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In New Hampshire, Bernie Sanders Endorses Hillary Clinton. Transcribed Clinton and Sanders Remarks.

In New Hampshire, Bernie Sanders Endorses Hillary Clinton

In Portsmouth, New Hampshire on Tuesday, Hillary Clinton and Senator Bernie Sanders came together to discuss their commitment to building an America that is stronger together and an economy that works for everyone, not just those at the top.

After thanking Sen. Sanders for his endorsement and pointing to the importance of standing together, Clinton said, "And now, with your help, we are joining forces to defeat Donald Trump, win in November, and yes, together build a future we can all believe in."

Clinton's and Sanders' remarks, as transcribed, are below:

HILLARY CLINTON:

"Thank you! That was so great.

Hello, New Hampshire! It is so great, it is so great to be here with so many friends, old and new.  to be back with so many friends old and new.

Thank you! Thank you so much. I have to say it is such a great privilege to be here with Senator Sanders. Being here with him and New Hampshire, I can’t help but reflect on how much more enjoyable this election is going to be now that we’re on the same side. Because you know what? We are stronger together.

And I want to give a special thanks to someone who has been with Senator Sanders every step of the way, not just throughout this campaign but over the years, his wonderful wife, Jane Sanders.

And also I’ve had the pleasure of meeting his son, Levi Sanders! Thank you!

I also appreciate greatly having the opportunity for all of us to hear from the speakers beforehand, Governor Maggie Hassan, the next Senator from the state of New Hampshire!

Senator Jeanne Shaheen who is doing a tremendous job for you.

And we are delighted to have heard from and to have with us Bill McKibben and Jim Dean.

Over these last few weeks, Bernie and I have worked together on plans to put college within reach for more people, and to ensure that everyone in America has access to quality, affordable health care. And now, with your help, we are joining forces to defeat Donald Trump, win in November, and yes, together build a future we can all believe in.

Just as Bernie said, over the years, I’ve gotten to know him as a colleague and a friend. His reputation for passionate advocacy hasn’t always made him the most popular person in Washington. But you know what? That’s generally a sign you’re doing something right.

Throughout this campaign Senator Sanders has brought people off the sidelines and into the political process. He has energized and inspired a generation of young people who care deeply about our country, and are building a movement that is bigger than one candidate or one campaign.

So thank you, thank you Bernie – for your endorsement, but more than that, thank you for your  lifetime of fighting injustice. I am proud to be fighting alongside you because my friends, this is a time for all of us to stand together. These have been difficult times for America.

This is a time for all of us to stand together – because these have been difficult days for our country.  

Taking on the systemic racism that plagues our country – and rebuilding the frayed bonds of trust and respect between law enforcement and the communities they serve – will require contributions from all of us. And we have to begin by starting to listen to each other. And more than that, we then have to do something that will help us fix these problems.

We have to reform our broken criminal justice system, take back our democracy from the wealthy special interests, and make our economy work for everyone, not just those at the top. And you know what? We have to do all these things at the same time.

That’s why throughout this campaign, we’ve been calling for eliminating racial profiling and disparities in sentencing. Ending the era of mass incarceration, dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline, providing more employment opportunities for formerly incarcerated people.

In addition to that, I am proposing two new steps that get law enforcement the support they need while also stopping the tragedy, the tragedy of black men and women – and black children – being killed in police incidents.

First, let’s bring law enforcement and the communities they swear to protect and serve together to develop national guidelines on the use of force by police officers.  
And second, let’s provide better training on implicit bias, that remains a problem even in our best police departments but it also remains a problem across our society.

I’m asking for all of us to really search our hearts and minds to make sure that we don’t have those implicit biases. Let’s learn from police departments like Dallas that had made strong progress, and apply their lessons nationwide. Because everyone in every community benefits when there is respect for the law and when everyone is respected by the law.

Remember, when gunfire broke out in Dallas, the peaceful protestors and the crowds that had gathered to support them ran to safety, while the police officers – who just minutes before had been talking with and taking pictures with and protecting the protesters – the police officers ran the other way – they ran into the gunfire. That’s the kind of courage and dedication our police and first responders show every single day.

So yes – let’s take real, meaningful action to end the epidemic of gun violence in America. From Sandy Hook to Orlando to Dallas, and so many other places, these tragedies tear at our soul. And so do the incidents that don’t even dominate the headlines. Just this past Sunday, a young man, Seth Rich, who worked for the Democratic National Committee to expand voting rights, was shot and killed in his neighborhood in Washington. He was just 27 years old.  

Surely we can agree that weapons of war have no place on the streets of America. Our police and first responders should never have to face a madman, a racist, a person filled with hatred, with an assault weapon. We owe it to every officer who puts his or her life on the line to protect us – so let’s protect them.

And we can’t stop there. This is part of a broader challenge across our country. Inequality is too high, wages are too low, and it is just too hard to get ahead for too many Americans.

We need an economy that works for everyone, not just those at the top. Not just the millionaires and billionaires but everybody.

And to do that, we need to go big and we need to go bold. This isn’t a time for half measures. So we are setting five ambitious goals.

For starters, in my first 100 days as President, we will make the biggest investment in new, good-paying jobs since World War II.  

More jobs here in New Hampshire and across our country, especially in places that have been left out and left behind. In communities of color. In coal country. Indian Country. Everywhere where a person deserves the same shot at the American Dream as anybody else in our country.

And when I say good-paying jobs, I mean it. As Bernie said, Donald Trump thinks wages are too high. He actually stood on a debate stage and said so. He does want to get rid of the federal minimum wage altogether.  

Well, both Senator Sanders and I believe anyone who is willing to work hard should be able to find a job that pays well enough to support a family. And Bernie is right – $7.25 an hour is a starvation wage. So sorry Donald, if you’re watching, we’re not cutting the minimum wage – we’re raising the minimum wage.

We’re going to create millions of good jobs by making America the clean energy superpower of the 21st century. As Bernie reminds us so powerfully, we owe it to future generations to work together to combat climate change.  And we're going to do it. We've got the intelligence. We've got the innovation. We're going to roll up our sleeves and demonstrate to the world what America is made of. We're going to have that clean energy economy. We're going to make it work for everybody.

And make no mistake – we will defend American jobs and American workers by saying ‘no’ to the assaults on the right to organize and bargain collectively. And we’re going to say ‘no’ to attacks on working families and ‘no’ to bad trade deals and unfair trade practices, including the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Second, we’re going to make college debt-free for all and help millions of people struggling with existing student debt save thousands of dollars.

Here in New Hampshire, students are carrying one of the highest debt loads in the country. I’ve heard from young people who can’t start a business, move out of their parents’ home, or even get married because of all the student debt holding them back.  

So with your help, we’re going to make it so future students won’t have to borrow a dime to attend public colleges or universities. Thanks to the new proposal Senator Sanders and I worked on together, for families making less than $125,000 a year, we will eliminate tuition at those schools altogether. And we will do more to help students cover all the costs of getting an education – including books, supplies, and living expenses.

Because in the words of a student I met here in New Hampshire, ‘paying for college shouldn’t be the hardest thing about going to college.’

Third, we’re going to rewrite the rules, and crack down on companies that ship jobs and profits overseas. Let’s reward the companies that share profits with their employees instead.  

And we will defend and strengthen the tough reforms President Obama put in place on the financial industry – not let Donald Trump tear them up. Because we do, we do need to make sure that Wall Street can never wreck Main Street again.

Number four, we’re going to make sure Wall Street, corporations, and the super-rich pay their fair share of taxes. When people say the game is rigged, the best evidence is our tax code. It is riddled with scams, loopholes, and special breaks. It is wrong that some millionaires do pay a lower tax rate than their secretaries, and we’re going to stop it.

Now compare what Senator Sanders and I intend to do with Donald Trump’s tax plan. His tax plan would make our current system even worse. Independent analysts say he would add $30 trillion to the national debt in order to give a massive gift to the wealthiest Americans, Wall Street money managers, and our largest corporations. But after all, what else should we expect from someone who calls himself ‘the King of Debt’?

Now we have been pointing out the problems with his tax plan for months. And  I think Donald is starting to feel the pressure.

In fact, even as we speak, he’s apparently bringing in the biggest names in trickle-down, supply-side economics to help him figure out what to do – now these are the same advisors who brought us 30 years of a disastrous Republican philosophy that gave the huge breaks to those at the top.

Now you don’t have to be psychic to know what’s going to happen next: they’re going to come back with another plan with maybe some bells and whistles, Bernie, that tries to disguise the fact that they still are slashing taxes for the wealthy, large corporations, and Donald Trump himself. And they’ll try to use voodoo economics to tell us all the ways it will actually help the economy.

But they’re not fooling anybody, at least I hope they’re not. Just like his current plan – which he calls ‘inspiring,’ ‘tremendous,’ and ‘amazing’ – you know, he uses a lot of adjectives to avoid telling you any specifics. Here’s what we know for sure: whatever he comes out with next is going to give huge tax cuts to the corporations and the rich at the expense of the middle class.

Now there’s that old saying, you’ve heard it, I used to hear it a lot in Arkansas, you can put lipstick on a pig – but it’s still a pig.  

And I’ve got to tell you, the first time that the Republicans pulled the voodoo economics, you know, they fooled us. Shame on them. But if they come back with the same argument and people fall for it, shame on us. But I will promise you this, Senator Sanders and I will spare no effort to make sure the people of America know that once again Trump and his cronies are trying to pull the wool over our eyes and come back with the same failed policies that hurt us before.

We’re not going to let them get away with it again.

And finally, our fifth goal is we’re going to step up and respond to the way American families actually live and work in the 21st century. Our families and our workplaces have changed, so isn’t it time for our policies to change too?

Let’s expand Social Security to match today’s realities, not cut or privatize it.

Let’s join the rest of the developed world and offer paid family leave.

And finally, let’s guarantee equal pay for women once and for all.

I can just envision the tweets Donald is putting together. And Donald Trump can accuse me of playing ‘the woman card’ all he wants. If fighting for equal pay and paid family leave is playing the woman card, then deal me in.

And I’ll tell you, these aren’t just my fights. These are Bernie’s fights. These are America’s fights. And I feel with all my being, these are fights we have to wage and win together.

As Bernie and his supporters have argued so eloquently, we won’t get anywhere unless we overhaul our campaign finance system.

It is past time to end the stranglehold of wealthy special interests in Washington, and get back to government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

That’s why as president from my very first days, I’ll make campaign finance reform a top priority. We will do everything we can to overturn Citizens United. And we will require everybody – Democrats, Republicans, and Independents, whoever – to disclose their donors.

And while we’re at it, we are going to create a small-donor matching system to make it easy for more Americans to be elected at every level of government. Because just like Bernie, I’ve met so many people here in New Hampshire with great ideas for our country. I want to see you run for office and win.

And here’s another radical idea: Let's make it easier to vote, not harder. Let’s fight back against attacks on voting rights across the country – attacks that disproportionately affect low-income voters, people of color, students, the elderly, and women.

That means we need to restore the Voting Rights Act and then keep going. All Americans should be automatically registered to vote on their 18th birthday. Every state should have at least 20 days of in-person voting. And no one in America should ever have to wait more than 30 minutes to cast their ballot.

So Senator Sanders and I will be working to get unaccountable money out of politics and the voices of everyday Americans back in.

Because as Bernie has said: This isn’t a progressive issue. It’s not a conservative issue. It’s an American issue.

And let me close with this: To everyone here and everyone across the country who poured your heart and soul into Senator Sanders’ campaign, thank you. Thank you. I was proud of the campaign we ran, it was a campaign about issues not insults. And our country desperately needs your voices and involvement and so does this campaign and so does the Democratic Party. Because you know what? we need to take back the Senate and take back the House and make sure we have Democratic governors and Democratic state legislators. Let’s open the doors to everyone who shares our progressive values.

This is one of the most important elections in our lifetimes. So I’m asking you to stand with us.  And then, I’m asking you to keep working with me in the weeks, months, and, yes, years ahead. You will always have a seat at the table when I’m in the White House.

As Bernie will tell you, talk is cheap. We need to keep fighting to make sure everything we’ve stood for is real in the lives of people across America.

This amazing country of ours is worthy of our best efforts. This election, let’s send a clear message: In America, we don’t tear each other down – we lift each other up. We build bridges, not walls. We put common interest ahead of self-interest. We stand together because we’re stronger together.  

So I need your help. Please join this campaign. Make it your own. You can take out your phone right now and text JOIN, J-O-I-N, to 47246. Or go tohillaryclinton.com. We accept $27 donations, too, you know.

I can’t tell you how grateful I am to be standing here with Senator Sanders. Because I think both of us realize that each of our campaigns together represent the best of who we are. And now it is time for us to take that message to the rest of the country. I am fully aware that the other side will do everything possible to distort, to misinform, and we can’t let that happen. We have to be standing up and fighting for the America that we know we can create together. I am confident and optimistic about our future, particularly when it comes to young people. I think America’s best years are still ahead of us. So join with us. Let's make this happen together and win the election!

Thank you very much!"

SENATOR SANDERS:

“Bill McKibben, Jim Dean, Governor Hassan, Senator Shaheen, thank you very much for your kind remarks.  And let me begin by thanking the 13 million Americans who voted for me during the Democratic primaries. And thank you, New Hampshire, for giving us our first great victory. And a very special thanks to the people of the state of Vermont whose support for so many years – as a Mayor, as a Congressman, as a Senator and as a presidential candidate – have sustained me and Jane and our entire family.  Vermont, thank you.

Let me also thank the hundreds of thousands of volunteers throughout this country, in every state in the Union, who worked so hard on our campaign and the millions of contributors who showed the world that we could run a successful national campaign based on small individual contributions – two and a half million of them.

Together, we have begun a political revolution to transform America and that revolution continues. Together, we will continue to fight for a government which represents all of us, and not just the 1 percent – a government based on the principles of economic, social, racial and environmental justice.

I am proud of the campaign we ran here in New Hampshire and across the country.  Our campaign won the primaries and caucuses in 22 states, and when the roll call at the Democratic National Convention is announced, it will show that we won almost 1,900 delegates.  Far more than almost anyone thought we could win.  But it is not enough to win the nomination.  Secretary Clinton goes into the convention with 389 more pledged delegates than we have and a lot more super delegates.

Secretary Clinton has won the Democratic nominating process. And I congratulate her for that.  She will be the Democratic nominee for president and I intend to do everything I can to make certain she will be the next president of the United States.

I have come here today not to talk about the past but to focus on the future. That future will be shaped more by what happens on November 8th in voting booths across our nation than by any other event in the world.  I have come here to make it as clear as possible as to why I am endorsing Hillary Clinton – and why she must become our next president.

During the last year I have had the extraordinary opportunity – an extraordinary opportunity to speak to more than 1.4 million Americans at rallies in almost every state in our country.  I was also able to meet with many thousands of other people at smaller gatherings.  And the profound lesson that I have learned is that this campaign is not really about Hillary Clinton, or Donald Trump, or Bernie Sanders, or any other candidate who sought the presidency.  This campaign is about the needs of the American people and addressing – and addressing the very serious crises that we face.  And there is no doubt in my mind that, as we head into November, Hillary Clinton is far and away the best candidate to do that. It is very easy to forget – and Republicans want us to forget – where we were seven and a half years ago when President Obama came into office. As a result of the greed, recklessness and illegal behavior on Wall Street, our economy was in the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.  Some 800,000 people a month were losing their jobs, we were running up a record-breaking deficit, and the world’s financial system was on the verge of collapse.  We have come a long way in the last seven and a half years and I thank President Obama – I thank President Obama and Vice President Biden for their leadership in pulling us out of that terrible recession. But I think we can all agree that much, much more needs to be done.

Too many Americans are still being left out, left behind and ignored.  In the richest country in the history of the world there is too much poverty, there is too much despair.

This election is about the single mother I saw in Nevada who, with tears in her eyes, told me that she was scared to death of the future because she and her daughter were not making it on the $10.45 cents an hour she was earning.  This election is about that woman, and the millions of other workers in this country who are falling further and further behind as they try to survive on totally inadequate wages.

Hillary Clinton understands that we must fix an economy in America that is rigged and that sends almost all of the new wealth and income to the top one percent. Hillary Clinton understands that if someone in America works 40 hours a week, that person should not be living in poverty. She believes – we all believe – that we must raise the minimum wage to a living wage.

And further, she wants to create millions of new jobs by rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure. Our roads, our bridges, our water systems, our wastewater plants.

But her opponent – Donald Trump – well, he has a very different view. He believes that states should have the right to lower the minimum wage or even abolish the concept of the minimum wage. If Donald Trump is elected, we will see no increase in the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour – a starvation wage.

This election is about which candidate will nominate Supreme Court justices who are – who will nominate Supreme Court justices who are prepared to overturn the disastrous Citizens United decision – a decision which is allowing billionaires to buy elections and is undermining our democracy.  (Applause.)  This election is about who will appoint new justices on the Supreme Court who will defend a woman’s right to choose – who will defend the rights of the LGBT community – who will defend workers’ rights, the needs of minorities and immigrants, and the government’s ability to protect our environment.

If anyone out there thinks that this election is not important, take a moment to think about the Supreme Court justices that Donald Trump will nominate, and what that means to civil liberties, equal rights, and the future of our country.

This campaign is about moving the United States toward universal health care – and reducing the number of people in our country who are uninsured or under-insured. Hillary Clinton wants to see that all Americans have the right to choose a public option in their health care exchange – which will lower the cost of health care for millions.  She also believes that anyone 55 years or older should be able to opt in to Medicare – and she wants to see millions more Americans gain access to primary health care, dental care, mental health counseling, and low-cost prescription drugs – through a major and dramatic expansion of community health centers throughout this country. Hillary is committed to seeing thousands of young doctors, nurses, psychologists, dentists and other medical professionals practice in underserved areas as we follow through on President Obama’s idea of tripling funding for the National Health Service Corps.

In New Hampshire, in Vermont, and across this country, we have a major epidemic of opiate and heroin addiction.  People are dying every day from overdoses.  Hillary Clinton understands that if we are serious about addressing this crisis, we need major changes in the way we deliver mental health treatment throughout this country. And that is what expanding community health centers will do and that is what getting medical personnel into the areas we need them most will do.

And what is Donald Trump’s position on health care? Well, no surprise there. Same old, same old Republican contempt for working families. He wants to abolish the Affordable Care Act – throw 20 million people off of the health insurance they currently have, and cut Medicaid for low-income Americans. The last thing we need today in America is a president who doesn’t care about whether millions of Americans will lose access to the health care coverage they desperately need. We need more people with access to quality health care, not fewer.

Hillary Clinton also understands that millions of our seniors, disabled veterans, and others are struggling with the outrageously high cost of prescription drugs. She and I are in agreement that Medicare must negotiate drug prices with the pharmaceutical industry – and that we must expand the use of generic medicine.  Drug companies should not be making billions in profit while one out of five Americans are unable to afford the medicine they need. The greed of the drug companies must end.

This election is about the grotesque level of income and wealth inequality that currently exists, the worst it has been in our country since 1928.  Hillary Clinton knows that something is fundamentally wrong when the very rich become richer while many others are working longer hours for lower wages. She knows that it is absurd that middle-class Americans are paying an effective tax rate higher than hedge fund millionaires – and that there are corporations in this country that make billions of dollars a year in profit, yet because of the loopholes that their lobbyists created, in a given year, they do not pay a nickel in federal taxes.  That is wrong.

While Hillary Clinton supports making our tax code fairer and more progressive, Donald Trump wants to give hundreds of billions of dollars in tax breaks to the very wealthiest people in this country. His reckless economic policies will not only exacerbate income and wealth inequality, they will increase our national debt by trillions of dollars.

This election is about the thousands of young people I have met throughout this country, who have left college deeply in debt, the many others who cannot afford to go to college, and the need in this country to have the best educated workforce in a highly competitive global economy. Hillary Clinton believes that we must substantially lower student debt, and that we must make public colleges and universities tuition free for the middle-class and working families of this country. This is a major initiative that will revolutionize higher education in this country, and improve the lives of so many of our people.  Think of what it will mean – think of    this – when every child in this country, regardless of the income of his or her family, knows that if they study hard – if they take school seriously, yes, they will be able to get a college education, and leave school without debt.

This election is about climate change, the greatest environmental crisis facing our planet, and a need to leave this world in a way that is healthy and habitable for our children and future generations. Hillary Clinton is listening to the scientists who tell us that if we do not act boldly in the very near future, there will be more drought, more floods, more acidification of the oceans, more rising sea levels.  She understands that we must work with countries around the world in transforming our energy system away from fossil fuel and – away from fossil fuels and into energy efficiency and sustainable energy, and that when we do that, we can create a whole lot of good paying jobs.  Well, Donald Trump, like most Republicans, sadly and tragically is choosing to reject science.  Something no presidential candidate should ever do.  He believes that climate change is a hoax.  In fact, he wants to expand the use of fossil fuels.  That would be a disaster for our country, and for the entire planet.

This election is about the leadership we need to pass comprehensive immigration reform, and repair a broken criminal justice system.  It's about making sure that young people in this country are in good schools, or at good jobs, not in jail cells. Secretary Clinton understands that we do not need to have more people in jail than any other country on Earth, at an expense of $80 billion a year.

In these stressful times for our country, this election must be about bringing our people together, not dividing us up. While Donald Trump is busy insulting Mexicans, and Muslims, and women, and African-Americans, and our veterans, Hillary Clinton understands that our diversity is one of our greatest strengths. Yes, we become stronger when black and white, Latino, Asian-American, Native American, all of us stand together.  Yes, we become stronger when men and women, young and old, gay and straight, native-born and immigrant, fight to rid this country of all forms of bigotry.

It is no secret that Hillary Clinton and I disagree on a number of issues.  That is what this campaign has been about.  That is what democracy is about. But I am happy to tell you that at the Democratic Platform Committee, which ended Sunday night in Orlando, there was a significant coming together between the two campaigns, and we produced – we produced by far the most progressive platform in the history of the Democratic Party. Our job is to see that platform implemented by a democratically controlled Senate, a democratically controlled House, and a Hillary Clinton presidency. And I intend to be in every corner of this country to make certain that it happens.

I have known Hillary Clinton for 25 years.  We were a bit younger then. I remember her as a great First Lady, who broke precedent in terms of the role that a First Lady was supposed to play. And as she helped lead the fight to universal health care, I served with her in the US Senate, and know her as a fierce advocate for the rights of our children.  And I know her, and all of you know her, as one of the most intelligent people that we have ever met.  Hillary Clinton will make an outstanding president, and I am proud to stand with her today.  Thank you all very much.”

2016 Republican National Convention Announces Freedom Plaza

2016 Republican National Convention Announces Freedom Plaza
 
Cleveland, OH - Centered between Quicken Loans Arena and Progressive Field is Freedom Plaza, an open air gathering space unique to the 2016 Republican National Convention. Freedom Plaza will be home to a “Salute to America”; the cuisine and music of the South, East, West, and Midwest will be featured each day of the Convention. All Convention attendees are welcome to grab a drink, indulge in local fare, listen to some great music, and mix and mingle in the hours before and after each Convention session.

"Cleveland has become home for our Convention staff for nearly two years, and we are excited to share the experiences we've enjoyed with the guests coming for the 2016 Republican National Convention," Convention CEO Jeff Larson said. "The Convention is a time of celebration for the Republican party and the Freedom Plaza will help us bring lasting memories to the 2016 Convention."

See below for the full list of entertainers that will be playing during the Republican National Convention:

• Monday, July 18th - Swon Brothers/Hope Country
• Tuesday, July 19th - Super Diamond/Dave Fenley
• Wednesday, July 20th - Lee Brice/Jordy Searcy
• Thursday, July 21st - Hope Country/The Sensations

Freedom Plaza will feature food that represents every corner of the United States, as well as wine and beer made right here in Ohio! Check out what will be available for purchase below:

• Del's Catering - All-American Cheeseburger, Cleveland Polish Boy, Applewood Smoked Pulled Pork or Chicken Sliders, and Macaroni and Cheese
• Southern Food Tent (Marigold Catering) - Grits'n'more, Chicken and Sausage Gumbo, Red Beans and Braised Okra
• Midwest Food Tent (Marigold Catering) - Pierogis, Crispy Cheddar and Bacon Frizzled Onions, Kielbasa with Sweet Peppers and Caramelized Onions, Sour Cream, Pickled Onions and Wild Mushrooms
• East Meets West Food Tent (Marigold Catering) - Braised Beef Brisket or Pulled Pork Tacos with Red Cabbage Slaw and Pickled Red Onions, New England Lobster Roll, Lobster and Shrimp Salad
• Wines from Dark Horse winery and Covey Run winery
• Beers from Brooklyn Brewery, Great Lakes Brewing Company, Thirsty Dog Brewing Company, and Market Garden Brewery

Freedom Plaza will be open for several hours before each session and even after sessions end. Please see the full list of open hours:

• Monday, July 18th - 11 AM - 1 PM and 11 PM - 1 AM
• Tuesday, July 19th - 2:30 - 5:30 PM and 11 PM - 1 AM
• Wednesday, July 20th - 4 - 7 PM and 11 PM - 1 AM
• Thursday, July 21st - 4:30 - 7:30 PM and 11 PM - 1 AM

*Freedom Plaza Hours are subject to change.

MNGOP Chairman Issues Statement On Bernie Sanders Endorsement Of Hillary Clinton

MNGOP Chairman Issues Statement On Bernie Sanders Endorsement Of Hillary Clinton

(Minneapolis, Minn.) - Republican Party of Minnesota Chairman Keith Downey issued the following statement regarding Bernie Sanders endorsement of Hillary Clinton.

"Throughout the Democrat primaries Bernie Sanders has been highly critical of Hillary Clinton, going as far as saying that Clinton is not qualified for the positon of President of the United States and that he doesn't trust her judgement. His half-hearted endorsement today, where he really had no choice, doesn't change anything. The 62% of Democrats in Minnesota who voted for Bernie Sanders know that he was right all along - Hillary Clinton is compromised and untrustworthy and doesn't have the judgment to be President."

Statement from DFL Chairman Ken Martin on Bernie Sanders Endorsement of Hillary Clinton

Statement from DFL Chairman Ken Martin on Sen. Sanders Endorsement of Sec. Clinton

“As Republicans continue to pull themselves apart at the seams, at the very notion of a President Donald Trump, democrats are uniting behind Sec. Hillary Clinton.

“Today, at a rally in New Hampshire, Sen. Bernie Sanders joined the party and endorsed Sec. Clinton to be the next President of the United States. Thanks to Sen. Sanders, many new voices were brought into the party and my sincerest hope is that these supporters continue to engage in party affairs and unite with Democrats across the country to elect Sec. Hillary Clinton as our next president.

“Sen. Sanders’ progressive campaign message of ending economic inequality and building an economy that works for everyone, not just a wealthy few, energized millions of Americans and positively influenced one of the most progressive platforms the Democratic Party has ever seen. Now that our party is united behind a candidate the progressive policies that will put American families first, we can start working together to defeat Donald Trump in November.

“The stakes in this election are too high to be divided. Both Sen. Sanders and Sec. Clinton agree that the best way to ensure Donald Trump’s dangerous vision for America’s future is never realized, is to unite behind the candidate who is uniquely qualified to continue the progress made by President Obama and continue moving our country forward.”

Prepared Remarks at Portsmouth Organizing Event: Bernie Sanders Endorses Hillary Clinton for President

Prepared Remarks at Portsmouth Organizing Event: Bernie Sanders Endorses Hillary Clinton for President

PORTSMOUTH, N.H. --  Declaring that “Hillary Clinton will make an outstanding president and I am proud to stand with her here today,” U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders on Tuesday endorsed the presumptive Democratic Party presidential nominee.

Prepared Remarks

Portsmouth Organizing Event with Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton
July 12, 2016

Let me begin by thanking the 13 million Americans who voted for me during the Democratic primaries. Let me also thank the people here in New Hampshire who gave us our first big win and a special thanks to the people of Vermont whose support for so many years has sustained me.

Let me also thank the hundreds of thousands of volunteers in every state in our country who worked so hard on our campaign and the millions of our contributors who showed the world that we could run a successful national campaign based on small individual contributions – 2 1/2 million of them.

Together, we have begun a political revolution to transform America and that revolution continues. Together, we continue the fight to create a government which represents all of us, and not just the one percent – a government based on the principles of economic, social, racial and environmental justice.

I am proud of the campaign we ran here in New Hampshire and across the country. Our campaign won the primaries and caucuses in 22 states, and when the roll call at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia is announced it will show that we won almost 1,900 delegates. That is a lot of delegates, far more than almost anyone thought we could win. But it is not enough to win the nomination. Secretary Clinton goes into the convention with 389 more pledged delegates than we have and a lot more super delegates.

Secretary Clinton has won the Democratic nominating process, and I congratulate her for that. She will be the Democratic nominee for president and I intend to do everything I can to make certain she will be the next president of the United States.

I have come here today not to talk about the past but to focus on the future. That future will be shaped more by what happens on November 8 in voting booths across our nation than by any other event in the world. I have come here to make it as clear as possible as to why I am endorsing Hillary Clinton and why she must become our next president.

During the last year I had the extraordinary opportunity to speak to more than 1.4 million Americans at rallies in almost every state in this country. I was also able to meet with many thousands of other people at smaller gatherings. And the profound lesson that I have learned from all of that is that this campaign is not really about Hillary Clinton, or Donald Trump or Bernie Sanders, or any other candidate who sought the presidency. This campaign is about the needs of the American people and addressing the very serious crises that we face. And there is no doubt in my mind that, as we head into November, Hillary Clinton is far and away the best candidate to do that.

It is easy to forget where we were seven and a half years ago when President Obama came into office. As a result of the greed, recklessness and illegal behavior on Wall Street, our economy was in the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. Some 800,000 people a month were losing their jobs, we were running up a record-breaking deficit of $1.4 trillion dollars and the world’s financial system was on the verge of collapse. We have come a long way in the last seven and a half years and I thank President Obama and Vice President Biden for their leadership in pulling us out of that terrible recession. But, I think we can all agree, much, much more needs to be done.

Too many people in America are still being left out, left behind and ignored. In the richest country in the history of the world there is too much poverty, and too much despair.

This election is about the single mom I saw in Nevada who, with tears in her eyes, told me that she was scared to death about the future because she and her young daughter were not making it on the $10.45 cents an hour she was earning. This election is about that woman, and the millions of other workers in this country who are falling further and further behind as they try to survive on totally inadequate wages.

Hillary Clinton understands that we must fix an economy in America that is rigged and that sends almost all new wealth and income to the top one percent. Hillary Clinton understands that if someone in America works 40 hours a week, that person should not be living in poverty. She believes that we should raise the minimum wage to a living wage. And she wants to create millions of new jobs by rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure. – our roads, bridges, water systems and wastewater plants.

But her opponent – Donald Trump – well, he has a very different view. He believes that states should have the right to lower the minimum wage or even abolish the concept of the minimum wage altogether. If Donald Trump is elected, we will see no increase in the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour – a starvation wage.

This election is about which candidate will nominate Supreme Court justices who are prepared to overturn the disastrous Citizens United decision which allows billionaires to buy elections and undermine our democracy; about who will appoint new justices on the Supreme Court who will defend a woman’s right to choose, the rights of the LGBT community, workers’ rights, the needs of minorities and immigrants, and the government’s ability to protect the environment.

If you don’t believe this election is important, take a moment to think about the Supreme Court justices that Donald Trump will nominate, and what that means to civil liberties, equal rights and the future of our country.

This campaign is about moving the United States toward universal health care and reducing the number of people who are uninsured or under-insured. Hillary Clinton wants to see that all Americans have the right to choose a public option in their health care exchange, which will lower the cost of health care. She also believes that anyone 55 years or older should be able to opt in to Medicare and she wants to see millions more Americans gain access to primary health care, dental care, mental health counseling and low-cost prescription drugs through a major expansion of community health centers throughout this country. Hillary is committed to seeing thousands of young doctors, nurses, psychologists, dentists and other medical professionals practice in underserved areas as we follow through on President Obama’s idea of tripling funding for the National Health Service Corps.

In New Hampshire, in Vermont and across the country we have a major epidemic of opiate and heroin addiction. People are dying every day from overdoses. Hillary Clinton understands that if we are serious about addressing this crisis we need major changes in the way we deliver mental health treatment. That’s what expanding community health centers will do and that is what getting medical personnel into the areas we need them most will do.

And What is Donald Trump’s position on health care? No surprise there. Same old, same old Republican contempt for working families. He wants to abolish the Affordable Care Act, throw 20 million people off of the health insurance they currently have and cut Medicaid for lower-income Americans. The last thing we need today in America is a president who doesn’t care about whether millions will lose access to the health care coverage that they desperately need. We need more people with access to quality health care, not fewer.

Hillary Clinton also understands that millions of seniors, disabled vets and others are struggling with the outrageously high cost of prescription drugs. She and I are in agreement that Medicare must negotiate drug prices with the pharmaceutical industry and that we must expand the use of generic medicine. Drug companies should not be making billions in profits while one in five Americans are unable to afford the medicine they need. The greed of the drug companies must end.

This election is about the grotesque level of income and wealth inequality that currently exists, the worst it has been since 1928. Hillary Clinton knows that something is very wrong when the very rich become richer while many others are working longer hours for lower wages. She knows that it is absurd that middle-class Americans are paying an effective tax rate higher than hedge fund millionaires, and that there are corporations in this country making billions in profit while they pay no federal income taxes in a given year because of loopholes their lobbyists created. While Hillary Clinton supports making our tax code fairer, Donald Trump wants to give hundreds of billions of dollars in tax breaks to the very wealthiest people in this country. His reckless economic policies will not only exacerbate income and wealth inequality, they would increase our national debt by trillions of dollars.

This election is about the thousands of young people I have met who have left college deeply in debt, the many others who cannot afford to go to college and the need for this country to have the best educated workforce in the world if we are to compete effectively in a highly competitive global economy. Hillary Clinton believes that we must substantially lower student debt, and that we must make public colleges and universities tuition free for the middle class and working families of this country. This is a major initiative that will revolutionize higher education in this country and improve the lives of millions. Think of what it will mean when every child in this country, regardless of the income of their family, knows that if they study hard and do well in school – yes, they will be able to get a college education and leave school without debt.

This election is about climate change, the greatest environmental crisis facing our planet, and the need to leave this world in a way that is healthy and habitable for our kids and future generations. Hillary Clinton is listening to the scientists who tell us that if we do not act boldly in the very near future there will be more drought, more floods, more acidification of the oceans, more rising sea levels. She understands that we must work with countries around the world in transforming our energy system away from fossil fuels and into energy efficiency and sustainable energy – and that when we do that we can create a whole lot of good paying jobs. Donald Trump: Well, like most Republicans, he chooses to reject science – something no presidential candidate should do. He believes that climate change is a hoax. In fact, he wants to expand the use of fossil fuel. That would be a disaster for our country and our planet.

This election is about the leadership we need to pass comprehensive immigration reform and repair a broken criminal justice system. It’s about making sure that young people in this country are in good schools or at good jobs, not in jail cells. Secretary Clinton understands that we don’t need to have more people in jail than any other country on earth, at an expense of $80 billion a year.

In these stressful times for our country, this election must be about bringing our people together, not dividing us up. While Donald Trump is busy insulting Mexicans, Muslims, women, African Americans and veterans, Hillary Clinton understands that our diversity is one of our greatest strengths. Yes. We become stronger when black and white, Latino, Asian American, Native American – all of us – stand together. Yes. We become stronger when men and women, young and old, gay and straight, native born and immigrant fight to rid this country of all forms of bigotry.

It is no secret that Hillary Clinton and I disagree on a number of issues. That’s what this campaign has been about. That’s what democracy is about. But I am happy to tell you that at the Democratic Platform Committee which ended Sunday night in Orlando, there was a significant coming together between the two campaigns and we produced, by far, the most progressive platform in the history of the Democratic Party. Our job now is to see that platform implemented by a Democratic Senate, a Democratic House and a Hillary Clinton presidency – and I am going to do everything I can to make that happen.

I have known Hillary Clinton for 25 years. I remember her as a great first lady who broke precedent in terms of the role that a first lady was supposed to play as she helped lead the fight for universal health care. I served with her in the United States Senate and know her as a fierce advocate for the rights of children.

Hillary Clinton will make an outstanding president and I am proud to stand with her here today.

Donald J. Trump Ten Point Plan for Veterans Reform

DONALD J. TRUMP: AMERICA FIRST MEANS VETERANS FIRST
 
Today, Donald J. Trump spoke at the Westin Virginia Beach Town Center in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Mr. Trump declared a commitment to upholding law and order in this country, and fighting to ensure that our veterans are served with the best medical care. The Clinton/Obama administration has betrayed our veterans' trust. Mr. Trump unveiled a 10-point plan to reform the VA and place veterans’ healthcare as a top priority.
 
Mr. Trump spoke today on the need to serve and protect those who have served and protected us - our police, law enforcement and military personnel.
Excerpts from the speech:

"We are going to reform our visa programs to ensure American Veterans are in the front, not back, of the line."

"Veterans should come first in the county they fought to protect, and under a Trump Administration they will."

"Hillary Clinton is the Secretary of the Status Quo"

"Hillary Clinton’s America is a country where the elite get one standard of treatment and everybody else gets second-class treatment."

"The decades of decay, division and decline will come to an end. The years of American Greatness will return."

"We are going to fight for our military and our law enforcement personnel the same way they have fought for us. We will be a safe, strong, and proud country once again."

In addition, he laid out a bold ten point plan for Veterans Reform:

Mr. Trump's Ten Point Plan To Reform The Department Of Veterans Affairs

1. Mr. Trump will appoint a VA Secretary whose sole purpose will be to serve veterans. The Obama Administration has continually placed D.C. bureaucrats' needs above those of veterans, this will not happen under a Trump Administration.
2. Mr. Trump will use the powers of the presidency to remove and discipline the federal employees and managers who have violated the public's trust and failed to carry out the duties on behalf of our veterans.
3. Mr. Trump will ask that Congress pass legislation that empowers the Secretary of the VA to discipline or terminate any employee who has jeopardized the health, safety or well-being of a veteran.
4. Mr. Trump will create a commission to investigate all the fraud, cover-ups, and wrong-doing that has taken place in the VA, and present these findings to Congress for to spur legislative reform.
5. Mr. Trump will protect and promote honest employees at the VA who highlight wrongdoing, and he will guarantee their jobs will be protected.
6. Mr. Trump will create a private White House hotline, which will be active 24 hours a day answered by a real person. It will be devoted to answering veteran's complaints of wrongdoing at the VA and ensure no complaints fall through the cracks.
7. Mr. Trump will stop giving bonuses to any VA employees who are wasting money, and start rewarding employees who seek to improve the VA's service, cut waste, and save lives.
8. Mr. Trump will reform the visa system to ensure veterans are at the front of the line for health services, not the back.
9. Mr. Trump will increase the number of mental health care professionals, and allow veteran's to be able to seek mental health care outside of the VA.
10. Mr. Trump will ensure every veteran has the choice to seek care at the VA or at a private service provider of their own choice. Under a Trump Administration, no veteran will die waiting for service. These days are over starting January 2017.

Hillary Clinton to Deliver a Speech at the Old State House in Springfield, Illinois on Wednesday, July 13, 2016

Hillary Clinton to Deliver a Speech at the Old State House in Springfield, Illinois on Wednesday, July 13, 2016

Hillary Clinton will travel to Springfield, Illinois on Wednesday, July 13 for an event to discuss building an America that is stronger together and an economy that works for everyone, not just those at the top.

On Wednesday, July 13, Hillary Clinton will deliver a speech at the Old State House in Springfield, Illinois.

Speech at the Old State House

WHEN: Wednesday, July 13 at 10:45 AM
WHERE: Old State House, 1 Old State Capitol Plaza, Springfield, Illinois 62701

Hillary Clinton Statement on Communications Workers of America Endorsement

Hillary Clinton Statement on Communications Workers of America Endorsement

After receiving the endorsement of the Communications Workers of America, Hillary Clinton issued the following statement:

“I am honored to have earned the endorsement of the Communications Workers of America.

“For decades, the CWA has connected Americans to each other—and along the way, they've helped build the American middle class.

“As President, I will always stand with the CWA to protect workers’ fundamental rights to organize, to bargain collectively, to be safe on the job, and to retire with dignity and security after years of hard work. I was proud to join the CWA on the picket line this year as they stood up to Verizon and fought for a fair deal.

“And I will do everything in my power to defend American jobs and American workers. Any trade deal must meet three tests to earn my support: It must create good American jobs, raise wages, and advance our national security. I do not believe that the Trans-Pacific Partnership meets this high standard. That's why I oppose the TPP — and that means before and after the election.

“Above all, we must make sure unions have a seat at the table and a champion in the White House. Because when workers are strong, families are strong—and when families are strong, America is strong.”

CWA Endorses Hillary Clinton for President

Washington, D.C. -- The Communications Workers of America whole-heartedly endorses Secretary Hillary Clinton for President of the United States.

We know that elections are about choices. The contrast between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, couldn’t be greater.

Hillary Clinton has stood with CWA members and pledges her commitment to making life better for working families. She’s walked with us on the Verizon picket line. She supports the call to get big money out of politics. She is committed to ending special treatment for Wall Street and the 1 percent. She wants to help students end the cycle of education debt. She has a solid record on the issues that are critical for working families: bargaining rights and the right to organize; family and medical leave; closing tax loopholes that benefit the 1 percent at the expense of our communities; secure health care and retirement benefits, and equal pay legislation. She has reaffirmed her opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership, now and in a possible lame-duck session of Congress.

Donald Trump also has been telling us exactly what he would do. He supports “right to work” laws that weaken workers’ bargaining rights. He thinks the minimum wage is too high and that workers who want good jobs should accept lower wages. He dismisses the need for equal pay for women. He talks a good game about bad trade deals but manufactures his fancy ties offshore.

Hillary Clinton is thoughtful and experienced. Donald Trump is reckless, unthinking and much more likely to cut a deal with his billionaire colleagues than look out for working families.

In a Donald Trump administration, we’d be watching our backs for four years. We’d have no opportunity to move forward on real gains for working families, instead, we’d be forced on defense, just to defend the jobs and gains we’ve made over the years. With Hillary Clinton as president, we will have the ability and opportunity to push forward on our agenda to build a just, democratic society for working families.

The choice is clear. CWA will do everything we can to mobilize our members and activists to elect Hillary Clinton President of the United States.

The largest number of CWA members and retirees are in California, Texas, New York, New Jersey, and Ohio. Activists will be engaged in worksite actions, staffing phone banks, neighborhood walks, and other support.

Trump Campaign Announces Expansion of Communications Team With Hiring of Bryan Lanza and Steven Cheung

TRUMP CAMPAIGN ANNOUNCES EXPANSION OF COMMUNICATIONS TEAM
 
Today, the Trump Campaign is pleased to announce the expansion of the communications team. These additions look to further educate voters on Hillary’s liberal track record of deception, and effectively communicate the campaign’s message – that Mr. Trump is the only candidate who will Make America Great Again.

The campaign has enlisted the services of Bryan Lanza, who will serve as the Deputy Communications Director for Surrogates. Mr. Lanza’s focus will be on organizing and mobilizing Trump supporters in an effective way that allows Mr. Trump’s America First message to resonate with voters. Mr. Lanza has served as a Chief of Staff for members of the California State Assembly and Senate. Most recently, Mr. Lanza served as Communications Director of the non-profit Citizens United.

Mr. Lanza will be the campaign’s point of contact for campaign surrogates, and the media should contact him directly with any requests. His email is blanza@donaldtrump.com.

The campaign has also brought aboard Steven Cheung, who will serve as the campaign's Director of Rapid Response. Mr. Cheung’s focus will be on keeping the campaign up to date on breaking news and pushing back on false or unbalanced reporting. Cheung has worked in communications on several Senate and gubernatorial campaigns, as well as the 2008 McCain-Palin presidential campaign. Mr. Cheung most recently served as the Director of Communications and Public Affairs for the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

These additions to the campaign will be critical to spreading Mr. Trump’s message and defeating Hillary Clinton in November. The Trump Campaign will continue to build out the communications team as we head toward November 8th.