WASHINGTON — 270 Strategies Founding Partner Mitch Stewart, former Battleground States Director on the 2012 Obama campaign and Iowa Caucus Director on the 2008 Obama campaign appeared on CNN’s The Lead today to discuss internal dissension within the Republican Party and the state of the #NeverTrump movement following last night’s GOP debate.
Sciutto: “Jim Webb, who ran of course for the Democratic nomination, Democratic senator, he said today he would not vote for Hillary Clinton, but interestingly he left open the possibility that he would support Donald Trump.”
Webb: “No, I would not vote for Hillary Clinton…I’m not sure yet [if I would vote for Donald Trump], I don’t know who I’m going to vote for…if you’re voting for Donald Trump you may get something very good or very bad, if you’re voting for Hillary Clinton you’re going to be getting the same thing.”
Sciutto: “So to have a Democratic senator, former Democratic presidential candidate swear off the presumptive Democratic nominee, but also leave the door open to a Republican candidate who many Republican candidates have sworn off, what does this say about the state of this race?”
Stewart: “I was actually the State Director for then Senator Obama in 2008 in Virginia and had a chance to work with Senator Webb a little bit. I’ve never met a politician who hates politics more than he does. And if you remember, he was a Republican for a while, and then he was a Democrat, and then most recently he was an Independent or at least flirted with being an Independent, and so I don’t take too much into this. I don’t think he has a movement behind him that represents any sort of significant number of votes in comparison to what you’re seeing with the #NeverTrump movement. I mean there are people who are literally going to leave the Republican Party or have vowed not to support or vote for him. You’re not seeing that with Secretary Clinton on the Democratic side.”
