Sanders says California primary is the "big enchilada"

WATCH LIVE NEWS Breaking Political Fox News Chat Donald Trump Interview Hannity Hillary Clinton

Sen. Bernie Sanders on Sunday called California the big enchilada in his bid to overtake Hillary Clinton and claim the Democratic presidential nomination.

Asked on NBCs "Meet the Press" about his chances of winning, Sanders acknowledged that he needed to do very well in the June 7primary.

What I want to do, and I think we can, is win California here, and win under the big vote, do very, very well in the other five states, Sanders said.

ModeratorChuck Toddasked if his campaign is over if he loses in California.

No, Sanders replied.

California is very, very important, 475 superdelegates. Obviously if we don"t do well in California, it will make our pathmuch harder.No question about it. But I think we have a good chance to winning California, maybe win big, and maybe win four or five of the other states that are off on June 7th.California is the big enchilada, so to speak.

Sanders said Donald Trump would be disaster as president and pledged to do everything that I can to make sure that does not happen.

But he said a Democratic victory required a focus on working families, not Wall Street.

If Secretary Clinton is the nominee, it is her job to reach out to millions of people and make the case as to why she is going to defend working families and the middle, provide healthcare for all people, take on Wall Street, deal aggressively with climate change. That is the candidate"s job to do, he said.

That focus, he said, also extended to Clinton"s eventual pick of a running mate. Todd suggested Sen. Tim Kaine, (D-Va.), who is thought to be on Clinton"s VP short list, might be too conservative for Sanders.

Sanders said only that he liked Kaine, but that "for Democrats to win, they are going to have to address the needs of working people."

Asked whether he would use his clout to push for stronger recognition of the plight of Palestinians livingunder Israeli control in the West Bank, Sanders stressed he remains "100% pro-Israel in the sense of Israel"s right to exist" but added that "the United States has got to respect the needs of the Palestinian people. They cannot be pushed aside."

Source: http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-trailguide-05292016-sanders-say-california-primary-1464531278-htmlstory.html

Continue Reading ..

Asian-American Lawmakers Endorse Hillary Clinton Ahead Of California Primary

Hillary Clinton campaigns for California primary

WASHINGTON -- An influential group of Asian-American lawmakers endorsed Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clintonin Los Angeles on Tuesday, giving her a boost ahead of next week"s California primary.

The Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus Leadership PAC, which includes several representatives and senators from California, urged Asian-American and Pacific Islander voters to back Clinton to combat presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump"s anti-immigrant rhetoric.

"There is so much at stake in this election, and we cannot tolerate any presidential candidate who promotes fear tactics, hateful rhetoric against immigrants and bullying," CAPAC chair Rep. Judy Chu (D-Calif.) said on Tuesday, alluding to Trump.

"We AAPIs must turn out the vote and ensure that our voice matters," Chu said. "We must support the candidate who will bring us together, and make our nation more equal and just for everyone -- and that person is Hillary Clinton."

Clinton is preparing to officially clinch the Democratic presidential nomination after the California primary on June 7, and is hoping for a substantial victory that day. However, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has also invested heavily in the state, and the race may be tighter than expected.

Clinton"s campaign has focused on outreach to Asian-Americans, and she has outperformed Sanders with minority voters in other states. The fastest growing minority group in the country, Asian-Americans make up a significant voting bloc in California, comprising over12 percent of the state"s eligible voting population.

In addition to touting endorsements from the state"s Asian-American lawmakers, Clinton"s campaign is running targeted ads and conducting voter outreach in Mandarin, Cantonese, Vietnamese and Korean.

Damian Dovarganes/ASSOCIATED PRESS

Clinton at an Asian-American voter outreach event in San Gabriel, California in January.

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/hillary-clinton-asian-americans-california-primary_us_574dfce2e4b0af73af95b4c4

Continue Reading ..