harden ourselves int our corner so that we stop listening to each other,” Ryan says. “At this moment, when fives cops were killed, let’s make sure that we surround law enforcement with the support that they deserve.”
“You can’t blame the bad things that a couple cops do on all cops,” Ryan continues. “Let’s use two ears, one mouth and listen to the concerns that are out there… there are a lot of people in this country who, because of the color of their skin, do not feel safe.”
“That’s the kind of dialogue that I hope we can elevate ourselves to.”
Tarrant says that she “appreciates the sentiment,” but that Ryan did not answer her question.
Father Michael Duffy, a Catholic priest and registered Republican, asks Paul Ryan about immigration.
“I don’t ask somebody for their documentation when they come to ask me for help,” Duffy says. “What can we do to make sure that we meet the basic human needs of the poor in this country, even if they are here illegally?”
“Number one: You have to secure the border,” Ryan says, so that “the public believes that the rule of law is being practiced in this country.”
“You’ve gotta fix a broken legal immigration system,” Ryan continues. “There are ways of getting people right with the law so that they can earn their place… without rewarding people for cutting in line.”
“But you cannot even get to that if we have no faith in whether we can control who comes and goes in this country.”
Mark Hudges, the man who was falsely accused by the Dallas police department of being a suspect in the assassination of five law enforcement officers at a Black Lives Matter protest last week, asks Ryan: “What are you going to do to make sure that guns don’t end up in the hands of people who don’t have some sort of mental disorder?”
“There is common ground to be had here,” Paul Ryan says. “We’ve got to get early intervention into people with mental illnesses.” Ryan cites a bill recently passed that revamps mental-health law.
Jake Tapper, following up, asks Ryan whether he thinks Congress “has done enough on that front?”
“No, on the mental-illness part,” Ryan says. “With respect to terrorists... you have to remember, right now, if you are a criminal, if you are a terrorist, you don’t get a gun. The question is, people slipping through the cracks.”
“Any bureaucrat can put you on this watchlist,” Ryan says, “therefore you have no due-process rights.”
“What we don’t wanna do is to pass a law that we know violates a law-abiding citizen’s rights.”
Paul Ryan dodges a question from Jake Tapper about whether he would have endorsed Donald Trump if he weren’t the speaker of the house.
“I do believe that I have certain institutional responsibilities,” Ryan says. “I think it’s important if I had not done that, I would have contributed to basically cutting our party in half… and I couldn’t do that.”
“I’m disheartened with you and some of the Republican leadership because you haven’t fully gotten behind Donald Trump and his candidacy,” asks a paralegal from Staten Island.
“It’s important if you believe in core principles, you defend those principles no matter what,” Ryan says, of speaking out against Donald Trump. “He won the election. We are a bottom-up party, we are not a top-down primary,” Ryan says.
The first question for House speaker Paul Ryan from the audience comes from Zachary Marconi, a Republican student who does not support Donald Trump.
“It concerns me when Republican leadership is supporting someone who is openly racist,” Marconi says. “How can you morally justify your support?”
“Look at the agenda that we are pursuing - look at the agenda we are pursuing in conjunction with our presumptive nominee,” Ryan says. “None of those things, Hillary clinton is going to advance.”
“Things have been said that I, too, disagree with,” Ryan says, calling Trump the candidate who is “so much more likely” to advocate for a conservative legislative agenda.
On the subject of Hillary Clinton, Paul Ryan tells Jake Tapper that he will continue to hound the presumptive Democratic presidential candidate after the FBI recommended not pursuing charges against her for her use of private email servers during her tenure at the State Department.
“I believe that she has gotten preferential treatment throughout much of her career, and she holds herself above the law,” Ryan says. “I would say that any other person that did something like this… they would be denied that kind of information.”
“No one should be above the rules, and no one should be above the law,” Ryan continues.
We’re going to interrupt our coverage of Donald Trump’s rally in Indiana to join a CNN town hall with Paul Ryan, in which Ryan will talk about the party’s platform, its plans for the future and about the presumptive presidential nominee.
Moderated by Jake Tapper, the town hall will feature questions from voters and from Tapper himself on an array of issues.
“I think all of us as leads have an obligation to do what we can to unify people in this country,” Ryan says. “Our politics have been bad in Washington and around the country, and we are impugning other peoples’ motives.”
“I think have to go back to making politics a contest of ideals,” Ryan continues.
As Donald Trump speaks, Mike Pence launches into an anti-Clinton tweetstorm:
Hillary Clinton must NEVER become the President of the United States of America!
— Mike Pence (@mike_pence) July 13, 2016
It would be "extremely careless" to elect Hillary Clinton as the next President of the United States.
— Mike Pence (@mike_pence) July 13, 2016
We will not rest until we elect @realDonaldTrump as the next President of the United States of America!
— Mike Pence (@mike_pence) July 13, 2016
Unclear what Donald Trump meant here:
Walls don’t have bathrooms and bathrooms are always tough.
“Every once in a while, problems will happen, and we’re gonna take care of those problems. And they can be bad problems, but we are going to treat our police with respect, okay?”
“Since President Obama became president, almost 5,000 killings in Chicago, and nobody talks about it. Well we’re gonna start talking about it, because we have to make this a great country,” Trump says. “I was talking about the border, and I was talking about the wall - and we will build the wall, I can tell you, I can tell you…”
Trump then asks the crowd to chant the name of the entity that will build “the wall” (“Mexico!”) and does not return to the subject of crime.
“Let us resolve here and now that from this day forward we will unite we still stand together we will not regress, until we make this good man our next president,” Mike Pence says, introducing Donald Trump to Hoosier State voters.
“Wow. Wow. Whoa!” Trump says, apparently impressed by the fiery speech delivered by Indiana’s governor.
“We are ready for a change in this state - we are ready to put a fighter, a builder and a patriot in the Oval Office of the White House,” Mike Pence says. “We are ready to make Donald Trump our president.”
“Donald Trump gets it. Donald Trump hears the voice of the American people,” Pence says. “Donald Trump knows that the boundless potential of the American people awaits, and we can make America great again!”
“So we must come together and elect this good man our president,” Pence continues, “Because Hillary Clinton must never become president of the United States of America.”
Mike Pence introduces Donald Trump at Indiana rally
More than an hour behind schedule, Donald Trump is appearing tonight with Indiana governor Mike Pence, a potential running mate, in Westfield, Indiana, at the Grand Park Events Center.
Mike Pence seems happy...
Photo of @realDonaldTrump and @GovPenceIN right after their one-on-one meeting, from a source at the fundraiser. pic.twitter.com/9HbRPaPBOH
— Eric Bradner (@ericbradner) July 13, 2016
Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump reportedly turned down a speaking opportunity at the NAACP annual convention in Ohio next week, according to the group’s CEO, Cornell William Brooks.
Brooks told CNN that Trump declined the group’s invitation to speak at the Cincinnati conference, to be held the weekend before the Republican National Convention kicks off in neighboring Cleveland.
“Mr. Trump has declined our invitation, so we will hear from Sec. Clinton,” Brooks said. “Namely, the explanation given was that (the Republicans) are holding their convention at the same time. We are, of course, in Cincinnati, they are in Cleveland. We were hoping he would make the short trip from Cleveland to Cincinnati.”
Hillary Clinton is scheduled to address the group.
Jill Stein, the Green party’s candidate for president, launched an epic tweetstorm criticizing Bernie Sanders’ endorsement of presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton earlier today:
The anti-TPP, anti-corporate 💰, anti-fracking, pro-Palestine, pro-marijuana, etc revolution is still going strong here in the Green Party.
— Dr. Jill Stein (@DrJillStein) July 12, 2016
If you don't want to vote for a war monger or racist billionaire, there are more options. The political revolution will keep going.
— Dr. Jill Stein (@DrJillStein) July 12, 2016
Many Berning hearts are breaking right now. 💔
— Dr. Jill Stein (@DrJillStein) July 12, 2016
The Log Cabin Republicans - a group of long-suffering LGBT Republicans who have pushed for reform within the GOP - have released a statement in response to the passage of what the group described as “the most anti-LGBT platform in the party’s 162-year history.”
The platform, which contains “opposition to marriage equality, nonsense about bathrooms, an endorsement of the debunked psychological practice of ‘pray the gay away,” according to Gregory Angelo, the group’s president, was finalized by the party’s platform committee earlier today.
“This isn’t my GOP, and I know it’s not yours either. Heck, it’s not even Donald Trump’s!” Angelo called on fellow LGBT Republicans to “follow the lead of our presumptive presidential nominee” - and to donate to the group.
The insanely popular Pokémon Go is collecting users’ data and sharing it with anonymous third parties, Senator Al Franken of Minnesota said in a letter to the company’s CEO.
The lawmaker wrote a letter to Niantic Inc’s John Hanke on Tuesday with a list of demands for further information regarding the app’s privacy settings.
“I am concerned about the extent to which Niantic may be unnecessarily collecting, using, and sharing a wide range of users’ personal information without their appropriate consent,” he wrote.
Franken, who sits on the Senate subcommittee on privacy, technology, and the law, accused the company of collecting users’ information and potentially sharing it with third-party service providers. He highlighted that most users are children and the app’s default setting is to automatically collect data, with users having to specifically “opt-out”.
The senator made seven requests for additional information, such as a list of the “third-party service providers” that Niantic shares information with and their reasons for doing so.
Video: Barack Obama and former president George W Bush spoke at the memorial service for five Dallas police officers who were killed last week earlier today.
Bush, a former governor of Texas, told the crowd: “Too often we judge other groups by their worst examples, while judging ourselves by our best intentions.”
The Colorado delegation to the Republican National Convention has long been one of the most vocal redoubts of opposition to Donald Trump in the Republican party. But emails shared with the Guardian reveal how divisive the conflict over Trump has become, with supporters of the GOP nominee comparing Never Trumpers to opponents of Jesus Christ and using a 12-year-old to make threatening phone calls to coax anti-Trump delegates into supporting him.
In a thread started when Patrick Davis, the Trump campaign’s director in the Rocky Mountain State, emailed the entire delegation with a link to sign up to volunteer, supporters of both Trump and Ted Cruz engaged in angry recriminations. The emails were shared with the Guardian by a source within the delegation.
Cruz swept the delegate selection process in April when Colorado held its state convention. Colorado is one of three states that does not hold a primary or any other form of voting in its primary process. Instead, delegates are elected in a convention by party activists and are free to back candidates of their choosing. Cruz won all 34 delegates up for grabs in the state, and his supporters there have long resisted efforts by Trump to become the party’s nominee as they feel he is insufficiently conservative. One delegate from Colorado, Kendal Unruh, is the leader of the effort to “free the delegates” in a last-ditch attempt to thwart Trump from becoming the nominee.
Davis’s initial email bluntly stated: “To get involved in the Trump campaign in Colorado you should sign up at the following link:http://cologop.org/volunteer/. You can also send an email to info@cologop.org and they will get you plugged into the field office closest to you to start walking or volunteering.”
This led to a cascade of criticisms and complaints from those skeptical of Trump. Many shared their resentment of the statement by Sarah Palin that those Republicans opposed to Trump’s candidacy were Rats (her acronym for “Republicans against Trump”). They cited lyrics from Les Misérables and their desire to “preserve the true conservative values of the party” in their refusal to support Trump, and railed against the presumptive nominee as “a charlatan” and even “a dirtbag”. None showed signs of moderation. As one said: “I’m a CAT (Conservative Against Trump) and voting Hillary for Prison.” They saw Trump as “not an actual Republican”.
In particular, there was a deep resentment at what they called “soft thug tactics” by Trump supporters to encourage them to support the presumptive nominee. One candidate for alternate received a voicemail from a 12-year-old who insisted he was speaking on behalf of both the Trump campaign and the Colorado Republican party and said that the Colorado Republican party wanted nothing to do with the effort to “free the delegates”. Davis soon clarified that the 12-year-old was only speaking on behalf of the Trump campaign and warned gravely: “I think every Colorado delegate to Cleveland has to examine their conscience and live with the guilt that comes with voting to weaken Donald Trump, our Republican nominee.” Another was told in a phone call from the 12-year-old Trump supporter that those seeking to free the delegates were somehow plotting to steal nomination from the real estate developer and hand it to Jeb Bush.
Nigel Farage to attend RNC
Nigel Farage, who spearheaded the campaign for the UK to leave the European Union and former leader of the right-wing Ukip party in the UK, plans on attending the Republican National Convention in Cleveland next week, although he has no plans to officially endorse presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.
“Having criticized President Obama for getting involved in British politics, I am not about to endorse anybody,” Farage told USA Today. “But I do know a lot of people in the Republican Party, and I’ll be interested to hear what Donald Trump has to say in his big speech.”
Farage would not reveal who invited him to attend the RNC, telling USA Today only that “It was not Trump.”
David Duke plotting run for Congress
White nationalist David Duke, whose endorsement of Donald Trump became an issue in the Republican presidential primary, is reportedly mulling a run for Congress in his home state of Louisiana, according to the Daily Beast.
“I’ve very seriously set up an exploratory committee to run for the United States Congress against Steve Scalise,” Duke told the Daily Beast. “I expect to make a decision in a few days” ahead of the state’s ballot deadline on July 22.
Duke cited the assassination of five law enforcement officers in Dallas last week as the tipping point in pushing him to consider what would be his most high-profile run for elected office since he forced a runoff election in the 1991 gubernatorial race.
“There are millions of people across the country who would like to have me in the Congress,” Duke said. “I’d be the only person in Congress openly defending the rights and the heritage of European Americans. We are on the offensive today. There’s no more defenses.”
Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton is having a banner day after former foe Bernie Sanders endorsed her campaign for the White House, with a new Reuters/Ipsos poll showing the former secretary of state extending her lead over presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump to a 13-point advantage nationally.
The survey, conducted between July 8-12, showed that 46% of likely voters nationwide say that they support Clinton’s candidacy, compared to 33% who said that they support Trump. That’s a three-point jump in Clinton’s lead from the beginning of the month, with Clinton gaining a point and Trump losing two. A full 21% of voters, however, said that they do not currently support either candidate.
The survey, which has a margin of error of three points, shows that half of likely voters view her favorably, an increase of four points since July 1. Meanwhile, a full 60% of likely voters have an unfavorable view of Trump.
Updated
Sound the Veep Klaxon:
NEW: Sources tell me @realDonaldTrump will hold the public event to showcase his VP choice Friday
— Kelly O'Donnell (@KellyO) July 12, 2016
Report: Elizabeth Warren offered convention speaking slot on first night
Massachusetts senator and liberal icon Elizabeth Warren has reportedly been offered a primetime speaking slot during the first night of the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia two weeks from now, a invitation that indicates that the senator will not be named as presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton’s running mate.
According to the New York Times, those invited to speak on the convention’s first night have been told that their speaking slot is subject to change depending on Clinton’s running-mate selection, but many of Warren’s allies see her chances of joining the ticket as diminishing.
Clinton’s short list of potential vice presidential nominees reportedly include senators Cory Booker of New Jersey and Time Kaine of Virginia, secretaries Julian Castro and Tom Perez, and California representative Xavier Becerra, in addition to Warren.
Updated
With former House speaker Newt Gingrich being floated as a potential running mate for presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, Fox News has issued a statement declaring that its contributor agreement with Gingrich is officially over.
“Fox News Channel has mutually agreed to suspend its contributor agreement” with Gingrich “effective immediately,” according to a Fox News statement provided to CNN.
“Due to the intense media speculation about Gingrich’s potential selection as Donald Trump’s vice presidential candidate, we felt it best to halt his contributor role on the network to avoid all conflicts of interest that may arise,” executive vice president for news Jay Wallace said.
Gingrich has been a Fox News contributor since October 2015.
Updated
Donald Trump would be the only national leader in the world to dismiss the science of climate change should he become president, putting him out of step even with Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, Zimbabwe’s Robert Mugabe and Kim Jong-un, the leader of North Korea.
The potential isolation of the US on climate change has been laid bare by a new Sierra Club report which found universal acceptance of climate science among the leaders of the 195 countries recognized by the US state department.
Close US allies such as Britain, Israel, Canada and France all have heads of government who have voiced their understanding that the world is warming primarily due to human activities.
Even totalitarian or undemocratic leaders accept mainstream climate science, with Assad calling for nations to “respond more effectively” to the issue and Kim supporting a tree-planting initiative to mitigate greenhouse gases. The Zimbabwean president, Robert Mugabe, has labelled climate change a “major global challenge”.
By contrast, Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, has called global warming “bullshit” and a “hoax” that was “created by and for the Chinese in order to make US manufacturing noncompetitive”.
Trump has vowed to remove the US from the Paris climate accord, which was agreed by 195 countries last year in an attempt to curb planet-warming carbon dioxide emissions. He has also threatened to dismantle the Environmental Protection Agency, which has come under sustained fire from Republicans over its role in Barack Obama’s emissions-cutting Clean Power Plan.
George W. Bush’s favorite dance number is, apparently, the Battle Hymn of the Republic:
LAURA: George, be on your best behavior.
— Parker Molloy (@ParkerMolloy) July 12, 2016
GEORGE: Of course I will!
LAURA: No dancing.
GEORGE: ... pic.twitter.com/qNnyTWbe6i
Ruth Bader Ginsburg doubles down on Donald Trump: 'He's a faker'
Supreme court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has intensified her unprecedented criticism of presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, calling the candidate “a faker” who “has no consistency about him.”
“He is a faker,” Ginsburg said in a conversation with CNN in her chambers published this afternoon. “He has no consistency about him. He says whatever comes into his head at the moment. He really has an ego.”
“How has he gotten away with not turning over his tax returns?” she asked rhetorically. “The press seems to be very gentle with him on that.”
The justice, a liberal icon and arguably the head of the left-leaning justices on the nation’s highest court, had told the New York Times in an interview published Monday that she feared for the future of the country if Trump were to become president. “I can’t imagine what this place would be - I can’t imagine what the country would be - with Donald Trump as our president,” Ginsburg said.
Trump, in response to those comments, told the New York Times that Ginsburg’s statements were “highly inappropriate” and “beneath the court.”
“I would hope that she would get off the court as soon as possible,” Trump continued, a statement that some have seen as a call for the justice’s demise, as supreme court justices are appointed for life.
Obama calls for blessings for the memory of the officers and for the country. He finishes and is applauded.
There’s a somewhat off-key performance – the organ is falling into minor - of Battle Hymn of the Republic.
The front row is all holding hands – Jill Biden Joe Biden Laura Bush, George W, Michelle Obama, Barack Obama– and former president Bush is doing a kind of goofy dance and making Michelle Obama crack up a bit. A bit uncomfortably. One of Bush’s favorite numbers apparently, the Battle Hymn of the Republic.
Even those who dislike the phrase Black Lives Matter, Obama says, should be able to relate to stories about Alton Sterling, who always cooked enough for everyone, or Philando Castile, a gentle soul, “Mr Rogers with dreadlocks.”
Obama:
“If we cannot even talk about these things, if we cannot talk honestly and openly... then we will never break this dangerous cycle. In the end, it’s not about finding policies that work. It’s about forging consensus and fighting cynicism, and finding the will to make change.
“Can we do this? Can we find the character as Americans to open our hearts to each other? Can we see in each other a common humanity and a shared dignity... and it doesn’t make anybody perfectly good or perfectly bad... I don’t know.
“I confess that sometimes I too experience doubt. I’ve been to too many of these things. I’ve seen too many families go through this. But then I am reminded of what the lord tells Ezekiel. ‘I will give you a new heart... I will remove from you the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.’”
Obama: 'we know that bias remains'
Obama:
“I’m not naive. I’ve spoken at too many memorials during the course of this presidency. I’ve hugged too many families who lost a loved one to senseless violence. And I’ve seen how a spirit of unity born of tragedy can gradually dissipate...
“I’ve seen how inadequate words can be in bringing about lasting change... I’ve seen how inadequate my words have been. So I’m reminded by a passage in John’s gospel. ‘Let us love not with words or peace but with actions and truth’.
“If we are to honor these five outstanding officers, then we will have to act on the truths that we know... we’re going to have to be honest with each other and ourselves... We know that the overwhelming majority of police... are deserving of our respect and not our scorn. And when anyone, no matter how good their intentions might be... we undermine those officers we depend on for our safety...
“And as for those using rhetoric harm to police.. they do a disservice to the very cause of justice that they claim to promote. We also know that centuries of racial discrimination and slavery and subjugation and Jim Crow, they didn’t simply vanish at the end of lawful segregation. They didn’t just stop when Dr king made a speech... race relations have improved dramatically in my lifetime. Those who deny it are dishonoring the struggles that helped us achieve that progress.
“But America, we know that bias remains. WE know it. Whether you are black or white or... we have all seen this bigotry in our own lives at some point... if we’re honest, perhaps we’ve heard prejudice in our own heads... we know that. And while some suffer far more under racism’s burden, some feel to a far greater extent discrimination...none of us is entirely innocent. No institution is entirely immune. And that include our police departments. We know this.
“Study after study shows that whites and people of color experience the criminal justice system differently... when moms and dads... still fear that something terrible may happen when their child walks out the door... kids being stupid.. might end in tragedy... more than 50 years after the passage of the civil rights act, we cannot simply dismiss those engaged in peaceful protests as troublemakers, or paranoid. As a symptom of political correctness, or reverse racism.
“To have your experience denied like that... again and again and again, it hurts. Surely we can see that. All of us.”
Obama holds up the mayor and the chief, “a white man and a black man with different backgrounds, working not just to restore order... but working together to unify a city.”
“The Dallas police department has been at the forefront of improving relations between the police and community... the Dallas police department has been doing it the right way. So Mayor Rawlings and Chief Brown, thank you for your steady leadership, thank you for your powerful example.”
Sustained applause.
“This is the America I know,” the president says.
Updated
Obama: we must reject despair
Obama says the officers must have objected to some messages from some protesters in the demonstration they were protecting. But they did their job.
.@POTUS to Dallas police: "We mourn fewer people today because of your brave actions." #DallasMemorial
— Patrick Svitek (@PatrickSvitek) July 12, 2016
Then the shots.
Obama:
I know that Americans are struggling right now with what we’ve witnessed over the last week,” Obama says. He mentions “the shootings in Minnesota and Baton Rouge,” the protests, and then “an act not just of demented violence but of racial hatred.”
“All of it’s left us wounded... and hurt. It’s as if the deepest fault lines of our democracy have been exposed and even widened... faced with this violence we wonder if the divides of race in America can ever be breached....We turn on the TV or surf the Internet, we can watch positions harden and lines drawn, people retreat to their respective corners... it’s hard not to think sometimes that the center won’t hold and that things might get worse.
But Dallas I’m here to say that we must reject such despair. I’m here to insist that we are not as divided as we say. I know this because I know America. I know how far we’ve come against impossible odds. I know we’ll make it because of what I’ve experienced in my own life.. and I konw it because of what we’ve seen here in Dallas. How all of you out of great suffering have shown us the meaning of perseverance and character and hope.
Updated
Obama “From the moment you put on that uniform, you have answered the call that at any moment, you may put your life in harm’s way.”
He talks about each of the officers who were killed.
“Lorne Ahrens. In the night before he died, he bought dinner for a homeless man. And the next night Katrina had to tell their children that their dad was gone. They don’t get it yet, their grandma said.”
“Michael Krol. He came a thousand miles from his home state in Michigan to be a cop in Dallas.”
“Michael Smith answered that call. In the army and over almost 30 years working for the policeman’s association.” A churchgoer, playing softball with his two girls. A man of faith.
Patrick Zamarripa “dreamed of being a cop.” Liked to post photos with kids on social media.
Brent Thompson. Veteran marine and contractor in Iraq and Afghanistan. Married two weeks ago, “their whole life together waiting before them.”
Updated
Obama is speaking.
He greets the assembled dignitaries. The members of Congress. Then a laugh line:
Chief Brown, I’m so glad I met Michelle first, because she loves Stevie Wonder.
Applause and cheers.
Obama continues:
“But most of all the families and friends and colleagues and fellow officers.”
He says scripture tells us that in our suffering there is glory because suffering produces perseverance, then character then hope.
Sometimes the truths of these words are hard to see,” he says. “Right now those words test us, because the people of Dallas, people across the country are suffering. We’re here to honor the memory and mourn the loss of five fellow Americans, to grieve with their loved ones, to support the community, to pray for the wounded and to try to find some meaning amidst our sorrow.”
Here’s Brown, the police chief. He thanks the crowd.
Brown says he had trouble talking to girls as a teen. But he likes 1970s R&B. So he would say lyrics to get a date. Al Green. “I’d recite the lyrics to their love songs.” But if he fell in love “oh I had to dig down deep and get some Stevie Wonder.”
He asks the crowd to imagine him in 1974 with an Afro and bell bottoms and wide collar.
And he recites As by Stevie Wonder:
As around the sun the earth knows she’s revolving
And the rosebuds know to bloom in early May
Just as hate knows love’s the cure
You can rest your mind assure
That I’ll be loving you always
As now can’t reveal the mystery of tomorrow
But in passing will grow older every day
Just as all is born is new
Do know what I say is true
That I’ll be loving you always
Until the rainbow burns the stars out in the sky--Loving you
Until the ocean covers every mountain high--Loving you
Until the dolphin flies and parrots live at sea--Loving you
Until we dream of life and life becomes a dream--Be loving you
Until the day is night and night becomes the day--Loving you
Until the trees and seas up, up and fly away--Loving you
Until the day that 8x8x8x8 is 4--Loving you
Until the day that is the day that are no more--Loving you
Until the day the earth starts turning right to left--Be loving you
Until the earth just for the sun denies itself--Loving you
Until dear Mother Nature says her work is through--Loving you
Until the day that you are me and I am you--
Now ain’t that loving you
Until the rainbow burns the stars out in the sky
Ain’t that loving you
Until the ocean covers every mountain high
And I’ve got to say always
He says the five officers gave their lives for all of us.
Then he introduces the president.
The Dallas police chief, David Brown, is introduced – and he’s given an enthusiastic standing ovation. He is the only one in the hall who keeps his chair, including the president.
Brown takes the lectern.
Bush makes a joke about one of the fallen officers being a “loyal Texas Rangers fan.” The crowd chuckles.
“Those wearing the uniform assume that risk for the safety of strangers... each new day can bring new dangers. But none of us were prepared or could be prepared... the shock of this evil has not faded...
“Too often we judge other groups by their worst examples, while judging ourselves by our best intentions... but Americans I think have a great advantage. To renew our unity we have only to remember our values... shared commitments to common ideals.
“And it’s not merely a matter of tolerance but of learning from the stories of struggles of our fellow citizens... we know we have one country, one future... we do not want the unity of grief... we want the unity of hope, affection and high purpose...
“At their best, [men and women in uniform] free us from fear.”
Bush closes by addresses the families of the victims. “They defended us, even to the end. They finished well. We will not forget what they did for us. Your loss is unfair. We cannot explain it. But we can stand beside you.”
He asks for god’s blessing and is done.
Bush is applauded.
He thanks Cornyn. He says he’s “pleased” that the president and vice president came. “Today the nation grieves but those of us who love Dallas and call it home have had five deaths in the family.”
Bush says he counts law enforcement as friends and “their courage is our protection and shield.”
He says “our mayor and our police chief and our police department have been mighty inspirations for the rest of our nation.” Applauded.
Former president George W Bush takes the lectern.
Bush has rarely made national public appearances since leaving office, although he did pop up in February on the campaign trail in South Carolina on behalf of brother Jeb.
Senator John Cornyn, the state’s senior senator, is next. He thanks the mayor, the police chief and the police department. The remark is applauded.
He introduces former president Bush.
A succession of prayers is followed by a performance of Total Praise by the interfaith choir. They’re at the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center in Dallas.
First to speak is the mayor of Dallas, Mike Rawlings. He says “the soul of our city was pierced when our police officers were ambushed in a cowardly attack.”
He thanks people for coming. He vows to support the families and loved ones of the victims. “Today must be about unity,” he says.
Obama has been introduced. They file in.
The president is in Dallas. Here’s a live video stream of the memorial service where both he and former president George W Bush are scheduled to speak:
Also making a bid for Sanders backers: Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson:
“If you’re still feeling the Bern, and feeling burned, because the Clinton machine rolled over your ideals, there is another option,” he says.
If joining Sen. Sanders in the Clinton Establishment isn't a good fit, there IS another option... #afterthebern pic.twitter.com/b0rnrpBVea
— Gov. Gary Johnson (@GovGaryJohnson) July 12, 2016
Updated
The Obamas have arrived at Love Field in Dallas. Texas senator Ted Cruz hitched a ride on Air Force One for the occasion, as did House minority leader Nancy Pelosi.
During the flight, the president placed telephone calls to family members of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, according to a White House pool report.
Updated
Sanders not dropping out – report
Bernie Sanders, famous for not suspending his presidential campaign even after the math had abandoned him, still hasn’t suspended his campaign, a spokesperson tells the Atlantic:
Sanders spox tells @ckmarie: He’s still a candidate, he’s not dropping out https://t.co/BGbcqN1K6H pic.twitter.com/ZwOLF74CAR
— Yoni Appelbaum (@YAppelbaum) July 12, 2016
That doesn't make sense https://t.co/NI3zgb0MgL
— Ben Jacobs (@Bencjacobs) July 12, 2016
Dept of 'you're doing it wrong' https://t.co/xEKOWEKiEK
— Zeke Miller (@ZekeJMiller) July 12, 2016
Uh wait... What? https://t.co/pIn7Unh8sU
— (((Harry Enten))) (@ForecasterEnten) July 12, 2016
Beyond parody https://t.co/CinnuU2CkF
— Matt Mackowiak (@MattMackowiak) July 12, 2016
Still a candidate, but endorsed his opponent? Like playing a soccer match, but shooting on your own goal? https://t.co/POtRTCd5FI
— Nick Corasaniti (@NYTnickc) July 12, 2016
Updated
Trump resumes courtship of Sanders backers
Trump tweets that Sanders “sold out” and “abandoned his supporters.” P.S.: join us! “We welcome you with open arms.”
Bernie Sanders endorsing Crooked Hillary Clinton is like Occupy Wall Street endorsing Goldman Sachs.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 12, 2016
Bernie sanders has abandoned his supporters by endorsing pro-war pro-TPP pro-Wall Street Crooked Hillary Clinton.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 12, 2016
To all the Bernie voters who want to stop bad trade deals & global special interests, we welcome you with open arms. People first.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 12, 2016
Sanders taunts Trump
Sanders replies to Trump’s accusation that he has “sold out,” reminding Trump that he backed out of a proposed debate with Sanders back in May:
Bernie Sanders, who has lost most of his leverage, has totally sold out to Crooked Hillary Clinton. He will endorse her today - fans angry!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 12, 2016
Big talk from the same guy who was too afraid to debate Bernie in California. https://t.co/LVCjo0PKrN
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) July 12, 2016
Here’s coverage at the time of the debate that never was:
Sanders email: 'I know that some of you will be disappointed...'
Sanders in email to supporters: "Today, I endorsed Hillary Clinton... I know that some of you will be disappointed" pic.twitter.com/sF9lu0IpiC
— Dan Merica (@danmericaCNN) July 12, 2016
Trump hits Clinton with past criticism from Sanders
Donald Trump is flexing some rapid-response muscle, replying to Sanders’ endorsement of Clinton by pointing out that during the primary campaign, Sanders questioned Clinton’s qualifications for the job:
#CrookedHillary is not qualified!https://t.co/6qi7KTW43O
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 12, 2016
As Clinton and Sanders spoke, the Trump campaign also emailed the media a “flashback: Bernie Sanders says Clinton isn’t consistent on minimum wage”. The email excerpted a moment from the April Democratic debate, Sanders speaking:
When this campaign began, I said that we got to end the starvation minimum wage of $7.25, raise it to $15. Secretary Clinton said let’s raise it to $12. There’s a difference. And, by the way, what has happened is history has outpaced Secretary Clinton, because all over this country, people are standing up and they’re saying $12 is not good enough, we need $15 an hour.
To suddenly announce now that you’re for $15, I don’t think is quite accurate.”
Next up: the president’s en route to Dallas, to appear in an hour or so with noted local George W Bush:
As is normal for presidential visit, huge police presence here in Dallas awaiting @POTUS @VP @FLOTUS. pic.twitter.com/gprxOL9TAs
— Trevor Hughes (@TrevorHughes) July 12, 2016
Clinton vetting retired admiral as possible running mate
The Clinton campaign is vetting retired four-star admiral James Stavridis as a potential running mate, the New York Times has first reported.
Also thought to be on Clinton’s short list: Virginia senator Tim Kaine, Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren and Ohio senator Sherrod Brown.
NBC's Andrea Mitchell confirms @maggieNYT @AshleyRParker scoop that Hillary Clinton is vetting retired 4-star admiral James Stavridis for VP
— Bradd Jaffy (@BraddJaffy) July 12, 2016
First question for Stavridis: how’s Rumsfeld’s squash game?
Per NYT, @HillaryClinton vetting Rumsfeld's former squash partner for VP (ht @DavidCloudLAT) https://t.co/KYLr7Z4boA pic.twitter.com/VcCqFvBiG1
— Mike Memoli (@mikememoli) July 12, 2016
Updated
Unity: easier said than done.
More Sanders fans leave as @HillaryClinton takes the mic, some of them in tears. pic.twitter.com/7MrfDQtHy8
— Brad Mielke (@TheBradMielke) July 12, 2016
Heckler starts yelling while Hillary speaks, Bernie puts up his hand to silence them and they stop. #nhpolitics
— Chris Ryan (@wkxlnhchris) July 12, 2016
Dear Berneristas - the phrase you're looking for is "cognitive dissonance." Don't worry. It'll be fine. We'll all be fine.
— Craig Mazin (@clmazin) July 12, 2016
Great line on Hillary/Bernie by @jeffzeleny: "This is an arranged marriage."
— S.E. Cupp (@secupp) July 12, 2016
Sources close to Sanders told me this morning Sanders and Jane are "putting on a good face" but feel hurt that his campaign didn't succeed.
— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) July 12, 2016
“We accept $27 donations too, you know,” Clinton said, referring to the impressively grassroots average donation contributed by Sanders backers during the primary season.
And it’s true: the digital fundraising manager for the Sanders campaign just pitched in:
Also, very nice of @HFA team to include $27 option on their main donate form: pic.twitter.com/dpSeATdLZd
— Michael Whitney (@michaelwhitney) July 12, 2016
Updated
Clinton address Sanders supporters directly:
Those of you “who poured your heart and soul into Senator Sanders’ campaign: Thank you. Thank you.”
She continues, picking up Sanders’ call for a sweep of Congress:
I was proud of the campaign... it was a campaign about issues not insults... our country desperately needs your voices and involvement... we need to take back the senate and take back the house and make sure we have democratic governors and democratic state legislators. I’m asking you to stand with us... and keep working in the weeks, months and yes years ahead. You’ll always have a seat at the table when I am in the White House.
As Bernie will tell you, talk is cheap, we need to keep fighting to make sure everything we’ve stood for is real... this amazing country of ours is worthy of our best efforts.
I can’t tell you how grateful I am to be standing here with Senator Sanders... each of our campaigns together represent the best of who we are...
I am fully aware that the other side will do everything possible to distort, to disinform, and we can’t let that happen. We have to be standing up...
That’s it. Lots of cheering. What did you think? Unity #achieved? Or not?
Clinton campaign bought a special Snapchat filter for the Sanders endorsement.... pic.twitter.com/bGQodmmRhJ
— Amy Chozick (@amychozick) July 12, 2016
Clinton warns Trump will resurrect 'voodoo economics'
Clinton picks up on George HW Bush’s characterization of trickle-down economics, by which tax cuts for the rich turn into new investments that power the economy and make it rain dollars for everybody, as “voodoo economics.”
Donald Trump is trying to bring that back, she warns:
“I think Donald is starting to feel the pressure. In fact even as we speak he’s apparently bringing in the biggest names in trickle-down, supply side economics” to advise him, Clinton says.
“You don’t have to be a psychic to know what’s going to happen next... They’ll try to use voodoo economics to tell us all the ways it will actually help the economy. But they’re not fooling anybody...
“Trump uses a lot of adjectives to avoid telling you any specifics. Here’s what we know for sure. Whatever he comes out with next is going to give huge tax cuts to the corporations and the rich at the expense of the middle class...
“You can put lipstick on a pig but it’s still a pig.”
Pick your gif:
Unity is hard pic.twitter.com/yX5wPmJ1vu
— Allan Smith (@akarl_smith) July 12, 2016
Hillary &
— Emmy Bengtson (@EmmyA2) July 12, 2016
Barack &
Elizabeth &
Joe &
Bernie. pic.twitter.com/b48H2z51cB
Clinton tells the story of Seth Rich, a DNC employee shot and killed in a possible attempted robbery at the weekend in Washington, DC. She calls for getting “weapons of wars” off the streets.
Clinton says that to rejuvenate the economy, “we need to go big and we need to go bold. This isn’t a time for half-measures.”
She takes a dig at Trump over his opposition to a minimum wage hike:
Sorry Donald, if you’re watching. We’re not cutting the minimum wage, we’re raising the minimum wage. And we’re going to create millions of good jobs by making America the clean-energy superpower of the 21st century.
Clinton highlights 'tragedy' of black lives taken by police
Clinton says she’s determined to stop “the tragedy, the tragedy of black men, and women and children killed in police incidents.”
She calls for national guidelines on the use of force by police officers, and better training on implicit bias.
Clinton:
“With your help, we are joining forces to beat Donald Trump... and build a future we can all believe in.”
“Just as Bernie said, over the years I’ve gotten to know him... his passionate advocacy hasn’t always made him the most popular person in Washington. But you know what? That’s generally a sign you’re doing something right.”
“He has energized and inspired a generation of young people who care deeply and are building a movement..
THank you. Thank you Bernie for your endorsement, but more than that, thank you for your lifetime of fighting injustice. I am proud to be fighting alongside you, because my friends, this is a time for all of us to stand together. These have been difficult days.
Our job now is to see our progressive platform implemented by a Democratic Senate, a Democratic House and a Hillary Clinton presidency.
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) July 12, 2016
Clinton takes the mic:
“I cannot help but reflect how much more enjoyable this election is going to be because we are on the same side. Because you know what? We are stronger together.”
She thanks Jane Sanders, Bernie’s wife.
Sanders: 'I intend to be in every corner of this country' to boost Democrats
Sanders:
“Hillary Clinton understands that our diversity is one of our greatest strengths,” Sanders says. In contrast with Trump, he says.
“IT is no secret that Hillary Clinton and I disagree on a number of issues... that is what Democracy is about.”
But I am happy to say, Sanders says, that at the meeting last week of the Democratic party platform committee “there was a significant coming together between the two campaigns, and we produced by far the most progressive platform in the history of the Democratic party.”
Sanders calls for a Democratic sweep of Congress:
“Our job now is to see that platform implemented by a democratically controlled Senate, a democratically controlled House and a Hillary Clinton presidency.”
“And I intend to be in every corner of this country to make certain that happens. I have known HIllary Clinton for 25 years. We were a bit younger then.”
He calls her a “great first lady” and “a fierce advocate for the rights of our children” and “one of the most intelligent people that we have ever met.”
Hillary Clinton will make an outstanding president and I am proud to stand with her. Thank you all very much.
They hug.
The crowd chants “Hillary!”
“Hillary Clinton believes that we must substantially lower student debt” and make colleges tuition-free for the working class, Sanders says.
“Hillary Clinton believes” is his refrain. He’s so far working to build her up as a credible progressive, as opposed to highlighting the Trump threat.
Green party presidential nominee Jill Stein is not buying it:
I wish Hillary believed what you believe, @BernieSanders. But it just doesn't pass the laugh test.
— Dr. Jill Stein (@DrJillStein) July 12, 2016
Many Berning hearts are breaking right now. 💔
— Dr. Jill Stein (@DrJillStein) July 12, 2016
Hillary is a faithful servant of the top 1%. We need to escape this trap where the political establishment supports corporate oligarchy.
— Dr. Jill Stein (@DrJillStein) July 12, 2016
Updated
“The last thing we need in America is a president who doesn’t care whether millions of Americans will lose access to the health care they need,” Sanders says.
He’s running through areas of specific agreement between them, from Medicare negotiating with the pharmaceutical industry on drug prices to the need to address income and wealth inequality, to tax policy to corporate inversions and on and on.
Sanders:
“Hillary Clinton understands that we must fix an economy in America that is rigged and that sends almost all new wealth and income to the top 1%...
“She believes, we all believe, that we must raise the minimum wage to a living wage. And further, she wants to create millions of new jobs by rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure... but her opponent, Donald Trump, well, he has a very different view.
“He believes that states should have the right to lower the minimum wage or even abolish the minimum wage.. If Donald Trump is elected, we will see no increase in the federal minimum wage of $7.25 / hour, a starvation wage.
“This election is about which candidate will nominate supreme court justices who are prepared to overturn the disastrous Citizens United decision, a decision which is allowing billionaires to buy elections and is undermining our democracy.
Sanders says a president is needed who will nominate “new justices who will defend a woman’s right to choose. Who will defend the rights of the LGBT community. Who will defend workers’ rights, the needs of minorities and immigrants, and the government’s ability to protect our environment.”
Sanders:
“Republicans want us to forget where we were seven and a half years ago... our economy was in the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression....
“We have come a long way in the last 7.5 years, and I thank President Obama and vice president Biden for their leadership in pulling us out of that terrible recession.
:But I think we can all agree that much, much more needs to be done. Too many Americans are still being left out, left behind and ignored... THere is too much poverty, there is too much despair.”
About 30-40 Sanders supporters just walked out on Bernie endorsing Hillary in a single line in front of the press
— James Pindell (@JamesPindell) July 12, 2016
Updated
Sanders:
“During the last year, I have had the extraordinary opportunity to speak to more than 1.4m Americans at rallies in almost every state... and the profound lesson that I have learned is that this campaign is not really about Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump or Bernie Sanders.. this campaign is about the needs of the American people and addressing the very serious crises that we face. And there is no doubt in my mind that as we head into November, Hillary Clinton is far and away the best candidate to do that.”
Sanders: 'I am endorsing Hillary Clinton'
Sanders:
“I have come here today not to talk about the past but to focus on the future. That future will be shaped more by what happens on November 8 ... than by any other event in the world. I have come here to make it as clear as possible as to why I am endorsing Hillary Clinton and why she must become our next president.”
Updated
Sanders: 'Clinton has won the Democratic nominating process'
Sanders:
It is not enough to win the nomination... Secretary Clinton goes into the convention with 389 more pledged delegates than we have and a lot more superdelegates.
“Secretary Clinton has won the Democratic nominating process and I congratulate her for that. She will be the Democratic nominee for president. And I intend to do everything I can to make certain she will be the next president of the United States.”
Sanders thanks Vermont. He thanks his volunteers and small donors.
There’s a very big American flag behind them. Sanders is at the lectern. Clinton is standing beside him – very close – smiling, nodding, clapping. So close it’d be hard to take a picture of one and not the other.
“Together we have begun a political revolution to transform America and that revolution continues,” Sanders say.
The two took the stage to the Bruce Springsteen song, We take care of our own (this is Sanders’ usual music):
I been knocking on the door that holds the throne
I been looking for the map that leads me home
I been stumbling on good hearts turned to stone
The road of good intentions has gone dry as a bone
We take care of our own
We take care of our own
Wherever this flag’s flown
We take care of our own
Updated
Hillary and Bernie live onstage - together at last pic.twitter.com/PuOeK2BWmW
— Paul Owen (@PaulTOwen) July 12, 2016
Sanders thanks '13m Americans who voted for me'
Sanders speaks first. “Let me begin by thanking the 13m Americans who voted for me during the Democratic primaries. And thank you New Hampshire for giving us our first great victory!”
Clinton and Sanders are onstage together. Here’s that live stream again:
Two new polls suggest that the US electorate is clearly divided along demographic lines, writes Guardian US data editor Mona Chalabi:
In a survey that looked specifically at young Americans (1,965 adults age 18-30 were interviewed), Hillary Clinton appears to be struggling to win over former Sanders supporters. Only half of the young adults interviewed said they would now be voting for Clinton after their first choice of Sanders had dropped out of the race.
The survey by GenForward also showed how support varies by race and ethnicity. When young black Americans were asked about the former secretary of state, 64% said they had a favorable opinion of her compared to 49% of young Hispanic adults and just 26% of young white adults.
The second poll, released today by Bloomberg Politics, suggests a clear difference in voter intention based on educational background. Among college-educated voters, 54% say they plan to vote for Clinton while 32% said they would be voting for Donald Trump in November. But these results should be treated with extra caution - Bloomberg, in conjunction with Purple insights, spoke to just 653 likely voters to generate their percentages.
Stronger together / Bernie or Bust:
Representative Darrell Issa is questioning Loretta Lynch. He asks her if she took an oath and prepared for the hearing. Is that correct?
Yeah.
Issa says she has been avoiding saying Yes or No. He says Clinton said that she did not send or receive any information marked classified. Is that true?
“I believe her statements are on the record and I refer you to that,” Lynch says.
Issa: What do I tell my constituents when handling classified information carelessly has no criminal ramifications when “they know that their friends and colleagues have been fired for less.”
Lynch: I don’t know about your friends and colleagues. Every case is different.
Issa and Lynch talk over one another. Issa asks whether there were any political appointees on the FBI inquiry team.
Lynch: We don’t go into the roster. “Everyone on the team was a career individual.”
Issa asks again about political appointees. Lynch won’t answer directly. “The investigative team was composed of career prosecutors and agents.”
He asks again.
Lynch: “All of them were career lawyers or seasoned investigators.”
Issa: I’ll take that as a no.
Guardian Washington bureau chief Dan Roberts is at the Sanders-Clinton rally. And finds an outlier:
“Donald Trump is focused on tearing us apart,” Hassan says. “Trump has demonstrated that he is temperamentally unfit to serve as commander-in-chief.”
“Unfortunately it’s not a surprise that senator Ayotte supports Trump for president, because at core they both agree on an agenda that will pull us backward.”
She mentions Planned Parenthood, Roe v Wade and the supreme court. “That is the Trump-Ayotte agenda.”
"Let's all give a big hand to my good friend and warmongering corporate sellout, Hillary Clinton!" - Bernie Sanders, in a few minutes
— Jeffrey Young (@JeffYoung) July 12, 2016
Updated
New Hampshire governor Maggie Hassan, a Democrat who’s running for the senate, seeking to dislodge Republican Kelly Ayotte (in one of six or seven good senate pickup opportunities for the Democrats), is addressing the crowd at the Sanders-Clinton event.
“The Trump-Ayotte ticket does not work for New Hampshire families!” she says.
“Maggie! Maggie! Maggie!” the crowd chants. It sounds like “Bernie! Bernie! Bernie!”
Updated
Sanders to endorse Clinton
The Sanders-Clinton rally is warming up. Here’s a live video feed:
Republicans in contortions over same-sex marriage and other social issues
In the ongoing political battle over LGBT rights, social conservatives bent but didn’t break as the Republican party drafted its 2016 platform Monday evening, writes Guardian politics reporter Ben Jacobs:
With the campaign of presumptive nominee Donald Trump relatively unengaged in the platform process, Republican activists from across the country spent Monday hashing out their differences on same-sex marriage and other thorny social issues ranging from transgender bathroom access to Internet pornography.
In a cavernous downtown convention center, Republicans spent 12 hours of their two-day marathon to determine the party’s policy manifesto for the coming election in small subcommittees and before a televised assembly of a full committee of 112. The meetings were at times contentious but rarely adversarial.
The proposed language in the platform – which called for a constitutional amendment to overturn the supreme court’s decision in Obergefell v Hodges that overturned all state bans on same-sex marriage – represented a notable shift from past years. In 2012, the platform called for a constitutional amendment to legally define marriage as “the union of one man and one woman”.
Read the full piece here:
And for today’s action inside the platform committee, follow Ben on Twitter:
RNC platform committee members now debating about whether to be as bold as Ted Cruz in naming gays & lesbians as particular targets of ISIS
— Ben Jacobs (@Bencjacobs) July 12, 2016
RNC platform committee now voting on whether to strike specific mention gays and lesbians as victims of ISIS
— Ben Jacobs (@Bencjacobs) July 12, 2016
RNC committee members who voted to keep mention of LGBT members as victims of ISIS in the platform pic.twitter.com/6xQgDQLiCO
— Ben Jacobs (@Bencjacobs) July 12, 2016
Here’s Jim Sensenbrenner of Wisconsin. He accuses Lynch of punting by accepting Comey’s recommendation not to prosecute Clinton. Of course before Comey’s decision, Lynch came under pressure to recuse herself. A Catch-22 for Lynch.
Goodlatte is prying at the seam of what FBI director Comey said about Hillary Clinton’s emails and what Clinton said publicly. The two versions contradict, as the RNC has starkly pointed out in a video:
Lynch is avoiding comment about any contradictions between Comey and Clinton.
Goodlatte: “Is intent to violate the law a requirement?”
Lynch: “I think the statutes that were considered here speak for themselves.” She says she can’t get into the details of the investigation or the case, because she was not on the investigating team.
Goodlatte notes that Lynch is a two-time federal appointee by Bill Clinton.
Why did you not see fit to recuse yourself from the emails case? Or appoint a special prosecutor?
Lynch says “when the referral came into the department of justice, it was received and referred to” career prosecutors. “The matter was handled like any other matter... there was no need for recusal or an independent prosecutor.”
Goodlatte: But why was the meeting with Bill Clinton on the plane not grounds for recusal?
“With respect to my conversation... it was a conversation that was held on the airplane... I agreed to say hello and we had a social conversation. Nothing of any relationship to the email investigation was discussed” and they didn’t talk about any other potential justice department investigations, Lynch says.
Lynch addresses the FBI investigation of Clinton’s emails.
“As you are aware, last week I met with director Comey... I received and accepted their unanimous recommendation... and while I understand that this investigation has” attracted significant public attention, “as attorney general, it would be inappropriate for me to comment further on the facts... I am extremely proud of the work” of the agents and prosecutors.
Lynch reads her opening statement. She says the justice department has offered aid in the fatal shootings at a Michigan courthouse Monday. “This incident follows on the heels of a series of devastating events,” she says. She names the five Dallas officers killed Thursday, as well as Philando Castile and Alton Sterling, black men gunned down by police last week.
Trump: Sanders 'selling out'
Donald Trump, the branding king, accuses Bernie Sanders, the lifelong class warrior, of being a sellout:
Bernie Sanders, who has lost most of his leverage, has totally sold out to Crooked Hillary Clinton. He will endorse her today - fans angry!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 12, 2016
I am somewhat surprised that Bernie Sanders was not true to himself and his supporters. They are not happy that he is selling out!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 12, 2016
A Pew Research poll published less than a week ago found that among Sanders supporters, “85% say they plan to vote for Clinton in the general election, compared with 9% who say they will vote for Trump and 6% who volunteer that they will voter for another candidate or don’t know.”
Trump once – not long ago – hoped to capture Sanders voters. “For all of those Bernie Sanders voters who will be left out in the cold by a rigged system of superdelegates, we welcome you with open arms,” Trump said on 8 June.
Conyers says he and Goodlatte are “on the precipice of legislation on policing reform.” He questions why they’re not working on that instead of holding a hearing about Hillary Clinton.
Here’s the ranking member, Representative John Conyers of Michigan. “It will not have escaped your attention that we’re in the middle of an election season,” Conyers says.
Goodlatte says Comey’s recommendation not to prosecute in the emails case “defies logic and the law.”
It appears it’s going to be, on the Republican side, an investigation of a possible conspiracy by Lynch-Comey-Clintons to exonerate Clinton in the emails case.
“The American people expect government officials to abide by the law like everyone else... that is not the case for former secretary of state Hillary Clinton,” says Goodlatte.
“The timing of and circumstances surrounding this announcement are particularly troubling.”
Goodlatte notes that Lynch met privately with Bill Clinton. “This encounter is even more troubling if the FBI is investigating improper donations to the Clinton Foundation.”
Lynch is seated. Chairman Bob Goodlatte of Virginia begins. He starts in on the “murder [of] five police officers” in Dallas. He refers to the “tragic and fatal shootings in Minnesota and Louisiana last week.” He asks for a moment of silence.
Lynch testifies about Hillary Clinton's emails
Attorney general Loretta Lynch is testifying this morning before the House judiciary committee, where she is expected to face questions about her meeting last month with Bill Clinton, the FBI investigation of Hillary Clinton’s emails and other topics.
We’ll be listening in. Here’s a live video feed of the hearing:
Hello and welcome to our live-wire coverage of the 2016 race for the White House. After a 15-month-long battle, Bernie Sanders is expected to endorse Hillary Clinton for president this morning at a joint appearance at a high school in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
In 2008, Clinton and Barack Obama traveled to the Granite State to lay to rest their rivalry. This year, New Hampshire is a hotbed of Sanders support (he won the primary by a whopping 22.4%) and a swing state. Local Democrats are excited.
The pair plans to “discuss their commitment to building an America that is stronger together and an economy that works for everyone, not just those at the top,” said Sanders. Read further about the Clinton-Sanders coming-together here:
In the early afternoon, President Barack Obama and former president George W Bush are scheduled to speak at a memorial service in Dallas following last Thursday’s shootings. Obama is recently back from a Nato summit; Dallas is Bush’s hometown.
— Matt Mackowiak (@MattMackowiak) July 12, 2016
This evening, Donald Trump will be joined by Indiana governor Mike Pence at a campaign rally in Westfield, Indiana. Pence is said to be on Trump’s short list of potential running mates, along with Newt Gingrich, Chris Christie and perhaps others. Gingrich, said to also be under consideration for a top national security post in a Trump administration, thinks Trump will make his veep announcement on Thursday or Friday, none too soon as the Republican national convention goes live for the world to see on Monday.
Just in: Ret Gen McChrystal tells me “I have not been contacted by #Trump campaign. If contacted I would decline consideration for any role"
— Jim Sciutto (@jimsciutto) July 12, 2016
Republicans prep for convention
House majority leader Kevin McCarthy will speak at the Republican national convention next week, officials announced, joining a slate of speakers that includes House speaker Paul Ryan and senators Ted Cruz and Joni Ernst.
Republican leaders debating the party platform in Cleveland are scheduled today to address immigration and trade issues, including the Trans Pacific Partnership, which the party wholeheartedly endorsed in 2012. The group spent Monday hashing out their differences on same-sex marriage and other thorny social issues ranging from transgender bathroom access to Internet pornography. Social conservatives “bent but didn’t break” in the debate, reports Ben Jacobs:
Trump appears to make up ground in polling
One week after the FBI director called her “extremely careless” in her handling of classified information, Clinton appears to have slipped a bit in the polls, with the latest edition of a weekly tracking poll by NBC News / Survey Monkey, released Tuesday morning, showing Clinton ahead of Trump by three points, 47-44. One week ago the poll had Clinton up by five points; a week before that it was eight points. Polling averages have Clinton up by 3.7 points (HuffPost pollster) and 4.5 points (RealClearPolitics). Both averages portray a tightening race in the last two weeks.
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