Former Clinton adviser Philippe Reines said Wednesday that no Democratic candidate would have beaten President Trump in the 2016 race.
“I don’t think any Democrat would’ve beaten Donald Trump, aside from President Obama,” Mr. Reines said at a Washington Center event.
Mr. Reines was a longtime adviser to Hillary Clinton from her time in the Senate throughout her failed 2016 presidential campaign.
He said that polls show that one out of five voters who voted for Mr. Trump also voted for Mr. Obama and continued to approve of the job Mr. Obama was doing in office.
Mr. Reines also said that even a popular figure such as former Vice President Joseph R. Biden would’ve faced enormous burdens as the Democratic candidate.
“[Mr. Biden] would’ve been bogged down by Obamacare,” Mr. Reines said. “He would’ve been bogged down by trade. He would’ve have been bogged down by being in Washington for decades. And those things alone were probably dispositive.”
SEE ALSO: Philippe Reines, Hillary Clinton aide, doubts Democrat defeat of Trump in 2020
But Mr. Reines also said former FBI Director James Comey is somewhat to blame.
“If there’s something I could’ve done differently, I would’ve [waited] outside of Jim Comey’s car on July 5, before his infamous press conference, and tackled him until someone with some sense could say, ’This is very inappropriate what you’re about to do,’” he said.
Mr. Comey gave a press conference announcing Mrs. Clinton had not broken any laws with using a private email server for her work at the State Department, but said it wasn’t advised. He later reopened the investigation when new emails were discovered in October 2016.
As far as mistakes Mrs. Clinton herself made, Mr. Reines said she’s acknowledged them in her tell-all book, “What Happened.”
“She writes that calling that [a] big basket of Trump voters deplorable was not the greatest idea,” Mr. Reines said. “Although, I think she was plenty accurate at the time, and especially in hindsight.
“There were comments she made about coal workers that were taken differently than they were meant,” he added.
But he said the woman he’s worked with for nearly 15 years won’t be exiting the public stage anytime soon.
“She’s not going anywhere,” he said.
• Sally Persons can be reached at spersons@washingtontimes.com.
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