Obama privately urging wealthy donors to support Elizabeth Warren in 2020 presidential election, claims report
Former President Barack Obama is reportedly telling wealthy donors that the 2020 Democratic presidential candidate, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), is a formidable contender and could win the presidential poll next year.
Obama, over the recent months, has privately praised Warren to top donors who are wary of her anti-Wall Street stance, according to The Hill. The Massachusetts senator's campaign has shunned taking contributions from Democrat bundlers and wealthy donors in a break from her past fundraising process where she received donations from such donors in her 2018 Senate campaign.
The former president has reportedly said that Warren could potentially become the Democratic nominee for 2020, and if she wins the nomination against President Donald Trump then the Democratic party must come together to back her race.
"He’s asked all of the candidates who have sought his advice three questions: Is your family behind you? Why you? And why now? She checked the box for all,” an unnamed Obama ally told The Hill. "I think he feels licensed to give an opinion on her because he’s ‘hired’ her."
One of the Democratic donors, while talking to the outlet, said that Obama takes her progressive agenda seriously and considers her "very smart". "He sees her running the campaign with the most depth," the donor said.
Obama has also spoken warmly of his former Vice President Joe Biden, who is the frontrunner of the 2020 Democratic race. The former president, earlier this year, had ruled against endorsing Biden's presidential campaign and reportedly told another candidate that Biden does not have an "intimate bond" with his voters.
The former president, who served two consecutive terms, during an event last month, had urged the candidates to "chill out".
"We will not win just by increasing the turnout of the people who already agree with us completely on everything," Obama had said.
"Which is why I am always suspicious of purity tests during elections. Because, you know what, the country is complicated. We have a number of women candidates and we have one gay candidate. And those candidates are going to have barriers if they win the nomination, or they win the general election — just like I did,” he added. “You can overcome that resistance if the way you are framing these issues and messages indicate, 'Look, I’m part of an American tradition… of opening up opportunity'.”