CALL ME SANDER-ELLA
Bernie: I beat Clinton empire
WASHINGTON — Hillary Clinton was declared the winner in Iowa, but Bernie Sanders was the one taking a victory lap — while his campaign questioned whether she had even really won.
Arriving in New Hampshire early Tuesday morning, Sanders told a crowd of supporters waiting for him in the cold that his campaign “astounded the world” and is going to “astound the world again” in the Granite State.
By afternoon, Sanders’ stump speech sounded as if he had tackled a giant.
“Last night in Iowa, we took on the most powerful political organization in the country,” he said. “Last night, we came back from a 50point deficit in the polls.”
Sanders’ campaign team, meanwhile, cast doubt on the official results that put Clinton ahead, 49.9 percent to 49.6 percent.
“As an empirical matter, we’re not likely to ever know what the actual result was,” Jeff Weaver, Sanders’ campaign manager, told The Washington Post.
He cited the “arcane” rules, narrow margin and delayed reporting by some precincts to question the official tally.
Sanders’ camp found further reason to question the outcome when the Des Moines Register reported that there were several tie votes during the caucuses that were settled in the manner prescribed under Iowa law — with coin tosses.
Initial reports said Clinton won six out of six coin flips. But Democratic Party spokesman Sam Lau insisted the reports were inaccurate and that Sanders actually won six of seven.
Further confusing the situation. Lau said only officials using the party’s smartphone app were required to report the coin tosses.
Sanders supporters crowed about his virtual tie with Clinton, saying it sent shock waves through the Democratic establishment.
The Working Families Party, which is backing the Vermont senator, sent out a fundraising email describing the outcome as a “political revolution.” Democracy for America Executive Director Charles Chamberlain said the results were “a huge win for Bernie, a major upset for the frontrunner.”
But Clinton told her supporters she’ll take the win.
“Don’t ever forget, close elections matter . . . You either win or you lose,” she said at a rally Tuesday in Nashua, NH.
Clinton’s allies in the US Senate shrugged off her nearloss in Iowa.
“Iowa was hardly Hillary’s best state,” said Sen. Charles Schumer (DNY). “Last time [in 2008], she came in third, and [this year] she won.”
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (DNev.) was dismissive of Sanders’ performance in Iowa and his lead in New Hampshire.
“Did you see the diversity in Iowa last night? . . . There wasn’t any,” Reid told reporters at the Capitol Tuesday.
Reid looked forward to Nevada and South Carolina, which he says better reflect the country’s diversity.
Meanwhile, Sanders appeared to be gearing up for a battle with Clinton on her home turf in New York. The Vermont senator had gathered 85,000 signatures to get on the primary ballot here, far exceeding the 5,000 required, showing he is not prepared to concede the state.