As WikiLeaks continues to leak emails from the Clinton campaign, new lights are shed on the tactics that the campaign has employed. In one such email, the Clinton campaign describes a call with several bloggers who discussed attacks that could be made against Clinton’s primary opponent Bernie Sanders related to racial and reproductive rights.
These liberal bloggers include Sady Doyle and The Guardian's Jessica Valenti, who published a piece on Sanders abortion “platitudes” only days later. Another email thread suggests that while the Clinton campaign was aware of these hits, they were eager to keep their role in the pieces a secret.
While at least part of this can be explained away under the guise of normal campaign strategy, these emails do play into the serious problems that many already believe Clinton has. Not only did her campaign attempt to keep their role in these articles a secret, they also took advantage of connections in a way that plays into the narrative of Clinton as an “establishment” candidate.
With Clinton’s lead in the polls solid, it’s unclear if these new leaks will do substantial damage, even if they don’t necessarily help her. After all, her opponent is degrading democracy itself by spurning the peaceful transition of presidential power.
Sanders, meanwhile, has thrown his full support behind Clinton, and has argued publicly that his supporters’ goal should be to elect her.